Tag: C-USA Football

Colorado State vs Utah State: Why The Rams Can Win, How to Watch, Odds, Predicition

The Rams head to Utah to face the Aggies for CSU’s first conference game of the year. Here’s how the Rams can continue their winning streak.

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Colorado State vs Utah State: Why The Rams Can Win, How to Watch, Odds, Predicition

The Rams are in Utah to face the Aggies

Contact/Follow @J0shFr3d & @MWCwire

Can the Rams win 3 in a row?

WEEK 4: Colorado State Rams (2-2, 0-0 MW) vs. Utah State Aggies (2-3, 0-1 MW)

WHEN: Saturday, October 7th โ€” 6:00 p.m. MST / 5:00 p.m. PST

WHERE: Maverik Stadium; Logan, UT (25,513)

WEATHER: Clear Sky, high of 72 degrees

TV: MW Network

RADIO: K99-FM 99.1 / ESPN 1600 AM (Colorado)

SERIES RECORD: This will be the 79th matchup between these two schools. Colorado State leads the series 39-37-2.

LAST MEETING: Utah State won 17-13 in Fort Collins last season.

WEBSITES:ย CSURams.com, the official Colorado State athletics website | UtahStateAggies.com, the official Utah State athletics website

GAME NOTES (PDF):ย Colorado State | Utah State

ODDS: Colorado State -2.5

OVER/UNDER: 62.5

SP+ PROJECTION: Utah State by 3.4

FEI PROJECTION: Utah State by 5.7

PARKER FLEMING PROJECTION: Colorado State 54.39% win probability (31.20 to 29.55)

Colorado State heads to Logan, Utah to face the Aggies in the Rams first Mountain West game of the year. CSU is coming off a strong, but still disappointing 41-20 win over FCS Utah Tech. And now they turn their attentionto 8 straight weeks of conference play

Utah State is led by Blake Anderson in his 3rd season at the helm. Cooper Legas gets the nod under center, with McCae Hillstead out with a concussion. Davon Booth, Rahsul Faison, Jalen Royals, and Terrell Vaughn are the big threats on offense. MJ Tafisi and Ike Larsen are the ones to watch on defense.

Now onto some keys to victory for the Rams.

Three Keys to a colorado state victory

1. Run the dang ball, Bobo!

The key is written jokingly, but it’s something the Rams need to figure out. They are bottom 5 in the country in rushing offense per game at 71 yards per game. The air raid is a passing offense, but Jay Norvell likes to throw in the run as a wrinkle to keep defenses honest.

The Rams have good running backs in Avery Morrow (still out with injury) and Kobe Johnson, who is expected back this week. The Rams OL has gotten better at pass protection, but if CSU wants to keep growing the Rams must get better at run blocking.

2. Complete 60 minute game

The Rams have not played a complete 60 minutes in any game this year. They laid an egg against Washington State before doing something in the second half. The ran roughshod over Colorado in the first half before playing back and letting the Buffs come back for the win. Against Middle Tennessee, the Rams woke up in the second half. And against Utah Tech, the Rams let them get within one point before going on a 20-0 run to end the game.

Against Utah State, who has the same struggles, the Rams have a chance to show they can be a true force in the Mountain West. Play a complete game in all phases (passing, running, defense, and special teams) and make the other teams respect you.

3. Defense needs to step up

What was a strength of the team last season, has turned into a nightmare. Games are closer than they should be. Tackles are being missed. Holes are being left open everywhere. This Rams defense needs to take a look in the mirror and decide what kind of defense they actually want to be.

This doesn’t mean the talent isn’t there. Mohamed Kamara, Jack Howell, Chigozie Anusiem, and others are good players, but they haven’t been able to put it together as a team. This is the Rams chance to do so and make Rams fans remember last years defense.

what will happen

CSU comes out with a fire. Utah State starts slow and the Rams will take advantage. The Aggies will make a little comeback, but it will be too little, too late as Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi tears apart the Aggie defense with Tory Horton and Dallin Holker.

Final Score: Colorado State 42, Utah State 31

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Colorado State vs Middle Tennessee: Game Preview, How to Watch, Odds, Predicition

CSU heads to Tennessee looking to avoid a let down against the Blue Raiders. Here’s how they can do that and get their first win of the year

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Colorado State vs Middle Tennessee: Game Preview, How to Watch, Odds, Predicition

The Rams head east to face the Blue Raiders.

Contact/Follow @J0shFr3d & @MWCwire

Can the Rams get out of the starting block?

WEEK 4: Colorado State Rams (0-2) vs. Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (1-2)

WHEN: Saturday, September 23rd โ€” 5:00 p.m. MST / 4:00 p.m. PST

WHERE: Johnny “Red” Floyd Stadium; Boulder, CO (30,788)

WEATHER: Partly Cloudy, high of 78 degrees

STREAMING: ESPN+

RADIO: K99-FM 99.1 / ESPN 1600 AM (Colorado)

SERIES RECORD: This will be the 2nd matchup between these two schools. Middle Tennessee leads the series 1-0.

LAST MEETING: Middle Tennessee won 34-19 in Fort Collins last season.

WEBSITES:ย CSURams.com, the official Colorado State athletics website | GoBlueRaiders.com, the official Middle Tennessee athletics website

GAME NOTES (PDF):ย Colorado State | Middle Tennessee

ODDS: Middle Tennessee -3

OVER/UNDER: 52.5

SP+ PROJECTION: Middle Tennessee by 6.3

FEI PROJECTION: Middle Tennessee by 5.5

PARKER FLEMING PROJECTION: Colorado State 51.61% win probability (27.02 to 26.42)

Colorado State heads to Murfreesboro, Tennessee to face the Blue Raiders. The are coming off a deflating loss to Colorado in the Rocky Mountain Showdown that they could’ve won. Now it’s up to the Rams to keep their heads up and not let last week affect them.

Middle Tennessee is led by Rick Stockstill in his 18th season at the helm. The Blue Raiders offense is led by Nick Vattiato under center, Jaiden Credle in the backfield, and a large wide receiver in Jeremy Tate. The defense is led by LB Sam Brumfield and S Jakobe Thomas.

Now onto some keys to victory for the Rams.

Three Keys to a colorado state victory

1. No Let Down!

Colorado State is coming off of one of their better performances in a couple seasons. It didn’t result in a win, but it showed they can be a team who can compete. They took it to Colorado in a rivalry game and went to 2OT as a 24 point underdog.

Now, the Rams have to stay up and show they can keep going. Take the lessons learned from the loss and move forward. You can’t get too high and you can’t get too low. Take it one play at a time. It’s all clichรฉ, but it’s true. CSU has to be ready to play and they must forget about last week.

2. Get the run game going

CSU Head Coach Jay Norvell runs the air raid offense, but he also likes to mix in the run to keep defenses honest. They got 100 yards against Colorado, but it wasn’t easy. The Rams ran the ball 39 times for 102 yards for a 2.6 yard average with a long run of 13 yards.

The Rams brought in North Dakota State transfer Kobe Johnson and returned last years leading rusher Avery Morrow. They played a stout defense against Wazzu, but couldn’t really find room against Colorado. Against Middle Tennessee they have a chance to reestablish the run game that helped them last season.

3. Pressure, Pressure, Pressure

Rams defensive coordinator Freddie Banks relies on the front four to get pressure as he rarely blitzes. The front four has been good so far for the Rams this year combining for six of the Rams seven sacks. They need to keep up the pressure.

Mohamed Kamara has three of the previously mentioned six sacks. However, he is going to miss the first half of this game due to being ejected for targeting against Colorado. It’s up to the rest of the Rams front to keep up the pressure in his abscence.

what will happen

The Rams won’t let last week get them down. They’ll use it as fuel for the rest of the year as an example of what they can do. The Blue Raiders will keep this close early, but Colorado State will find their grove through both phases of the game and pull away in the end.

Final Score: Colorado State 42, Middle Tennessee 24

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