Colorado State University Athletics
Saturday, October 9
Fort Collins, CO
1:30 PM
Colorado State
2-3 , 1-0
32
vs
14
San Jose State
3-3 , 1-1
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
F
San Jose St.
0
7
0
7
14
Colorado St.
10
6
10
6
32
Rams Open Conference Play In Big Way
10/9/2021 6:53:00 PM | Football
Big Canvas crowd sees team take down San Jose State
FORT COLLINS, Colo. – The first half was solid. The third quarter, uplifting.
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The Colorado State locker room? Well, it was ecstatic after a rousing 32-14 Homecoming victory Saturday afternoon at Canvas Stadium in front of a crowd of 34,780Â the fourth-largest in facility history. After a 1-3 start to the 2021 season in non-conference play, the Mountain West slate began with an impressive win over the conference's defending champions.
Â
"I think personally how we talk about it on the defensive side of the ball, it's a one-week season," defensive end Scott Patchan said. "You can't overlook things, you can't look past certain opponents, you can't look down at anybody. You have to give everybody the respect they deserve as an opponent."
Â
The Rams are out to earn some of their own.
Â
The Spartans were missing starting quarterback Nick Starkel, but CSU signal caller Todd Centeio wasn't missing anybody, at least not early. He opened the game by hitting his first 12 passes – tied for the second-longest streak in program history – and said goodbye to his deep-ball blues with a 60-yard connection to Ty McCullouch -- on a third-and-10 play, no less -- for the first offensive touchdown in a third quarter this season.
Â
That play extended the Rams' lead to 23-7, and they kept rolling from there behind another strong defensive effort.
Â
"Ty flipped the switch here about two weeks ago. His approach, his maturity, his intensity in practice, and I told him, 'it paid off didn't it?'" head coach Steve Addaizo said. "He said, 'it sure did coach.' That was really gratifying to watch Ty take that step. It was a hell of a route and Toddy dropped a nice ball in there, but to me that was more about Ty McCullouch right there because he took a step. And E.J. Scott took a step. We need that. We need that, because we need those explosive plays."
Â
Centeio was sizzling at the start, but he never really cooled down. He finished with 232 passing yards, adding another 37 with his legs. He hit on 19-of-23 attempts, matching Moses Moreno for the fourth best single-game completion percentage at 82.6 percent.
Â
Both games, as it turns out, came at the expense of the Spartans, Moreno doing so back in 1996. It felt good at the time, but Centeio didn't know how good until afterward.
Â
"Nah, I just checked on the phone and found out," he said. "Everything felt like it was hitting on all cylinders today, so that's always good. A lot of people stepped up today. I'm proud of them, proud of this team. Everybody played their butt off."
Â
Once again the Rams took the field without playmaker Dante Wright at receiver, but Centeio found a couple of targets to fill in the explosive-play gap. He hit a couple of big plays on the first drive alone, one to Trey McBride, the other to Scott, as the Rams opened the game with an impressive scoring drive covering 75 yards in eight plays, capped by a 1-yard scoring run by Jaylen Thomas.
Â
Justice McCoy also had a bit conversion on third, with a 22-yard catch. McCullouch had two catches for 71 yards, Scott four for 57.
Â
A'Jon Vivens stepped in with a career game for the injured David Bailey, posting career bests with 30 carries and 111 yards, with Thomas providing additional punch to a run game which finished with 217 yards overall.
Â
"I think just as an offense, as a team period, we come out and we work hard every day," Vivens said after his first 100-yard performance. "We're always prepared for those moments. If it's me or Jaylen we're just prepared to go out there and give it everything we have."
Â
Defensively, the Rams spent the afternoon holding a third successive opponent to fewer than 300 yards of total offense -- 268. The unit did it with a mix of strong execution and some punch, delivering a pair of turnovers, six tackles for loss, three of which were sacks.
Â
San Jose State had 11 drives in the game, the longest being 68 yards to produce a score in the final quarter with the game out of reach. In the process, the Rams limited the Spartans to less than 20 yards on seven of those possessions.
Â
After giving up 240 yards rushing in the opener to South Dakota State, the Rams have not allowed more than the 114 the Spartans produced on the ground in the game. To linebacker Dequan Jackson, it's the first step to take for a group which wants to pride itself on being physical.
Â
"I think the goal is really just to pound, pound at everything until we have everything from the other team," said linebacker Dequan Jackson, who had 12 tackles in the game. "Go be physical. Pride ourselves on physicality, pride ourselves on preparation in practice, we go hard. I think it just pays off on game day. Maybe we do. We have a chart in the hallway where we chart things like that. I'm not sure if it's 300, but the way we practice, it's paying off."
Â
True freshman safety Jack Howell produced his first career interception in the first quarter. Later in the game, a Scott Patchan sack led to a forced fumble recovered by Cian Quiroga. And while it doesn't officially count as a takeaway, the special teams created one when Thomas Pannunzio pounced on a muffed punt return.
Â
Two of those turned into Cayden Camper field goals, as he connected on a school- and Mountain West-record six in the game, including a career long of 53 yards, giving him 11 consecutive conversions. It's a far cry from a few weeks ago, when he missed two in a game against Vanderbilt, giving him three misses in a row.
Â
In every way the Rams want to approach a game, they hit their mark, which Addazio will point out as the team's continued upward arc.
Â
"The plan to win for us, is five steps," he said. "Play great defense, run the football, no turnovers, great in special teams, because that's a field-changing thing, and score in the red zone. That's our plan to win. But it starts with playing great defense."
Â
Â
The Colorado State locker room? Well, it was ecstatic after a rousing 32-14 Homecoming victory Saturday afternoon at Canvas Stadium in front of a crowd of 34,780Â the fourth-largest in facility history. After a 1-3 start to the 2021 season in non-conference play, the Mountain West slate began with an impressive win over the conference's defending champions.
Â
"I think personally how we talk about it on the defensive side of the ball, it's a one-week season," defensive end Scott Patchan said. "You can't overlook things, you can't look past certain opponents, you can't look down at anybody. You have to give everybody the respect they deserve as an opponent."
Â
The Rams are out to earn some of their own.
Â
The Spartans were missing starting quarterback Nick Starkel, but CSU signal caller Todd Centeio wasn't missing anybody, at least not early. He opened the game by hitting his first 12 passes – tied for the second-longest streak in program history – and said goodbye to his deep-ball blues with a 60-yard connection to Ty McCullouch -- on a third-and-10 play, no less -- for the first offensive touchdown in a third quarter this season.
Â
That play extended the Rams' lead to 23-7, and they kept rolling from there behind another strong defensive effort.
Â
"Ty flipped the switch here about two weeks ago. His approach, his maturity, his intensity in practice, and I told him, 'it paid off didn't it?'" head coach Steve Addaizo said. "He said, 'it sure did coach.' That was really gratifying to watch Ty take that step. It was a hell of a route and Toddy dropped a nice ball in there, but to me that was more about Ty McCullouch right there because he took a step. And E.J. Scott took a step. We need that. We need that, because we need those explosive plays."
Â
Centeio was sizzling at the start, but he never really cooled down. He finished with 232 passing yards, adding another 37 with his legs. He hit on 19-of-23 attempts, matching Moses Moreno for the fourth best single-game completion percentage at 82.6 percent.
Â
Both games, as it turns out, came at the expense of the Spartans, Moreno doing so back in 1996. It felt good at the time, but Centeio didn't know how good until afterward.
Â
"Nah, I just checked on the phone and found out," he said. "Everything felt like it was hitting on all cylinders today, so that's always good. A lot of people stepped up today. I'm proud of them, proud of this team. Everybody played their butt off."
Â
Once again the Rams took the field without playmaker Dante Wright at receiver, but Centeio found a couple of targets to fill in the explosive-play gap. He hit a couple of big plays on the first drive alone, one to Trey McBride, the other to Scott, as the Rams opened the game with an impressive scoring drive covering 75 yards in eight plays, capped by a 1-yard scoring run by Jaylen Thomas.
Â
Justice McCoy also had a bit conversion on third, with a 22-yard catch. McCullouch had two catches for 71 yards, Scott four for 57.
Â
A'Jon Vivens stepped in with a career game for the injured David Bailey, posting career bests with 30 carries and 111 yards, with Thomas providing additional punch to a run game which finished with 217 yards overall.
Â
"I think just as an offense, as a team period, we come out and we work hard every day," Vivens said after his first 100-yard performance. "We're always prepared for those moments. If it's me or Jaylen we're just prepared to go out there and give it everything we have."
Â
Defensively, the Rams spent the afternoon holding a third successive opponent to fewer than 300 yards of total offense -- 268. The unit did it with a mix of strong execution and some punch, delivering a pair of turnovers, six tackles for loss, three of which were sacks.
Â
San Jose State had 11 drives in the game, the longest being 68 yards to produce a score in the final quarter with the game out of reach. In the process, the Rams limited the Spartans to less than 20 yards on seven of those possessions.
Â
After giving up 240 yards rushing in the opener to South Dakota State, the Rams have not allowed more than the 114 the Spartans produced on the ground in the game. To linebacker Dequan Jackson, it's the first step to take for a group which wants to pride itself on being physical.
Â
"I think the goal is really just to pound, pound at everything until we have everything from the other team," said linebacker Dequan Jackson, who had 12 tackles in the game. "Go be physical. Pride ourselves on physicality, pride ourselves on preparation in practice, we go hard. I think it just pays off on game day. Maybe we do. We have a chart in the hallway where we chart things like that. I'm not sure if it's 300, but the way we practice, it's paying off."
Â
True freshman safety Jack Howell produced his first career interception in the first quarter. Later in the game, a Scott Patchan sack led to a forced fumble recovered by Cian Quiroga. And while it doesn't officially count as a takeaway, the special teams created one when Thomas Pannunzio pounced on a muffed punt return.
Â
Two of those turned into Cayden Camper field goals, as he connected on a school- and Mountain West-record six in the game, including a career long of 53 yards, giving him 11 consecutive conversions. It's a far cry from a few weeks ago, when he missed two in a game against Vanderbilt, giving him three misses in a row.
Â
In every way the Rams want to approach a game, they hit their mark, which Addazio will point out as the team's continued upward arc.
Â
"The plan to win for us, is five steps," he said. "Play great defense, run the football, no turnovers, great in special teams, because that's a field-changing thing, and score in the red zone. That's our plan to win. But it starts with playing great defense."
Â
Team Stats
SJS
CSU
Total Yards
267
449
Pass Yards
154
232
Rushing Yards
113
217
Penalty Yards
70
40
1st Downs
13
21
3rd Downs
4
6
4th Downs
1
1
TOP
21:59
34:45
1st Quarter
SJS 0, CSU 7
CSU - Thomas,Jaylen 1 yd run (Camper,Cayden kick), 8 plays, 75 yards, TOP 02:58
SJS 0, CSU 10
CSU - Camper,Cayden 28 yd field goal 14 plays, 69 yards, TOP 05:41
2nd Quarter
SJS 0, CSU 13
CSU - Camper,Cayden 22 yd field goal 7 plays, 18 yards, TOP 03:16
SJS 7, CSU 13
SJS - Deese, Jr.,Derrick 18 yd pass from Nash,Nick (Mercurio,Matt kick) 2 plays, 50 yards, TOP 00:48
SJS 7, CSU 16
CSU - Camper,Cayden 21 yd field goal 9 plays, 72 yards, TOP 02:22
3rd Quarter
SJS 7, CSU 23
CSU - McCullouch,Ty 60 yd pass from Centeio,Todd (Camper,Cayden kick) 5 plays, 75 yards, TOP 01:58
SJS 7, CSU 26
CSU - Camper,Cayden 53 yd field goal 8 plays, 15 yards, TOP 02:42
4th Quarter
SJS 7, CSU 29
CSU - Camper,Cayden 38 yd field goal 11 plays, 60 yards, TOP 04:54
SJS 7, CSU 32
CSU - Camper,Cayden 24 yd field goal 4 plays, 4 yards, TOP 01:40
SJS 14, CSU 32
SJS - Hamilton,Isaiah 34 yd pass from Nash,Nick (Mercurio,Matt kick) 5 plays, 68 yards, TOP 02:14
Game Leaders
CMP
19
TD
1
YDS
232
INT
0
Players Mentioned
RB
/ Football
K
/ FootballQB
/ Football
DB
/ Football
LB
/ Football
TE
/ Football
WR
/ Football
WR
/ Football
WR
/ Football
DL
/ Football
DL
/ Football
WR
/ Football
RB
/ Football
RB
/ Football
WR
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