Looking to Build a Legacy All Their Own
Rams add some familiar names on signing day
Mike Brohard
When names of the past start to become hope for the future, the emotions are remarkably powerful.
Not just for the players who will don the Colorado State jersey with the hopes of exploring their own path alongside one previously paved, but for those who actively wanted to give them the chance.
“I’ve been around long enough and been in enough different programs, there’s something special when you have players who have grown up their whole life aspiring to play at a school where their dad played. I can relate to that,” CSU coach Jay Norvell said. “I think it’s special. I think it just means something different to those kids. These two guys are excellent players and great people. They’re just really going to represent us in a special way.”
As of Wednesday, Jack Moran and Dagan Myers are now Rams, just like their fathers, who played for the Rams at the same time, both graduating in 1995. Sean Moran and Greg Myers are players whose names are mentioned with reverence still to this day, both members of the Colorado State Athletics Hall of Fame.
They are now legacy players, joining two others already in the program – Jack Howell and Rocco Schramm – added to the roster the first day of the early national signing period. They are part of a 19-player freshman class, a class ranked No. 1 in the Mountain West by 247Sports, ranking fifth overall among the Group of Five.
Fort Collins is always where Jack Moran dreamed he would play.
“I did. We’re really big CSU fans, especially at the old stadium,” he said. “We’d go up a couple of times a year. I wanted to go there, and I feel a lot of it was because my dad went there, but a lot of my family went there. It’s been a dream school for me since I was a kid.”
Sean Moran and Greg Myers lettered from 1992-95, part of Western Athletic Conference championship teams, both earning All-American designation. They went on to NFL careers and each has a special place in the history of the program.
Mention Sean, and his 77-yard fumble recovery for a score in the 21-16 upset of No. 6 Arizona in 1994 will always be referenced. Say Greg’s name, and it will always be noted he was the Rams’ first major award winner, capturing the Jim Thorpe trophy as the nation’s top defensive back in 1995, as well as being named the Honda National Scholar Athlete of the Year.
I wanted to go there, and I feel a lot of it was because my dad went there, but a lot of my family went there. It’s been a dream school for me since I was a kid.Jack Moran
To some, it may seem like a lot to live up to, putting the name on the back of a jersey again. For most, it’s simply a point of pride, to follow in dad’s footsteps with his blessing.
And his sage advice.
“From him, he was like I don’t care at all where you go, it’s totally up to you. That was his thing,” Dagan said. “There’s no reason you should pick CSU over somewhere else just because of me, so he did a good job. If I wanted to go to Wyoming, he would have put on the ugly brown and gold and gone to Wyoming. I don’t think he would have been as happy, but he wouldn’t have expressed that to me.”
Probably not, but he is relieved his son did not make it a Fum McGraw-type nightmare for him, sharing those feelings at the team’s past banquet, when he expressed his relief his son will in fact be a Ram, not a Cowboy.
What the sons know is there will be people out there ready to make a comparison or carry the expectation they’ll be the same player dad was back in the day. It’s only made easier by the fact both will play the same position – Jack Moran on the defensive line, Dagan in the secondary.
They are smart enough to realize what happens next should be their own story, not a continuation. It’s the bit of advice Jack Howell will give them.
“I’ll just tell them, No. 1, no one on the team cares where you come from. It doesn’t matter if your family has never played before or if you dad was a hall of famer before you,” he said. “What matters is how you come in, your work ethic, getting the team’s respect. I’ll just tell them to stay patient, keep your head down, keep working and everything will take care of itself and line up the way it’s supposed to be.”
Then again, when Dagan goes out to practice at Canvas Stadium, his teammates will know his father’s name is one of only three on the interior ring of the facility. And most definitely somebody will needle him about the fact. Actually, Jack Howell expects he may be the first as Dagan joins the safety room.
So be it. Dagan knows what he's walking into, so he’s ready.
“I’ve been going up to Canvas since it was built, and definitely it’s a cool thing to have his name up there, have his legacy up there. Really, I’m just more focused on playing the sport I love,” he said. “It shouldn’t be too hard for me to focus on what I need to do. I’m a different player than he was. I’m sure there will be some comparison, but I’ll probably be playing a different position than he was; he was a free safety in college and I’m more of a strong safety. It shouldn’t be too hard for me to focus on myself and go out there and play my type of ball. He’s not putting any pressure on me, and he’s already told me not to focus on anything outside, just focus on the team and get after it.”
His path is an interesting one, as he didn’t grow up playing the sport – his parent’s wouldn’t let him. He played a bit of everything growing up, was serious about soccer for a spell and even basketball. He participated in track, showing off a bit of his father’s speed in his genes.
Football didn’t become an option until high school, so he wasn’t actually thinking about playing a sport in college, not until his love of the game started to blossom.
“I started playing football my sophomore year, and I was like, this is an amazing sport. My junior year of high school is when I started figuring out football was my sport,” he said. “You could technically say my first year was my freshman year, but my dad wouldn’t let me play anything other than kicker or punter. I was the kicker and punter my freshman year. I don’t really count that, even though I’d go down and tackle the guy. My sophomore year he was, ‘alright, you can go with your friends and play football,’ not expecting me to play after high school. Well, I’m looking forward to playing after high school. Now they are very supportive. They know it’s a rough game, but there’s nothing else like it, so they’re both looking forward to me experiencing college.
“I definitely have a lot to learn. I know I have athletic ability, so it’s going to be amazing to go up there and keep learning and keep developing.”
I’ve been going up to Canvas since it was built, and definitely it’s a cool thing to have his name up there, have his legacy up there. Really, I’m just more focused on playing the sport I love.Dagan Myers
Wyoming was the first to show interest, but Colorado State was the first to make an official offer. That’s all Dagan needed.
Same for Jack Moran.
He has pictures of him eating cotton candy in the stands at Hughes Stadium, even plugging his ears in anticipation of Comatose being fired as the team ran out of the tunnel. From the time he was attending games at the old facility, he wanted to be a Ram. Not only could he wear the same uniform as his father, but the one worn by his cousin, Ryan Lynch, and his uncle, Kevin Lynch
Growing up, his father Sean was always around and helping him, even coaching him through high school. He says he owes a lot of his success to the lessons his father taught him, and now that he’s ready to take the next step, he’s eager to venture away and learn from somebody new.
Those bits of advice will forever remain part of his base.
“I feel like, especially more recently, it’s been easier. I know people talk to me about (my dad) a lot, and I feel like now I’m used to it and it’s easier for me just to be myself,” he said. “CSU is definitely a building program on the rise, and I just want to contribute to that. I want to do as much as I can for the team and make it better.
“I feel like it’s a new opportunity and being able to play with new guys and a new coaching staff. My dad’s been coaching me for as long as I can remember. I’m excited to do something new.”
Part of building culture is holding on to traditions past and extending the passion and pride within a program. Norvell said when adding legacy players, that’s something he never gives a second thought.
He doesn’t have to indoctrinate them because they’ve lived it, and they immediately become ambassadors.
“There’s no doubt. They actually really educate your other players about how special the rivalries are and how important certain games are to former players and alumni,” Norvell said. “That’s one thing I know this past year was really communicated by guys like Jack Howell. When we play Colorado, Wyoming or Air Force, there’s just a special feeling for the importance of those games for those guys. We try to echo it as coaches all the time, but when it comes from your best players it means a lot.”
From the time they both verbally committed, Jack Moran and Dagan started to talk more recently about the similar path they’ll both share. Like the rest of the signing class, they have to prove themselves within the team structure. Unlike the rest of them, some outsiders will carry a preordained vision of the players they will become.
Which is yet to be determined. Jack Moran will need to add strength and weight, a regular occurrence as a young defensive lineman. Dagan will join a safety room filled with experience. The door is always cracked for freshmen to walk in, but no matter what the name is above the locker, it’s never wide open.
“My dad wants me to be my own person. It helps me out that I play the same position as him, because he can teach me everything that he knows,” Jack Moran said. “I feel the most important thing for me is to be myself really.
“We’ve talked about it, how much pressure is put on us, especially (Dagan). Greg Myers is definitely a very big part of the CSU program. We’re both ready to take it on and embrace it.”
Together, as classmates, but as individuals. As products of their famous fathers, but not clones. A chance to extend a legacy, possibly, but more importantly, create one of their own.