The Rams practiced in pads for the first time this fall — Here's what we know

FORT COLLINS, Colo. — Colorado State football is officially back in action. The Rams practiced as a team in pads on Tuesday morning — the first time the program has been able to do so since the league suspended all action over a month ago. 

There was no viewing period or media availability for Tuesday’s practice but the team did release a transcript of a couple player’s responses to questions from associate athletic director Kyle Neaves and assistant communications director Mike Brohard. 

Here is what we learned. 

Players are excited to be back in pads after an untraditional start to the season

Much like the rest of the country, COVID-19 significantly disrupted the traditional process for CSU football this year. 

Instead of having team workouts transition into training camp, the players had to deal with an outbreak that temporarily shut down the program this summer. Then, shortly after the Rams had those restrictions lifted, the Mountain West initially decided to postpone the season until the spring. So, in a nutshell, it’s safe to say that nothing about the 2020 season has been normal so far. 

Despite everything the players have been through, senior running back Marcus McElroy said that he feels like everyone has handled the situation well.

“We had some people go home, and they were at home training. As soon as they came back, we came back here, we got the optional voluntary lifts and a bunch of people showed up for those,” McElroy said. 

“Even when we got shut down, people were trying to find ways to work. Either working out trying to get weights or trying to just run routes to quarterbacks and just doing the best they could to stay on top of things and stay prepared for whenever we got the time to go and do anything. So I felt like we really handled it as best we could with the cards that we were dealt, a lot of unknowns.”

Junior linebacker Dequan Jackson had a similar response, stating that you have to be able to roll with the punches. “I think guys are doing that. You just have to focus on football right now.”

While it’s certainly encouraging that the players have displayed their resiliency over the last couple of months — now that the team is back working in a more familiar manner — McElroy and his teammates can definitely feel a boost in energy. 

“We’ve been waiting for a long time. You can sort of feel the emotion on the team right now just going full pads. It was just a different kind of vibe outside. So, it felt good today.”

“Everybody has been very competitive out there,” E.J. Scott said. “It felt nice to be back out with full pads and going live and moving it and stuff. We’ve just got to keep stacking days on top of each other.”

Practice has a different feel under Addazio and the players are digging it

Along with a collective feeling of excitement for football to be back, the players noted that there was an edge to Tuesday’s practice. Part of that intensity was a result of being starved for competition after sitting out for a month. But practicing with an edge is something that was also brought up in the early stages of spring ball — so it seems that the coaches are bringing an energy that is getting the guys to buy in right away. 

“It’s definitely more competitive,” Scott said. “I personally love it because I hate losing. So the winner’s mentality that coach gives us, I love it.”

“I’m pretty impressed,” Ellison Hubbard added. “Everybody’s fighting to start, everybody’s fighting to get on that field and make plays and help make a championship run in this program.”

Players are confident in their progress picking up a new system

Obviously, if the Rams are going to snap a two-year bowl drought and make a championship run, being able to adjust to a new system quickly is going to be one of the biggest keys for CSU on both sides of the football. 

According to the players, it’s been a process, especially after everything that happened. Encouragingly, though, they believe a lot of progress is being made. 

“It’s one day at a time, but I think guys are starting to grasp the system,” Dequan Jackson said. “My favorite thing about it is guys are going 100 percent whether they mess up or not. We’re learning it on the fly, but I just like the way guys have been executing so far.” 

“When we came out here this spring, and we got those eight practices, we didn’t really get everything in. We didn’t really get a full vibe for how everybody was going to work and how all of the pieces were going together,” McElroy said. 

“We did slow installs over the time when we didn’t have to be here and we weren’t able to be here and be together. I think it helped a little bit because we can sort of get the full gist of how things are going to go with the offense. Then finally, when we’ve got all together now, it’s just sort of putting all the pieces together and making it work. It’s really nice to see and watch in practice.”

Pannunzio earns scholarship

Finally, along with popping pads for the first time this fall, the Rams had a feel-good moment on Tuesday when junior wide receiver Thomas Pannunzio was awarded a scholarship. The 5-foot-9, 170-pound wideout from Pueblo, CO., has contributed on special teams in each of the past two seasons but could see his role increased moving forward. Regardless, it’s always great when a player that does all the right things is rewarded for their hard work.