August 27, 2024 • 16 mins
We go behind enemy lines and visit with Colorado State broadcaster Brian Roth to previews Saturday's game between the Texas Longhorns and the Rams. Craig Way and Roth discuss the off-season for Jay Norvell as he enters his 3rd season as the head coach. They discuss the talent on the roster for the Rams including Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi and Tory Horton.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
It's the Craig Way Show with a voice of the
Texas Longhorns in Hall of Fame broadcaster Craig Way.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Well, we mentioned that this is a Texas Tuesday, also
means it's a Texan Tuesday because our producer Cameron Parker
rolls us back from breaks with some of the lone
Star States musical icons and the legends, starting always with
the immortal Stevie ray Vaughn.
Speaker 3 (00:37):
Correct, not yet.
Speaker 4 (00:39):
We're waiting for Stevie Ray because I knew have a
special guest coming up.
Speaker 3 (00:42):
But we'll get the SRV later later in the show.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Okay, Harry, I just put on the hitset there.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
I thought you had.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
It's what your head rolling, very very similar sound. Okay,
all right, but we are going to have that, okay,
and we do have a special guest, so we jump
right in on that. And obviously, the Longhorns open the
season this Saturday as they take on the Colorado State Rams, who,
by the way, have a Texas high school football product
at quarterback. So I can tell you unequivocally that this
(01:13):
will not be the first football game that I have
ever called. Where Braiden Fowler Nikosi Nickelosi was quarterback in
the game. I did the twenty twenty one UYIL five
A Division one state championship game where his iconic alma mater, Alito,
(01:35):
which is one more state championships than any other program
in Texas high school football history, just absolutely just road
graded Crosby, a good Crosby team. They beat him fifty
six to twenty one. And Braiden had a big day
that day, and so did the rest of his Alito Bearcats.
(01:56):
And now he's the guy to lead the Colorado State
Rams to is it with us to talk about? That
is the guy I met during the nt basketball Tournament.
Remember when Texas played Colorado State in the first round
in Charlotte. Brian Roth joins us now on the hotline. Brian,
I appreciate the time.
Speaker 3 (02:10):
How are you.
Speaker 4 (02:12):
Yeah, Craig doing great? And take it back to that
first round game and Charlie to that game to that
first half, didn't they They get twenty five to three
run for the long course to close up that first half.
It was a it was brutal premam nation to watch,
I'm sure as very enjoyable for a long Coorn nation
(02:34):
to take it well.
Speaker 2 (02:35):
It worked for that they had they had their own
the lower and fans had their own excruciating experience with
a chance coming from behind to try to beat Tennessee
and that didn't happen in the second round. So we
know all about that as well. But good to have
you with us on the program. Tell us a little
bit about what Jay Norvella is trying to build now
in the third season. Those of us who got a
(02:57):
chance to work with him and get to know him
really enjoyed our time when he was on the prior
coaching staff and enjoyed being around Jay. And now he's
really trying to build something there in Fort Collins through
the first couple of seasons. How would you describe the
steps he's taken and what he's trying to do to
get the Rams in the contending status in the Mountain West.
Speaker 4 (03:19):
Yeah, and even to go a little bit further back
than that too, before Jay even got here. You know,
Colorado State is a big university here in the state
of Colorado that really bleeds in sports, and they've put
a lot of resources behind their athletic programs, but in
particular their football program, and in twenty seventeen, the campus.
Speaker 3 (03:42):
Didn't have a football.
Speaker 4 (03:43):
Stadium the Rams played three miles off campus, and so
the president of the university thought that it would be
great to move to football campus, the football team to campus,
and so they built a brand new football stadium in
twenty seventeen, writes mac dab in the middle of the
beautiful Colorado State campus, right up against the foothills and
into the.
Speaker 3 (04:03):
Mountains of Colorado.
Speaker 4 (04:04):
And it really is a crown jewel, and it houses
the entire football program, completely separate from the rest of
the athletic teams at Colorado State.
Speaker 3 (04:16):
And it is.
Speaker 4 (04:17):
Hands down the best facility football wise in the Mountain
West Conference and probably.
Speaker 3 (04:23):
The group of Group of five.
Speaker 4 (04:24):
So I just want to give you a baseline on
what Colorado's getting done to.
Speaker 3 (04:30):
The program forward. Now. It has not translated intoto success,
which is.
Speaker 4 (04:35):
Almost inconceivable because the last winning season Colorado State has
had was the year the stadium opened in twenty seventeen,
and year's This program in one of the best college
towns in the nation, the beautiful spot.
Speaker 3 (04:48):
Of the United States, and has.
Speaker 4 (04:51):
The best facilities in the Mountains Conference in the G five,
and yet they can't seem to find a way to
win football games and stream together wins and go.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
To bowl games and win bowl games.
Speaker 4 (05:01):
And it's really just been a head scratcher. Well right, Bobo,
who used to be the offensive coordinator Georgia was the
head coach here. He got fired into nineteen. They brought
in Steven Dazzio from Boston College. I was a disaster
and East coast guy that had no Colorado or West
coast connections. He was fired up to two years and
incomes Jane Orvel and this is year number three for
(05:23):
j and the program was a mess when he took
over two years ago, went three and eight the first year.
Last year had a chance to go to a bowl game,
the season finality at Hawaii.
Speaker 3 (05:34):
They lost. They finished five and seven, another losing record.
Speaker 4 (05:37):
But now year number three craig for Jane Orvel, and
the recruiting has been much better. They've gotten a higher
level of athletes into the program and Jane Norvel finally
has this program seemingly on solid footing. So the expectations
are high here in Fort Collins and the fans leave
(05:58):
this could be a you know, an eight win team,
a nine win team, get back to a bowl game,
maybe even challenge for a mount and West Conference championship.
So that's kind of a snapshot here of Colorado State
Ram football. Jane norval I don't think there's any questions
the right guy for the job. Now you're number three,
you're gonna have to start seeing some tangible results and
that means full game and a winning season.
Speaker 2 (06:19):
Well, let me start with the quarterback. Like I was
saying that the startout call a state championship game that
bringen Foller, Nickeolosi played in as well, Richard sophomore as well.
How about what he brings to the table there for
the Rams.
Speaker 4 (06:35):
Well, he brings unshakable confidence and some moxie is what
he brings. And he brings a big time arm. He
has an NFL type of arm. And you know, I
think the thing that's most impressive about Braydon is the
fact that you know, it's a redshirt freshman. Last year,
he was not the starter at the beginning of the year.
Game number one. The Ram offense didn't play well against
(06:56):
Washington State last year and in the second half, out
of Nickelosi come in and those were two hundred yards
and two touchdowns. It ended up being a loss. But
then the very next week they nick named in the
starting quarterback and the Rams went into Boulder to take
on an in state rival in Colorado, and if remember
back to that game, Colorado was three to zero, whereas
(07:17):
Deion Sanders first year, both the Fox Big Newton Kickoff
was in Boulder that weekend.
Speaker 3 (07:23):
And ESPN Game Day. I mean it was I think it.
Speaker 4 (07:27):
Ended up being the fourth most watched college football game
of the season last year, nine million people watched it.
Speaker 3 (07:32):
At least regular season games.
Speaker 4 (07:34):
And he was basically making his first starts in an
environment like that. It was an eight o'clock at night
game and you've thrown all the rivalry into it. I mean,
it was an intense environment for a kid to go
out there and make a start. And he went ahead
and threw for three hundred and seventy yards and three touchdowns.
He did have three interceptions, but rose to the moment,
(07:55):
right and those were some bright, bright lights and he
did not back down and actually shined in those moments.
Speaker 3 (08:04):
So anybody that can go into a.
Speaker 4 (08:06):
Situation like that, having virtually not played any college football
and to perform the way he did was it was
certainly impressive. Now he's the gunslinger through sixteen interceptions, that
was tied for most in SBS football last year.
Speaker 3 (08:21):
That has to come down. But he's a kid, certainly
that has a lot of confidence.
Speaker 2 (08:25):
Let me ask you about a couple other of the
offensive weapons. One is an interesting story in Justin Marshall,
the running back who had three great games late in
the season, and those were the only games he played in,
so he gets to be a freshman again, and him
in the backfield. And then the other guy I wanted
to ask you about, obviously, folks were in fact Sark
was asked at the news conference estraaty about Tory Horton
(08:48):
and how dangerous he can be. And he had over
eleven hundred receiving guards eight touchdowns all Mountain West a
year ago. How about those two guys, Marshall in the
backfield and Horton at whiteout.
Speaker 4 (08:59):
Yeah, in Colorado State had had really a dearth of
scholarship players at running back last year. They were playing
walk ons and the run game suffered, and they had
a couple of two really good freshmen true freshman last
year that just weren't ready.
Speaker 3 (09:13):
And Justin Marshall was one of those guys.
Speaker 4 (09:15):
A kid from just outside of Chicago by Gary Indiana
and you know, a guy that they really liked, which
just was having a hard time adjusting to college football
his first year in camp. It wasn't picking up the
offense and finding the run game was so bad. They're
playing walk on. You get to the third, the last
game of the season, said look the coaching steps that
(09:35):
we're going to put this kid in. And against San
Diego State, I think he ran like nineteen times for
one hundred and twenty five yards and a couple of
touchdowns and just made some incredible run and I think
all of Ram Sanderbak, where the heck has this guy been?
Last year?
Speaker 3 (09:49):
We've been playing walk on running backs.
Speaker 4 (09:51):
But ended up averaging you know, one hundred and what
four yards per game in the final three games of
the year. Now he comes back a year under his belt.
He's a good little player. He's not very big, he
goes five to ten, about one to eighty five, but
really good in tight spaces. And he was last year
in the final three games, turning you know, two yard
(10:12):
runs into seven and eight yard runs. He was turning
runs that were blocked for six yards in the twelve
thirteen fourteen yard games. So he'll be fascinating to watch
the ram.
Speaker 3 (10:23):
Fans this year. And then he talks about Tory Horton.
Speaker 4 (10:25):
You know, he's a kid who has been around for
a long time, started his career in Nevada and then
the last two years here in this air raid offense
for Colorado State has put up back to back thousand
yard receiving yard seasons. At ninety six catches last year,
would have been a drafted draftable guy in April, had
he decided to go out, probably would have been a
(10:48):
sixth round type pick. But what the scouts were telling
him is that he just needed to add a few
more pounds to his frame because they didn't think he
would be able to withstand an NFL season with a
slight body frame. Well now he's up to one ninety
one ninety five and put on fifteen pounds and he's
got the skills. There's no course, somebody's the best button
(11:08):
returner in the Mountain West Conference and Tory Horton is
a botify NFL prospected and if he turns out another
thousand yard receiving a receiving yard season. Has one hundred
catches this year, which is certainly in the realm of possibilities.
You know, Tory Horton could be a second, third, fourth
round type kid.
Speaker 2 (11:27):
Colorado's take play by playvoye Brian Roth with us here
on sports Radio AM thirteen hundred zone. On the defensive side,
everything I've read has said that really and truly, Chase Wilson,
the senior linebacker, kind of anchors the core there. How
about your thought on the RAM defense?
Speaker 4 (11:42):
Yeah, you know, they lost their best defensive player a
season to go to graduation in the NFL draft to
get a Mo Kamara, who had I think fifteen and
a half stacks last year and was a Mountainless Conference
Defensive Player of the year, was a fifth round pick
of the Miami Dolphins in April. He has gone, and
so that that's going to be a a major problem
for the Rams. Who's going to be able to to
(12:04):
rush the quarterback?
Speaker 3 (12:05):
And that certainly was one of the question marks.
Speaker 4 (12:08):
But Chase Wilson's just a football player, right, I mean
a kid that is born and bred to be a linebacker,
and it's just what he is. He's a Colorado kid,
had over one hundred tackles last year, and he anchors
the interior of that defense. And on the back end,
they are two more Colorado kids that have played a
(12:28):
ton of college football, and Henry Blackburn and Jack cal
Jack's dad was an All American safety for the Rams
back in the nineteen nineties and won a Super Bowl
with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in two two thousand, two.
Speaker 3 (12:47):
Thousand and two. So good football pedigree.
Speaker 4 (12:50):
But two safeties that have really played a ton of
college football and two guys that when their careers are
done there each can have over three hundred career tackles, which,
as you know, as a ton, no.
Speaker 3 (13:02):
Doubt about that.
Speaker 2 (13:04):
Okay, So in this new world, and it's it's kind
of a I know, a little bit strange thing from
the Mountain West all of a sudden have Oregon State
and Washington State kind of knocking on your door, going, hey,
it's okay if we play you guys while we figure
out our futures. You know that that kind of thing.
But you've got Oregon State in the non conference as
(13:25):
well as Texas, Colorado, UTAB and Northern Colorado and nearby Greeley.
Is it your thought if if they can find a
way to go three and two, four and one in
that in that first in that five game non conference stretch.
I've got a good chance to get to what you
talked about at the top of the conversation about getting
into a bowl game, taking that next step forward.
Speaker 3 (13:48):
Yeah, I mean, there's no question about it.
Speaker 4 (13:51):
You know, obviously, you know the Texas game on Saturday
is a long shot, as we all know, to be
a win, and I think everytional RAM fan is putting
that as a as a loss. They certainly hope to
compete well against the Longhorns on Saturday, and certainly you
want to stay healthy. That's that's both team's goal. But
then after that they have three straight home games, and
(14:12):
you know, Northern Colorado's an FCS team that didn't win
a game last year.
Speaker 3 (14:17):
RAMS are going to roll on that one.
Speaker 4 (14:18):
Then you get Colorado in town and Deon Sanders is
going to be absolute zoo and Fort Collins but certainly
a winnable game. RAMS should have won the game in
Boulder last.
Speaker 3 (14:26):
Year, didn't.
Speaker 4 (14:27):
And then you have the team that I think won
two games last year and replaced their coach. So if
you look at September, you get three straight home games
after the Texas game, you can go three and one,
and if you're sitting at three and one there, and
then you go into October, you go to Oregon State,
who you know has has been pretty good the last
number of years. Lost their head coach Jonathan Smith to
(14:47):
Michigan State though during the past offseason. But you go
three and one in September, I think this is going
to be a football team that's gonna have a lot
of confidence. And you know, a football team that the
conference schedule sets up well for.
Speaker 3 (14:59):
An early season.
Speaker 4 (15:00):
You get off to a good starting conference play and yeah,
I mean I think it's a team that has a
chance to win eight games. Maybe it's stuff breaks right,
you win nine games, you start getting this thing rolling
at the G five level. And again going back to
the facilities, Craig, there is no reason that Colorado State
is always in contention about West Conference and as always
(15:24):
right there in the mix trying to get that G
five spot in the new twelve team playoffs, no.
Speaker 3 (15:30):
Doubt about it.
Speaker 2 (15:30):
He's Brian wrong play by play voice. So the Colorado
State Rams says he's going to make his first trip
to Austin. So Brian, you know, take it easy down there.
If you go down there on a sixth Street on
Friday night, you know, but we'll look forward to seeing
you up in the up in the broadcast booth on Saturday.
Speaker 3 (15:46):
Absolutely looking forward to it.
Speaker 4 (15:47):
I'm getting a little longer in the two thousand and
ten years ago, I tin would have had to take
it easy down these days.
Speaker 3 (15:53):
If my old age makes me take it easy, you.
Speaker 2 (15:56):
Can settle for some great barbecue whatever, and then and
then and then an early evening, right.
Speaker 4 (16:01):
Absolutely, a couple of beers, some barbecue, and an early
evening and get.
Speaker 3 (16:04):
Ready for some college football. We're looking forward to.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
You can definitely find all of that in this town
this weekend. Hey, Brian, I appreciate you taking the time.
Look forward to seeing you on Saturday. Thanks for joining us.
Speaker 3 (16:14):
Yeah, thanks Greg.
Speaker 2 (16:15):
All right, that's Brian Rod, play by play voice of
the Colorado State Rams. And yeah, so the log oorngs
will host the Rams Saturday afternoon at two thirty. Our coverage,
of course, begins here at eleven thirty Saturday morning with
our log Orange Game Day crew, and that would include
Cameron Parker as well as my Cardball Harg and Mark
(16:35):
Henry and they'll be down on Beava Boulevards and you know,
and looking forward to bringing you the pregame program from
eleven thirty to one thirty, Network pregame at one thirty
and the kickoff at two thirty. Up next inconceivable we
get to that next one. We continue on sports Radio
AM thirteen hundred The Zone
It's the Craig Way Show with a voice of the
Texas Longhorns in Hall of Fame broadcaster Craig Way.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Well, we mentioned that this is a Texas Tuesday, also
means it's a Texan Tuesday because our producer Cameron Parker
rolls us back from breaks with some of the lone
Star States musical icons and the legends, starting always with
the immortal Stevie ray Vaughn.
Speaker 3 (00:37):
Correct, not yet.
Speaker 4 (00:39):
We're waiting for Stevie Ray because I knew have a
special guest coming up.
Speaker 3 (00:42):
But we'll get the SRV later later in the show.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Okay, Harry, I just put on the hitset there.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
I thought you had.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
It's what your head rolling, very very similar sound. Okay,
all right, but we are going to have that, okay,
and we do have a special guest, so we jump
right in on that. And obviously, the Longhorns open the
season this Saturday as they take on the Colorado State Rams, who,
by the way, have a Texas high school football product
at quarterback. So I can tell you unequivocally that this
(01:13):
will not be the first football game that I have
ever called. Where Braiden Fowler Nikosi Nickelosi was quarterback in
the game. I did the twenty twenty one UYIL five
A Division one state championship game where his iconic alma mater, Alito,
(01:35):
which is one more state championships than any other program
in Texas high school football history, just absolutely just road
graded Crosby, a good Crosby team. They beat him fifty
six to twenty one. And Braiden had a big day
that day, and so did the rest of his Alito Bearcats.
(01:56):
And now he's the guy to lead the Colorado State
Rams to is it with us to talk about? That
is the guy I met during the nt basketball Tournament.
Remember when Texas played Colorado State in the first round
in Charlotte. Brian Roth joins us now on the hotline. Brian,
I appreciate the time.
Speaker 3 (02:10):
How are you.
Speaker 4 (02:12):
Yeah, Craig doing great? And take it back to that
first round game and Charlie to that game to that
first half, didn't they They get twenty five to three
run for the long course to close up that first half.
It was a it was brutal premam nation to watch,
I'm sure as very enjoyable for a long Coorn nation
(02:34):
to take it well.
Speaker 2 (02:35):
It worked for that they had they had their own
the lower and fans had their own excruciating experience with
a chance coming from behind to try to beat Tennessee
and that didn't happen in the second round. So we
know all about that as well. But good to have
you with us on the program. Tell us a little
bit about what Jay Norvella is trying to build now
in the third season. Those of us who got a
(02:57):
chance to work with him and get to know him
really enjoyed our time when he was on the prior
coaching staff and enjoyed being around Jay. And now he's
really trying to build something there in Fort Collins through
the first couple of seasons. How would you describe the
steps he's taken and what he's trying to do to
get the Rams in the contending status in the Mountain West.
Speaker 4 (03:19):
Yeah, and even to go a little bit further back
than that too, before Jay even got here. You know,
Colorado State is a big university here in the state
of Colorado that really bleeds in sports, and they've put
a lot of resources behind their athletic programs, but in
particular their football program, and in twenty seventeen, the campus.
Speaker 3 (03:42):
Didn't have a football.
Speaker 4 (03:43):
Stadium the Rams played three miles off campus, and so
the president of the university thought that it would be
great to move to football campus, the football team to campus,
and so they built a brand new football stadium in
twenty seventeen, writes mac dab in the middle of the
beautiful Colorado State campus, right up against the foothills and
into the.
Speaker 3 (04:03):
Mountains of Colorado.
Speaker 4 (04:04):
And it really is a crown jewel, and it houses
the entire football program, completely separate from the rest of
the athletic teams at Colorado State.
Speaker 3 (04:16):
And it is.
Speaker 4 (04:17):
Hands down the best facility football wise in the Mountain
West Conference and probably.
Speaker 3 (04:23):
The group of Group of five.
Speaker 4 (04:24):
So I just want to give you a baseline on
what Colorado's getting done to.
Speaker 3 (04:30):
The program forward. Now. It has not translated intoto success,
which is.
Speaker 4 (04:35):
Almost inconceivable because the last winning season Colorado State has
had was the year the stadium opened in twenty seventeen,
and year's This program in one of the best college
towns in the nation, the beautiful spot.
Speaker 3 (04:48):
Of the United States, and has.
Speaker 4 (04:51):
The best facilities in the Mountains Conference in the G five,
and yet they can't seem to find a way to
win football games and stream together wins and go.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
To bowl games and win bowl games.
Speaker 4 (05:01):
And it's really just been a head scratcher. Well right, Bobo,
who used to be the offensive coordinator Georgia was the
head coach here. He got fired into nineteen. They brought
in Steven Dazzio from Boston College. I was a disaster
and East coast guy that had no Colorado or West
coast connections. He was fired up to two years and
incomes Jane Orvel and this is year number three for
(05:23):
j and the program was a mess when he took
over two years ago, went three and eight the first year.
Last year had a chance to go to a bowl game,
the season finality at Hawaii.
Speaker 3 (05:34):
They lost. They finished five and seven, another losing record.
Speaker 4 (05:37):
But now year number three craig for Jane Orvel, and
the recruiting has been much better. They've gotten a higher
level of athletes into the program and Jane Norvel finally
has this program seemingly on solid footing. So the expectations
are high here in Fort Collins and the fans leave
(05:58):
this could be a you know, an eight win team,
a nine win team, get back to a bowl game,
maybe even challenge for a mount and West Conference championship.
So that's kind of a snapshot here of Colorado State
Ram football. Jane norval I don't think there's any questions
the right guy for the job. Now you're number three,
you're gonna have to start seeing some tangible results and
that means full game and a winning season.
Speaker 2 (06:19):
Well, let me start with the quarterback. Like I was
saying that the startout call a state championship game that
bringen Foller, Nickeolosi played in as well, Richard sophomore as well.
How about what he brings to the table there for
the Rams.
Speaker 4 (06:35):
Well, he brings unshakable confidence and some moxie is what
he brings. And he brings a big time arm. He
has an NFL type of arm. And you know, I
think the thing that's most impressive about Braydon is the
fact that you know, it's a redshirt freshman. Last year,
he was not the starter at the beginning of the year.
Game number one. The Ram offense didn't play well against
(06:56):
Washington State last year and in the second half, out
of Nickelosi come in and those were two hundred yards
and two touchdowns. It ended up being a loss. But
then the very next week they nick named in the
starting quarterback and the Rams went into Boulder to take
on an in state rival in Colorado, and if remember
back to that game, Colorado was three to zero, whereas
(07:17):
Deion Sanders first year, both the Fox Big Newton Kickoff
was in Boulder that weekend.
Speaker 3 (07:23):
And ESPN Game Day. I mean it was I think it.
Speaker 4 (07:27):
Ended up being the fourth most watched college football game
of the season last year, nine million people watched it.
Speaker 3 (07:32):
At least regular season games.
Speaker 4 (07:34):
And he was basically making his first starts in an
environment like that. It was an eight o'clock at night
game and you've thrown all the rivalry into it. I mean,
it was an intense environment for a kid to go
out there and make a start. And he went ahead
and threw for three hundred and seventy yards and three touchdowns.
He did have three interceptions, but rose to the moment,
(07:55):
right and those were some bright, bright lights and he
did not back down and actually shined in those moments.
Speaker 3 (08:04):
So anybody that can go into a.
Speaker 4 (08:06):
Situation like that, having virtually not played any college football
and to perform the way he did was it was
certainly impressive. Now he's the gunslinger through sixteen interceptions, that
was tied for most in SBS football last year.
Speaker 3 (08:21):
That has to come down. But he's a kid, certainly
that has a lot of confidence.
Speaker 2 (08:25):
Let me ask you about a couple other of the
offensive weapons. One is an interesting story in Justin Marshall,
the running back who had three great games late in
the season, and those were the only games he played in,
so he gets to be a freshman again, and him
in the backfield. And then the other guy I wanted
to ask you about, obviously, folks were in fact Sark
was asked at the news conference estraaty about Tory Horton
(08:48):
and how dangerous he can be. And he had over
eleven hundred receiving guards eight touchdowns all Mountain West a
year ago. How about those two guys, Marshall in the
backfield and Horton at whiteout.
Speaker 4 (08:59):
Yeah, in Colorado State had had really a dearth of
scholarship players at running back last year. They were playing
walk ons and the run game suffered, and they had
a couple of two really good freshmen true freshman last
year that just weren't ready.
Speaker 3 (09:13):
And Justin Marshall was one of those guys.
Speaker 4 (09:15):
A kid from just outside of Chicago by Gary Indiana
and you know, a guy that they really liked, which
just was having a hard time adjusting to college football
his first year in camp. It wasn't picking up the
offense and finding the run game was so bad. They're
playing walk on. You get to the third, the last
game of the season, said look the coaching steps that
(09:35):
we're going to put this kid in. And against San
Diego State, I think he ran like nineteen times for
one hundred and twenty five yards and a couple of
touchdowns and just made some incredible run and I think
all of Ram Sanderbak, where the heck has this guy been?
Last year?
Speaker 3 (09:49):
We've been playing walk on running backs.
Speaker 4 (09:51):
But ended up averaging you know, one hundred and what
four yards per game in the final three games of
the year. Now he comes back a year under his belt.
He's a good little player. He's not very big, he
goes five to ten, about one to eighty five, but
really good in tight spaces. And he was last year
in the final three games, turning you know, two yard
(10:12):
runs into seven and eight yard runs. He was turning
runs that were blocked for six yards in the twelve
thirteen fourteen yard games. So he'll be fascinating to watch
the ram.
Speaker 3 (10:23):
Fans this year. And then he talks about Tory Horton.
Speaker 4 (10:25):
You know, he's a kid who has been around for
a long time, started his career in Nevada and then
the last two years here in this air raid offense
for Colorado State has put up back to back thousand
yard receiving yard seasons. At ninety six catches last year,
would have been a drafted draftable guy in April, had
he decided to go out, probably would have been a
(10:48):
sixth round type pick. But what the scouts were telling
him is that he just needed to add a few
more pounds to his frame because they didn't think he
would be able to withstand an NFL season with a
slight body frame. Well now he's up to one ninety
one ninety five and put on fifteen pounds and he's
got the skills. There's no course, somebody's the best button
(11:08):
returner in the Mountain West Conference and Tory Horton is
a botify NFL prospected and if he turns out another
thousand yard receiving a receiving yard season. Has one hundred
catches this year, which is certainly in the realm of possibilities.
You know, Tory Horton could be a second, third, fourth
round type kid.
Speaker 2 (11:27):
Colorado's take play by playvoye Brian Roth with us here
on sports Radio AM thirteen hundred zone. On the defensive side,
everything I've read has said that really and truly, Chase Wilson,
the senior linebacker, kind of anchors the core there. How
about your thought on the RAM defense?
Speaker 4 (11:42):
Yeah, you know, they lost their best defensive player a
season to go to graduation in the NFL draft to
get a Mo Kamara, who had I think fifteen and
a half stacks last year and was a Mountainless Conference
Defensive Player of the year, was a fifth round pick
of the Miami Dolphins in April. He has gone, and
so that that's going to be a a major problem
for the Rams. Who's going to be able to to
(12:04):
rush the quarterback?
Speaker 3 (12:05):
And that certainly was one of the question marks.
Speaker 4 (12:08):
But Chase Wilson's just a football player, right, I mean
a kid that is born and bred to be a linebacker,
and it's just what he is. He's a Colorado kid,
had over one hundred tackles last year, and he anchors
the interior of that defense. And on the back end,
they are two more Colorado kids that have played a
(12:28):
ton of college football, and Henry Blackburn and Jack cal
Jack's dad was an All American safety for the Rams
back in the nineteen nineties and won a Super Bowl
with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in two two thousand, two.
Speaker 3 (12:47):
Thousand and two. So good football pedigree.
Speaker 4 (12:50):
But two safeties that have really played a ton of
college football and two guys that when their careers are
done there each can have over three hundred career tackles, which,
as you know, as a ton, no.
Speaker 3 (13:02):
Doubt about that.
Speaker 2 (13:04):
Okay, So in this new world, and it's it's kind
of a I know, a little bit strange thing from
the Mountain West all of a sudden have Oregon State
and Washington State kind of knocking on your door, going, hey,
it's okay if we play you guys while we figure
out our futures. You know that that kind of thing.
But you've got Oregon State in the non conference as
(13:25):
well as Texas, Colorado, UTAB and Northern Colorado and nearby Greeley.
Is it your thought if if they can find a
way to go three and two, four and one in
that in that first in that five game non conference stretch.
I've got a good chance to get to what you
talked about at the top of the conversation about getting
into a bowl game, taking that next step forward.
Speaker 3 (13:48):
Yeah, I mean, there's no question about it.
Speaker 4 (13:51):
You know, obviously, you know the Texas game on Saturday
is a long shot, as we all know, to be
a win, and I think everytional RAM fan is putting
that as a as a loss. They certainly hope to
compete well against the Longhorns on Saturday, and certainly you
want to stay healthy. That's that's both team's goal. But
then after that they have three straight home games, and
(14:12):
you know, Northern Colorado's an FCS team that didn't win
a game last year.
Speaker 3 (14:17):
RAMS are going to roll on that one.
Speaker 4 (14:18):
Then you get Colorado in town and Deon Sanders is
going to be absolute zoo and Fort Collins but certainly
a winnable game. RAMS should have won the game in
Boulder last.
Speaker 3 (14:26):
Year, didn't.
Speaker 4 (14:27):
And then you have the team that I think won
two games last year and replaced their coach. So if
you look at September, you get three straight home games
after the Texas game, you can go three and one,
and if you're sitting at three and one there, and
then you go into October, you go to Oregon State,
who you know has has been pretty good the last
number of years. Lost their head coach Jonathan Smith to
(14:47):
Michigan State though during the past offseason. But you go
three and one in September, I think this is going
to be a football team that's gonna have a lot
of confidence. And you know, a football team that the
conference schedule sets up well for.
Speaker 3 (14:59):
An early season.
Speaker 4 (15:00):
You get off to a good starting conference play and yeah,
I mean I think it's a team that has a
chance to win eight games. Maybe it's stuff breaks right,
you win nine games, you start getting this thing rolling
at the G five level. And again going back to
the facilities, Craig, there is no reason that Colorado State
is always in contention about West Conference and as always
(15:24):
right there in the mix trying to get that G
five spot in the new twelve team playoffs, no.
Speaker 3 (15:30):
Doubt about it.
Speaker 2 (15:30):
He's Brian wrong play by play voice. So the Colorado
State Rams says he's going to make his first trip
to Austin. So Brian, you know, take it easy down there.
If you go down there on a sixth Street on
Friday night, you know, but we'll look forward to seeing
you up in the up in the broadcast booth on Saturday.
Speaker 3 (15:46):
Absolutely looking forward to it.
Speaker 4 (15:47):
I'm getting a little longer in the two thousand and
ten years ago, I tin would have had to take
it easy down these days.
Speaker 3 (15:53):
If my old age makes me take it easy, you.
Speaker 2 (15:56):
Can settle for some great barbecue whatever, and then and
then and then an early evening, right.
Speaker 4 (16:01):
Absolutely, a couple of beers, some barbecue, and an early
evening and get.
Speaker 3 (16:04):
Ready for some college football. We're looking forward to.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
You can definitely find all of that in this town
this weekend. Hey, Brian, I appreciate you taking the time.
Look forward to seeing you on Saturday. Thanks for joining us.
Speaker 3 (16:14):
Yeah, thanks Greg.
Speaker 2 (16:15):
All right, that's Brian Rod, play by play voice of
the Colorado State Rams. And yeah, so the log oorngs
will host the Rams Saturday afternoon at two thirty. Our coverage,
of course, begins here at eleven thirty Saturday morning with
our log Orange Game Day crew, and that would include
Cameron Parker as well as my Cardball Harg and Mark
(16:35):
Henry and they'll be down on Beava Boulevards and you know,
and looking forward to bringing you the pregame program from
eleven thirty to one thirty, Network pregame at one thirty
and the kickoff at two thirty. Up next inconceivable we
get to that next one. We continue on sports Radio
AM thirteen hundred The Zone
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