Memorable Moments: Rams Shoot Past Rockets in the Snow

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One of the he last times Colorado State played Toledo was during coach Sark Arslanian's first season at the helm in 1973. Coach Sark had arrived at a tumultuous time in CSU athletics following the sudden resignation of coach Jerry Wampfler in February of 1973, after a bitter battle in the press over how athletic director Perry Moore ran his department. Arslanian was hired after letters of intent had been signed and found himself rebuilding a Rams team which had gone 8-25 over the previous three seasons under Wampfler.

By the November 3, 1973 game at Hughes Stadium against the University of Toledo Rockets, the Rams had a very respectable 4-4 record and were coming off a 76-24 blasting of UTEP the week prior. Rams quarterback Jan Stubbe and flanker Willie Miller had been recognized nationally as a dominant passing duo.

On a cold and snowy day in Fort Collins where only 13,798 fans came to Hughes Stadium, the Rams continued their rebuilding season with a hard-fought game against Toledo. Fullback Tom Wallace bruised his way through the Rockets' line with 124 yards and two touchdowns, while Stubbe's passing attack helped guild the Rams down the field all day.

The Rams defense battled against Toledo's quarterback, Gene Swick, who ranked second in the nation in total offense coming into the game. The shining moment for the CSU defense came early in the fourth quarter following a Toledo drive to the CSU 20. The Rams held the Rockets on a fourth-and-1 from the CSU 11, preventing at game-tying score.

One of the real stars of the game and team remained to be the outstanding receiver Miller. Miller, a junior who just three years prior had been fighting in Vietnam with the Green Berets, earning silver stars and purple hearts, set all but one of the receiving records at CSU by the time the Toledo game ended.

Miller's 31-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter broke the mark for touchdown receptions in a season and career. He would go on to break all receiving records at CSU, and nearly 50 years later, he still holds the CSU record for career receiving average.

The game ended 21-14 in favor of the Rams and the first time the team had been above .500 in the month of November since 1966. Coach Sark's Rams ended the 1973 season with a 5-6 record after dropping the final two games of the season to Houston and New Mexico. The Rams would tie for the fourth-best turnaround in major college football in 1973 and were ranked the second-biggest sports story in Colorado behind the Denver Broncos.

Coach Sark Arslanian continued his rebuilding of the Rams in 1974, and from 1975 to 1980, turned in some of the most exciting CSU football teams and professionally talented players since the Bob Davis era of the late 1940s to mid 1950s.

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