Fort Collins – Couch potato weekend is over. Colorado State football coaches and players have had enough watching everyone else work up a sweat during the Rams’ bye weekend.
The Rams (2-1) hurried back on the field for a rare Monday practice in pads. CSU closes its nonconference schedule Saturday night at Fresno State (1-2).
Last week, the priority in three practices was strengthening a weak running game. This week, the game plan turns to the Bulldogs, former Western Athletic Conference rivals.
“They are always a real physical football team. This year it seems they are a little more so,” CSU coach Sonny Lubick said. “If we improve, we have a chance to win some games as the season progresses.”
Lubick was in an “I told you so” mood Monday for his weekly news conference after playing observer over the weekend. He didn’t see any teams running the ball well, except for listening to parts of Air Force’s win over Wyoming.
When he saw Georgia struggle to beat Colorado, much as CSU did two weeks earlier, Lubick said, “I told you CU had a good front seven.”
He didn’t find any overnight answers to his team’s ground woes last week but definitely retains some optimism.
“I thought we made some strides, but time will tell,” he said.
The interior offensive line drew most of the attention in practices last week after taking the brunt of the blame for CSU’s inability to sustain a ground attack using three running backs.
“When one looks at three young offensive linemen in there, I think they are going to be real good,” he said of first- time starting guard Marvin Arnold, redshirt freshman guard Adrian Martinez and junior center Nick Allotta. “They just have to grow up a little faster than they would like or we would like them to.”
Lubick still is leaning toward naming one running back to get the bulk of the playing time, with Gartrell Johnson III most likely to get the nod despite his 1.9-yard average per carry.
Footnotes
CSU will play Houston in a two-year, home-and-away series starting in 2007. CSU has one nonconference opening for next season’s schedule, which will include CU, California and Houston. … Dustin Osborn, the only senior in the receiving corps, will sit out another week with a left ankle sprain. Safety Ben Stratton has had some expected swelling in his surgically repaired knee, but a neck injury suffered in practice is of greater concern. Center Tim Walter is expected to return this week from a preseason knee injury. … The Rams don’t play at home again until Oct. 7, against Nevada-Las Vegas. “It seems like we haven’t been in Hughes Stadium in five weeks,” Lubick said.
Natalie Meisler can be reached at 303-954-1295 or nmeisler@denverpost.com.
