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Colorado vs. Cal
Week 2 College Football Pick
9/10/10
This is being called a glimpse into the future by major media outlets as the
the Colorado Buffaloes head west to take on future PAC-10 foe California in a
game that will go along way towards setting up the rest of the season for both
squads. Neither team has lived up to expectations in recent years, particularly
Cal who was hyped as a potential BCS Title contender last year. For the
Buffaloes, it's coach
Dan Hawkins on the hot seat. Colorado had high hopes of
their own last year only to turn in a 3-9 performance.
With a new year comes new high hopes. Cal loses Jahvid Best to the NFL but have Shane Vereen, who led the Buffs in rushing after Best went down with an injury last year. This Cal team looks to be the same team offensively. Defensively they lost 6 starters, but hey, it was a defense that gave up 25 points per game, so no harm done there.
Colorado has talent. They have a veteran team. They have had their moments under Hawkins. In 2007 they beat Oklahoma, Texas Tech and Nebraska and came up short by a TD to Alabama in a Bowl game. In 2008 they knocked off West Viefinia and even last year in a 3-9 season, they still managed to hang with Oklahoma State and Nebraska. You can only blame the coaching for their shortcomings. The talent is there. A coach needs to get the most from his talent week in and week out, not just some of the time. Truth is, if Colorado could have afforded to buy out Hawkins contract, he'd be gone.
But Hawkins remains and the schedule is actually favorable enough for the Buffs to show a drastic improvement in the win-loss column. with a win under their belt already, they have another 4 or 5 very winnable games. An upset or two could put them around the 7 win mark and in a Bowl game. No time like the present to start pulling upsets.
Cal opened up as an 8 point favorite in this game and has been bet up to -9 at most sportsbooks. We wouldn't be shocked to see this number continue to rise. Cal has been the much better, consistent team over the last several years and the public tends to overreact to matchups such as this. However, we feel this is a good spot for Colorado. We know the talent is there. It just doesn't show up each time out. But with the added motivation of playing a future PAC-10 opponent, and the added pressure on Hawkins to win, not to mention a Cal defense that leaves a lot to be desired, +9 is too much to pass up. +10 would be even better. Colorado +9