There’s no question that Mike MacIntyre’s job was on the line heading into this season. While the University of Colorado had proven that they were willing to be patient, fans had not, and another losing season could have been the nail in his coaching coffin.
And then … this.
MacIntyre’s Buffs took the proverbial leap, turning into a Pac-12 power house — yes, that still feels weird to say. At 6-2, the Colorado Buffaloes sit alone atop the Pac-12 South. If they win out, they’ll earn an invite to the Pac-12 Championship Game, where they’ll likely face off against No. 4 Washington. A win there and, well, who knows … maybe there’s an outside shot at a playoff spot?
It sounds crazy, and it probably is, but most people would have called you crazy if you predicted that the Buffs would beat Oregon, Arizona State and Stanford in the same year — decade, even. And that’s without mentioning that they were leading the Michigan Wolverines early in the third quarter before Sefo Liufau was knocked out of the game with injury.
This has been a magical season, defying all reasonable expectations, and head coach Mike MacIntyre deserves a lot of the credit. Now, he’s getting it.
On Monday, MacIntyre was named to the mid-season watch list for the Dodd Trophy, an award given out to the nation’s top Division I football coach each season.
The Buffs still have four games left on their schedule, not counting their bowl or possible conference championship game, and they’ve already surpassed their season win total from last year (4-9). They’re ranked inside the top 20 in both total offense and total defense, a feat only three other schools (No. 1 Alabama, No. 5 Louisville and No. 6 Ohio State) can claim.
In the span of 12 months, Colorado has gone from the basement to the penthouse, and it’s a testament to all the hard work MacIntyre has put in over the last three-and-a-half years.
If MacIntyre were to win the award, he’d be the second MacIntyre to do so, as his father, George MacIntyre, took home the trophy back in 1982 while coaching Vanderbilt.
