CSU Football Spring Game notes: Rams receiver depth evident

If Saturday’s Green and Gold game was any indication, new Colorado State Rams football head coach Mike Bobo wants to throw the football. And if that’s the case, he can rest assured the talent is present.

On the day, the Green and Gold teams combined for 859 yards passing with seven touchdowns. And that was without All-American wide receiver Rashard Higgins, who sat out for precautionary reasons. Is it more telling of the offense or the defense? Well, both.

Anyone who’s followed the Rams the last few years knows the defense is liable to give up monster plays in the passing game. That trend continued Saturday and Bobo admitted following the Spring Game, “We have to do a better job at not giving up explosive plays.”

Of course, explosive plays are how teams put up points and win games, so that’s the positive side of the coin for Bobo and his O.

Nick Stevens, a redshirt sophomore likely to win the starting quarterback job, threw the ball with accuracy and great touch, especially on deep balls. Unknown redshirt freshman Trey Smith hauled in two bombs down the left sideline from Stevens and made a name for himself with 145 yards and two touchdowns. “Trey Smith has tremendous speed,” Bobo said of him postgame. “He’s probably the fastest guy on our team but he’s still a little raw as a receiver.” If Smith can work to refine his skills in the summer, he’s a kid Ram fans will be delighted in watching this fall.

Senior Joe Hansley led the team in terms of catches (8) and yards (148) and he worked to steal the ball away from a defender in solid position when Stevens under-threw it a little. Hansley’s worked his entire CSU career to be a great receiver and he’s impressed Bobo. “Every time we throw him the ball he makes plays,” the coach explained. “He’s a willing blocker, he’ll put his face on somebody, and he’s doing a nice job.”

Jordan Vaden’s post was run with precision in the first quarter, and when Stevens put the ball on him, the catch resulted in the Green and Gold game’s first touchdown. And don’t forget about speedster Deionte Gaines who had three receptions for 69 yards and a score himself, Saturday.

Cole Anderson (6’4”) and Sammie Long (6’3”) give the Rams those tall, long-armed receivers able to catch fade patterns in the end zone. They can go get the ball – as Anderson did in the Dove Valley scrimmage on April 11 – an asset which will benefit the offense by adding another dimension.

All told, there’s a ton of talent at the receiver position for the Rams. That’s not to say Colorado State will be throw-heavy. Bobo wants balance, just like any intelligent play-caller, because it gives the element of surprise to the offense.

Following the game, Bobo explained his past success on that side of the ball, saying, “We’ve been the number one passing team in the conference [at Georgia] and the number one rushing team. I would like to have balance. They key is to be able to run the ball when you have to in the fourth quarter when they know you’re going to run it.”

“I thought the Green team did a nice job in the fourth quarter today when the Gold team had to get a stop and they couldn’t do it and the offense lined up and ran the ball, which was good to see,” he finished.

Heading into the summer, the players have already bought in and grasped Bobo’s culture and offense quite quickly. It will be interesting to see how far they can come this summer with the NCAA’s new two-hour per week coaching rule during the offseason, which Bobo was happy with.