Hawaii at CSU, 5:30 p.m. Saturday, CBSSN
College football doesn’t kick off for most of the country until next week, but consider Coloradans lucky. Colorado State opens the season hosting Hawaii at 5:30 p.m. Saturday on what’s known as “Zero Week.”
CSU coach Mike Bobo was released from the hospital Wednesday after an 11day stay as doctors tried to pin down the cause of his peripheral neuropathy (numbness in his feet). He’ll coach Saturday, but he will be in the booth, a place he’s comfortable with after spending most of his career as an offensive coordinator.
With the season beginning, here are three things you must know about the Rams in 2018:
QB battle was won, but for how long?
Washington transfer K.J. CartaSamuels will start at quarterback Saturday against Hawaii. He’ll likely start again against Colorado. After that? If he doesn’t dazzle, we’ll be watching a quarterback competition three weeks into the season.
Redshirt sophomore Collin Hill, who was named a captain Thursday, is ahead of schedule in his recovery from a second torn ACL — this one suffered playing basketball in the spring — and he’ll be fighting all season to earn back the starting job he won in 2016 as a true freshman. And don’t discount the numbers he posted then: 1,070 yards, eight touchdowns and two interceptions in four starts (22) before tearing his ACL in a noncontact play against Utah State.
By comparison, CartaSamuels, who backed up future NFL draft pick Jake Browning for the Huskies, had 310 yards and three touchdowns across three seasons of work.
If he absolutely had to, Hill could play against Hawaii, there’s just no reason to throw him back on the field too soon. Credit CartaSamuels for winning the job in camp over an impressive Justice McCoy. He’ll now have to prove through the first two weeks of the season that he should keep it.
Wide receivers are in great shape
Michael Gallup is gone. That’s the headline around CSU’s wide receivers entering this season — the lack of their Biletnikoff finalist with 100 receptions and 1,413 yards who was a thirdround pick by the Dallas Cowboys.
Relax. Everything is going to be fine. Better than “fine,” honestly. While there might not be a Gallup on the roster, from top to bottom, CSU looks better off at receiver than a year ago.
Safe money is on Bisi Johnson to lead the Rams in receiving this fall. His production numbers dipped from his sophomore (613 yards, four touchdowns) to junior (595 yards, two touchdowns) season despite having 13 more receptions in 2017, but he is as surehanded of a receiver as there is and is unafraid make a catch while getting drilled by a linebacker. Johnson’s most impressive performance came in the 2016 Idaho Potato Bowl when he had seven receptions for 265 yards and two touchdowns.
Preston Williams, a 6foot4 junior transfer from Tennessee, is the biggest addition to this receiving corps. He’s a former fivestar recruit (one of the Top 50 players from the Class of 2014) who caught for 247 yards and a pair of touchdowns in two seasons with the Vols, but life has been bumpy since arriving in Fort Collins. Williams was required to sit out last season due to NCAA transfer rules and has twice been arrested on misdemeanor charges, resulting in a suspension from team activities. He’s since completed CSU’s conflict resolution courses, according to Bobo, and is poised for a big season if he can avoid trouble off the field.
The Rams also tout sophomore Warren Jackson (66, 219) who turned heads last season when he made a
The Rams’ defense last year? Oh, you don’t want to go there. It was bad. Best offense in the Mountain West, packed with a defense that allowed big play after big play. CSU allowed an average of more than 430 yards (244.5 through the air) and 27 points per game in 2017. Bobo is trying to change that, but the question is how quickly things can turn around. New defensive coordinator John Jancek, formerly the DC at Tennessee, is part of the solution — so are the new recruits.
CSU will start two true freshmen on defense Saturday and have three more listed as the backups on the twodeep.
Rashad Ajayi, a 510 cornerback from Fairburn, Ga., will start on the right side and Devin Phillips (61, 318, Monroe, La.) will start at nose tackle. Ajayi has been running with the starters throughout fall camp and has been impressive enough to pass junior Anthony Hawkins on the depth chart. The Rams’ defense will also start sophomores Emmanuel Jones (defensive end) and Ellison Hubbard (defensive tackle). Series. CSU leads 15-9. About Hawaii. The Warriors have given CSU plenty to think about, with coach Nick Rolovich now calling plays and supposedly switching to a run-and-shoot offense. Defensive coordinator Corey Batoon is new, as is special-teams coordinator Michael Ghobrial. Hawaii lost a lot on offense from last year, but wide receiver John Ursua is a proven threat, and linebacker Jahlani Tavai is an all-conference performer with 309 career tackles. About CSU. The Rams are retooling some key spots on offense with the loss of four starters on the line, losing 1,000-yard producers at wide receiver and running back and a 3,000-yard passer at quarterback. The defense is looking for an upswing under the direction of coordinator John Jancek and a completely new staff.