Naming names; Dizon; coaching trail

Gooooooooooooooood morrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrninnnnnnnng, CU fans.

O.K., all apologies to Robin Williams on that one but you are not going to believe what the Black and Gold Truth is about to share.

Of course, I have to make sure we have an understanding -- this is as unsubstantiated as it is out there, but I'm all about the "giving" so here it is -- a source has told me that a new name is "in the mix" so-to-speak in the CU coaching search to replace Ricardo Patton.

That name, and remember I just share them, I don't make them up, is Tom Abatemarco, a man with a wealth of experience.

Now, it was also shared with me that Abatemarco is a fall-back guy for Air Force's Jeff Bzdelik.

And it says here in this space that Buffs' athletic director Mike Bohn will look at NCAA Tournament coaches. I have to believe that even if it might not be accurate.

Nice to see that those with dissenting views on Bzdelik are not few as Woody Paige of the Denver Post echoes the sentiments expressed here and elsewhere. Settling on Bzdelik right now would be foolish, as has been written in this space for a week.

Dizon touted

Buffs' linebackers' coach Brian Cabral sees more in pupil Jordon Dizon than Dizon sees when he looks into the mirror, as Ryan Thorburn writes about in the Daily Camera.

"I think with his understanding of this defense now, he'll make a lot more big plays," Cabral said.

Then this dandy from Cabral.

"He is critical of himself and he is humble. When it's all said and done, I fully expect him to be in the class of all those guys. But he's got a lot of work to do still and he knows it."

BGT: Dizon is not a finished product. Cabral wants more out of him and know's he's capable. The coach is also just doing his job, trying to motivate Dizon and let him know that all the praise being sent his way by the media doesn't help him make tackles or steal the ball from opponents. That comes from w-o-r-k.

Scrimmage time

CU is ready for a football scrimmage Saturday, which fans like because they find it a better barometer of progress than practices. Seeing who emerges early and who or what is lacking is a good thing.

Cormier and Holz new branches on the Buffs coaching tree

Cedric Cormier and Nick Holz are the latest additions to the coaching ranks from Buffs' players.

BGT: Cormier was huge recruit who played hard but did not fully blossom as expected. Attaching his wagon to former CU assistant Bobby Hauck could pay nice dividends for him.

Holz going to Nebraska, well, does it get any more sick than that? Opportunity is opportunity though and you have to be open to any door that presents itself. He just walked through the one he saw and it will be a good thing for his aspirations.

Congratulations to both men.

NCAA pokes

Interesting that Butler beat Old Dominion in the fact that Todd Lickliter, a flavor-of-the-moment coach nationally beat Blaine Taylor, who has been mentioned as a possibility for Colorado. That might be a tough sell now. Taylor is a winner but going down early in March would not sit well with fans with other coaches still, well, coaching.

Admire Duke's basketball program but their air of superiority rubs many the wrong way. Seeing them undone by Virginia Commonwealth and coach Anthony Grant was as satisfying as a great meal. Grant is one of the hottest coaching candidates in the land but remember this was not a typical dominant Blue Devils' team. Talented but not overflowing with it and the chemistry was never just right. And now, they might lose their best overall player (Josh McRoberts) to the NBA draft.

Mark Few's stock slipped this season at Gonzaga, especially after losing to Indiana last night but he still will end up elsewhere in the next few seasons, bank on it. He's a winner.

Kelvin Sampson took a lot of grief for ditching Oklahoma last year but he's going to turn that Hoosier program around, no doubt.

Vanderbilt shredded George Washington. Commodores' coach Kevin Stallings is an under-the-radar coach who, while not exciting the masses, could be a good fit in Boulder. Karl Hobbs' star took a hit in the loss but he remains highly desired as a leader.

Who's hotter than Washington State's Tony Bennett? An out-of-nowhere guy who is going to be very rich very soon. Like yesterday.

Xavier's Sean Miller is gaining ground as a hot name around the country.

Anyone notice Rick Pitino doing a great job done Louisville way?

Or that Georgetown is a feel-good story behind John Thompson III. If it weren't for Thompson having Hoya blood, he too could be a good fit at CU.

Big 12 representatives

Texas Tech stunk defensively against Boston College and now goes home.

Texas A & M, however, got back to playing its' trademark "D" and knocked out Penn.

Side Roads

Anytime Denver beats the Los Angeles Lakers, it's significant because those guys from Cali own the homeboys. Allen Iverson and Carmelo Anthony were special in the 113-86 blowout because they played all-around games. They looked like the elite players their wrapping says they are.

And Kiki Vandeweghe's gift of Linas Kleiza ripped it up for 29 points. Continue to say that the former Missouri Tiger has the ability to help this team with more consistent minutes.

Jason Hirsh, who came to the Colorado Rockies in the Jason Jennings' trade showed he his minor league numbers weren't a fluke -- he can pitch. The Rockies beat the A's behind Hirsh's sometimes rocky but effective work. Expect struggles this season but flashes of talent, too. Maybe not a no. 1 starter but hopefully no worse than a Jennings' clone -- workhouse and a .500 pitcher with a ceiling of a consistent 14-16 game winner.

Is Nene hurt again? After looking like a future All-Star for a while, he's hit the skids and looking like Joe Ordinary.