San Diego – The sound of the CSU fight song coming out of the locker room after the 17-6 season-ending loss at San Diego State had the same feeling for the seniors as an oldie taken out of the vault of a radio station.
Wide receiver Dustin Osborn, who started his career as a walk-on out of La Junta without a single letter of recruiting interest, wanted to hear it one last time, win or lose.
For the record, the team has not been able to celebrate with the fight song since beating UNLV to open the Mountain West season Oct. 7.
“Sonny Lubick gave me the greatest opportunity in the world to play Division I football,” Osborn said. “I love the program and I love the Rams and it’s something I wanted to hear one last time.”
Looking ahead
The offseason starts Monday, give or take a few days to lick the wounds.
“It’s going to take a lot of guys buying in and working to get it done,” said CSU defensive end Jesse Nading.
The players would just as soon forget about the whole season but they know they need the memory to produce the dedication they need.
“You’ve got to forget it all but keep it in the back of your mind so you know what this feels like,” quarterback Caleb Hanie said.
“We can’t sit and cry until we get back after Christmas,” said defensive tackle Blake Smith.
Offensive coordinator Dan Hammerschmidt is mulling a few personnel changes, including having running back Gartrell Johnson bulk up into a blocking back.
“When we go into spring ball we have to make some changes to our personnel,” Hammerschmidt said. “We have to do better. If we are going to hang our hats on being a run team, we have to figure out a way to do it and I don’t think it’s just going to be getting Kyle back.”
The offense never recovered from the preseason knee injury to top rusher Kyle Bell. It was often speculated that even Bell wouldn’t have had as much success behind an inconsistent offensive line.
Empty stadium
The announced crowd of 17,557 at Qualcomm Stadium (capacity 54,000) appeared a gross exaggeration. There wasn’t a single row entirely filled, and about a third of the stadium in the south end zone was empty.
Birthday cheer
Running backs coach Mick Delaney turned 64 Saturday. His wife, Cheri, serenaded the bus on the way to the stadium with “When I’m 64.”
For all the disappointment with the ground game, there wasn’t one fumble by a running back this season.
