Colorado State University Athletics
Friday, November 22
Laramie, Wyo.
7:30 PM MT
Colorado State
4-7 , 3-4
7
at
17
Wyoming
7-4 , 4-3
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
F
Colorado State
0
7
0
0
7
Wyoming
0
7
7
3
17
Rams Fall Short in Border War
11/23/2019 12:19:00 AM | Football
Offense stalls for second consecutive week
LARAMIE, Wyo. – Silence.
Some of them were just stunned. Depressed. There was deep reflection in a pool of disappointment, some stares directed at the floor, others at the wall they looked right past. For those on the Colorado State football team who played in their final Border War on Friday night at War Memorial Stadium, it produced a void.
For the fourth consecutive season, the Rams watched the Cowboys celebrate with the Bronze Boot, the result of a 17-7 loss. It eliminated the chance for a bowl game, but the stacking losses to rivals were the first concern.
"This is getting harder," defensive tackle Ellison Hubbard said. "We can't let outside distractions get negative on us."
Internalizing has kept the Rams in game, but being unable to put a complete effort together has pushed them back, and it did against Wyoming.
The defense produced another solid outing, limiting Wyoming to just 273 yards of total offense. It was the sixth consecutive game the Rams have done so against FBS competition, a streak unrivaled since an eight-game run in 1995.
It wasn't perfect. Two 15-yard penalties helped Wyoming produce its first touchdown; another one helped clear a path to the second touchdown – both on quarterback runs from the 1 – after the Cowboys stuffed two quarterback sneaks by the Rams on third- and fourth-and-1 near midfield.
For a second week in a row, the offense just wasn't there. The Rams didn't have 300 yards of total offense, either, and only once was the group able to put a drive together, resulting in a 4-yard scoring catch by Warren Jackson.
"This was pretty much a microcosm of our whole season," CSU head coach Mike Bobo said. "Tonight, close but not quite good enough. Our kids played extremely hard, played extremely hard on the defensive side of the ball. Offensively, we had some opportunities, but an inability to get any kind of running game hurt us."
Early in the season, it was the offense which took off, but the defense couldn't keep up. Now that the defense is on a roll, the offense can't push through.
After 39 yards rushing against Air Force, CSU mustered just 48 against Wyoming. It couldn't get a push in short yardage, and the running backs didn't break tackles.
"This is us, and it's going back this week to the drawing board and seeing what we can do to get better," offensive lineman Barry Wesley said. "We need to put ourselves in a situation to get ourselves a victory. We did that the first drive last week against Air Force. It was amazing. For whatever reason, we've kind of tanked off. We didn't really get a spark tonight, and you could really see that throughout the whole game. We really didn't put a whole drive together. We've got to lock back in and focus up."
Down 14-7, the Braxton Davis missed a 50-yard field goal attempt. Later in the game a big pass play to Trey McBride was negated by an illegal man down field. Warren Jackson had six catches for 95 yards, making him the ninth CSU wideout to have produced one of the 14 1,000-yard seasons. McBride still finished with six catches for 78 yards, but as Bobo noted, without the threat of a run game, the Rams were one dimensional.
It's just not enough.
"It's a lack of execution. We're getting close," Jackson said. "No penalties, just little mistakes. We're just playing football. If we get those little things right, we can change the game. I'd say this game, we had too many tiny errors which led to us losing. Let's just say that.
"I'm a team guy. I always want to see us win. Whether I have 100 catches or zero, I always want to see us win first. It's just tough knowing I didn't do enough to help this football team."
So they sat in silence. They did so in a group setting, but individually, their thoughts took them to that dark place, the one were questions are asked with no answers clearly available.
When they talked, it was in whispers. Encouragement to be found in a moment of despair. None of it felt right, because it was a common emotion.
A different opponent, a separate trophy, but the déjà vu of coming up painfully short.
Some of them were just stunned. Depressed. There was deep reflection in a pool of disappointment, some stares directed at the floor, others at the wall they looked right past. For those on the Colorado State football team who played in their final Border War on Friday night at War Memorial Stadium, it produced a void.
For the fourth consecutive season, the Rams watched the Cowboys celebrate with the Bronze Boot, the result of a 17-7 loss. It eliminated the chance for a bowl game, but the stacking losses to rivals were the first concern.
"This is getting harder," defensive tackle Ellison Hubbard said. "We can't let outside distractions get negative on us."
Internalizing has kept the Rams in game, but being unable to put a complete effort together has pushed them back, and it did against Wyoming.
The defense produced another solid outing, limiting Wyoming to just 273 yards of total offense. It was the sixth consecutive game the Rams have done so against FBS competition, a streak unrivaled since an eight-game run in 1995.
It wasn't perfect. Two 15-yard penalties helped Wyoming produce its first touchdown; another one helped clear a path to the second touchdown – both on quarterback runs from the 1 – after the Cowboys stuffed two quarterback sneaks by the Rams on third- and fourth-and-1 near midfield.
For a second week in a row, the offense just wasn't there. The Rams didn't have 300 yards of total offense, either, and only once was the group able to put a drive together, resulting in a 4-yard scoring catch by Warren Jackson.
"This was pretty much a microcosm of our whole season," CSU head coach Mike Bobo said. "Tonight, close but not quite good enough. Our kids played extremely hard, played extremely hard on the defensive side of the ball. Offensively, we had some opportunities, but an inability to get any kind of running game hurt us."
Early in the season, it was the offense which took off, but the defense couldn't keep up. Now that the defense is on a roll, the offense can't push through.
After 39 yards rushing against Air Force, CSU mustered just 48 against Wyoming. It couldn't get a push in short yardage, and the running backs didn't break tackles.
"This is us, and it's going back this week to the drawing board and seeing what we can do to get better," offensive lineman Barry Wesley said. "We need to put ourselves in a situation to get ourselves a victory. We did that the first drive last week against Air Force. It was amazing. For whatever reason, we've kind of tanked off. We didn't really get a spark tonight, and you could really see that throughout the whole game. We really didn't put a whole drive together. We've got to lock back in and focus up."
Down 14-7, the Braxton Davis missed a 50-yard field goal attempt. Later in the game a big pass play to Trey McBride was negated by an illegal man down field. Warren Jackson had six catches for 95 yards, making him the ninth CSU wideout to have produced one of the 14 1,000-yard seasons. McBride still finished with six catches for 78 yards, but as Bobo noted, without the threat of a run game, the Rams were one dimensional.
It's just not enough.
"It's a lack of execution. We're getting close," Jackson said. "No penalties, just little mistakes. We're just playing football. If we get those little things right, we can change the game. I'd say this game, we had too many tiny errors which led to us losing. Let's just say that.
"I'm a team guy. I always want to see us win. Whether I have 100 catches or zero, I always want to see us win first. It's just tough knowing I didn't do enough to help this football team."
So they sat in silence. They did so in a group setting, but individually, their thoughts took them to that dark place, the one were questions are asked with no answers clearly available.
When they talked, it was in whispers. Encouragement to be found in a moment of despair. None of it felt right, because it was a common emotion.
A different opponent, a separate trophy, but the déjà vu of coming up painfully short.
Team Stats
CSU
WYO
Total Yards
265
273
Pass Yards
217
81
Rushing Yards
48
192
Penalty Yards
56
49
1st Downs
15
19
3rd Downs
5
9
4th Downs
0
1
TOP
27:58
32:02
2nd Quarter
CSU 0, WYO 7
WYO - VANDER WAAL, T. 1 yd run (ROTHE, Cooper kick), 11 plays, 93 yards, TOP 5:30
CSU 7, WYO 7
CSU - JACKSON, W. 4 yd pass from O'BRIEN, P. (DAVIS, B. kick) 13 plays, 75 yards, TOP 7:00
3rd Quarter
CSU 7, WYO 14
WYO - WILLIAMS, Levi 1 yd run (ROTHE, Cooper kick), 10 plays, 44 yards, TOP 5:41
4th Quarter
CSU 7, WYO 17
WYO - ROTHE, Cooper 48 yd field goal 11 plays, 28 yards, TOP 5:44
Players Mentioned
K
/ Football
DL
/ Football
WR
/ Football
TE
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OL
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