Three Phases: Pushing Through Past the Results

A season which has had its share of turmoil, Colorado State finds itself heading into the 10^th game of the campaign trying to gain some traction and find it in every area.

At 2-7 and knowing the season ends in three weeks – the next two spent on the road – the Rams will fight against the doubt which can creep in and focus on the positives they can find.

"Well, it's a hard thing. I mean, we've talked a lot about what doubt looks like and feels like. And it's been a tough season," CSU interim coach Tyson Summers said. "It has. And we try to go through each day and try to be the same person each day. That's what I talked to him about tonight.

"I do see growth, and I do see us getting better. We've got to be able to find ways to sustain those things. And like I said, I've got to do a better job as head coach making some decisions there. And I've got to do a better job, obviously, trying to get our defense ready to play. Ultimately, both of those things fall on me. But I do think our players, again, I didn't see any lack of fight, I didn't see any lack of want to. I didn't see a bunch of undisciplined penalties and things like that. But I've got to do a better job through the week with them and giving them a better chance."

Offense

Colorado State scored on its first drive, capping a 13-play, 75-yard jaunt on fourth-and-3 with Jackson Brousseau hitting Rocky Beers for the score.

Early in the second quarter, the Rams led 10-7 after a 23-yard field goal by Isaiah Hankins, giving the offense positive results on two of the game's first four drives. But from there, there was little going for the Rams, who had just two first downs in the second half and just 292 yards of total offense.

The quick start was what they wanted. Sustainability still remains the Holy Grail they seek.

"I just feel like we've got to keep staying in a rhythm as an offense and just keep bringing energy," running back Jalen Dupree said after gaining 56 yards on 13 carries. "Even if we go down by a little bit, I feel like we lost energy throughout the game just because we were down by three or eight. But just keeping that energy and that fire as a team is what makes a difference, I think."

Summers spoke of taking an aggressive approach but doing it in the right way. He took the blame when at that point the Rams went for it on fourth-and-short on their side of the field. The Rebels capitalized on the turnover on downs by seizing the lead and never looking back.

It's hard to force the issue when the offense is just 1-of-13 on third down in a game.

"I think ultimately you still … We take the analytics. We look at all those things," Summers said. "And then you still got to be able to try to go with your gut. I knew that they were a high-scoring offense. You know, they're a top 15, top 20 offense in the country. And I thought that we certainly needed, when we had opportunities, to sustain drives or to be able to steal a possession that we needed to do that fourth-and-one was one where I felt like we needed to do it, and it didn't work out. So ultimately, it just winds up not being a very good decision for me. I still want to play aggressive."

Defense

The unit had an early stop, and Jace Bellah stopped a drive with his fourth interception of the season, hauling in a deflected pass in the end zone. But once UNLV's offense started rolling, it continued through a run of 35 unanswered points.

"I believe sometimes we get in our own heads, and we start snowballing," Bellah said. "We've just got to keep continuing what Coach Summers is preaching to us to stay together, play by play, and keep getting better."

The Rebels hit the Rams with eight explosive plays in the game, finishing with 571 yards of total offense, the most CSU has allowed this season. It was punctuated by 320 yards of rushing, the most the program has allowed since 2022. Jai'Den Thomas rushed for 131 on just seven carries, two of them for 57 yards or longer.

They were balanced as quarterback Anthony Colandrea threw for 251 yards and accounted for four touchdowns, two passing and two rushing.

Again, Summers looked inward.

"I think there's a couple of things when it comes to the explosive plays. You know, like I said earlier, I've got to do a better job of making sure that the system in place that we have gives us the best chance to be able to do that," he said. "I thought in both scenarios, both of those ones that happened early in the game were both my fault, and so I've got to do a better job. I think that's the best way to prevent them from happening in the future."

Special Teams
Hankins made his fourth field goal of the season, but he later missed one in the third quarter. In between, he didn't get a chance to swing the leg as a bad snap in a fire-drill situation at the end of the first half blew up the play.

Punter Bryan Hansen was solid again, averaging 45.0 yards on six attempts, putting two inside the 20. Punt returner Javion Kinnard did have an explosive return of 22 yards in the contest. Overall, the coverage was solid.

But as the season winds down, the goal is to look at what awaits in a positive manner. Keep the team together and find a way to put some things together in all three phases. Trying to avoid doubt creeping in becomes a priority.

"We've just talked a lot about what is the truth. And I think when you go through difficult times and you're trying to lead and you're trying to follow, then the truth is what really gives you a chance to be able to look at it and be honest," Summers said. "So, I kind of start every day by saying the truth is this. We did these things well. The truth is this. We did these things really poorly. The truth is, like you said, we have one thing happen and then two or three things happen, and we wind up not being in a very good position at that point, and that's where it gets hard. And like you said, that's where the truth is.

"So, we've got to find ways to kind of put those fires out quicker. That's the truth, and we've got to be able to find ways to help ourselves. And I've got to do a better job with the defense, and I've got to do a better job of finding ways to be able to put those fires out as quickly as possible."

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