From the Desk of John Weber - The End of Another Great Year

Rams,

If all of you in Ram Country are like me, you're wondering where the time has gone. It feels like yesterday when the academic calendar began, a point when our move to the new Pac-12 was to be found somewhere in the distant future, and excitement abounded as our teams set out to begin another year of competition.

And what a year it has been for us to reflect upon, filled with success as our teams continue to fill trophy cases and raise the bar of our own expectations. In just the past two seasons, Colorado State stands as one of only two FBS programs to have appeared in a bowl game while collecting conference championships in both men's and women's basketball as well as volleyball. We are also one of just 18 programs in the country to have played in a bowl game and reached NCAA Championships in volleyball and both basketball programs in that same time span.

Women's basketball won the Mountain West tournament championship and played in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2016. Our men's indoor track team won a title for a third consecutive season as Brian Bedard's athletes collected multiple individual championships, and they'll look to repeat as the outdoor champions this week. In the pool, Tess Whineray broke two individual school records on her way to a conference title while becoming the first Ram to qualify for the NCAA meet since 2013.

Each of our programs continuously looks at what the next achievement can be, the next goal to reach, and as an athletic department, we will do so together as we enter our next era as a member of the Pac-12.

We are proud and excited to make this move on July 1, as we will do so with like-minded universities that are aligned both athletically and academically in our pursuits. The Pac-12 will own the biggest footprint in the West, and here at Colorado State, we fully intend to take advantage of the opportunity it presents.

You allowed us to take a big step forward toward that last week during a transformative Day of Giving. Never before had the University surpassed $1 million in gifts on that day, and because of Ram Country, the athletic department shattered records, raising more than $1.5 million. What you did was phenomenal, and I cannot thank you enough. And it's just the start.

Much will be new, which includes our football team, with head coach Jim Mora and his staff doing a remarkable job of building a team and establishing a championship culture in a short time. The cooperation between university leadership, the athletic department and Mora's program falls in lockstep with a sense of enthusiasm permeating from the practice fields each day of spring camp.

The program will present a seven-game home schedule in 2026, a goal which at one time seemed unattainable but will now reach a run of three consecutive seasons. We will host the Border War and Ag Day, former conference rival BYU and a host of Pac-12 foes, the historic first Pac-12 date being Oct. 3 for Homecoming and Family Weekend.

Our fans make a difference on game days, dates which are impactful for not just the campus but the surrounding Fort Collins community. They will continue to do so as we have surpassed 80 percent in ticket renewals for football, men's basketball and volleyball. Those dates are more than just cheering on our teams, but contributed to the local economy with more than $55 million spent by visitors, and Canvas Stadium contributed more than $114 million and 2,200 jobs in the past two seasons.

Those dates go beyond game days now, too, as we prepare to host PBR for the second straight year at Canvas Stadium. Last year, we were the first college football stadium to host a PBR event, bringing more than 24,000 people to Canvas Stadium for the two-night event. This year, we have added a third night (July 10-12) and continue to mark firsts. The event starts with the Learfield College All-Star Rodeo, a first of its kind on that Friday night that will include student-athletes from CSU's own rodeo team. Saturday and Sunday feature the start of the PBR teams season. Each day will be capped off with a different country music superstar – Brad Paisley (Friday), Bailey Zimmerman (Saturday) and Miranda Lambert (Sunday).

The impact of our programs knows no borders, nor does it stop with graduation. Nique Clifford, Isaiah Stevens, David Roddy and John Tonje all played in the NBA this season. Four Ram greats will be fitted with Super Bowl rings – Tory Horton, Klint Kubiak, Rick Dennison and John Benton. Kubiak goes from Seattle offensive coordinator to the head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders, making it two Rams in charge of major sports teams in the city that never sleeps, as he joins Becky Hammon, the CSU legend who once again guided her team to the WNBA championship.

Trey McBride became an NFL All-Pro as he broke the league record for receptions by a tight end in a single season (126) and former track conference champion Hunter Powell was proud to say he was a CSU Ram as he represented Team USA in the bobsled at the 2026 Winter Games in Italy. When he returns to campus as the commencement speaker, he becomes the second consecutive former CSU athlete to do so, following former football player Eugene Daniels.

I want to congratulate all 66 of our student-athletes who will receive their degrees this spring and summer!

Not intent on simply chasing dreams, we capture the big moments and strive to move forward collectively. You've been in attendance – record numbers for a football game, a top-10 in the nation attendance program in volleyball and basketball crowds continuing a stretch of strong representation – as men's basketball once again reached the postseason and athletes such as track and field's Kajsa Borrman and Makayla Long were the latest to add All-American to their resumes.

Your support goes far beyond just competitions too

Ram Country, we need you to grow along with us. We are out to add at least 1,500 new Ram Club members at this remarkable moment in our history, as it takes all of us to make this department and university great. During the Day of Giving, we surpassed 150 McGraw Society members, those who have reached the apex of giving for CSU Athletics. All of which influences student-athlete scholarships, academic support, mental health and nutrition gains, as well as holistic healthcare, impacting team and individual performance.

It has been an amazing year for us at Colorado State, each success carrying us forward to the next. We are far from done. This is just the start. As we move to the Pac-12, march with us as we continue our pursuit of being the most loved, most watched and most innovative athletic department in the West.

Go Rams!!

John Weber

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