This Week in HIstory: Rams Had a Gas Beating Buffs

September 4, 1999 -- The Rams had not beaten the Buffs since the 1986 upset in Boulder, and coach Sonny Lubick knew it was time to break that streak. After losing 42-14 at the first Rocky Mountain Showdown in Denver the previous year, the Rams smelled the blood in the proverbial water and stormed the Mile High Stadium turf with fire in their eyes.

Before one of the largest college football crowds in state history and a nationally televised FOX Sports broadcast, CSU opened the 1999 version of the Rocky Mountain Showdown by halting No. 14 CU dead in its tracks on the first drive. This highly publicized game happened to be CU coach Gary Barnett's debut as the Buffs' head coach, and he had some pressure to keep their winning streak alive against CSU.

Rams quarterback Matt Newton, a graduate of Cherry Creek High School, made his first start before nearly 75,000 fans. Newton had some jitters on the first drive, but a Deone Horinek punt to the CU 7-yard-line gave the Rams their first advantage in the game. On CU's second possession, quarterback Mike Moschetti threw an interception to Rams linebacker Rick Crowell, who promptly took the ball 54 yards for a touchdown with 9:10 left in the first quarter.

After CU punted on its third possession, Rams senior running back Kevin McDougal took the ball on the first play from scrimmage and ran 59 yards for CSU's second touchdown of the quarter. The west stands, filled with CU fans, sat in shock after watching their nationally ranked team give up two touchdowns in mere minutes. The first quarter ended 14-0 in the Ram's favor and left CU scrambling to make up ground.

The CSU defense swarmed the CU offense all day, sacking Moschetti time after time and stopping the Buffs running and passing game. The Rams offense caught fire as the defense continued to stop CU in their tracks. Newton connected to Rams wide receiver Frank Rice early in the second quarter, and Rice took off for a 67-yard touchdown. Now trailing 21-0, the Buffs had their backs against the wall.

On their next possession and after sacks by John Howell and Jaime Bennett, CU could go nowhere and punted again. The Rams stalled on their next drive, but pinned CU to their own 1-yard line after another deep punt by Horinek. The Buffs climbed back to their own 20 making up some momentum before another turnover. It was then that Rams defensive end Clark Haggans broke through the line and tipped Moschetti's pass, caught it and then ran to the CU 1-yard line. A quick 1-yard punch into the end zone by McDougal had the Rams in serious control of a 28-0 lead.

On the next possession by the Buffs, Moschetti seemed to 31356

get the Buffs on some kind of track toward a score until Rams linebacker Ula Tuitele intercepted Moschetti at the CSU 28-yard-line to crush any kind of drive by the Buffs. The Rams went to the locker room at halftime with a 28-0 lead as the Buffs hung their heads low. Sonny Lubick kept the team calm at half and told them to stay focused in the second half. Not only did CSU stay focused, they continued to score on CU.

On their first drive after the half, CSU ate 7:30 seconds off the clock smashing their way 80 yards down the field in 16 plays before Newton snuck over the goal line from the 1. Leading 35-0 now, the Rams defense did not let up as Jason Gallimore sacked Moschetti two times and Rick Crowell had another sack of his own. McDougal, who would end the day with 189 yards on 22 carries and two touchdowns, received some relief as Lubick brought in Rashan Sanders and Duan Ruff at running back.

Early in the fourth quarter the Rams scored six more points thanks to two field goals by kicker C.W. Hurst. With a 41-0 lead, CU fans poured out of the stadium even as the Buffs scored two consolation touchdowns to bring the final score to 41-14.

The real fireworks started as the game came to an end and jubilant Rams fans became overwhelmed with excitement. The Denver Police, working overtime with the Taste of Colorado and a busy Labor Day Weekend, were on a short fuse and would not put up with any attempts to storm the field by CSU fans. Shortly after the game ended, police in riot gear pelted the CSU student section containing adult fans and children too with pepper spray and tossed tear gas canisters into the north stands to prevent any attempts to bring down the Denver Broncos' goal posts. Nobody was innocent in the eyes of the Denver Police, not even the CSU band.

As parents tried to carry their children out of the stadium with tear gas in their eyes and one band member nearly died from an asthma attack, a few overzealous fans and officers marred the joy of one of the greatest upsets in CSU history. As Lubick was being interviewed by FOX, players could be seen looking at the melee in shock, but could do nothing to help their fellow students. It was not the first time tear gas had been used at a CSU-CU game, the first being in 1936 and second in 1949, but hopefully it will be the last time as the rivalry returns to the CSU campus in 2020.

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