Rams face travail in traveling 9,600 miles in just one month

FORT COLLINS» Colorado State hosted the first Football Bowl Subdivision kickoff of the season this fall. Now more than a month later, the Rams long for home.

CSU (2-2) begins Mountain West play at 10 p.m. Saturday at Hawaii (2-2) in the heart of a road stretch that takes the Rams more than 9,600 flight miles in one month: at Alabama, at Hawaii and at Utah State. Even with a much-needed bye week after their Tuscaloosa trip, CSU coach Mike Bobo has long anticipated the challenges of playing a road-heavy schedule to being the year.

Especially transitioning from Hawaii to Utah State.

“The itinerary this week is a lot longer,” Bobo said. “You’ve got to pay attention a little bit more for where we’ve got to be and what we’ve got to do.”

The Rams will depart from Northern Colorado Regional Airport on Thursday and arrive in San Francisco with nearly a twohour layover in which passengers cannot enter the terminal, Bobo said, forcing the team to adapt. Players will exit the plane but must remain on the jetway.

“We plan to walk guys around so they don’t get sore or stiff sitting in their seats,” Bobo said. “We’ve got some special tights that we’ll put on that will supposedly help (blood flow) during the flight.”

Then, it’s a five-hour ride to Honolulu.

“We’ve got some big bodies in there,” Bobo said, “and the plane is pretty full.”

The positive for CSU, though, is that some essentials were flown out to Honolulu beforehand. Players will have snacks, workout gear and other amenities waiting for them on campus before a Friday walkthrough. Colorado State (2-2, 0-0 Mountain West) at Hawaii (2-2, 0-1 Mountain West) When: 10 p.m. Saturday

Where: Aloha Stadium; Honolulu TV: Watch Stadium application (smart phone and tablet) Radio: KARS 102.9 FM, KDCO 1340 AM With Honolulu being four hours behind Mountain Daylight Time, some unease exists for a potential second-half slog as the Rams’ body clocks will be well into Saturday by the final whistle. Even then, Bobo has bigger concerns to tackle.

“The week after the travel to Hawaii is the one I worry about,” he said.

CSU safety Jake Schlager is one of just a handful of Rams who played at Hawaii as true freshmen in 2013.

“You get back, and you’re almost done with Sunday already,” Schlager said. “There really is no recovery day.”

Meanwhile, CSU’s next opponent, Utah State, will have the benefit of lengthened preparation for the Rams after it hosts BYU this Friday. But don’t expect complaints on behalf of CSU, as “every other team that travels to Hawaii has to deal with that, too,” Schlager said.

Bobo knows it won’t be easy.

“I’m already trying to think of how we’re going to get our guys their legs back,” Bobo said. “They’re mentally fatigued and physically fatigued going into this stretch.”