Colorado State University Athletics
Memorable Moments: Remembering Great Tandems on a Special Weekend
10/10/2024 2:00:00 PM | Football
Grayson to Higgins among the program’s best duos
This is Hall of Fame induction week at CSU and one of the finest dynamic passing combination duos in school history -- Rashard Higgins and Garrett Grayson -- will be enshrined as part of the class of 2024. Grayson holds the school record for most 300-yard passing games, career pass attempts, career passing yards, career completions, career total offense and many more season and game records. Higgins holds the school record for career receptions, career yards, touchdown receptions and most 100-yard games. These new hall of fame inductees are very worthy of hall of fame status, but there have been many other great duos on the gridiron at CSU.
Â
Looking back, there have been other great passing combinations in CSU's football history fans will remember. If you were at Hughes Stadium in the early 1970s, you knew the Mark Driscoll to Willie Miller duo ranked among one of the finest in the nation. Then in the Wacky WAC days of the 1980s there was Terry Nugent to Jeff Champine, a passing combination which earned Champine the school record for receiving yards from 1983 to 1992. In the 1990s, Anthoney Hill to Greg Primus was a great duo, and in the early 2000s, it was Justin Holland to legendary hall of famer David Anderson.
Â
Back in the Aggie days of football at Colorado State, there was not a lot of passing going on in Harry Hughes' wing formation football. While Wilbur "Little Red" White, a halfback, threw to Olympic great Glenn Morris often, no records survive to tell us how they stack up to others. In the Aggie days it was defensive duos who played both sides of the ball. Two CSU Hall of Famers who made a great defensive duo were the legendary Fum McGraw and Dale Dodrill. The two Raisin Bowl teammates went on to become excellent defensive linemen in the NFL, McGraw winning two world championships with the Lions.
Â
Switching back to the CSU days, on defense the Rams have seen a plethora of great defensive duos whether on the line or in the backfield. Again, starting with the 1970s, no duo was better than Al "Bubba" Baker and Mike Bell. The two teamed up to place unbelievable pressure on the opposing quarterbacks at an alarming rate. Bell was an All-American and second-overall pick in the NFL draft, while Baker was the NFL's defensive rookie of the year for the Lions.
Â
Fast forward to the Sonny Lubick era where defense was so good it was intoxicating to watch as the Rams held off numerous teams for numerous championships. When you think of the early 1990s, two different defensive duos made for incredible Rams football. In the backfield it was Ray Jackson and Greg Myers, two of the greatest players in school history back to defend the passes. In the front it was Sean Moran and Brady Smith, two players whose names were called on a regular and consistent basis. Keep in mind, there are others in the 1990s who teamed up with Smith and Moran, but the two were synonymous with a one-two punch. Then there is Joey Porter and Clark Haggans, another duo which made Rams defensive football a star attraction in the late 1990s.
Â
While few fans think of offensive linemen as dynamic duos, it would be wrong to miss All-American Anthony Cesario and Mike Newell as two of the finest offensive linemen in Rams history. Other duos on offense have not always been in the air, but in the form of a two-back running back offense. No better running back combination existed than Damon Washington and Kevin McDougal. While they only played three years together, they combined for 6,683 yards.
Â
Finally, the finest duos are not always players but can come in the form of coaches. From 1927 to 1941, Hughes and his trusted assistant coach Julius "Hans" Wagner teamed up as the finest head coach and assistant coach combinations in school history. An argument can easily be made Lubick and Larry Kerr were the modern-day great coaching duos and cannot be forgotten.
Â
One-two punches on the football field are important and exciting for fans to watch. While not all great duos are named here, there have been plenty in CSU history which have made football an even better team sport when two guys are the play makers on the field.
Â
Â
Â
Looking back, there have been other great passing combinations in CSU's football history fans will remember. If you were at Hughes Stadium in the early 1970s, you knew the Mark Driscoll to Willie Miller duo ranked among one of the finest in the nation. Then in the Wacky WAC days of the 1980s there was Terry Nugent to Jeff Champine, a passing combination which earned Champine the school record for receiving yards from 1983 to 1992. In the 1990s, Anthoney Hill to Greg Primus was a great duo, and in the early 2000s, it was Justin Holland to legendary hall of famer David Anderson.
Â
Back in the Aggie days of football at Colorado State, there was not a lot of passing going on in Harry Hughes' wing formation football. While Wilbur "Little Red" White, a halfback, threw to Olympic great Glenn Morris often, no records survive to tell us how they stack up to others. In the Aggie days it was defensive duos who played both sides of the ball. Two CSU Hall of Famers who made a great defensive duo were the legendary Fum McGraw and Dale Dodrill. The two Raisin Bowl teammates went on to become excellent defensive linemen in the NFL, McGraw winning two world championships with the Lions.
Â
Switching back to the CSU days, on defense the Rams have seen a plethora of great defensive duos whether on the line or in the backfield. Again, starting with the 1970s, no duo was better than Al "Bubba" Baker and Mike Bell. The two teamed up to place unbelievable pressure on the opposing quarterbacks at an alarming rate. Bell was an All-American and second-overall pick in the NFL draft, while Baker was the NFL's defensive rookie of the year for the Lions.
Â
Fast forward to the Sonny Lubick era where defense was so good it was intoxicating to watch as the Rams held off numerous teams for numerous championships. When you think of the early 1990s, two different defensive duos made for incredible Rams football. In the backfield it was Ray Jackson and Greg Myers, two of the greatest players in school history back to defend the passes. In the front it was Sean Moran and Brady Smith, two players whose names were called on a regular and consistent basis. Keep in mind, there are others in the 1990s who teamed up with Smith and Moran, but the two were synonymous with a one-two punch. Then there is Joey Porter and Clark Haggans, another duo which made Rams defensive football a star attraction in the late 1990s.
Â
While few fans think of offensive linemen as dynamic duos, it would be wrong to miss All-American Anthony Cesario and Mike Newell as two of the finest offensive linemen in Rams history. Other duos on offense have not always been in the air, but in the form of a two-back running back offense. No better running back combination existed than Damon Washington and Kevin McDougal. While they only played three years together, they combined for 6,683 yards.
Â
Finally, the finest duos are not always players but can come in the form of coaches. From 1927 to 1941, Hughes and his trusted assistant coach Julius "Hans" Wagner teamed up as the finest head coach and assistant coach combinations in school history. An argument can easily be made Lubick and Larry Kerr were the modern-day great coaching duos and cannot be forgotten.
Â
One-two punches on the football field are important and exciting for fans to watch. While not all great duos are named here, there have been plenty in CSU history which have made football an even better team sport when two guys are the play makers on the field.
Â
Â
Colorado State Athletics: Football Bye Week Update
Wednesday, September 10
Colorado State Football: Ellis (L) and Rogers (R) Postgame (Northern Colorado, 2025)
Saturday, September 06
Colorado State Football: Avant (L) and Fowler-Nicolosi (R) Postgame (Northern Colorado, 2025)
Saturday, September 06
Colorado State Football: Jay Norvell Post-Game (Northern Colorado, 2025)
Saturday, September 06