Colorado State University Athletics
Setting the Stage: UNLV
10/20/2023 2:00:00 PM | Football
Norvell urged team to battle with intent
After the Utah State game, Jay Norvell told his team they resembled a club fighter.
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"That's not a compliment," the Colorado State head coach said. "The definition of a club fighter is somebody who just fights every week but doesn't aspire to be anything more than that, doesn't want to be a champion. You have to do certain things in a game that are difficult to put yourself in a position to win. I told our guys we don't want to be that; we want more. We want to be looked at as a quality team that wins tough games, and we certainly did the things we needed to do at the end of (the Boise State) game to do that against a good team."
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Norvell said there were about two dozen plays which had to be made down the stretch to give the team a chance to win, and he said they made all of them.
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That's fighting with intent. Offensive lineman Drew Moss said the team understood the point Norvell was trying to make, that it wasn't a badge of honor. Being a tough guy is fine and all, but that's not why people keep score.
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"They fight hard and lose," he said. "We want to go out there and win, keep winning games and win a championship eventually. We've got to make the plays better, but at the end of the game, we knew what we had to do, and we did it.
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"That's the mentality we should have had all along, and guys are coming along. We need to play more consistent."
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Viva Las Vegas
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Norvell likes Las Vegas, and not because of the bright lights of The Strip. He's had success there and ties with the local professional team. He also thinks Allegiant Stadium is spectacular.
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This trip will be a different feel for him because the game with UNLV is no longer a rivalry game. Doesn't matter to him.
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"I love playing at Allegiant Stadium. I have a history with the Raiders, and I know a lot of people there, and I know Coach Al (Al Davis, the late Raiders owner) would have loved that place," Norvell said. "I always looked forward to playing there, and we played very well there, and we won the first college game there. We're excited to go back."
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When Norvell was at Nevada, the two teams played every year. There is only one Ram – Mohamed Kamara – who has played against the Rebels, starting at linebacker in the last meeting in 2019. It's been even longer since Colorado State played in Sin City.
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The last trip was 2016, and the game was played at Sam Boyd Stadium. Colorado State was scheduled to play there in 2020, when Allegiant first opened, but the pandemic wiped out most of the schedule.
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"I think they did a great job with that stadium. It's a different venue, it's not a college venue, it's a pro venue, but I think it's a great experience for our players to play in a pro venue like that," Norvell said. "Our guys like that kind of spotlight, and I think they really look forward to it."
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Here and There
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The last time the Rams played in a professional stadium was 2019, the Rocky Mountain Showdown at Empower Field in Denver. … This week is homecoming for UNLV. The Rams have played homecoming games in four of the past five weeks – at Middle Tennessee, at Utah State, their own and now this week. … The last time UNLV was 5-1 to start a season was 1984 and Randall Cunningham was the starting quarterback.
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"That's not a compliment," the Colorado State head coach said. "The definition of a club fighter is somebody who just fights every week but doesn't aspire to be anything more than that, doesn't want to be a champion. You have to do certain things in a game that are difficult to put yourself in a position to win. I told our guys we don't want to be that; we want more. We want to be looked at as a quality team that wins tough games, and we certainly did the things we needed to do at the end of (the Boise State) game to do that against a good team."
Â
Norvell said there were about two dozen plays which had to be made down the stretch to give the team a chance to win, and he said they made all of them.
Â
That's fighting with intent. Offensive lineman Drew Moss said the team understood the point Norvell was trying to make, that it wasn't a badge of honor. Being a tough guy is fine and all, but that's not why people keep score.
Â
"They fight hard and lose," he said. "We want to go out there and win, keep winning games and win a championship eventually. We've got to make the plays better, but at the end of the game, we knew what we had to do, and we did it.
Â
"That's the mentality we should have had all along, and guys are coming along. We need to play more consistent."
Â
Viva Las Vegas
Â
Norvell likes Las Vegas, and not because of the bright lights of The Strip. He's had success there and ties with the local professional team. He also thinks Allegiant Stadium is spectacular.
Â
This trip will be a different feel for him because the game with UNLV is no longer a rivalry game. Doesn't matter to him.
Â
"I love playing at Allegiant Stadium. I have a history with the Raiders, and I know a lot of people there, and I know Coach Al (Al Davis, the late Raiders owner) would have loved that place," Norvell said. "I always looked forward to playing there, and we played very well there, and we won the first college game there. We're excited to go back."
Â
When Norvell was at Nevada, the two teams played every year. There is only one Ram – Mohamed Kamara – who has played against the Rebels, starting at linebacker in the last meeting in 2019. It's been even longer since Colorado State played in Sin City.
Â
The last trip was 2016, and the game was played at Sam Boyd Stadium. Colorado State was scheduled to play there in 2020, when Allegiant first opened, but the pandemic wiped out most of the schedule.
Â
"I think they did a great job with that stadium. It's a different venue, it's not a college venue, it's a pro venue, but I think it's a great experience for our players to play in a pro venue like that," Norvell said. "Our guys like that kind of spotlight, and I think they really look forward to it."
Â
Here and There
Â
The last time the Rams played in a professional stadium was 2019, the Rocky Mountain Showdown at Empower Field in Denver. … This week is homecoming for UNLV. The Rams have played homecoming games in four of the past five weeks – at Middle Tennessee, at Utah State, their own and now this week. … The last time UNLV was 5-1 to start a season was 1984 and Randall Cunningham was the starting quarterback.
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Players Mentioned
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