Steve Addazio, Colorado State wrap up an embarrassing 2021 season with a pitiful performance in a blowout loss to Nevada

FORT COLLINS — 3-9. 

The Colorado State football team closed out the 2021 season with a 52-10 loss to Nevada on Senior Night. The loss extends CSU’s winless streak to six games and puts the final exclamation point on what’s been an absolutely dreadful campaign. 

The disappointment started with a less-than-stellar showing in the season opener against South Dakota State, when the Jackrabbits rushed for 242 yards, averaged seven yards per carry and pounded the Rams for four rushing touchdowns. It continued as CSU fell to Boise State, Wyoming and Air Force in concession for the fifth time in the last six seasons. And the misery culminated in a nearly empty stadium, as Carson Strong and the Nevada Wolf Pack lit up the Rams for 288 passing yards and four touchdowns in a blowout road win.

On a night that should have been remembered for the celebration of the McBride brothers — two of the most dedicated and loyal Rams of all-time — what it will actually be remembered for is the embarrassment of being completely outclassed by yet another league opponent and having it happen in front of thousands of empty seats. 

There wasn’t bad weather. In fact it was about as warm as one could hope for in a late November game that kicked off at 7:00 p.m. MT. The fans sent a message though; a message that this season was unacceptable and that they’d rather be anywhere but Canvas Stadium watching CSU get their teeth kicked in. Shoot, maybe Steve Addazio felt similarly, considering he was ejected from the game late in the second quarter with a pair of unsportsmanlike conduct penalties. He’s just the second FBS coach to ever be ejected with multiple unsportsmanlike infractions. There’s really no sugarcoating the situation. It was a total s*** show all around on Saturday night. 

For the fifth week in a row, CSU allowed 400+ yards of total offense, this time surrendering 528 to UNR. The Rams were -5 in the turnover margin as well. Obviously Nevada is talented but the Rams didn’t even look like they belonged in the same league as the Wolf Pack. It was downright comical at some points. In less than 2 minutes of possession time and just six plays run, Nevada had already established a double digit lead with multiple passing touchdowns of 25 or more yards. And from there, they never let up, as they pretty much coasted in a showing of total domination. 

Playing in his final game for the Green & Gold, Trey McBride was as impressive as usual. The versatile tight end led CSU with six receptions for 90 yards and was essentially the only bright spot for the Rams on offense. He scored his second touchdown of the season on a fake punt in the third quarter with a direct snap that he took 69 yards to the house for his first-ever rushing touchdown. 

The Mackey Award finalist finishes the 2021 season with 90 catches for 1,098 yards and one receiving touchdown (two total). He leaves CSU with 164 receptions, 2,077 receiving yards and 11 total touchdowns in what has been a historic collegiate career for the Fort Morgan native. 

On the other side of the ball, Toby McBride was fairly quiet with one tackle and one hit on the quarterback in the loss. After everything he went through in his career, though, battling injuries and overcoming obstacles left and right, the fact that Ram fans were able to enjoy one last ride with the McBride brothers is extremely special. Their commitment to CSU football is something that just doesn’t happen very often. In a year full of frustration, I hope that the Ram faithful can at least appreciate the McBrides and what they mean to CSU as a whole. You may not feel pride for the entire program at the moment, but you should definitely be proud that these two will be forever immortalized as Rams. 

In total 17 individuals were recognized for Senior Night. Technically there are 33 seniors on the roster but eligibility is somewhat wonky at the moment due to everyone retaining their season in 2020. The 17 individuals that walked have officially concluded their playing days at Colorado State though. That list includes but is not limited to Ryan Stonehouse, Barry Wesley, Scott Patchan, Manny Jones and EJ Scott. 

Moving forward it’s tough to feel any type of positivity for this football program or its direction. For one thing they’re losing the most significant talent on the roster and the recruiting class is set to be one of the worst in the Mountain West. But even looking past the talent that’s leaving, nothing about the second half of the season has indicated that the Rams are starting to turn the corner. 

It’s admirable that CSU never laid down. On multiple occasions they turned blowouts into respectable losses with dramatic comeback efforts late in the game. But it was always too little, too late. Plus, when the season was on the line and the games that mattered most were there for the taking, the Rams let their supporters down again and again. Addazio let the supporters down again and again. 

Considering the financial commitment CSU made to Addazio, it seems somewhat unlikely that there will be a coaching change prior to the 2022 season. Even when the buyout drops to $3 million on Dec. 2, the cost just feels steep for a G5 school that’s trying to tread water through a tricky financial situation in the pandemic. 

Normally I’d argue that it’s premature to even discuss the firing of a coach this early in his tenure. Three years is the standard for me unless there is a scandal or something out of the ordinary. However, the window for CSU to be a nationally relevant football program is shrinking by the year and CSU has a shiny on-campus stadium that it’s going to have to pay off at some point. With what we saw from the Rams over the second half of the season, I’m not sure the university can afford to be patient anymore. Not unless Joyce McConnell and Co. are comfortable with playing out an entire season with little to no support from the fan base. 

We’ll see what CSU elects to do in the end. The one thing I know for sure is that the current trend cannot continue. This school dedicates too much money and has way too many selling points for the football program to continue to be an embarrassment. 

Enough is enough already. Your move, Joe.