Rams Look to Get Ball Rolling Out of the Break

FORT COLLINS, Colo. – The search for additional offense is constant, no matter how many yards a team chews up, how many points they crank out.

For Colorado State, it has to be a focus. The yardage totals have been decent, but they want more. When it comes to scoring, 20 points per game in college football is a tough ask to win consistently. The third quarter has been particularly rough for the Rams, with just 10 points scored all year, and the lone touchdown was generated by special teams, not the offense.

They're perplexed, a bit confused and a dash curious as to why the frame has been so troublesome, and the bye week was the opportune time to take a closer, more detailed look.

"I think we're trying to build this culture and learn how to win and learn how to finish games. I think it's just a mindset," quarterback Todd Centeio said. "We go out there excited and fresh like we were in the first half, we should be good going forward. I just think it's a mindset.

"It's getting that rhythm, getting that first first down of each drive. You get calm, take a deep breath and then coach can call whatever he wants and we go from there."

The first drive of a game is always carefully thought out, because it can help set a tone for the remainder of the game. Offensive coordinator Jon Budmayr said the first drive of the second half has to be treated in the same manner, too.

Tuesday's practice was crisp by all accounts, but when the team took a water break midway through, head coach Steve Addazio noted that a good first half doesn't make the day complete, and for the offense, they knew the message carried a deeper meaning.

The break then was like the break at halftime. Come back to the field and keep it going.

"That's what we did, we came out and had a really good practice today," tight end Trey McBride said. "I think it's getting off your feet, getting that break and coming out slow. We're trying to get that fixed, and this game, I think we'll come out fast and be ready to roll."

Budmayr broke down every part of the four third quarters the Rams have played. The only points by the offense have come off a Cayden Camper field goal on the road at Toledo, and that 10-point stanza helped open up a lead and pave a way to the first win of the year.

He agrees some of it lies with an energy factor, but he also took a long look at how he was calling games coming out of the break and finding ways to get the juices flowing.

"This was a great week to do that. It was good to look back and say, what are we doing situationally, and coming out of halftime, that's certainly a big situation," he said. "It's not just normal down-and-distance, third down and red zone, it's how do we respond coming out of a half? When we're up, continuing to impose that will, and when we're down, start the fight and then finish it in the fourth quarter.

"We want it to be very similar to the first drive. That's where you look through, 'OK, is there stuff we did in the first quarter, first half menu we liked and not be afraid to come back to it."

Explosive plays would help, and the offense has just two in third quarters all years, both pass plays, both in the 20-29-yard range. It hasn't helped Dante Wright has not been available the past two weeks, because he not only gives the team a vertical threat, he's somebody who can take a short pass and extend it for long gainers.

Finding his replacement, a wideout who can make those types of plays is still a work in progress, and there have been spurts. Again, Budmayr took it back to how they work during the week and what he's calling during a game to open up the possibilities.

"It's like practice. You get a break and how do you respond?" he said. "It's trying to train guys to have the right mindset to attack it and not come out dull, come out and execute and guys make plays. It's also on us to put them in a position to make those plays."

A big chunk right off the opening snap would be a boon. So too would an extended drive, one which builds confidence, and it starts with moving the chains the first time for a fresh set of snaps.

The best drive the Rams have had in the third lasted nine plays, and it led to a field goal against Toledo. But they've also had seven three-and-outs in the third, and those do nothing for momentum.

"I think we just need to come out and be a little faster. Guys come out and we're too slow," McBride said. "I think we just need to catch that groove as soon as we get out there."

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