Colorado State University Athletics
What We Saw: Rams Feel Experience Will Serve Them Well
9/4/2022 12:00:00 PM | Football, RamWire
Sacks an issue, but not all on offensive line
They didn't want to lose, and definitely not in the manner which transpired. A 51-7 defeat to start a season – even at the hands of a ranked team like Michigan – is not ideal. But as Colorado State moves forward under Jay Norvell in his first season, the experience may serve the Rams well at some point down the road.
"No question. They played in front of 109,000 people and not one person came out of the stands and attacked them," Norvell said, eliciting laughter. "If you've never been in that kind of environment, that's what you think. You think we're going to play in front of 100,000 people and they're going to come out with pitchforks. No, it's not how it works.
"The game is played between the white lines, and I think they realized that. What matters is what you do when you play. That's what matters. As we improve and learn from these things, I think we have the opportunity to be a very good team."
So do the Rams, who are still getting used to each other. There is some experience, but not with each other. There is youth, which still has to be groomed. You don't throw the baby out with the bath water.
Norvell won't, because he's convinced, given time and used properly, this roster can improve in short order. So do the players. They've played against one of the best teams in the country in the biggest venue in college football. They can make everything else from here on out look smaller in scope.
"We knew it was a challenge coming into the game. I think it will get us ready," linebacker Dequan Jackson said. "When you get hit in the mouth like that, you come back and swing, so I think going into Monday we'll have the right mindset, we'll learn from this game and keep moving forward."
How Colorado State responds will matter. The tape has to be used constructively, the instruction given listened to with intent and corrections made with conviction. Judging from the way he reads the character of his team, Norvell doesn't see any issue in doing it right.
Some of it easy to see. CSU needs to eliminate turnovers and create a few of their own. They did hold Michigan to 3-of-10 on third down. They will also see the things they didn't see on the field, and those are just as important.
"We're going to play good football teams every week, so you have to prepare a certain way and you have to be ready to play a certain way to be successful," Norvell said. "This is a top-10 team, and deservedly so. We measured ourselves against that in our first game together that we played as a team, and obviously it wasn't good enough. We have a lot of improvement to make as a program; we know that, but I'm not discouraged at all. I like the guys in that locker room, I like the way they care about each other. They're doing a lot of things right.
"I know this: Football is about character and doing the right things, and if you do those things over and over again, you'll see improvement."
Hit after Hit
One of the goals of the game was to protect redshirt freshman quarterback Clay Millen in his first start, and the Rams didn't accomplish the goal. He was sacked seven times and hit numerous other plays, yet not all of that is on the offensive line.
Norvell said after the game Millen needs to learn to get rid of the ball in some of those situations, which will come in time for a player who made his first start. Some of it was on the offensive line, which, while it has a lot of experience combined, did have a tackle making his first start and it was the first time the unit had played together.
They didn't expect to be perfect, but the line wanted to be better, and Michigan gave the group much to consider.
"It's' going to help us a lot. I mean, everybody expected with a whole new line that hasn't played together and a freshman quarterback there were going to be some growing pains," guard Gray Davis said. "Maybe a little more than we expected, but there's a lot of things we haven't done that we had in this game so I'm glad we got that on film. It's going to be a huge learning experience. This team is very talented. We're only going to get better."
Michigan made the pass rush a group project, with nine different players credited with at least half a sack and none of them had more than one. As the gap widened on the scoreboard, the Wolverines applied even more pressure. Even still, Millen did some good things.
He hit 16-of-20 of his passes, so he was still accurate. He did finish with a flourish with a 34-yar touchdown pass to Tory Horton, and he also showed his footwork will enable him to escape some trouble. As for the guys up front, a little cohesion will go a long way and Saturday's game was a first step to gaining some.
"Those sacks weren't even a talent issue; it was about having the right guy confidently on the correct guy and not coming off his block," Davis said. "We knew they were going to come out and run a lot of NFL stuff, a lot of exotic stuff with a freshman quarterback and a new O-line. We knew it was an issue, more than we'd like it to be, so we're going to get on that. The reps we did get on film, pressure-wise and how to pick that up, that's going to be invaluable. By the time conference starts, we'll be a whole different team."
Firming Up
Michigan was perfect in the red zone, scoring all seven trips inside the 20, producing four touchdowns from those chances. The other three times, Colorado State's defense held firm and forced field goals, which they took as a step in a positive direction.
One of those came after a turnover, when an interception was returned down to the CSU. All three of those forced field goals came in the first half.
"I think we handled that really well," defensive lineman Cam Bariteau said. "We always talk about that at practice, sudden change. Nobody puts their head down, everybody gets out there like it's any other down. It's a big win for the defense if we can keep them out of the end zone and hold them to a field goal, and that's what we did."
Colorado State opened with a bang defensively with a three-and-out, but Michigan's run game eventually cranked up, producing 234 yards in the game. Behind it, the Wolverines had two 14-play scoring drives, each covering more than 70 yards and taking more than 6 minutes off the clock.
As Norvell noted, it was a unit which can play better, but also one on the field a lot with the offense generating just 219 yards.
"I think there are some things we have to go back and look at, but overall, we have a good starting point," Bariteau said. "I think we've just got to go to the drawing board and see what we can do better."
"No question. They played in front of 109,000 people and not one person came out of the stands and attacked them," Norvell said, eliciting laughter. "If you've never been in that kind of environment, that's what you think. You think we're going to play in front of 100,000 people and they're going to come out with pitchforks. No, it's not how it works.
"The game is played between the white lines, and I think they realized that. What matters is what you do when you play. That's what matters. As we improve and learn from these things, I think we have the opportunity to be a very good team."
So do the Rams, who are still getting used to each other. There is some experience, but not with each other. There is youth, which still has to be groomed. You don't throw the baby out with the bath water.
Norvell won't, because he's convinced, given time and used properly, this roster can improve in short order. So do the players. They've played against one of the best teams in the country in the biggest venue in college football. They can make everything else from here on out look smaller in scope.
"We knew it was a challenge coming into the game. I think it will get us ready," linebacker Dequan Jackson said. "When you get hit in the mouth like that, you come back and swing, so I think going into Monday we'll have the right mindset, we'll learn from this game and keep moving forward."
How Colorado State responds will matter. The tape has to be used constructively, the instruction given listened to with intent and corrections made with conviction. Judging from the way he reads the character of his team, Norvell doesn't see any issue in doing it right.
Some of it easy to see. CSU needs to eliminate turnovers and create a few of their own. They did hold Michigan to 3-of-10 on third down. They will also see the things they didn't see on the field, and those are just as important.
"We're going to play good football teams every week, so you have to prepare a certain way and you have to be ready to play a certain way to be successful," Norvell said. "This is a top-10 team, and deservedly so. We measured ourselves against that in our first game together that we played as a team, and obviously it wasn't good enough. We have a lot of improvement to make as a program; we know that, but I'm not discouraged at all. I like the guys in that locker room, I like the way they care about each other. They're doing a lot of things right.
"I know this: Football is about character and doing the right things, and if you do those things over and over again, you'll see improvement."
Hit after Hit
One of the goals of the game was to protect redshirt freshman quarterback Clay Millen in his first start, and the Rams didn't accomplish the goal. He was sacked seven times and hit numerous other plays, yet not all of that is on the offensive line.
Norvell said after the game Millen needs to learn to get rid of the ball in some of those situations, which will come in time for a player who made his first start. Some of it was on the offensive line, which, while it has a lot of experience combined, did have a tackle making his first start and it was the first time the unit had played together.
They didn't expect to be perfect, but the line wanted to be better, and Michigan gave the group much to consider.
"It's' going to help us a lot. I mean, everybody expected with a whole new line that hasn't played together and a freshman quarterback there were going to be some growing pains," guard Gray Davis said. "Maybe a little more than we expected, but there's a lot of things we haven't done that we had in this game so I'm glad we got that on film. It's going to be a huge learning experience. This team is very talented. We're only going to get better."
Michigan made the pass rush a group project, with nine different players credited with at least half a sack and none of them had more than one. As the gap widened on the scoreboard, the Wolverines applied even more pressure. Even still, Millen did some good things.
He hit 16-of-20 of his passes, so he was still accurate. He did finish with a flourish with a 34-yar touchdown pass to Tory Horton, and he also showed his footwork will enable him to escape some trouble. As for the guys up front, a little cohesion will go a long way and Saturday's game was a first step to gaining some.
"Those sacks weren't even a talent issue; it was about having the right guy confidently on the correct guy and not coming off his block," Davis said. "We knew they were going to come out and run a lot of NFL stuff, a lot of exotic stuff with a freshman quarterback and a new O-line. We knew it was an issue, more than we'd like it to be, so we're going to get on that. The reps we did get on film, pressure-wise and how to pick that up, that's going to be invaluable. By the time conference starts, we'll be a whole different team."
Firming Up
Michigan was perfect in the red zone, scoring all seven trips inside the 20, producing four touchdowns from those chances. The other three times, Colorado State's defense held firm and forced field goals, which they took as a step in a positive direction.
One of those came after a turnover, when an interception was returned down to the CSU. All three of those forced field goals came in the first half.
"I think we handled that really well," defensive lineman Cam Bariteau said. "We always talk about that at practice, sudden change. Nobody puts their head down, everybody gets out there like it's any other down. It's a big win for the defense if we can keep them out of the end zone and hold them to a field goal, and that's what we did."
Colorado State opened with a bang defensively with a three-and-out, but Michigan's run game eventually cranked up, producing 234 yards in the game. Behind it, the Wolverines had two 14-play scoring drives, each covering more than 70 yards and taking more than 6 minutes off the clock.
As Norvell noted, it was a unit which can play better, but also one on the field a lot with the offense generating just 219 yards.
"I think there are some things we have to go back and look at, but overall, we have a good starting point," Bariteau said. "I think we've just got to go to the drawing board and see what we can do better."
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