DENVER, CO – Colorado State Rams head coach Mike Bobo tried to get every edge he could this week going into the Rocky Mountain Showdown. Though he didn’t think it would be a huge advantage, the second-year CSU coach didn’t officially name his starting quarterback.
CU didn’t seem to mind as they relentlessly harassed the CSU offense nearly the entire game. Eight different Rams combined for 188 yards on the ground and 4.6 yards per rush. Unfortunately for Bobo, the offense didn’t notch a first down until the second quarter. Five straight three-and-outs turned out to be a recipe for disaster in the annual clash of in-state rivals as the Rams were unable to generate any momentum throughout the contest.
Their futility on offense was truly a team effort, however. The offensive line touted so highly all week definitely didn’t perform up to its standards. With four returning starters, it was fairly alarming to see the lack of push this group had as it was regularly overwhelmed, outmanned, and significantly outplayed from the opening snap to the final whistle.
Meanwhile, the two-headed monster at quarterback, Nick Stevens and Faton Bauta, turned in a ghastly combined performance. Stevens finished 12 of 29 for just 63 yards and two interceptions while Bauta served as the bright spot, tossing a touchdown pass to Marcus Wilson when the game was far out of reach. Bauta’s change-of-pace running ability helped key the Rams’ lone touchdown drive late in the contest that served merely to avoid the embarrassment of a shutout.
Overall, the Rams offense netted a measly 225 yards compared to the stampede Colorado laid upon them en route to racking up a ridiculous 578 yards.
For a team coming off a bowl appearance, this certainly wasn’t the start many envisioned. Luckily for the Rams, the schedule moves on and their next two contests, against the University of Texas-San Antonio and the University of Northern Colorado, are very winnable games. Even so, Bobo says this team has plenty of work to do.
“It’s a team game and we’ve got to help each other out to build momentum,” Bobo said, noting that the defense must improve. “We weren’t getting lined up, we weren’t getting off blocks.”
The quarterback situation will be a topic discussed ad-nauseum next week. The poor play and overall ineffectiveness of Stevens and Bauta helped push the momentum towards Colorado’s side and despite Bauta’s touchdown drive, the position remains in flux.
“We gotta reassess the quarterback situation,” Bobo said. “We’ve got to be able to throw the ball more than we did tonight at a higher percentage.”
Stevens, the 2015 starter, looked anything but comfortable as he regularly looked overwhelmed by the moment. Stevens consistently failed to adjust to oncoming blitzes in big situations, especially on third down and looked lost at times when the Buffs mixed up their defensive packages.
“It definitely wasn’t our best showing,” said quarterback Nick Stevens. “This wasn’t the team that you’ll see the rest of the season. Unfortunately, it was tonight.”
44-7 isn’t an ideal start for any team and as much as Bobo and the Rams preach the ‘put it behind us’ mentality, this one hurts big time. Frankly, CU has much more talent, athleticism, and experience on their side, particularly defensively.
Still, this one-sided outcome had to have been a shock to the nearly 70,000 folks in attendance. Bobo certainly recognizes the damage done by tonight’s paltry performance as he summed up what all Rams fans were feeling after this one.
“It’s embarrassing,” Bobo said. “We totally embarrassed our name.”
