Colorado St. rips Beavers
FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) — Linebacker Tre Thomas scored on a 44-yard interception return to lead a Colorado State defense that forced five turnovers, Nick Stevens threw three touchdown passes and the Rams opened their new on-campus stadium with a 58-27 win over Oregon State on a steamy Saturday.
Colorado State moved into its new digs after nearly five decades of playing down the road at Hughes Stadium. A raucous 37,583 fans showed up to catch a glimpse of the $220-million facility.
"I just told the guys in there — there's only one shot at opening a new stadium," Rams coach Mike Bobo said. "There's going to be one memory. It was a good one for Colorado State people."
Stevens did his part to make sure it was a successful unveiling by throwing for 334 yards — his third career 300yard passing game.
The Beavers fumbled twice and threw three interceptions on the way to losing their 14th straight road game.
Oregon State's Jake Luton finished 27 of 47 for 304 yards and two scores. He also threw three interceptions, including the game-changer in the third quarter. Thomas grabbed a tipped pass out of the air and raced 44 yards to make it 34-20.
"We got beat bad. Bad!" Oregon State coach Gary Andersen said. "There are a lot of concerns when you get beat like that. It's unchartered waters for me."
For a while, all the "firsts" in the new stadium appeared to be going the way of Oregon State:
• Winning the inaugural coin flip.
• Hauling in the first TD pass (Timmy Hernandez).
• Picking off the first pass (Kyle White).
But Colorado State ended up earning the biggest first of all in its new facility — a win. THE TAKEAWAY OREGON STATE: Andersen stressed the importance of the little things in winning on the road. Costly turnovers, missed receivers and allowing 48 points in the red zone added up to another road loss. COLORADO STATE: Granted, it is very early in the season. But the Rams took a big step toward a run at a fifth straight bowl game. Their non-conference schedule also includes Colorado and topranked Alabama.
THIS & THAT Colorado State director of athletics Joe Parker said he was so eager for the stadium opener that he arrived at 6:45 a.m . ... Rams RB Dalyn Dawkins caught an 18-yard TD pass and scored on a 3-yard run. ... Oregon State RB Ryan Nall rushed for 115 yards, including a 75-yard TD run in the second quarter.