Monday Presser: Rams Fine with Substance over Style

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Nov 15

1:00 PM

Football

at New Mexico

Nov 22

6-Days

Football

at Boise State

Nov 28

1:00 PM

Football

vs Air Force

Dec 5

TBA

Football

vs Mountain West Football Championship

The bottom line is being reached.

Colorado State could do some things to avoid the tight finishes, but the bottom line is celebrating afterward.

"A win is a win. It doesn't matter if it's ugly or pretty," CSU wideout Armani Winfield said. "All I know is our team is going to find a way to win. That's all that matters at the end of the day."

The Rams are on a three-game roll heading to Neveda on Saturday (6 p.m.) and the 17-6 win against New Mexico on homecoming was the largest margin of victory. The games against San Jose State and Air Force were both one-score outcomes.

The standings do not include style points, and the Rams are not against them, but they are having trouble generating any. Last week, Colorado State's offense did not reach the red zone.

"I just think we're really pressing hard to do the things throughout the game we need to do to win. We check a lot of the boxes sometimes, sometimes we don't check some," Norvell said at his weekly press conference Monday. "I was disappointed that we didn't convert more on third downs, especially the second half offensively. We had third-and-shorts and third-and-mediums; they were manageable. It's a matter of getting our eyes in the right spot, running a little better route, getting more separation, a little bit better location on throws. It's just execution. We're very close to breaking some more runs. We've got to do a better job, and if we convert on a couple of third downs, which extends drives, you have a chance to score. We'll keep pressing for that."

In the past three weeks, seven of the 15 conference games played have been decided by one score or less. It's basically the norm, not just for the Rams.

Safety Henry Blackburn said he'd love to roll past teams, but the league doesn't allow for it often, which he's not against. As long as the wins come, it doesn't matter.

"That's not the nature of this game. The nature of this conference is each team, each week can win. That's why I love the Mountain West conference, each team has good players, each team has good coaches and plays hard. Each week it's an anything-can-happen type of mentality. You have to go into each game knowing you are going to play all four quarters, and each play is going to count. I like playing gritty games. That's what the culture of our team is, so that's what we like."

Big Step Forward

With four games to play, Colorado State needs one more win to become bowl eligible. It's been a long time since the Rams reached the postseason, and the seven years between bowls has been a weight for the program to carry.

They're just not getting ahead of themselves.

"At the end of the season we can start talking about bowl games and all that type of stuff, but right now it's just each day we have a system," Blackburn said. "Each day you watch film, you have meetings and do this and you recover. It's just a day-by-day process When we look back at it at the end of the season, we'll be very happy with what we've done."

Playing meaningful games the final month is the sign of a successful program. The Rams won twice in November to get on the doorstep in 2023, falling short the final game. This season, there are four games to go and one more win to attain. Meaningful games without having their backs against the wall.

For a newcomer, it feels pretty good.

"It's definitely exciting and a fun experience. Right now, you can say we're competing for a Mountain West championship," Winfield said. "I think me coming to this program and actually playing and competing for a Mountain West championship, that's all I can ask for."

Here and There

Norvell is not sure about the availability of punter Paddy Turner this week. The captain did not play in the win over New Mexico as he continues to deal with a quadriceps issue. He is averaging 42.4 yards per kick, and 15 of his 30 attempts have landed inside the 20 without a touchback. Bryan Hansen filled in, averaging 37.0 yards with a long of 54 and three inside the 20. As a team, the Rams have punted 40 times with 22 inside the 20 and no touchbacks. … Norvell is 2-0 against Nevada, his former program. … The Rams are looking to win a fourth consecutive conference game for the first time since 2017, when the team won the first four of conference play.

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