Colorado's New Coach Survives Rocky Start

NT80 · November 3, 2007

Colorado's new coach survives rocky start

After rocky first season, Hawkins has Buffaloes going in right direction

10:39 PM CDT on Thursday, November 1, 2007

By CHIP BROWN / The Dallas Morning News

chipbrown@dallasnews.com

Colorado coach Dan Hawkins, who has gone diving with sharks and skydiving from 10,000 feet, talks to his players all the time about getting out of their comfort zone. About putting themselves in the fire, heating up and being bent and pounded until becoming a shiny piece of steel.

Last year, while going 2-10 in his first losing season as a head coach and watching his previous team, Boise State, become the darling of college football, Hawkins had to relearn those lessons himself.

"It was painful. It took years off my life," Hawkins said. "I know this stuff is always corny. But I think that's what life is about. I loved Boise State and loved the town, the school and the players. But the reality was they didn't need me anymore. They didn't. They proved that."

And after the Buffaloes went 2-10 in 2006 while setting offense back 100 years, Colorado fans may have been wondering what CU had in Hawkins. No one could mistake his passion, however.

When an anonymous parent of a player sent him a letter complaining that Colorado's off-season was being cut from three weeks to two weeks, Hawkins boomed to reporters, "It's Division I football! It's the Big 12!"

The quotes made it onto seemingly every sportscast and radio show in America. It prompted Hawkins' wife, Misti, to jokingly suggest that her husband go to one of those retreats at a monastery where no one talks for three days.

Not just talk

But Hawkins, a voracious reader of motivational and inspirational books who turns 47 next week, now has all of Boulder and the rest of college football finally taking notice of CU for things on the field instead of off.

CU erased a 24-7, third-quarter deficit and beat Oklahoma, 27-24, on Sept. 29, then knocked off Texas Tech for the second straight year last Saturday. If the Buffs (5-4, 3-2 Big 12) can take down No. 9 Missouri on Saturday at Folsom Field, they will be bowl-eligible with games against Iowa State and Nebraska remaining.

"I talk a lot about foundations and passion," Hawkins said. "I talk about the thrive mode instead of the survive mode. We're all going to take our bumps. But every day, you're seeing the Colorado community getting more fired up."

What Hawkins found when he first got to Colorado was a program without any confidence. The entire administration at the school – from chancellor to athletic director – had turned over just before Hawkins arrived. While officials said the changes weren't connected to allegations of a football program run amuck under former coach Gary Barnett, the timing made it seem more than coincidental.

"I do think these guys, this school and this program had been trampled on in many, many ways," Hawkins said. "I'm not throwing fault or stones. It was just the nature of the beast a little bit."

The son rises

What Hawkins inherited on offense, particularly at quarterback, was a far cry from what he left behind at Boise State with Jared Zabransky. Hawkins' best option was his son Cody, a true freshman. But Cody wasn't ready, although Dan nearly took his son's redshirt off six games into last season.

Here's how Cody Hawkins described the quarterback situation last year on an offense that would complete only seven touchdown passes all season:

"We had two quarterbacks here on scholarship who probably couldn't play for my high school team. And then we had one guy who was a junior who didn't really get along with the guys, and we had a senior who had the enthusiasm of most rocks in a gravel pit.

"And then we had Bernard [Jackson], who was an enthusiastic guy who hadn't played a whole lot of quarterback. Bernard was athletic and could make things happen, so he did the best he could."

The end result was an offense that finished 116th nationally of 119 teams in passing (118.5 yards per game), 102nd in total offense (291.4) and 107th in scoring (16.3 points per game).

"There's that long-time saying that you don't sacrifice long-term success for short-term victories," Hawkins said of redshirting his son last season. "And it's hard to throw a true freshman out there. You want to win now, but you have to look at the long-term picture for the individual and the program."

A family thing

Cody has been up and down this season, throwing 15 TD passes with 14 interceptions. But he didn't flinch in victories against Oklahoma and Texas Tech.

And while the NCAA has a 20-hour rule limiting the amount of time a coach spends with his players during the week, there's no rule on what a son talks about during dinner at his parents' house.

"That's always helped us out a lot," Cody said.

Added Dan, "Cheryl Beamer told me once, after her son, Shane, played for Frank [beamer] at Virginia Tech, 'When he's at school, he's your player. When he's at home, he's your boy.' So I try not to bring it up too much unless he wants to talk about football."

Hawkins will be seeing the spread offense again this week when Missouri rolls into Boulder. His time at Boise State, facing similar offenses all over the WAC (think Hawaii and Nevada), have prepared him to slow it down.

Having inherited from Barnett senior linebacker Jordon Dizon and senior cornerback Terrence Wheatley of Plano East has helped.

Seven freshmen and sophomores are starting for Colorado, which returns 16 starters next season. Hawkins, who loves stories about overcoming adversity, sees a bright future for Colorado.

"Sometimes that pain is a bittersweet pain," he said. "But you feel good that you have enough guts and determination to see it through and make it to the other side."

TURNING IT UP

Dan Hawkins went 53-11 at Boise State from 2001-05 with one of the most prolific offenses in the country. Here's a look at his offenses at Boise State and how the offense is improving at Colorado (national rank in parentheses):

School, years Passing YPG Total YPG Scoring

Boise State, 2001-05 274.6 (10th) 465.7 (3rd) 41.6 (1st)

Colorado, 2006 118.5 (116th) 291.4 (102nd) 16.3 (107th)

Colorado, 2007 234.3 (54th) 376.8 (73rd) 25.3 (71st)

No. 9 Missouri (7-1, 3-1 Big 12) at Colorado (5-4, 3-2), 5:30 p.m. Saturday (FSNSW)

Edited November 3, 2007 by NT80

greenminer · November 3, 2007

Here's how Cody Hawkins described the quarterback situation last year on an offense that would complete only seven touchdown passes all season:
"We had two quarterbacks here on scholarship who probably couldn't play for my high school team. And then we had one guy who was a junior who didn't really get along with the guys, and we had a senior who had the enthusiasm of most rocks in a gravel pit.

Wow. I wonder how much that got spun, if at all?

MeanGreenEagle · November 3, 2007

Cody Hawkins is an interesting kid. I doubt any of that quote was altered.

meangreen2018 · November 3, 2007

I definatley believe that Todd Dodge can Come back like that because he won like 5 state titles at carroll. What's so different about HS and NCAA. Especially next year when the players get a liitle better.