Dynamic offense carries CSU to fourth consecutive bowl

FORT COLLINS – Not a whole lot of people thought that Colorado State’s offense would be an explosive bunch capable of scoring at will. At least not at the beginning of the season.

Mike Bobo had to deal with poor quarterback play, ineffectiveness to move the chains on third down, lack of playmaking ability from running backs and wide receivers, and other factors.

All of a sudden though, Bobo’s offense has transformed into a juggernaut.

Since the Border War loss, the Rams have put up an average of 38 points over their last six games. In their last four games, they’ve averaged nearly 44 points and 524 yards.

They’ve done it with a steady Nick Stevens, electric play from Michael Gallup and a trio of running backs that work in harmony.

It’s almost to where opponents now have to pick their poison when it comes to lining up across this offense. Last week, Stevens and Gallup stole the spotlight.

This week, it was CSU’s trio of running back doing something that’s never been done in school history. Dalyn Dawkins, Marvin Kinsey and Izzy Matthews all went over the century mark in rushing. They physically and psychologically sent a message to the Lobos and possibly future opponents.

“It’s good for us,” said Gallup, speaking of the run-pass balance. “Everybody else is going to see that on film and know that we’ve got to watch out for the run, got to watch out for the pass. When they (the running backs) just take over the game like that, it helps the whole team out.”

Bobo had nothing but praise for his entire offense.

“Our offensive line played outstanding,” said Bobo. “And our backs ran extremely hard. That’s how Izzy Matthews has got to run in this league. Dalyn Dawkins was seeing it and hitting the creases. And everybody saw what kind of speed Marvin Kinsey has when he gets in the open field. And then you’ve got threats out there at receiver.”

Bobo also acknowledged the significance of his team getting that critical sixth win Saturday night.

“It’s important,” Bobo said. “We didn’t reach all of our goals this year and the year’s not done, but that was one of our goals. To qualify for a bowl and be bowl-eligible and have a chance to play two more games with this football team and these seniors and to continue to develop what we’re trying to build here is an opportunity for us that we need to take advantage of.”

As the Rams’ coach said, the green and gold will play two more games in 2016. But it’s intriguing to peek ahead to 2017.

CSU figures to be in good shape at quarterback, whether Nick Stevens or Collin Hill takes the snaps. This three-headed running back monster will be back in full force. Gallup will lead an absolutely loaded receiving corps, despite the loss of Robert Ruiz.

And Jake Bennett will return to anchor the offensive line.

Combine that offense with a young defense that’s shown flashes of greatness, and it makes for an exciting future in Fort Collins.

Give credit to Bobo, Stevens and other veterans for steering this season back in the right direction instead of letting it veer completely off course. But according to Bennett, a lot of this team’s progression, and particularly the offense, can be attributed to the younger players.

“I think you see the maturity coming out in some of the younger guys learning the system,” said Jake Bennett. “It just shows that there’s a lot of young talent on the team.”

Let’s say the Rams lose next week at San Diego State and maybe even their bowl game in December. CSU would remain in a very good place.

In fact, this stretch of playing in the postseason in four straight seasons ranks as their best stretch since going bowling five years in a row from 1999-2003.