Monday Presser: Rams Look to Keep Spark Ignited

The first half of the season has come and gone, and it's not where Jay Norvell hoped his Colorado State team would be sitting at this point, which is 2-4 overall. In a few of those games, the coach felt all his team needed was a spark, something to ignite some confidence for the individuals involved as well as the collective.

The flint sparked more than a few times in the win over Fresno State. Now the trick is to turn the spark into an inferno.

"We have to stay focused. We have to do the things that allow us to have a chance to win games, and so that's how we prepare," Norvell said Monday at his weekly press conference with Hawaii coming to Canvas Stadium on Saturday for homecoming. "That's how we practice. I think the greatest example was Robert Edmondson. You know, Coach (Clint) Sintim said Robert had his best week of practice, his best week of preparation, and he played tremendous;. made a lot of big plays, very athletic.

"He played with confidence and decisiveness. I thought one of the biggest plays of the game was the fake punt that they tried at midfield. And Robert just … He did not hesitate. He saw it. He recognized it. He hit it. It was a fantastic job by him. There's no rocket science to playing well. You have to prepare yourself."

Norvell would later equate the young linebacker to Hall of Famer Ray Lewis with the types of impact plays he made, leading to him earning the big hit award. He talked about the touchdown passes Jackson Brousseau threw, all three plays being designed to create mismatches. Norvell came to tears when talking about Dagan Myers, who broke his collarbone during the game, only to stay on the field four more plays. He didn't want to tell anybody he was hurt, the coach said.

Teach the plan, show what's expected, execute the plan.

Finally, his Rams had something good come from their work, with a defense creating not only turnovers, but offensive opportunities they cashed in on each time.

"Our kids have been working hard, and they haven't had a lot to show for it. But that comes from being prepared and executing," he said. "I think our kids have been well prepared. We've prepared them for these opportunities. But the execution, I think one of the things we've done is we've adjusted to our players the last few weeks. We're constantly adjusting to what they can do well, and we're starting to get on the right page with that. Obviously, we would have liked to have gotten there quicker, but we have to continue to build on the positive things that we did do."

Mutual Admiration

After both teams won games this weekend, Norvell and Timmy Chang of Hawaii texted. Now Norvell has blocked him for the week.

"We already had our little love fest. We're done," Norvell quipped. "You know, he is like a brother to me. I'm really proud of him. And, you know, we pull for each other. And I wish we didn't have to play each other. I really do. But it is what it is. And we'll compete."

The bond between the two runs deep, as it does with the part of the CSU staff which was with him at Nevada. It was there Chang was one of them as an offensive coach for five seasons, working with inside receiver, tight ends and then the receiving group.

When Norvell came to Fort Collins, Chang came with him to be the wideouts coach. When the Hawaii job came open – where Chang is a Rainbow Warrior legend after setting NCAA passing records – Norvell pitched him for the job. Six weeks later, both were head coaches.

"He's real. He's a person. He's unselfish," Norvell said of the values he admires in Chang. "I think the quality that I dislike most is selfishness. I hate it in people. I hate it in players. I hate it in coaches. I hate it in a team. You know, we play the ultimate team sport, and you have to be unselfish to really play it properly. And that's what Timmy is. He's a leader. He's real.

"The players respond to him because they know he cares about them. And so that's why as soon as I heard that job was open, I called that AD and told him, there's only one guy you need to hire, and that's Timmy Chang."

Chang has his team in the thick of things, sitting at 5-2 overall, 2-1 in Mountain West play having won two in a row. The last time Hawaii qualified for a bowl game was 2021, and that was cancelled due to the pandemic.

Here and There

Colorado State played its first homecoming game on Nov. 18, 1922, a 19-0 victory over Mines. Since then, there have only been three seasons when the game was not played – twice during World War II (1943-44) and in 2020, during the pandemic. … Last season, the team played the 100^th homecoming game, a 17-6 win over New Mexico. The Rams are 53-46-1 all time in homecoming games. … CSU is 4-0 against Hawaii in homecoming contests.

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