Setting the Stage: Bellah Making Most of Opportunity

At some point, they have to talk about it the current situation.

Jace Bellah, the redshirt junior Colorado State safety, and defensive run-game specialist, Trent Matthews. In the game against UNLV, Bellah snared his fourth interception of the season, all coming in the past four games. The last Ram to have four in a season was Matthews, back in 2013.

The norm of position meetings and practice, as well as classes for Bellah and staff meetings and film sessions for Matthews, haven't allowed for the two to really cross paths. Eventually.

But for now, Bellah leads the nation in interceptions per game (.57), having played seven contests in 2025. Add in he wasn't a starter when the season began, and the numbers are impressive for a guy who takes the game as it comes.

"I don't think I ever put a ceiling on myself. I always work as hard as I possibly can, and these results aren't necessarily surprising me, but I'm definitely blessed to have the team behind me that allows me to make plays like that," Bellah said.

Interim coach and defensive coordinator Tyson Summers finds Bellah's first pick – one of two against Fresno State – the epitome of how Bellah's season has played out. It came when he was playing a position he'd never lined up at before in a game.

Lessons from practice took him to the right place and an opportunity presented itself.

"Some of that was due to injuries, and some of it was due to some other things. He's gotten an opportunity to run with it," Summers said. "When he had his very first interception of the year four games ago, he was playing boundary safety, and he had never once run that technique. He had walked through it. He had been in a meeting, but he had played strong safety all year. Because of the injuries, he went over there.

"He played the technique perfectly. He had taken his coaching through the meetings and the walkthroughs and applied it. And so, what I think you see with him is a guy who is applying the information that he's getting, and then he's playing extremely hard."

Bellah is currently fourth on the roster in tackles with 29, adding a pair of quarterback hurries to his resume as a blitzer. His interceptions represent half of the team's total, with four others collecting one each. On the verge of passing his coach, he agrees they eventually have to discuss matters.

On the Topic of Turnovers

New Mexico is having a resurgent season under coach Jason Eck, riding a three-game winning streak with the Lobos' 40-35 win over UNLV two weeks ago the game which made the program bowl eligible for the first time in nine seasons.

By the numbers, the Lobos rank in the middle of the Mountain West in both total offense and defense, but they've put together an impressive run by being solid in tight situations and they are one of the least penalized teams.

One area where they lag is turnover ratio. They've only collected eight all season. The flip side is they've lost eight fumbles and thrown nine interceptions, making them negative-nine on the ledger.

Colorado State has noted as much, but Bellah said nothing changes heading into the week. The turnovers the Rams have gained (11) have come when they're assignment sound.

"That's just what we do philosophically," he said. "We'll look for opportunities, and they've shown they'll give us opportunities. We're always looking for ways to take advantage of those opportunities. But really from game to game, it's play as hard as you can and then the results will come."

Finding a Pocket Rhythm

Jackson Brousseau is set to start his seventh game this week, each game enabling the redshirt sophomore to glean more information, especially the past three weeks with the team's third offensive play caller of the season. His high this season is 188 yards passing against Washington State, throwing three touchdowns against Fresno State. Overall, he's thrown seven touchdowns against three interceptions, all of which came in the game against Wyoming.

"I think the biggest piece with JB is Coach (Grant) Chesnut being able to go and put a very specific plan together. And we do it with a lot of different wrinkles, I feel like, to give him a chance," Summers said. "He's got opportunities to read plays and get the right play before the ball's ever snapped. And he has the ability to do that. He also has the ability to get the ball outside of the pocket. He's able to get into different protections to help him inside.

"I think anything that gives him the greatest opportunity, those are the things that throughout the week we work and work and work. So very intentionally, there are four different periods of walkthrough each day. And those plays are to reflect the things that particularly the backs have to be able to do when we get to the four scout team periods."

He also knows the group which can help is the running back room, with all of them effective with their carries, and Javion Kinnard proving to be an asset they can move around. He only had one catch against UNLV, but he drew two flags on routes, both leading to first downs. The true freshman has only played eight games but has 10 receptions, his 120 yards ranking sixth on the roster. Jalen Dupree has 12 receptions.

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