Colorado State University Athletics
Thursday, November 12
Boise, Idaho
6:00 PM MT
Colorado State
1-2 , 1-2
21
at
52
Boise State
3-1 , 3-0
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
F
Colorado State
0
7
14
0
21
Boise State
21
21
10
0
52
Rams Drop Road Game at Boise State
11/12/2020 10:39:00 PM | Football
Special teams woes hurt Rams in first half
BOISE, Idaho – Out of the gates, Boise State blocked the path of any chance Colorado State had of pulling off a special victory for the program Thursday night.
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The Broncos blocked three kicks in the first half – two by Mountain West Special Teams Player of the Year Avery Williams on punts – all leading to touchdowns as the hosts raced to a 52-21 victory at Albertsons Stadium.
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CSU head coach Steve Addazio had praised the Rams' special teams play the first two games, but Boise State obviously saw something on film it could attack, and CSU head coach Steve Addazio said the Rams helped by making mistakes.
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In short, he called it "preposterous."
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"I mean I'm totally off guard. It's not expected, nothing that we've seen before and it showed up," he said. "The first punt was an overload, which we work on all the time, Trey McBride checked it the right way and Ryan Stonehouse didn't hear the check and went the other way. The second one, checked it again the way we wanted to – but I'm assuming, and I'll have to watch the tape – that we didn't' zone the furthest gap up front. Somebody cut a guy free and absorbed our shield. The field goal block, like everybody else, we're and inside-gap protection team, and I saw that somebody stood up out of their stance, got opened up, gave up penetration when our shoulder pads are supposed to be going through the sideboards.
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"Coach Chuck Heater talked to our team yesterday, and he talked about 88 strong. The reason 88, because there's eight units on the field – offense, defense and each one of the special teams including field goal block and field goal – and everybody has to be locked in. It's kind of ironic that that was the topic of his talk to the team last night and that crept up and really got us."
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Some old woes crept back into the scene on defense, with Boise State converting seven of nine tries on third down in the first half alone (9-of-18 in the game), picking up two third-and-longs on one scoring drive.
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The Rams were the opposite – coming up empty on eight tries in the first 30 minutes – just 1-of-15 in the game.
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"There were some third downs where we had to get off the field and we didn't," said Dequan Jackson. "I think it's just fundamentals and guys not being where they're supposed to be. There's free areas when we're dropping, and I think guys have to execute the game plan when it comes to third down. We have to get off the field. Those are crucial moments in the game, and I think that showed itself."
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The one lone offensive bright spot for the Rams in the first half was a scoring drive sparked by receiver Dante Wright, who secured his second 100-yard receiving game in succession by halftime. The sophomore snared a fourth-down pass in traffic to move the chains, then split the defense for a diving catch down to the BSU 1-yard line on the next play. Quarterback Patrick O'Brien plowed in for the score on the next play.
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Wright, who was targeted eight times, did not have a catch in the second half and finished with 109 yards on five catches.
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But Boise State erased all hope by blocking kicks. Williams, who won his award last year for his returns, blocked his first kick on the night on the Rams' first series and collected it in the end zone for the first points of the game. Later, he blocked another Stonehouse attempt – he had only had one punt blocked in his career entering the night – DJ Schramm returning it 20 yards for a score.
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In the first quarter, Robert Liss had a field goal attempt blocked which was returned by Kekaula Kaniho 91 yards for a touchdown as the Broncos led 42-7 at the break.
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"You pretty much give them a free seven points to start the game. It's hard to get that momentum back," said Trey McBride. "They block a kick right off the get-go, it's just hard to get that momentum back. It was a miscommunication between me and Ryan, and that's something we have to fix and something we will get fixed, because that's unacceptable, let alone three blocked kicks in the game."
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The Broncos only had four offensive possessions the first half, but scored on three as Hank Bachmeier returned to guide the offense after missing two weeks. He threw a touchdown pass to Riley Smith, and Andrew Van Buren had two rushing scores at the break to account for the lead.
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Colorado State showed signs of life early in the second half, as Todd Centeio replaced O'Brien to start the half and guided the Rams on a scoring drive, capped by a 21-yard connection to McBride, who has a touchdown in every game this season.
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On the ensuing kickoff, the Rams forced Williams to fumble, and a play later, A'Jon Vivens went 17 yards for the first rushing touchdown of his career to cut the Broncos' lead in half.
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As soon as things seemed to work toward normal, Boise State had more bizarre in store on the blue turf. A field goal pushed the lead to 45-21, and then the night produced a big-man touchdown. Khalil Shakir was set to score on a sweep when Tywan Francis separated him from the ball. But the ball floated into the waiting hands of tackle Nick Crabtree on the goal line for another touchdown.
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The Rams outgained the Broncos in the game, 315-291, but it didn't matter. Both teams used turnovers to produce touchdowns, but Colorado State could not overcome the special teams breakdowns.
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"I've never seen three special teams things turn into 21 points. I never have, and I never want to see it again," Addazio said. "You can't go on the road against a good team and let that happen. It's inexcusable."
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The Broncos blocked three kicks in the first half – two by Mountain West Special Teams Player of the Year Avery Williams on punts – all leading to touchdowns as the hosts raced to a 52-21 victory at Albertsons Stadium.
Â
CSU head coach Steve Addazio had praised the Rams' special teams play the first two games, but Boise State obviously saw something on film it could attack, and CSU head coach Steve Addazio said the Rams helped by making mistakes.
Â
In short, he called it "preposterous."
Â
"I mean I'm totally off guard. It's not expected, nothing that we've seen before and it showed up," he said. "The first punt was an overload, which we work on all the time, Trey McBride checked it the right way and Ryan Stonehouse didn't hear the check and went the other way. The second one, checked it again the way we wanted to – but I'm assuming, and I'll have to watch the tape – that we didn't' zone the furthest gap up front. Somebody cut a guy free and absorbed our shield. The field goal block, like everybody else, we're and inside-gap protection team, and I saw that somebody stood up out of their stance, got opened up, gave up penetration when our shoulder pads are supposed to be going through the sideboards.
Â
"Coach Chuck Heater talked to our team yesterday, and he talked about 88 strong. The reason 88, because there's eight units on the field – offense, defense and each one of the special teams including field goal block and field goal – and everybody has to be locked in. It's kind of ironic that that was the topic of his talk to the team last night and that crept up and really got us."
Â
Some old woes crept back into the scene on defense, with Boise State converting seven of nine tries on third down in the first half alone (9-of-18 in the game), picking up two third-and-longs on one scoring drive.
Â
The Rams were the opposite – coming up empty on eight tries in the first 30 minutes – just 1-of-15 in the game.
Â
"There were some third downs where we had to get off the field and we didn't," said Dequan Jackson. "I think it's just fundamentals and guys not being where they're supposed to be. There's free areas when we're dropping, and I think guys have to execute the game plan when it comes to third down. We have to get off the field. Those are crucial moments in the game, and I think that showed itself."
Â
The one lone offensive bright spot for the Rams in the first half was a scoring drive sparked by receiver Dante Wright, who secured his second 100-yard receiving game in succession by halftime. The sophomore snared a fourth-down pass in traffic to move the chains, then split the defense for a diving catch down to the BSU 1-yard line on the next play. Quarterback Patrick O'Brien plowed in for the score on the next play.Â
Wright, who was targeted eight times, did not have a catch in the second half and finished with 109 yards on five catches.
Â
But Boise State erased all hope by blocking kicks. Williams, who won his award last year for his returns, blocked his first kick on the night on the Rams' first series and collected it in the end zone for the first points of the game. Later, he blocked another Stonehouse attempt – he had only had one punt blocked in his career entering the night – DJ Schramm returning it 20 yards for a score.
Â
In the first quarter, Robert Liss had a field goal attempt blocked which was returned by Kekaula Kaniho 91 yards for a touchdown as the Broncos led 42-7 at the break.
Â
"You pretty much give them a free seven points to start the game. It's hard to get that momentum back," said Trey McBride. "They block a kick right off the get-go, it's just hard to get that momentum back. It was a miscommunication between me and Ryan, and that's something we have to fix and something we will get fixed, because that's unacceptable, let alone three blocked kicks in the game."
Â
The Broncos only had four offensive possessions the first half, but scored on three as Hank Bachmeier returned to guide the offense after missing two weeks. He threw a touchdown pass to Riley Smith, and Andrew Van Buren had two rushing scores at the break to account for the lead.
Â
Colorado State showed signs of life early in the second half, as Todd Centeio replaced O'Brien to start the half and guided the Rams on a scoring drive, capped by a 21-yard connection to McBride, who has a touchdown in every game this season.
Â
On the ensuing kickoff, the Rams forced Williams to fumble, and a play later, A'Jon Vivens went 17 yards for the first rushing touchdown of his career to cut the Broncos' lead in half.
Â
As soon as things seemed to work toward normal, Boise State had more bizarre in store on the blue turf. A field goal pushed the lead to 45-21, and then the night produced a big-man touchdown. Khalil Shakir was set to score on a sweep when Tywan Francis separated him from the ball. But the ball floated into the waiting hands of tackle Nick Crabtree on the goal line for another touchdown.
Â
The Rams outgained the Broncos in the game, 315-291, but it didn't matter. Both teams used turnovers to produce touchdowns, but Colorado State could not overcome the special teams breakdowns.
Â
"I've never seen three special teams things turn into 21 points. I never have, and I never want to see it again," Addazio said. "You can't go on the road against a good team and let that happen. It's inexcusable."
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Team Stats
CSU
BSU
Total Yards
315
291
Pass Yards
176
202
Rushing Yards
139
89
Penalty Yards
48
45
1st Downs
15
15
3rd Downs
1
9
4th Downs
1
1
TOP
27:27
32:33
1st Quarter
CSU 0, BSU 7
BSU - WILLIAMS, Avery 0 yd blocked punt return (DALMAS, Jonah kick)
CSU 0, BSU 14
BSU - SMITH, Riley 5 yd pass from BACHMEIER, Hank (DALMAS, Jonah kick) 10 plays, 48 yards, TOP 4:54
CSU 0, BSU 21
BSU - KANIHO, Kekaula 91 yd blocked field goal return (DALMAS, Jonah kick)
2nd Quarter
CSU 7, BSU 21
CSU - O'BRIEN, P. 1 yd run (LISS, R. kick), 8 plays, 76 yards, TOP 2:26
CSU 7, BSU 28
BSU - VAN BUREN, A. 1 yd run (DALMAS, Jonah kick), 10 plays, 85 yards, TOP 4:23
CSU 7, BSU 35
BSU - VAN BUREN, A. 1 yd run (DALMAS, Jonah kick), 10 plays, 36 yards, TOP 4:02
CSU 7, BSU 42
BSU - SCHRAMM, DJ 20 yd blocked punt return (DALMAS, Jonah kick)
3rd Quarter
CSU 14, BSU 42
CSU - McBRIDE, Tr. 21 yd pass from CENTEIO, T. (LISS, R. kick) 7 plays, 64 yards, TOP 2:14
CSU 21, BSU 42
CSU - VIVENS, A. 17 yd run (LISS, R. kick), 1 plays, 17 yards, TOP 0:06
CSU 21, BSU 45
BSU - DALMAS, Jonah 38 yd field goal 6 plays, 44 yards, TOP 1:52
CSU 21, BSU 52
BSU - CRABTREE, Nick 0 yd fumble recovery (DALMAS, Jonah kick)
Game Leaders
CMP
9
TD
0
YDS
140
INT
1
CMP
2
TD
1
YDS
36
INT
0
Players Mentioned
QB
/ Football
DB
/ Football
LB
/ Football
K
/ Football
TE
/ FootballQB
/ Football
P
/ Football
WR
/ Football
WR
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