Here's what's at stake for Steve Addazio in his CSU debut on Saturday

FORT COLLINS, Colo. — When Colorado State and New Mexico kick off the 2020 season at Canvas Stadium on Saturday night, it will be the latest date that a Rams team has started a season since 1914. 

“This has been a different year for everybody on a lot of fronts but I think with the great collaboration from the Mountain West Conference — all the presidents, all the A.D.’s, all the coaches, and all the players — here we go,” Steve Addazio said on Monday. “We have a chance to do what we love and that’s be a part of the game of football. It’s very, very exciting.”

Along with the untraditional starting date, when the Rams and Lobos square off on Saturday, the stakes will be somewhat higher than a normal season opener versus a lowly opponent.

For starters, 10 full months after being hired, the UNM game will be Addazio’s official debut as head coach of the green and gold. And while Addazio may be a seasoned veteran of the industry, someone that understands a football season is a long process, he’d surely love to be able to get off to a hot start — especially after all the emotional highs and lows that occurred in an absolutely bizarre offseason. 

Beyond wanting to begin his own CSU legacy with a victory, though, there is also pride on the line for the entire program. By the time Saturday comes around, it will have been exactly 3,990 days since UNM last beat CSU. 

On Nov. 21, 2009, James Aho made a 27-yard field goal with just seconds remaining to secure a 29-27 victory for UNM. Since that dramatic game in Albuquerque, N.M. the Rams have handed their conference foes 10 consecutive losses — meaning a win on Saturday would extend CSU’s streak north of 4,000 days and 11 full seasons. 

Putting things into perspective, the last time that UNM beat CSU, Steve Fairchild was head coach of the Rams, Jason Derulo’s “Whatcha Say” was the number one song in the country, The Blind Side was still playing in movie theaters and this particular sports writer was two full years away from receiving his driver’s license. Simply put, it’s been a while. But after a decade’s worth of dominance over the Lobos, this is flat out a game that the fans expect to win.

So, how do the Rams live up to those expectations? 

Addazio agreed that there is not much that you can learn about the matchup by comparing individual games from over the last 10 years. After all, coaches, players, and systems all change over time. However, Addazio also agreed that if there is one constant you could point to for determining success, it would be the turnover margin, which the Rams have only lost once in their last 10 victories over UNM. Now, in a season where both the Lobos and Rams have been extremely limited in practice due to COVID-19 protocols, the ability to control possession, limit turnovers, and avoid mistakes could be even more important than ever.

“You’ve gotta take care of the football and you hope to be low in penalties. Those are important in Game 1,” Addazio said. 

“Playing physical, playing relentless — overall that’s an overarching theme. Take care of the football, play great defense, and make sure you’re sound in special teams. To me, those things all kinda go hand in hand on Opening Day.

“… A lot of the times Opening Day can be a little sloppy. You’re hoping that’s not the case. You’re training and you’re preparing for that not to be the case but it’s hard to simulate a real game day until you play in a real game day.”

After months of frustration and anxiety while watching everyone else suit up this fall, the stage is finally set for Rams to experience a real game day under Addazio. It’s been  a long time coming, but it’s finally time to see what this group is made of. 

“I think when you lose something and you’re away from it — and then on top of that, you’re watching it on TV every week — it really makes you realize how much you miss it,” Addazio said. “We all miss it very, very much, so I’m looking forward to getting going.”

CSU and UNM are scheduled to kick off at 7:00 p.m. MT in front of a national TV audience on FS2. It is one of four home games for the Rams on the 2020 slate.