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The Rams Beat The Bulldogs 41-31
Colorado State beat the Bulldogs on Fresno State’s homecoming
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What can both sides take away from this game?
Colorado State came into the Valley as 14 point underdogs and were looking to play spoiler for Fresno State’s homecoming. They did exactly that by leaving with a 41-31 victory. The Rams looked like they were going to run away with it in the first quarter before the Bulldogs turned the game into a shootout.
What are the main takeaways from this matchup?
You Can’t Defend Warren Jackson With One Man
Warren Jackson has been on an absolute tear these past two games after returning from injury. Against Fresno State, Jackson had nine catches for 178 yards and a touchdown. Adding in his stats against New Mexico gives him 18 catches for 392 yards and three touchdowns, which is more than a lot of receivers have in one season.
Fresno State Can’t Take Advantage Of CSU’s Lull
Fresno State’s play calling left some scratching their heads. The Bulldogs were 2-13 on third down and each third-down call was a pass, even the short ones. The Bulldogs started gashing the Rams on the ground, yet they ran the ball just 14 times in the second half.
https://twitter.com/CSURamsRadio/status/1188496037805080577
Colorado State usually gets out to a quick start, goes to sleep in the middle, and then can’t finish the game out. A similar story developed against the Bulldogs: the Rams got out to a hot start and let the Bulldogs back in it, but this time the Rams were able to close it out.
Marcus McElroy Steps Up
With the suspension of Marvin Kinsey, the Rams looked like they were going to go to a running back by committee approach. Marcus McElroy stopped any notion of that with an impressive performance. Coming into this game McElroy had 123 yards rushing; which he nearly matched with 117 yards and two scores against the Bulldogs.
Let Ronnie Rivers Eat
Coming into this matchup against the Rams, Ronnie Rivers was averaging four yards per carry. Against the porous CSU defense he was able to net 10.4 yards per carry. The Bulldogs need to let their leading rusher loose, because Rivers can absolutely tear up the chunk yards when needed.
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