Scrimmage Notes: Collin Hill tosses four touchdowns in efficient outing

FORT COLLINS, Colo.— Colorado State football held its first official scrimmage of fall camp Saturday afternoon. The intrasquad exhibition was closed to the media, but according to head coach Mike Bobo, the competition was good on both sides of the football.

Bobo explained that the team has installed the majority of their packages at this point, and this allowed them to get a variety of different looks with the starters and various backups on Saturday.

While the fifth-year head coach would have liked to have seen more consistent tackling against the run and better organization from the sideline, for the most part, he was pleased with his squad’s effort and results. In particular, Bobo was impressed by the offensive line’s ability to control the line of scrimmage, even without Barry Wesley.

Who stood out

Offense

Quarterback Collin Hill

• “I thought Collin was really efficient,” Bobo said.
• Rough stats: 18-of-23 for 190 yards, 4 touchdowns, 1 interception.

Wide receiver Warren Jackson

• “Warren Jackson showed up today,” Bobo said.
• Rough stats: six catches, 90 yards.

Defense

Safety Logan Stewart

• Intercepted Collin Hill on third and 11 and returned it 37 yards for a pick-six. The interception was Hill’s second turnover through the air in camp thus far.
• “That interception is going to bother me for a while,” Hill said. “In camp, I’ve really protected the ball… I think that was a stupid play. It was third and 11, I’ve gotta know the down and distance. I knew what the coverage was and I was just trying to rip it in there. I’ve just gotta be smart with the ball.”

Defensive end Toby McBride

• “He had a really, really good day,” Bobo said. A lot of it was against the twos on the offensive line, but still, he was making plays, he was disruptive in the backfield.”
• Rough stats: 4.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks.

Defensive end Jalen Bates

Rough stats: 2 tackles for loss, 2 sacks.

What needs to change

The consensus seemed to be that everyone was pleased with CSU’s efforts in the first scrimmage of fall. However, both Bobo and Hill made a point to mention that the team had way too many penalties. Neither seemed particularly worried, as it’s still only Aug. 10. But with the season fast approaching, the Rams will need to focus on limiting the small mistakes.

“We shot ourselves in the foot a lot,” Hill said. “I think the defense did get after us at times, but for the most part, we had little false starts or holding calls.”

Hill explained how they came out from halftime and executed a 15-yard completion to Jackson. Unfortunately, a holding call erased the play. So instead of having first and 10 from the 50-yard-line, they had first and 20 from the 30-yard-line.

In another instance, Bobo mentioned that freshman running back Christian Hunter should have had a 50-yard rushing touchdown, but it too was wiped out by an illegal formation. It’s the little plays like this that Hill and Bobo hope to eliminate before the regular season.