Pritchard: Departed CU coach MacIntyre fell short of ‘lofty’ expectations

With upgraded facilities and renewed enthusiasm surrounding University of Colorado football, Mike Pritchard said freshly departed head coach Mike MacIntyre could no longer meet the “lofty” expectations put on the program.

The “Pritchard and Cecil” co-host commended MacIntyre for restoring the “passion and commitment of the CU Buffs” over his six-year tenure in Boulder but said the coach got to a point “where expectations were not being met.”

“I think coach Mac, he’s been a great coach. He really has. He’s restored these expectations,” Pritchard said. “But he’s not reaching them now. He’s not reaching what everybody expects, especially with the commitment level that CU has again.”

Pritchard said there’s a longing within Buffs Nation to see CU once again filtering through great players, winning conference championships, and eyeing national titles.

“CU has an athletic director in Rick George that wants to be the best and wants to see the football program reach those higher expectations,” Pritchard said.

And Pritchard said he trusts in George to bring in a play caller to make those expectations a reality.

“We have to meet expectations, but how do you do that? You’ve got to go find somebody that can, certainly, live up to that,” Pritchard said. “I don’t know what name is out there. I don’t know who it’s going to be. But I trust in Rick George that he’s going to find the right head coach for the CU Buffs.”

Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @JohnnyHart7.