Next Level Rams are everywhere you look.
On Sunday, Shaquil Barrett will represent Colorado State Rams football when he suits up with the Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship game against the New England Patriots. In his second season, Barrett’s been an impressive pass-rusher, and along with his special teams skills, he’s been notable all year long. Crockett Gillmore played well this year for the Baltimore Ravens before being placed on injured reserve – he’s also finishing his degree at CSU online – while Weston Richburg was snubbed as a Pro Bowler as the center for the New York Giants.
And on Saturday, there are multiple former Colorado State Rams football players looking to make that leap from the college level to the National Football League.
Kivon Cartwright and Cory James will compete in the East-West Shrine Game, which kicks off at 2 p.m. MT on NFL Network. Later in the day, Sam Carlson and DeAndre Elliott will play in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl, which kicks off at 4 p.m. MT on ESPN2. All of them will compete
Speaking of Cartwright, the former six-year Ram tight end has been impressing in practice leading up to the East-West Shrine Game. Turron Davenport of Football Gameplan interviewed Cartwright, which you can watch here:
Cartwright, who’s been known to be a solid pass-catching tight end and a versatile threat in that area, wants scouts to see him for his blocking abilities, too. It makes sense; if he wants to make it at the next level, he’ll have to do both proficiently.
“In college, me and my roommate would catch 1,000 balls a week. Just jugs and jugs,” Cartwright said. “We would stay after every practice and catch 100 balls.” That’s dedication to your craft. And that dedication could turn into an NFL career.
Cartwright finished his Colorado State career with 75 receptions for 1,136 yards and 12 touchdowns.
Tune in and watch Kivon on Saturday as he hopefully catches some footballs and possibly even a touchdown Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. MT on NFL Network. If he performs at a high level, it will only help to boost his draft stock.
And don’t forget to look for Cory James, either; both Cartwright and James are on the West team. James finished his career fourth all-time in Colorado State football history with 24.0 sacks, along with 230 career tackles. He made the move from strong side linebacker to the middle linebacker in 2015 before making the move back to the strong side late in the season.
Currently, there are seven former Colorado State players on active NFL rosters. Barrett is one, and Ty Sambrailo is also part of the Denver Broncos. Richburg plays for the Giants, Gillmore on the Ravens, Garrett Grayson plays for the New Orleans Saints, Shelley Smith plays for the Miami Dolphins and Erik Pears for the San Francisco 49ers.
After this weekend, a few more may have made a name for themselves.
Meanwhile, Kevin Pierre-Louis is being trained in Texas as he hopes for an NFL Scouting Combine call.
