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Visit recap: San Diego linebacker Victory Johnson recaps "amazing" experience on Colorado OV


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Victory Johnson is one of the 2023 recruits still looking for a future home. The linebacker prospect from Cathedral Catholic in San Diego, California has been strongly considering visits to both Colorado and Arizona State. Both of those programs are now going to have to hire new head coaches. Still, he decided that he wanted to make an official visit to CU to check out the campus on a game day and reconnect with Mark Smith and the other Buffs coaches who remain on staff.

He was not disappointed with the visit as he was able to rush the field after seeing CU win its first game of the season. The crowd and energy in the stadium on Saturday has left a lasting impression on Johnson. He is not yet planning to make any decision as he wants to see how the process plays out and what eventually happens to a coach like Smith, but CU is certainly in consideration as he continues to push ahead in his recruitment.

"The trust that I have with coach Smith, he seemed very, very optimistic even with coaching changes that they're going to show what they can do as a defense. Also, being able to see the university, the campus, see the fan base and the atmosphere at game time was really cool to see. I don't think there's any place that could be 0-5 and sell out, which they did this past week against Cal. Seeing that was awesome."

Read the full visit recap at the link up top.

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One school bound to eventually join Pac-12, while no more exits from the conference are expected

Hello? Road games to San Diego.
The confidence in the future of the Pac-12 continues to surge

The Pac-12 Conference is in quite the predicament right now as they continue to seek a respectable media rights deal, while also deal with the expansion of the conference.

The whirlwind that has been the rumors about their expansion are continuing to flourish, as even despite the conference emphasizing that there is a focus on securing a new deal, expansion is imminent. The belief around the country is the conference will expand, it is just a matter of when they do, more so than if.

There were some rumors that the Big 12 and Big Ten were targeting Pac-12 schools, but with recent reports that the Big Ten is done for now, Pac-12 insider John Canznao reported that there is no sense of belief that Pac-12 schools will go to the Big 12. He also expressed confidence that San Diego state is a lock to join the Pac-12 rather than the Big 12 when the conference finally expands saying:

The Pac-12 affiliation makes far more sense for San Diego State. There’s also an order of operations here: 1) Media rights negotiations; and 2) conference expansion. The Big 12’s media rights negotiations are trailing the Pac-12’s by about a year. I think San Diego State will eventually land in the Pac-12 Conference.
He continued explaining that the "four corner" schools that the Big 12 desires do not feel the same way, saying:

Utah, Colorado, Arizona and ASU aren’t going anywhere in this cycle. Don’t buy into the hysteria from the misinformed, unsourced message-board honks. They’re busy back-pedaling this week. In the last few months, I’ve talked with numerous high-level officials on a variety of Pac-12 campuses. My sources never wavered. They insist the remaining 10 members are sticking together and I believe them.
Assuming the conference will want to get back to 12 teams after the departure of USC and UCLA, and San Diego State seems like it is a lock for the first spot, it will be fascinating to see who the Pac-12 gives the nod to as that last team. I personally believe it could either be Fresno State, Boise State, or SMU. In a perfect world the conference could add all four, but their plans for the quantity of teams have to be disclosed.
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Search Firm Hired, Per Brian Howell . . .

A search firm has been hired to assist with the HC selection, so that should take some of the burden off RG's back.

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Rick George can now focus on the issues that best suit his talents:

1. Choosing what color cellophane to use on the hors d'oeuvre toothpicks;

2. Chardonnay in the Flatirons Club : Oaky v buttery.

3. Stan Smiths or Nike Air Force Ones with the game day suit?

4. Call Dorrell - why is he sending me Hickory Farms sausage and fruit baskets every damn day? Annoying . . .

5. Finally getting around to reading the Colorado NIL legislation.

6. Trying to figure out why Whizzer White never returns his calls.

7. Looking for the Transfer Portal in the Champions Center. It wasn't in the budget or "as built" drawings . . .

8. Scheduling home and homes with Oxford and Cambridge- they don't take transfers either.

9. Negotiating the "buy out" for cancelling his Comcast cable service early. My advice: buy Comcast stock

10. Look through the Crutchfield catalog for Folsom speakers.

Josh Chandler-Semedo could be set to thrive with Buffs' defensive changes

One of Colorado's tackling leaders, veteran ILB Josh Chandler-Semedo, "has been one of the most consistent guys all year," ILB coach Mark Smith said. Saturday provided Chandler-Semedo with his first win since Nov. 27 and a relieving moment for both him and CU's defense.

Colorado's Mike Sanford is the latest interim coach to find success

The coaching carousel has been unusually busy in the first half of the college football season, with five Power Five programs firing their head coaches before they played their sixth game. What's perhaps more interesting is that in each instance, the interim coach has done fairly well -- in most cases, better than the head coach they replaced

In that way, Colorado's win against Cal last Saturday continued that trend

Videos: Aubrey Smith, Ben Finneseth, Jake Wiley, Anthony Lyle

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True freshman Aubrey Smith discusses his big play on Saturday, taking a bigger role and the progress amongst the defense.



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Ben Finneseth talks about the exciting events of Saturday, being appointed as a captain and playing for CU.



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Jake Wiley describes his experience playing against Cal, Van Wells and the integration of young players.



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Anthony Lyle discusses the special team unit's performance on Saturday and how he's personally grown throughout the season.
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QB a 'game-time decision,' but J.T. Shrout could start Saturday for Buffs

True freshman Owen McCown feeling a little “banged up” after taking that hit in the third on Saturday, opening up the potential starting job for J.T. Shrout, but it’ll be a, “game-time decision,” according to interim head coach Mike Sanford.

More on the quarterbacks and preparing for Oregon State:

Pac 12 Bowl Projection per the Mercury News

Rose Bowl
Team:
Oregon (5-1/3-0)
Home games remaining (three): UCLA, Washington, Utah
Road games remaining (three): Cal, Colorado, Oregon State
Comment: The Hotline hasn’t been wrong about anything in two or three minutes, but it’s difficult to envision Oregon receiving a playoff invitation — even at 12-1 and carrying a Pac-12 title. The Georgia loss was simply too damaging.

Cotton Bowl
Team:
USC (6-1/4-1)
Home (three): Cal, Colorado, Notre Dame
Road (two): Arizona, UCLA
Comment: Our current projections call for USC to finish third in the Pac-12 race but return to the Cotton, where the Trojans lost to Ohio State in the 2017 season.

Alamo Bowl
Team:
UCLA (6-0/3-0)
Home (three): Stanford, Arizona, USC
Road (three): Oregon, Arizona State, Cal
Comment: No team has a wider range of landing spots than the Bruins, who could reach the playoff or slide to Las Vegas or El Paso, in part because the Holiday wants no part of them.

Holiday Bowl
Team:
Utah (5-2/3-1)
Home (two): Arizona, Stanford
Road (three): WSU, Oregon, Colorado
Comment: One more loss and the Utes are out of the New Year’s Six chase. And because they have played in the Alamo and Holiday bowls recently, they could slide to Las Vegas if a return to the Granddaddy isn’t their destiny.

Las Vegas Bowl
Team:
Washington (5-2/2-2)
Home (two): Oregon State, Colorado
Road (three): Cal, Oregon, WSU
Comment: As long as the Huskies get to the high side of .500 in conference play, Las Vegas is an option, How about Mississippi State (and Mike Leach) as the opponent? That might generate some interest.

Sun Bowl
Team:
Oregon State (5-2/2-2)
Home (three): Cal, Colorado, Oregon
Road (two): Washington, ASU
Comment: The Beavers are a postseason lock after the victory over WSU. It’s only a matter of how high they climb — and that could hinge on the outcome of the Nov. 4 duel in Husky Stadium.

LA Bowl
Team:
Washington State (4-3/1-3)
Home (three): Utah, ASU, Washington
Road (two): Stanford, Arizona
Comment: The Cougars need two wins to qualify and will be favored, or a slight underdog, in four games. We like their chances (although not as much as we did a few weeks ago).

Non-qualifier
Team:
Arizona (3-4/1-3)
Home (three): USC, Washington State, ASU
Road (two): Utah, UCLA
Comment: While Arizona’s position here remains unchanged, its underlying odds have deteriorated substantially. Winning zero more games is just as likely as winning three more.

Non-qualifier
Team:
Arizona State (2-4/1-2)
Home (two): UCLA, Oregon State
Road (four): Stanford, Colorado, WSU, Arizona
Comment: Increasing the victory total by 50 percent this week — from two to three — would improve ASU’s prospects for the postseason by an equivalent amount. Win at Stanford, and the math gets easier.

Non-qualifier
Team:
Cal (3-3/1-2)
Home (four): Washington, Oregon, Stanford, UCLA
Road (two): USC, Oregon State
Comment: The Hotline envisions a scenario in which Cal misses a bowl berth by one game and Colorado only wins one game. And we can’t be the only ones expecting that end-game.

Non-qualifier
Team:
Colorado (1-5/1-2)
Home (three): ASU, Oregon, Utah
Road (three): Oregon State, USC, Washington
Comment: The floor for CU is now 1-11, but the ceiling is 2-10.

Non-qualifier
Team:
Stanford (2-4/0-4)
Home (three): ASU, WSU, Brigham Young
Road (three): UCLA, Utah, Cal
Comment: We’re saying there’s a chance, but only because we’ve actually watched ASU, WSU, BYU and Cal play multiple times.

So how about Shrout?

Glad to see him get a chance to show what he can do when given a decent chance, and throw the game winning pass. He was 8 for 12, with some really nice throws. His other opportunities this season were under very adverse circumstance. (And yes, he had some bad fumbles.) Happy for JT! Was very humble in the post-game interview, and gave kudos to Owen McCown for his performance.
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