Mora, 64, brings a wealth of experience in college and the NFL. He revived the UConn program, guiding the Huskies to a 9-3 record this season and a pending third bowl berth in four years. Mora fits the profile in experience and resume CSU sought as it moves into the reshaped Pac-12 next season. Mora coached in the conference for UCLA, compiling a 46-30 record and four bowl berths from 2012-2017.
“This program is primed for significant success, and this university is aligned to achieve it. I set the vision for Colorado State to become the most loved, most watched, most innovative athletics program in the West,” Weber said when explaining the decision to let Norvell go in October. “I look forward to the process that’s about to begin here to identify the leader that is going to be able to capitalize on all the potential that exists here at Colorado State, and I’m going to ensure it happens.”
Mora featured an explosive offense this season with a 1,000-yard rusher (Camryn Edwards), 1,000-yard receiver (Skyler Bell) and an efficient quarterback (Joe Fagnano, 28 touchdowns, one interception). The Huskies finished the season on a four-game winning streak, including victories over Air Force and Duke. Mora is the son of longtime NFL boss Jim Mora, who coached the Saints and Colts. Peyton Manning was his quarterback during his final four seasons in Indianapolis.
The changing college landscape doomed Norvell in Fort Collins. With the school wanting to at least match or improve on last season’s 8-5 season, the Rams sputtered in September as veteran starting quarterback Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi slumped. He was eventually benched and later left the school. It did not help Norvell when CSU looked overmatched against future conference opponent Washington State in an ugly 20-3 home loss on Sept. 27.
The hope is that Mora can bring stability and success to a CSU program that wants to reap the rewards of an on-campus stadium that opened in 2017.
Since that time, CSU has had three coaches — Mike Bobo, Steve Addazio, Norvell. All posted losing records, finishing a combined 23 games under .500.
Mora received a four-year, $10-million extension at UConn in December of 2024. Norvell made $1.9 million this season, and was owned a $1.5 million buyout from CSU, per terms of his contract.
Wyoming came to play Saturday night. The Rams came to pout. Or maybe plan, to a man, for life after Fort Collins.
If the 117th edition of the Border War was a boxing match, they’d have called it after three rounds. If it were a Broadway show, they’d have closed it at intermission.
If it was a harbinger, it’s going to be an awfully long, awfully cold final four weeks in Fort Fun.
Wyoming 28, CSU 0. And that scoreline probably flatters the Rams, who looked flat from the jump.
It was the Cowboys’ largest margin of victory in a battle for the Bronze Boot since 2010 — a 44-0 Pokes victory. That was also the last time CSU got blanked in the series. It was three hours of negative superlatives, each stacking on top of the other like poisoned LEGO blocks.
You can fake a lot of these things in this world. You can’t fake football when the administration fires the coach and sets fire to the rest of the season. You can’t fake giving a hoot in a rivalry game when you don’t.
The pair dug a lot of the holes this program finds itself in right now, granted. But there isn’t enough talent — or brotherhood, or camaraderie or trust — left among the remaining pieces to climb out.
The lines between the NFL and the upper levels of the college game are getting blurrier by the day. But when everybody’s a free agent, that whole “checking out” thing becomes endemic.
You know how a pro locker room looks in December when the guys inside it wake up with a 3-11 record?
That’s what CSU looked like Saturday. 50 guys. 50 taxis. 50 agendas.
In the old days, a college coach — even an interim one — rarely lost a locker room entirely. Too many guys would be too worried about keeping their scholarships, never mind their snaps.
That’s gone, baby.
Thanks to the transfer portal, most of these guys are gone, too. And they already know it.
The Rams (2-6, 1-3 Mountain West) have four games left. They might well be underdogs in all of them. If Saturday was any indication, they won’t be close in many of them.
If you’re not going to show up for the Boot, when are you ever going to show up?
And if I’m interim coach Tyson Summers, here’s what I’ve got to say to reach this CSU roster and its communal wanderlust:
“You might not care about us. Or about putting something on tape for us, going forward. But you’re going to want to put something on tape for somebody, gentlemen. And I’m not playing guys who don’t want to put something on tape.”
Or something along those lines.
Colorado State University interim head coach Tyson Summers speaks to the officials during their game against University of Wyoming at War Memorial Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, in Laramie.(Photo by Milo Gladstein/Wyoming Tribune Eagle)
Owen Long? He’s got tape good enough for anybody, Power 4 schools included. After three quarters, the CSU linebacker and California native had already piled up nine stops. He collected four on the first seven Wyoming snaps of the evening.
Whatever that guy wants on the revenue-sharing market, you give him.
Whatever running back Jalen Dupree wants, best listen. Same with speedy runners Javion Kinnard and Lloyd Avant. And Tanner Morley on the offensive line.
Among underclassmen, after that?
Don’t know.
Awfully short list.
Then again, that’s how a coach gets fired.
That and CSU’s QB room right now.
If there was ever a time to ride with redshirt freshman Darius Curry (9 of 16, 112 passing yards) behind center, though, this would be it. Because with Jackson Brosseau (10 for 18, three interceptions), we’ve already seen enough. And we’ve probably already seen his peak.
With 1:52 left in the first quarter, on first down from the CSU 44, Brousseau locked eyes on wideout Tommy Maher on an “out” route up the left boundary and never unlocked them, despite an open man spilling past the hash marks. Wyoming defensive back Desman Hearns followed Brousseau’s eyes, too, stepping in front of Maher and cradling the pick at the CSU 49.
Same song. Different Hearns.
The Rams threatened to make it interesting again with 3:22 left in the half, facing a third-and-7 at their own 43 while trying to dent a 14-0 Wyoming lead. Brousseau rolled right this time, only instead of setting himself, he heaved a prayer off his back foot.
The ball, no shock, air-mailed past everybody. Everybody in green, at any rate.
Only at the last instant, Pokes free safety and former Poudre High star Jones Thomas slid under the ball before it could hit the turf for Wyoming’s second pick of the first half.
As daggers go, it was as ironic as it was painful: Thomas is the grandson of CSU legend Earlie Thomas. A Rams legacy.
With six minutes left in the first half, CSU was averaging 5.6 yards per carry on eight totes. Yet they were down 14-0. Why?
They’d managed all of two passing yards. Two.
At the half, Brousseau had completed four of eight throws for 18 yards. CSU had logged 62 offensive yards as a team. Wyoming had 228, and led 21-0.
Same song. Different curse.
Both rivals brought new play-callers to the Border War. But only one side really showed it.
While the Rams were shaking things up this past Sunday and Monday, Wyoming kept pace. After a 24-21 loss at Air Force, Sawvel demoted Jay Johnson from offensive coordinator to analyst.
Enter Jovon Bouknight. And exit huddles. Wyoming’s opening drive stalled at the Rams’ 37. The Cowboys’ second punch, alas, landed. The Pokes marched 67 yards on 12 plays, capping the jaunt on backup QB Landon Sims’ keeper in the end zone from a half-yard out with 2:43 to go in the quarter.
Turns out that was enough. When Summers signed up to try and right a 2-5 ship, nobody told him it was the Titanic.
Since Canvas Stadium opened, the CSU Rams football program has tried the SEC route. It’s tried The Urban Meyer Family Tree. It’s tried a safe, steady hand with Mountain West bona fides. None of those paths have led to a consistent conference championship contender whose results have matched the ambitions of CSU’s $220 million football home.
So with Jay Norvell out, where does Rams AD John Weber turn now? Here are nine candidates CSU should have on his short list:
Tony Alford, Michigan running backs coach/run game coordinator: If it’s about family, nobody bleeds green the way Alford, who played running back at CSU from 1987-90, still does. At 56, he’s been looking for a chance to put a stamp on a program of his own.
Matt Lubick, Kansas co-offensive coordinator/tight ends coach: Speaking of keeping it in the family, the son of CSU icon Sonny Lubick remains a fan favorite at age 53. Time to come home?
Jay Hill, BYU defensive coordinator/associate head coach: Not young (50), but we already know what his Cougars can do (and have done) to CU. Bonus: Has head coaching experience, posting a 68-39 record as the top man at Weber State from 2014-22.
Jason Candle, Toledo: Matt Campbell’s successor was supposed to find his Iowa State a while ago, having produced four seasons of at least nine wins with the Rockets since 2017. He’s still there. Although, as he’s got a contract through 2028, so he probably won’t come super-cheap.
Collin Klein, Texas A&M offensive coordinator: At 36, the former Loveland High star and Heisman Trophy finalist is a rising star and a good guy, to boot. If Rams fans want to “lock the gates” for local recruits, this could be the guy.
Klint Kubiak, Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator: Proud CSU alum. Name recognition. Pedigree. Gravitas. Even better if dad, Gary, comes north to help out.
Brent Vigen, Montana State coach: Yes, there’s a lot of Wyoming Cowboys mileage on that resume. But there’s also a ton of winning
DeSean Jackson, Delaware State coach: Want NFL star power? Want ESPN to pay attention to the Rams? Want Deion Sanders to feel a little jealous? It’s a Hail Mary, sure. But ask Rick George how those can pay off.
Chuck Martin, Miami of Ohio coach: If you can’t beat ’em, right? Martin’s posted a 21-11 mark since the start of the ’23 season and as a former Brian Kelly assistant, he can call in some big names. Then again, as a former Kelly assistant, he might be looking for a bigger landing pad than FoCo.
“I mean, (I’m) yelling more than I was, talking more, just constantly talking,” the new Rams men’s basketball coach told me after his squad scrimmaged for the public Saturday, the warm-up act for a Homecoming football tussle against Hawaii.
“So I think that’s the biggest adjustment. That’s the biggest thing I had to figure out is how to get my voice to stay. Because the first event we did in downtown (Fort Collins), it was gone. I started like shaking up and down. I sounded like I was going through puberty again, like …”
“Pretty much,” he laughed. “If you can find something for my throat to fix that, let me know.
“I always joke with our guys, though, I’m saying our body language matters and how you respond to refs, how you talk to them. Well, then, I shouldn’t lose my voice because I shouldn’t be (yelling). We’ll see how it goes on November 3.”
As Peter Brady once sang, when it’s time to change, then it’s time to change. Farokhmanesh, 37, is re-arranging who he is and what he’s gonna be.
No Nique Clifford? No Niko Medved? No problemo. For now, anyway.
If CSU football feels a bit like a marriage that has lost its spark, Rams hoops is still ensconced in nuptial bliss. You’d be hard-pressed to find a heart in Fort Fun that doesn’t love Farokhmanesh. And Ali’s family.
Although a first-time head coach, Farokhmanesh is working overtime these days to stay out of his wife Mallory’s doghouse. The other night, she caught him falling asleep while watching practice film. All parties agreed he could pick it back up at 5:30 in the morning.
“I feel like I try to have a balance, right?” Farokhmanesh said. “Which you never really do, but you’re always fighting for. So, she does a good job of managing that with me, too. I think she helps me a lot with that.”
Colorado State’s Jevin Muniz drives to the basket during an intrasquad scrimmage Saturday at Moby Arena. (Nathan Wright/Loveland Reporter-Herald)
On the court, with a half-dozen new faces, the Rams’ lineup is a work in progress. Rotations are in flux. Medved’s fingerprints are still there, but with tweaks and tucks — some spread, some motion, constant movement.
Farokhmanesh was the boy genius with the whiteboard on the sidelines, feeding the Niko machine. On Saturday, that board was in the hands of assistant coach Cole Gentry. Besides work-life balance and trying to do too much all at once, the next biggest challenge for first-time coaches is delegating authority. Giving up the stuff they used to obsess over.
“I feel like I’ve done a pretty good job (with that),” Farokhmanesh said. “I’m not doing the subs right now. I’m not doing the baseline out of bounds (plays) now. Those are all things I did before. I’ve given up the board. But I’m still going to have a say in all of it. So, it’s giving it up, but it’s also like, you’re still involved. I don’t know. It’s just different.”
“And after what they did in Iowa State, I’m a little more nervous,” the Rams coach said. “If we want to be an NCAA Tournament team, you’ve got to play teams like that. Does that help us to just go scrimmage a D2 (school)? Does it? We’ll get something out of it. But I want to challenge our (guys), and I want to put them on a stage. Because if we want to play at the highest levels, we’re going to have to beat people on those stages and compete with them.”
“If you’ve got time, he’s in here working with you,” said CSU forward Rashaan Mbemba, who leads the Rams roster in returning minutes with 615 (19.2 per game) and returning points (7.0 per game). “And I think that’s something you’ve got to really appreciate. I mean, he has four kids, he has a wife. Being a head coach, a husband, a dad. Now he’s also like, kind of, for a lot of guys, he’s the first person to talk to. As a team and as a community, we really appreciate that.”
And they show it. Veteran Ram staffers noted a bigger crowd than usual for an open scrimmage, buoyed by Homecoming weekend and more than mild curiosity. CSU president Amy Parsons sat at midcourt with athletic director John Weber throughout the scrimmage as green-clad alumni came and went.
Afterward, while players sat at a long table under one of the baskets, providing autographs for fans, Farokhmanesh hung back. The new coach shook hands, smiled for cell phone pictures and signed posters for wave after wave of kids.
“Here you go, buddy,” Ali said to one.
“What’s up, dude?” he said to another.
A towheaded tyke in a green Rams getup approached nervously.
Farokhmanesh disarmed him with a grin and scribbled away on his poster.
“Can I get a ‘Go Rams?’” the coach asked.
“Go Rams,” he replied.
Hey, when fate hands you a honeymoon, best enjoy it while it lasts. That goes double for the voice.
Then you ask your third-string QB, a runner by trade (Tahj Bullock) who hasn’t completed a throw all year, to come off the bench cold, sprint right and pass you to a victory?
“That was one where I felt like that was our best chance to win, right there and right now,” Norvell explained Monday after watching film of CSU’s 17-16 home loss to the Roadrunners. “And so, I don’t regret it. I don’t. We needed to execute it better.”
True, his Rams are a two-point conversion away from being 2-1. A Bullock completion from rolling into a winnable home matchup against Washington State (2-2), coming off two Houdini escapes.
Either way, Saturday night against the Cougars has turned into must-see TV locally. Largely because it feels as if Wazzu just became a must-win contest.
It’s a too-darn-early referendum on what Norvell has built. And, more to the point, what he hasn’t.
Norvell’s predecessor, Steve Addazio, routinely embarrassed CSU at a time when the administration didn’t need any more help in that department. As soon as the Daz’s buyout dropped, ex-AD Joe Parker dropped the hammer.
Hires are usually reflections of their predecessors, if not stark contrasts by design. Norvell was poached from Nevada to bring normalcy, decency, an exciting offense and success, not necessarily in that order.
Four years in? That’s a yes, another yes, a not really, and a sort of.
Rams faithful aren’t shy about voting with their wallets. And Weber has to keep Canvas Stadium full — or awfully close. When Norvell boat-raced CSU with his Wolf Pack in late November 2021, Canvas sat half-empty. The Daz’s last three home games averaged 62% of capacity. The writing was on the checkbook.
We’re not there yet. CSU sold out four home games in 2024 and set a single-season home attendance record along the way — buoyed by a slate that featured Deion Sanders’ Fort Fun debut and a visit from rival Wyoming. Two games into 2025, the ledger is OK: Northern Colorado sold out on Sept. 6, while UTSA drew a more-than-respectable 88.8% of capacity (32,061).
Norvell sees this as a lifetime job, not a stepping stone. He wants to build it the right way. He’s committed to FoCo. He’s adjusted to the new normal of NCAA free agency, even hiring staff to handle the stuff he doesn’t particularly like. He’s invested in CSU, and vice versa.
But in a results business, the results on the field have been all over the place. Every silver lining has come with at least a little cloud trailing in its wake.
Last fall, Norvell got CSU to a bowl game for the first time since 2017. Once there, the Rams got obliterated by a MAC team. Clay Millen was the man, until he wasn’t. BFN was the man, until he couldn’t.
Norvell was hired with the idea of becoming another Sonny Lubick — a stable, long-term builder. But the transfer portal opened; House vs. NCAA happened; and Coach Prime turned up in Boulder to suck all the oxygen out of the local news cycle.
None of that is Jay’s fault. Yet with a move to the Pac-12 looming next year, some CSU fans talk about pining for a football version of Niko Medved in their new league. Someone who’ll make a big splash at CSU nationally, even if that means using the Rams as leverage toward a sexier job. And if they’re gone after two seasons for greener, richer Big Ten or SEC pastures, McElwain-style, so be it.
So: Lifetime guy (Norvell) or hot up-and-comer? It’s going to be one archetype or the other.
Norvell’s current contract expires Dec. 31, 2026. Per the term sheet the Rams released during his December 2021 hire, he’s making a base salary of $1.9 million this season and is due to make $2 million in 2026.
CSU can buy that out without cause for $1.5 million from now until New Year’s Eve. It can do so anytime in 2026 for “remaining base pay owed.”
With the remaining undecideds, there’s only one way back. And on this one, Norvell needs to not listen to his inner OC. Or to his gut. He should heed the ghost of one of his mentors, the late Al Davis.
And whether it was or wasn’t a reception is not even the biggest issue surrounding the program. Norvell has a quarterback controversy. He called it a competition during the bye week practice. But that is never the case, especially when the three-year starter is losing his grip on the position.
Jackson Brousseau is getting first-team reps as Norvell mulls his choice. This decision should determine whether Norvell receives a contract extension. That’s because the Rams enter a seven-game stretch that will provide clarity on whether he should keep the job.
CSU hosts five home games, including Sept. 20 against the University of Texas San Antonio on FS1. Washington State follows. These are not Cam Ward’s Cougars. The optics of this game remain important since CSU will be joining Wazzu in the revamped Pac 12 next season. Are the Rams competitive? Do they look the part?
And Norvell knows after the latest white-knuckle scare that he better beat Wyoming. Nobody cares that the game is on the road. Waking up on Nov. 9 with a 6-3 record provides hope that Norvell made the right choice. The temperature is not dropping on this topic until Fowler-Nicolosi plays better or Norvell moves on from him.
CSU’s athletic program is on a heater. The men’s basketball program, after a terrific March Madness run, was invited to the Maui Invitational in 2026 and recently signed guard Gregory “Pops” Dunson, the highest-ranked recruit since rankings became available in 2000. The volleyball team remains a force, and the women’s soccer team has entered the national polls at No. 25 for the first time in school history.
Football, however, is the window into the university for donors. Norvell cannot afford a 6-6 record with a boring offense and uncertainty at quarterback.
Rams fans, especially the students, did their part last week. It’s on Norvell to reward their chaos with better performances.
Tight fit: The Joke was on us in Week 1. Evan Engram finished with three catches for 21 yards on four targets. He only played 26 of the 76 offensive snaps, and it wasn’t only because of his injured calf. Engram appears ready to go on Sunday. If the Broncos run the ball better, as expected, there should be at least four RPO or cross-route strikes to Engram in the first half alone, or coach Sean Payton is doing it wrong.
Bowl it over: The retractable roof is a point of debate among Broncos Country as it relates to this week’s new stadium announcement. It allows for multiple events, including a Super Bowl, Final Four and Wrestlemania. But here’s another addition: a bowl game. There has been interest over the last year in bringing a bowl to Denver, and this offers a chance to accelerate that conversation even before shovels are in the ground.
FORT COLLINS — Randi Ellis can remember the sounds radiating from the family’s garage early each morning.
Music bumping at full blast. Dumbbells clashing. And the thump, thump, thumping of her brother’s hands pounding a heavy bag.
“He knew that one way or another, he was going to follow in our father’s footsteps,” Randi said of her younger brother, Jacob.
This fall in Fort Collins, Jacob Ellis is playing his final year of college football with boxing in his blood and his late father in his heart.
The new CSU linebacker’s grandfather, Jimmy Ellis, was a world heavyweight champion. And Jacob’s father, former Ohio State tight end Jeff Ellis, has been Jacob’s primary motivation since Jeff died of pancreatic cancer during his son’s junior year of high school.
Those two family backstories are Ellis’ fuel as the Iowa State transfer chases the same success he found in 2021, when he emerged as one of the best junior college players in the nation at Iowa Western.
“My hope for this year is to have that (NJCAA) national defensive player of the year Jacob come back out,” Ellis said. “But most importantly, I want to help this team win, and to continue to play for my last name. Play for the name on the front of the jersey, but also on the back of the jersey.
“I play with a lot of passion and with my emotions on my sleeve. Rams fans are going to see me continuously remember my ‘why.’ ”
Ellis trained like his grandfather ahead of his season, building himself up with boxing gloves and hill sprints.
In his hometown of Sacramento over the summer, Ellis sparred with other local players in the garage gym of his trainer, Bob Sebring. Then, Ellis ran up and down Sebring’s property to the point of complete exhaustion.
“When we’re sparring, we’re working on footwork, our hand speed in and out, because it all translates over to when an offensive lineman comes to block you and how fast can you get your hands on him and how fast can you get his hands off of you,” Ellis said. “After we get done boxing, we run the hill five, six times.
“A couple times, I almost fell down (and passed out) because of how much I pushed my legs and my body to the limits.”
After eight starts over three seasons at Iowa State, Ellis is set up for a big role with CSU. One of the team captains, he quickly emerged as a leader for a rebuilt Rams defense.
Colorado State Rams linebacker Jacob Ellis (44) runs drills during practice on campus in Fort Collins, Colorado, on Aug. 19, 2025. (Photo by RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post)
“Jacob’s come in and been a force,” fellow linebacker and captain Owen Long said. “Not only with his play, but his knowledge for the game and his leadership has been something that has rubbed off on me and everyone. Throughout fall camp, there were times when he’d call out a play before it even comes. He helps the defense play three times faster.”
As he’s done throughout college, Ellis will continue to write “RIP DAD” on the tape on his wrist, in addition to the date his father died. Jeff Ellis coached his son throughout Jacob’s childhood. The linebacker says he wouldn’t be playing Division I football without his father’s influence.
“I always feel his presence with me,” Ellis said. “That helps me so much when I’m out there. When I’m tired, when I have a bad play, I just look down at my tape.”
Ellis didn’t get to know his grandfather as well. Jimmy Ellis battled Alzheimer’s disease at the end of his life and passed away when Jacob was in middle school. But the reminders of Jimmy’s fame in the ring were everywhere around Jacob’s childhood home.
Jimmy, one of the lightest heavyweight champions ever, was a sparring partner with Muhammad Ali. He held the World Boxing Association belt from 1968-70 and fought some of the biggest names in the sport, including Ali, Floyd Patterson, Joe Frazier and Rubin “Hurricane” Carter. He was 40-12-1 as a pro before retiring in 1975.
In this July 27, 1971, file photo, Referee Jay Edson, left, keeps an eye on the fight between Muhammad Ali and Jimmy Ellis, right, in the 12th round of their heavyweight fight in Houston. (AP Photo/File)
“I’ve gone to the Muhammad Ali Museum in Louisville and seen my grandfather in there, so the Ellis legacy is something I take a lot of pride in and it’s something I want to continue,” Jacob Ellis said. “It’s my job to continue that legacy in the sport of football.”
The fact that he is even still playing is a testament to his resilience, according to those closest to him.
Considered undersized as a 5-foot-11, 185-pound senior, Ellis injured his shoulder in high school and received little college interest. He started at American River College in Sacramento, but took a grayshirt amid the COVID season in 2020.
His football future was bleak, but Ellis wanted to keep playing and found a spot at Iowa Western.
“Injuries and COVID basically gave him the right to say, ‘I’m done with football,’” said Bob Sebring, who was Ellis’ position coach in high school. “A typical young man probably would’ve gone in the tank after losing his dad, multiple shoulder issues, no college really wanting him. But he was always playing for a higher cause, and that kept him motivated.”
Jeff Ellis was a highlight on so-so Ohio State teams in the late ’80s, before a knee injury in ’89 derailed his NFL potential. As a sophomore for the 4-6-1 Buckeyes in ’88, he had 40 catches for 492 yards, the last tight end to lead the Buckeyes in both receiving categories.
Jacob is hoping for a similar impact on the Rams this fall — except with more team success.
CSU’s leading tacklers from last year, linebackers Buom Jock and Chase Wilson, transferred and graduated, respectively. That left a gaping hole in the middle of the defense that Ellis believes he can fill. The Rams open the season on the road on Saturday as 21.5-point underdogs against Washington.
“I felt like my time in Iowa was up and I was looking for a new opportunity for this final season, and I was also looking for a program that fully believed in my abilities,” Ellis said. “That was here (in Fort Collins). Now, I’m ready to pay that faith back.”
Colorado State Rams linebacker Jacob Ellis (44) looks off during practice on campus in Fort Collins, Colorado, on Aug. 19, 2025. (Photo by RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post)
Jay Norvell’s CSU Rams football program showed progress reaching a bowl game last season. Can the Rams do enough to justify keeping Norvell around even longer? Here are three keys to making that happen:
Will BFN become BMOC (Big Man on Campus)?
He was too raw. He was too young. He asked to do too much. He wasn’t asked to do enough. Entering his third season as the starting quarterback, the time is now for Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi. CSU coach Jay Norvell is invested in him in every way: money, time, scheme. The Rams need Fowler-Nicolosi to turn it loose without turning the ball over. The Rams adjusted on the fly when Tory Horton was lost for the season last fall, playing more complementary football. But this fall is about CSU playing better early and playing its best against top opponents. Fowler-Nicolosi stepped on a rake to start last season, posting two touchdowns with four interceptions over the first four games. With a solid run game, BFN should be able to move the sticks on bootleg routes to tight ends Jaxxon Warren and Rocky Beers, while delivering explosive plays to Jordan Ross and possibly Tay Lanier.
Can revamped defense gel quickly?
The Rams’ spring and fall practices should have included water breaks and “Hello, My Name Is” conversations for the defense. Norvell moved on from defensive coordinator Freddie Banks and brought Tyson Summers back to Fort Collins. Summers served as Mike Bobo’s D-coordinator in 2015. He failed as a head coach at Georgia Southern and has bounced around since. Summers represented a stylistic fit for a unit that Norvell wants to become more aggressive and disruptive after allowing 24 points and 394 yards per game last season. It makes sense. But will the pieces fit? The Rams will feature 10 new starters trying to learn a new scheme. Look for the Rams to lean heavily on transfers like potential all-conference edge rusher JaQues Evans and cornerback Jahari Rogers, who will be counted on to set the example of what elite man coverage looks like in Summers’ defense.
Will Jay Norvell show enough for contract extension?
Norvell has set the bar. It is bowl or bust. But if the Rams flirt with .500, is that enough for athletic director John Weber to award him with a contract extension? Norvell makes no excuses about college football’s changing landscape. He has had to reinvent himself in Fort Collins. He was hired from Nevada to bring an explosive offense and develop high school prospects. Now, he is willing to win by any means necessary, and has more transfers than any team in the conference. Norvell turned the corner last season, but he must show he can get buy-in quickly. This team should win seven games. But which ones? For Norvell’s sake, they better include Wyoming, Air Force, Northern Colorado and New Mexico.
“I have slowed the game down on offense a little bit,” Rams football coach Jay Norvell explained Monday at Canvas Stadium, “because we were playing some really talented people these first three weeks and I felt like, to give our defense a chance, I needed to slow down the game a little bit and run it a little bit more.”
Air Raid? Smash-mouth? None of the above? Hey, it’s good to be multiple. But over the last 11 months or so, the Rams offense has often looked downright schizophrenic.
Consider: In the first four series of a bonkers 2023 Rocky Mountain Showdown last September, CSU threw it 11 times. In the first four series of a boring first half this past weekend in the ’24 Showdown, a 28-9 CU victory, the Rams aired it out just five times, officially.
At home. Against one of the two schools your alums want desperately to beat most. In front of a rocking, ravenous and rare sellout at Canvas Stadium.
And yeah, we know — personnel played a factor. Last year’s Rams took on CU and the Sanders family with Dallin Holker at tight end, wideout Louis Brown IV and a healthy Tory Horton. CSU this past weekend had no Holker, no Brown and Horton (groin) toughing it out on basically one good leg.
But when you’ve been touting your QB1 as a Power 4-level signal-caller, and then can’t trust him to air it out against a Power 4 defense, red flags start popping up everywhere. Everybody’s credibility suffers.
“(We) need to get our playmakers involved, we need to get it going offensively,” Norvell continued. “And we’ve got talent. We can score. And we need to respond to that.”
“Are you saying you’re going to take a more aggressive approach from here on out with how you attack teams?” the coach was asked.
“No, I’m telling you that I think we had hard matchups, and I don’t think we matched up very well,” Norvell replied. “And I was trying to minimize that — and that’s what head coaches do.”
Colorado Buffaloes wide receiver Travis Hunter (12) and CU cornerback DJ McKinney (8) bring down Colorado State Rams running back Justin Marshall (29) in the first quarter at Canvas Stadium in Ft. Collins, Colorado Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (Photo by Andy Cross/The Denver Post)
Fortunately, there’s all kinds of time left, nine games, with which to hammer out a new narrative. The Mountain West looks top-heavy, and CSU won’t play two of the three programs — UNLV and Boise State, Fresno State being the other — expected to vie for the league crown.
More hope: The Rams have already faced the two most talented two rosters they’ll see all year in No. 1 Texas and CU. Although if the point was to save some arrows in the quiver for league play, after last Saturday, it might be good for Norvell to start firing off a few.
“We’ve got a lot of season left,” the coach said, “and we’ve got all of our goals in front of us that we want to accomplish in our conference and in the remaining nine games.”
All true. But assuming this weekend’s visit from 0-3 UTEP gets the Rams (1-2) back to .500, it’s also not crazy to wonder if a visit to future league rival Oregon State (Oct. 5) and a home test with San Jose State (Oct. 12) leaves CSU at 2-4 heading into a tussle at rebuilding Air Force (1-2). It’s not unreasonable to wonder whether the CSU administration, after that CU stinker, will have everybody’s back if — if — the Rams are somehow 2-5 with three winnable home games (New Mexico, Wyoming, Utah State) left on the docket.
Norvell knows the score. He’s got a president and athletic director who didn’t hire him, and the former isn’t messing around.
“I’ve felt pressure since the day I started being a coach,” Norvell said. “I mean, that’s just part of it.”
He’s also his own offensive coordinator, his own play-caller, so everybody knows where the buck stops. Norvell’s never shied away from blame after tough losses. He’s rarely pointed fingers. But CSU fans I’ve talked to would prefer to lose more news conferences and win more football games, thanks all the same.
“You don’t want to get me on a soapbox about all that,” Norvell said. “We hadn’t talked about (CU) for months, OK? And so all that stuff that was brought up (as trash talk) was a long time ago.
“So I don’t really have any issue with Brayden or any of our guys. Our guys are focused on what can we improve to get better. And that’s about all I’ve got to say about that.”
If the Rams have an offensive identity right now, it’s that their players, including BFN, keep writing checks their program can’t cash. Nobody cheering on the green and gold right now knows what they’re going to get on game day. Besides heartbreak.
The first wave of that expansion includes four of the top athletic brands from the Mountain West: CSU, Boise State, San Diego State and Fresno State, will all four becoming members on July 1, 2026.
“We are taking control of our future at CSU by forming an alliance of six peer institutions who will serve as the foundation for a new era of the Pac-12,” CSU President Amy Parsons said in a news release announcing the move.
“This move elevates CSU in a way which benefits all our students, bolsters our core mission, and strengthens our reputation for academic and research excellence. CSU is honored to be among the universities asked to help carry on the history and tradition of the Pac-12 as a highly competitive conference with some of the nation’s leading research institutions.”
“This moment has been a long time coming,” CSU authentic director John Weber said. “I know our students, faculty, staff, alumni, donors and fans are hungry for this move and are going to love what comes next as CSU charts a transformational new course as a member of the Pac-12.”
The Pac-12, which was founded in 1915, has historically been the most prestigious collegiate league west of the Central time zone. However, that prestige, and indeed its membership, were crippled by the defections of CU, Utah, Arizona and Arizona State to the Big 12; USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington to the Big Ten; and Stanford and Cal to the ACC.
Washington State and Oregon State were left with the conference’s holdings, trademarks and media rights. Per Yahoo Sports, the remaining Pac-12 programs believe they can rebuild the brand with the likes of the Rams, Aztecs, Broncos and Bulldogs as peers.
They’re also not done looking at new members, as the NCAA requires a minimum of eight schools to qualify as an FBS conference.
CSU football plays at Oregon State on Oct. 5 as part of a scheduling alliance between the MW and the remains of the Pac-12, a partnership that Yahoo Sports reports will not continue for a second fall.
Mountain West members are contracted to pay a $17 million exit fee to leave the league.
The primary motivations for CSU are the same reasons CU left the Pac-12 this past summer — money, prestige, potential access to the College Football Playoff, and stability.
While the mass defections from the Pac-12 would denounce the latter, Yahoo Sports reports that the remaining Pac-12 members feel a new-look league would reach a media rights agreement worth more than the current or expected payouts presented to MW members.
The Mountain West has a $270 million television contract with CBS and Fox that runs through 2026.
Published reports have estimated that non-Boise members of the MW, including CSU, receive roughly $3.5 million annually from that deal, with the Broncos receiving an additional $1.8 million per year.
The Yahoo Sports report infers that the Rams could also have access to Pac-12 assets such as “monies from the Rose Bowl contract, College Football Playoff, NCAA basketball tournament units and Pac-12 Enterprises, previously the Pac-12 Network.”
CSU indicated in its announcement Thursday morning that the four new schools “will have immediate voting privileges” within the conference.
“We have nothing but the utmost respect and appreciation for the Mountain West and its members,” Parsons said. “There will be conversations going forward about the Mountain West exit fees and Pac-12 support for our transition. We are confident the path forward will not impact our current university budget and will set CSU up for incredible opportunities to come.”
However, the two-team Pac-12 recently lost its status as a Power 5/”autonomous” conference within the CFP — and it’s not clear whether supplementing the expanded league with Group of 5 programs would restore those privileges.
Former CSU Rams football coach Steve Addazio, whose Fort Collins tenure was short and tempestuous, is transitioning to television. ESPN announced that Addazio has joined the network as a college football analyst and will start calling games later this month.
Addazio posted a 4-12 record at CSU from 2020-21 and had a 61-67 career record as a head coach with the Rams, Boston College (2013-19) and Temple (2011-12). He was fired at CSU in December 2021, a few days after completing a 3-9 season and after being ejected from a 52-10 home loss to Nevada, then coached by Jay Norvell.
Norvell would replace Addazio as CSU’s coach shortly after.
Addazio spent the 2022 and ’23 seasons as the offensive line coach at Texas A&M under then-coach Jimbo Fisher. He was not retained by new Aggies football coach Mike Elko.
At 16 games, Addazio’s stint as full-time Rams coach was the briefest since George Cassidy posted a 0-5 record in 1910. The longtime former Urban Meyer assistant was also the subject of internal and external investigations during his brief tenure, although a third-party investigation largely absolved Addazio of the accusations that had been levied against him.
Time to stop worrying about Colorado State’s NCAA Tournament hopes.
Time to start thinking about where the CSU Rams might land if they win the Mountain West Conference tournament.
The CSU men moved within two victories of doing just that with an 85-78 win over 23rd-ranked Nevada in Thursday’s quarterfinal matchup at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.
Next up is a semifinal date with the winner of Thursday night’s late game between No. 3 seed Boise State and No. 6 New Mexico. Tip-off is at 8 p.m. MDT Friday.
Senior guard Isaiah Stevens was brilliant, scoring 15 points on 5-of-11 shooting while dishing seven assists, and Jalen Lake was nearly flawless off the bench with 16 points while hitting all three of his 3-point attempts. The seventh-seeded Rams (24-9) buried seven 3s en route to topping a Nevada (26-7) club that beat them twice during the regular season, the last of which came on a half-court buzzer-beater in Fort Collins.
The second-seeded Wolf Pack didn’t have a shot at such late-game theatrics Thursday night. CSU raced out to a 10-point halftime lead, withstood a pair of second-half runs from Nevada and held on for their fourth straight win.
Along the way, the Rams turned the ball over just nine times while forcing 15 Nevada giveaways.
Jarod Lucas, the Nevada guard who hit that half-court heave in FoCo, led the Wolf Pack with 18 points but was largely contained for most of the night.
Nique Clifford added 14 points, 10 rebounds and five assists for CSU, Joel Scott had 11 points and five rebounds, and Joe Palmer added 12 points as part of a 35-21 advantage in bench scoring for the Rams.
FORT COLLINS — Just when it looked like Colorado State had completed a second-half comeback to send its game against Nevada to overtime, the Wolf Pack made sure extra time would not be needed.
Isaiah Stevens drained a jumper to tie the game at 74 with 2.8 seconds remaining, but the Wolf Pack banked in a half-court 3-pointer at the buzzer to claim a 77-74 victory Tuesday night at Moby Arena.
It was CSU’s first Mountain West conference loss at home and just its second loss at home this season. It was also CSU’s third straight loss overall on the heels of an 0-2 road trip last week at New Mexico and UNLV.
The Rams dropped to 20-9 overall and 8-8 in the Mountain West with two games remaining in the regular season.
“Basketball can be unforgiving sometimes,” CSU head coach Niko Medved said. “Tonight was a gut-punch. There’s no other way around it.”
Trailing 39-28 at halftime, the Rams scored the first four points to cut the Wolf Pack lead to 39-32 and then cut it to five at 42-37 on a layup by Patrick Cartier with 14:21 remaining in the game.
But a 3-pointer followed by three free throws from a foul on a 3-point attempt pushed the Wolf Pack’s lead back to double digits at 48-37 with 13:20 left.
CSU got back within five after a three-point play by Patrick Cartier made it 53-48 with 10:15 remaining. The Rams got that close a few more times, the last coming on a free-throw by Jalen Lake with 4:19 remaining that made it 63-58.
With 3:23 remaining, the Rams got within two at 63-61 on a three-point play by Stevens, but the Wolf Pack answered, as they did all game, with four straight points to extend their lead to multiple possessions again.
Finally, the Rams got within striking distance, pulling within three on a 3-pointer by Nique Clifford with 22 seconds left and then two on a jumper by Stevens with 11 seconds remaining and then tied it on another jumper by Stevens with just under three seconds left.
Colorado State’s Nique Clifford puts up a shot against Nevada on Tuesday at Moby Arena in Fort Collins. (Nathan Wright/Loveland Reporter-Herald)
Then Nevad’s Jarod Lucas, who missed a pair of free throws between Stevens’ two jumpers, raced down the sideline, heaved the ball from halfcourt and banked it in.
“It was a heck of a game,” Stevens said. “We kept fighting. I give our team a lot of credit, but we just didn’t make that last play.”
Stevens led the Rams with 23 points. Joel Scott added 15 and Clifford 10.
CSU led for the first 1:51, but after Nevada took a 5-3 lead on a 3-pointer, the Rams never led again in the opening 20 minutes.
The Wolf Pack extended its lead to five before the Rams were able to whittle it back down to one at 10-9 after a 3-pointer by Clifford with 13:40 left in the first half.
Nevada took a seven-point lead at 29-16, but the Rams cut their deficit to four at 30-26 on a jumper by Lake, but CSU would get no close than that before halftime as the Wolf Pack closed the period on a 9-2 run to take an 11-point lead into halftime.
Five first-half turnovers and a 39.3 shooting percentage from the field hurt the Rams in the first half. They were also only 5-for-12 (41.7%) from behind the 3-point line and got to the free-throw line once. Joe Palmer made one of two on that lone trip to the stripe.
Stevens had 10 points to lead the Rams in the first half.
That set up the Rams’ second-half comeback. only to fall short on Lucas’ final heave.
“We know who we are as a team, as a program,” Stevens said. “We always are going to continue to fight no matter what the game may be looking like in that moment.”
CSU will play its final home game of the season Saturday when the Rams host Wyoming at 2 p.m. at Moby Arena.
Colorado State’s Isaiah Stevens moves around the Nevada defense during their game Tuesday at Moby Arena in Fort Collins. (Nathan Wright/Loveland Reporter-Herald)
