Tuesday Grab Bag: 'Final Four' and 'Colorado' in the same sentence

I come to you today from Newark, NJ, of all places, stuck in the relatively benign airport hell of a three hour layover on the East Coast. How and why I came to be here is neither important or interesting.  Suffice it to be said that I can't wait to board the next flight, and get back to beautiful, colorful Colorado.

--

As a quick aside, there were some unscrupulous bloggers around the intertubes tossing around the notion that the University of Colorado would be well-served by a return to the Big XII.  See, the old conference of UT lackeys is looking to re-expand, and there are a few lost souls out there who are naive enough to think that CU was anything but thankful to be rid of that albatross of a league back in 2011.  Let me assure you all out there in BuffNation, these articles were written by people with no understanding of the factors in play, and no contacts within the Athletic Department.  Colorado is well and clear of that debacle, and never going back.

Further, for the record, I still think CSU's hopes of earning a bid to that league are as laughable as the notion that CU might want back in.  Unless the BigXII has to dip into their third-tier of choices, which I doubt, the Rams will still be on the outside of the Power Five looking in once this dust-up settles.

But, enough of that nonsense. Today in the bag, I'm talking about Team Colorado and The Basketball Tournament, some hoops scheduling notes for the CU Men's team, and My Sox at the end of their road.

Click below for the bag...

Tuesday Grab Bag: Team Colorado steams into Sweet Sixteen

So, how's everyone's summer going?  It's been pretty quiet on the sporting front, with little to nothing happening as we hit July.  In fact...

... wait, we have breaking news from the Drew League:

@ShannSharpe2 with the DUNK OF THE SUMMER at the @DrewLeague today!!! #SCtop10 pic.twitter.com/XYWMrs3gd0

— Dunkademics.com (@Dunkademics) July 11, 2016

Good Lord, that should come with a NSFW tag.  That's former CU guard and manager Shannon Sharpe throwing down on... some guy in the Drew League, and... you know, I really think that poor man may be dead...

So, RIP, random dude who got dunked on.

--

Today in the bag, I only have two items of note for y'all, as I won't waste my breath on the All Star Game.  I'm talking success at TBT and the Euro Finale.

Click below for the bag...

Tuesday Grab Bag: Buffs fill out roster in style

Over the holiday weekend, Boulder was visited by an eclectic mix of aged hippies and hangers on... which didn't really differentiate it much from any other weekend, come to think of it.  I kid, but the Grateful Dead, or what remains of the old school peace and love touring group, played two shows at Folsom; the first such musical performances at the stadium since 2001 (Dave Matthews Band).  From all accounts, the concerts went off without a hitch, and, more importantly, there was little trouble in the City of Boulder pre- or post-shows.  From my own experience, I found the attendees to be rather reserved and far from destructive on the larger neighborhood (I live four blocks from Folsom, and walked the creek path before each show).

Seemed like a pretty cool scene up on campus.  From: @CUBuffsTurf

Now, I don't give a shit about the Dead.  Not my style of music, not my kind of crowd (outside of Bill Walton, who is, of course, always welcome at the Casa de Rumblin).  But, this was an important moment for CU.  The ability to hold concerts at other non-football events at Folsom is a nice revenue stream to the athletic department, and putting on these shows with the Dead and Company were the first steps towards tapping that stream since before the east-side suites went up.  I don't believe for a second that CU made too much money this weekend, at least nothing that'll come close to erasing the remaining costs of the facility upgrades, but every dollar added, without too much impact on the community, is important, and nothing to sniff at.

Additionally, the last time Folsom hosted a concert, the football team went on to win a conference title, and drop the most satisfying scoreline in the history of the program.  Maybe, in that vein, the return of some touring musical karma will help the 2016 Buffaloes end the painful bowl drought...

--

Today in the Bag, I'm talking a huge pickup for Coach Boyle and the men's basketball team, tipoff in The Basketball Tournament, and a Euros update.

Click below for the bag...