Up Next: Colorado St. eyes second Pac-12 scalp in Rocky Mountain Showdown
Colorado State is feeling pretty good about themselves after thumping a lower tier Pac-12 team Saturday afternoon in the debut of the Rams’ new 36,000 seat on-campus stadium.
Two days after his team dominated Oregon State, outscoring the Beavers, 34-7, in the second half, CSU coach Mike Bobo acknowledged the Rams face a significantly stiffer test against Colorado in Friday night’s Rocky Mountain Showdown at Sports Authority Field in Denver (6 p.m. MT, Pac-12 Network).
CSU is eager, of course, to claim another Pac-12 scalp, but the Buffaloes are equally ambitious to prove last season’s resurgence and Pac-12 South title was no fluke, and nobody understands that better than Bobo, now in his third year as the Colorado State head coach.
“We have a bigger challenge this week as a football team,” Bobo said Monday during his weekly press conference. ”(We’re facing) a very, very good football team that is returning a lot of players. They’re missing a few from last year’s team, which everybody is. But their core group, their core values and the culture Coach MacIntyre has established there, those guys believe in it.”
Beginning with Pac-12 Media Days, Colorado’s defensive players have insisted throughout preseason camp that the Buffaloes won’t take a step backwards on that side of the ball, that they are better than people think even with a first-year defensive coordinator and several new starters at defensive line and secondary.
The Buffs will finally get a chance to back up their words when they face a prolific Colorado State offense that has scored 50 or more points in three straight games for the first time in school history, 40 or more points in six of the last seven contests. The Rams totaled 525 total offensive yards against Oregon State and averaged 6.4 yards per play.
Colorado State quarterback Nick Stevens was 26-of-39 passing for 334 yards and three touchdowns in Saturday’s rout of Oregon State, while wide receiver Michael Gallup caught 11 balls for 134 yards, marking his sixth consecutive game with 100+ yards receiving dating back to last year.
“We’ve got some guys with some experience,” Bobo said. “We have some guys with confidence. They understand that no matter what happens, we’ll figure things out for the next drive. Obviously, we try to manufacture things to get the ball into (Gallup’s) hands. When we do that, we’re a different offense. At the same time, you want to be efficient enough on offense where it can go to any offensive skill player. We saw that on Saturday. Our quarterback has a great understanding of where the ball needs to go.”
Neither Stevens or Gallup could find the living as easy against the Buffs defense as they did against the Beavers, Bobo said.
Insider Report: Buffs to face 'explosive offensive football team'
“They have done a great job building that defense,” Bobo said. “They understand what they’re trying to do schematically. I know they have a new defensive coordinator, but the things Coach (Jim) Leavitt did and what Coach (DJ) Eliot does are very similar on tape. They have big guys up front that are stout. They have big guys in the secondary that can run and play the ball.”
The Colorado State defense couldn’t slow down the Buffs offense in last year’s 44-7 Colorado win in the season opener for both teams as CU gained 578 yards and ran the ball 56 times for 260 yards on the ground.
“They came out and thoroughly whipped us in that ball game,” Bobo said. “It seemed like it was 2-½ to 3 hours before we got a first down. They were the better team in all phases of the game. But that was last year. It’s a new team for both teams. We have a lot to do to come out and get ready to play Friday night. We are a different football team than we were last year. We went through some growing pains last year. We weren’t very good for the first four or five weeks. We couldn’t move the ball offensively. We were terrible.”
Phillip Lindsay began his junior season by rushing for 95 yards on 20 carries against the Rams, and he will again be a point of emphasis for the Rams defense, along with sophomore quarterback Steven Montez and a talented wide receiver corps.
“The first thing that jumps off the film to me is how explosive they are on offense,” Bobo said. “They’ve got a number of receivers that can hurt you in a variety of ways. They have speed, they have great ball skills, they block for each other in their RPO (Run-Pass Option) game. Philip Lindsay is the heart and soul of their football team. He plays with toughness and plays with a swagger and plays with an attitude. It will be a big challenge for us defensively.”
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Unlike Oregon State quarterback Jake Luton (27-47, 3 TDs, 3 INT), Colorado’s Steven Montez won’t be playing his first game with the Buffaloes. In fact, Montez started three games a season ago, including the dramatic Week 4 win at Oregon when he was named Pac-12 Player of the Week.
“He is a new starting quarterback, but he is not unfamiliar with playing in big games,” Bobo said. “He has experience, which is something he is going to be able to draw on. Their offensive line are all veterans and all have experience and all are very good players.”
In contrast to the five turnovers CSU forced from the Beavers, a consistent pass rush proved troublesome for Colorado State in Saturday’s win. The Rams had one sack and allowed 456 total yards. Additionally, Oregon State converted 10 of 16 third down opportunities.
Bobo, though, was pleased with how much CSU pressured Luton, and forced him into poor throws.
“The interceptions Oregon State did throw, there was a hand in his face and his feet were not completely set,” Bobo said. “He was just a little uncomfortable, which caused some high throws. I would like to get more pressure, but we are affecting the quarterback. That in turn caused the turnovers.
“We’ll talk about different ways to attack (Colorado’s) protection and try to get to the quarterback. If we pressure with more than four (defenders), we have to get there. I was disappointed on Saturday because when we pressured with more than four, we didn’t get there except for one time. We’ll have a plan, but they are a good offensive line up front that knows how to protect.”
Many times on Saturday, Bobo said, Luton held the ball longer than usual as he worked through his progressions. He doesn’t expect Montez to do the same thing. Instead, the ball will be out of his hands very quickly after the ball is snapped.
“Oregon State held the ball a little bit and he (Luton) was working multiple guys,” Bobo said. “Colorado will get the ball out relatively quickly. When that happens, you just have to get your hands up and try to get a deflection.”
