Five years ago, I sat at Hughes Stadium in Fort Collins, watching Minnesota defeat Colorado State in Week 2 of the 2015 college football season, the same day Colorado State held a groundbreaking ceremony for their new stadium, a $220-million venue for a Group of Five program.
On that day, sitting in an adequate but mostly dated and lame Hughes Stadium, I looked ahead to the new stadium's 2017 debut and marveled at the undeniable potential of a likeable and stable Group of Five program playing before capacity crowds in a beautiful on-campus stadium. Four years later, last November, I watched (on TV) the Rams lose to Boise State in front of the (generously) announced 12,000 fans.
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What happened?
How did Colorado State, winners of 39 games from 2013-17 (more than programs like BYU, Ohio, and Western Michigan, along with several notable Power Five programs), disintegrate from an annual seven- and eight-win program into a national and local afterthought? And how long will it take for the Rams to get back to respectability after seven total wins the last two years?
Even a new staff navigating an abbreviated offseason, Colorado State, ranked 116th in the HERO Sports Preseason College Football Rankings, has several high-impact players, notably on offense in receivers Warren Jackson (above) and Dante Wright, and tight end Trey McBride. At 6-foot-6, 215 pounds, Jackson is a completely different receiver from the Colorado State legends from the last decade but just as productive.
Jackson and the Rams open against Colorado (in Fort Collins campus for the first time in 24 years) before completing the second half of a home-and-home series at Oregon State. The talent and winnable games are there to top last year's win total, but with so many question marks across the offensive line and on defense, it's hard to see Colorado State winning many toss-up games.
| Date | Opponent | Prediction |
|---|---|---|
| Sept. 5 | vs. Colorado | Loss (0-1) |
| Sept. 12 | at Oregon State | Loss (0-2) |
| Sept. 19 | vs. Northern Colorado | Win (1-2) |
| Sept. 26 | at Vanderbilt | Loss (1-3) |
| Oct. 3 | vs. Fresno State | Win (2-3) |
| Oct. 10 | vs. New Mexico | Win (3-3) |
| Oct. 23 | at UNLV | Loss (3-4) |
| Oct. 31 | vs. Wyoming | Loss (3-5) |
| Nov. 7 | at San Diego State | Loss (3-6) |
| Nov. 14 | at Air Force | Loss (3-7) |
| Nov. 21 | vs. Utah State | Loss (3-8) |
| Nov. 28 | at Boise State | Loss (3-9) |
