4 takeaways: Colorado State football coughs up chance at upset of San Jose State
SAN JOSE, Calif. — This game will cause some restless sleep.
The Colorado State football team was right there with every chance to pull a huge upset, but a few costly mistakes doomed the Rams.
San Jose State was a 24.5-point favorite and escaped with a 28-16 win in a weird, wacky late-night Mountain West game.
“I feel for our players. We have a lot of kids that are working hard, a lot of kids poured their heart out in that game," CSU coach Jay Norvell said. "As a coach, I feel like I need to do a better job to help them. That’s a tough thing to swallow. I’m not disappointed in how hard our kids are playing."
Here are four takeaways from the game.
Funky finish
What a strange finish in this one.
CSU (2-7, 2-3 MW) was down 21-10 in the fourth quarter when the Rams drove to the San Jose State 1 but couldn’t score. Instead of a field goal to cut it to a one-score game, CSU opted to try for the TD and turned it over on downs.
The defense gave the offense another chance and the Rams scored in weird fashion. CSU QB Clay Millen left injured after being run into by his own lineman on a play.
Jackson Stratton entered at QB for the fourth and long and heaved it toward the end zone. Tory Horton appeared to pull back a San Jose State DB before grabbing the pass and going into the end zone.
CSU’s two-point try failed as the Rams made it 21-16 with 4:21 to go.
But San Jose State’s offense was able to move the ball. A big run play and pass play put SJSU at CSU's goal line and Kairee Robinson ran in his second TD of the game with 2:22 to go to seal the win.
San Jose State moves to 6-2 overall and 4-1 in league play to stay in contention to win the West Division.
Red zone costs CSU again
CSU has had a disastrous season in the red zone and it may have cost the Rams a big upset Saturday.
The Rams made four trips into the red zone and scored three total points in them.
“It always hurts to march down the field and get into scoring position and not be able to punch it in," said CSU receiver Horton, who had nine catches for 196 yards and a touchdown.
One ended in confusion (more on that below) at the end of the first half, but CSU missed chances.
CSU had a first half first-and-goal at the 5 and kicked a 26-yard field goal. In the fourth quarter (down 21-10 at this point) the Rams drove all the way to the 1 before turning it over on downs.
On the season, the Rams have 18 red zone trips and only four touchdowns from them. That’s a rate a team can’t win with.
CSU is statistically the worst red zone team in the nation and it showed Saturday. The Rams also committed a whopping 13 penalties for 101 yards.
“We had far too many penalties and didn’t finish in the red zone and that ended up being the difference in the game," Norvell said.
CSU's two touchdowns came on the 40-yard pass to Horton and a 56-yard run from Avery Morrow on the first drive of the game for the Rams.
Millen finished 15-24 for 262 yards and an interception, which ended a red zone trip. The Rams outgained San Jose State 469-355.
The loss means CSU is officially out of contention to qualify for a bowl.
End-of-half madness
The first half ended in chaos and, in CSU’s eyes, controversy.
The Rams were leading 10-7 and driving into San Jose State territory. Millen was sacked but a facemask penalty was called on San Jose State with 37 seconds left, moving the Rams up to the SJSU 17.
Replays show the clock was run before the next snap, which came with 22 seconds left. On that snap, Millen scrambled for 9 yards, but the clock ran out before CSU could snap the ball and the Rams were unable to add to the lead. Norvell declined to say much about the sequence, other than he thought the Rams were prevented from spiking the ball.
"You’ll have to ask the officials about that. We were trying to kill the football and they wouldn’t let us kill the football. You’ll have to ask them about that," Norvell said.
The Coloradoan has requested comment from the Mountain West on the sequence.
No matter the mechanics of what didn't happen, it likely didn't cost CSU the game but missing out on points there was important.
Cordeiro makes enough plays
San Jose State’s Chevan Cordeiro has a case as the best quarterback in the Mountain West.
He lit Colorado State up last season as Hawaii’s QB and was recruited by Norvell and staff to join the Rams this offseason. It was under consideration, but he ended up with San Jose State.
CSU kept him in check much of the game but he made enough plays.
His 2-yard touchdown pass in the first half came on a totally broken play and he threw completely back across the field on the money.
He led SJSU on an efficient scoring drive to open the third quarter and give the Spartans their first lead. His 35-yard strike to Elijah Cooks in the fourth quarter made it a two-score game and put the Rams in a hole.
Cordeiro finished 27-42 for 274 yards, two touchdowns and an interception.
Follow sports reporter Kevin Lytle on Twitter and Instagram @Kevin_Lytle.
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Colorado State football team misses chance to upset San Jose State
