Colorado State wraps up spring ball with the return of the Green & Gold Game

FORT COLLINS — Colorado State Football concluded spring ball on Saturday with the first Green & Gold Game of the Jay Norvell era. 

In front of a solid showing of CSU supporters, who were willing to brave the windy conditions over at Canvas Stadium, the Rams competed in an intrasquad exhibition that pitted the 1s against the world. 

Although it was not a true game format — the first three quarters were timed normally, while the fourth quarter featured a running clock — the handicapped exhibition was the closest thing to a real game that the Rams participated in over the last five weeks. With the backups, or ‘the world’, given a 21-0 lead to start, the Rams’ starters competed against the rest of the roster in what ended up being a pretty entertaining matchup. 

It was a bit of a rough start for the starting offense. On their first possession (QB) Clay Millen was picked off by redshirt sophomore cornerback Brandon Guzman, who proceeded to take it 70 yards to the house to extend the world’s lead to 28-0. Millen and the starting offense then went three-and-out on the second possession. They got things rolling at the end of the first quarter, though, when Millen capped off a nice drive down the field with a Red Zone touchdown pass to (WR) Melquan Stovall. 

Great video of Stovall’s touchdown grab from @TaylorBrooksTV
pic.twitter.com/qXMHI0Oqjd

— Justin Michael (@JustinTMichael) April 23, 2022

After the backups were able to produce a pair of field goals and Millen connected with (WR) Dante Wright for a Red Zone score in the second quarter, the 1s trailed by 20 at halftime (34-14). In the second half, though, the starting offense really came alive. 

Early in the third quarter Millen was able to beat the defense over the top with a 55-yard touchdown pass to (WR) Tory Horton. He threw a fourth touchdown later on to Nevada-transfer running back Avery Morrow as well. And once the offense was fully in control, they closed things out with a couple of solid drives on the ground that ended with touchdowns from (RB) A’Jon Vivens. 

55 yards against the wind. I think Clay Millen & Tory Horton are going to be pretty good. pic.twitter.com/tnp6XYg4dL

— Justin Michael (@JustinTMichael) April 23, 2022

In total, as tweeted out by Kevin Lytle, CSU’s starting offense produced 522 total yards of offense. Millen finished 22-of-33 for 292 yards, four touchdowns and an interception. And Stovall led all pass-catchers with nine grabs for 101 yards and a score. On the flip side, CSU’s starting defense held the backups to 192 yards of offense in a 49-37 victory for the Green team (the 1s). 

Following the Green & Gold Game, head coach Jay Norvell spoke with the press for roughly 30 minutes. He started off the press conference with an opening statement in which he praised the players for their effort and growth over the 15 practices. 

As Norvell explained, there was a lot of progress made from the young roster over the last five weeks, but what’s going to be crucial is whether or not the team can build off of it and take things to the next level over the summer. 

“We’re a work in progress,” Norvell said. “I mean, we had a brand new offense. We have brand new offensive players. I think we probably have got three returning defensive starters. So we have a lot of guys that haven’t played very much and not a lot of experience. So you’re going to see some good, you’re gonna see some bad. And it was pretty typical today.”

Norvell continued, explaining that most spring games start slow and then pick up in spurts as the guys start to execute, and that was exactly what happened on Saturday. 

He didn’t like the interceptions from Clay Millen. Giles Pooler or Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi — Norvell explained that Nevada turned the ball over less than any team in the country last season — and that protecting possessions is something that they take great pride in as a team. “We don’t like interceptions, so that was not good today.”

What Norvell did like about the offense was that they continued to show progress. There were moments that were good like the touchdown passes — where this group showed their play-making potential. And there were moments that were not so great too, but that’s to be expected when you have a redshirt freshman quarterback, a bunch of new pass-catchers and an offensive line that will feature five new starters, most of which are transfers from other schools. 

“I do think that we’re making a lot of progress and understanding our schemes,” Norvell said, before adding that confidence comes with repetition. 

What Norvell liked about the defense was the pass-rush, which for a second straight weekend, really made an impact. “Our D line is one of our deeper positions on our team. And I’ve been really pleased with them.”

Norvell also praised the secondary, as well as defensive coordinator Freddie Banks for the progress that he’s made with the defense as a whole. “I think we showed a lot of signs of doing a lot of good things defensively.”

Finally, Norvell spoke highly of the entire team for their growth off of the field this spring. He brought up traits like discipline, character and leadership, and how the guys have been encouraging each other to do the right thing and stepping up in the classroom. 

“Those are the foundations of our football team,” Norvell said. “I think we’re going to see dividends down the road. And not necessarily this week, not necessarily the first week of this season. But as we progress, you know, those are the building blocks that will sustain good football and good play here.

“And so that’s where we really spend a lot of our time — working with our leadership and building the foundation of our culture,” Norvell continued. “ I’m just pleased, I’m really pleased with our kids and how they handle themselves, and how they’ve progressed over the spring.”