For the first time since 2010, a major-college football team in Colorado is ranked among the nation’s top 25.
Colorado State, 9-1 after beating Hawaii 49-22 at Hughes Stadium on Saturday night, cracked the top 25 in both major polls Sunday, coming in at No. 23 in The Associated Press media rankings and No. 25 in the USA Today coaches rankings.
“As I’ve said all along, it’s pretty cool that people are taking note of the good things happening at Colorado State University,” Rams coach Jim McElwain said in a news release. “This is just another step in the climb, and I just can’t tell you how proud I am of this team. We have a long way to go, but I’m happy for our fans, for this university and the people in the state of Colorado.”
The ranking is CSU’s first since 2003. That year, the Rams were No. 23 in the preseason Associated Press poll but lost to the University of Colorado in the opener and fell out of the top 25. The last time a major-college team in Colorado was ranked had been when Air Force was 23rd in both polls going into an Oct. 16, 2010, game at San Diego State, which the Falcons lost.
CU’s last ranking came in November 2005, when the Buffs were 7-2 and 22nd in AP and 21st in the coaches poll going into a game at Iowa State. That turned out to be the start of a season-ending four-game losing streak, which led to the firing of coach Gary Barnett.
CSU had been lurking on the verge of top-25 status for several weeks. In the AP poll, CSU was listed first among “others receiving votes” the previous week — “26th” if the list was extended. Sunday, the Rams climbed three slots. Oklahoma, which lost decisively at home to Baylor on Saturday, and West Virginia, upset by unranked Texas, dropped out of the top 25 this week. The Rams also passed Utah, which dropped to No. 25 after its loss to Oregon.
In the USA Today coaches poll, the Rams were “27th” the previous week and climbed past West Virginia and Utah, both relegated to “others” status.
The College Football Playoff’s updated top 25 will be announced Tuesday night.
The strange thing is that while the Rams are the only ranked Mountain West team, they still face the possibility of finishing 11-1 and not playing in the conference’s championship game. That’s because Boise State beat CSU on Sept. 6 and would win the Mountain Division if both the Broncos and Rams win out and finish 7-1 in conference games.
Saturday night, the Broncos trailed most of their game against New Mexico before pulling out a wild 60-49 victory. That kept Boise State (4-1) a half game behind the Rams (5-1) in the division standings but in control of its destiny.
Told after CSU’s rout of Hawaii that Boise State trailed for most of its game before winning, McElwain said: “Oh, they were? OK, good for them. More power to ’em.”
Rams wide receiver Charles Lovett also said he didn’t know what happened in the Boise State game. When he was filled in, he added, “Good for them.”
This from middle linebacker Max Morgan: “No, I didn’t know that. They won, though? Good for them.”
Ultimately, quarterback Garrett Grayson strayed from the party line.
“They won?” Grayson asked, then added, “We heard, we heard. That was kind of the talk once they announced it. We’re disappointed (New Mexico) didn’t win, but like I said, we’ve just got to take care of ourselves.”
CSU, which has a bye this week, plays New Mexico at home Nov. 22 and finishes the regular season on the road against Air Force on Nov. 28. If Utah State, also 4-1 in the division standings, beats Boise State on Nov. 29 and the Aggies and Rams end up tied at 7-1, CSU would win the division tiebreaker because of its 16-13 victory over the Aggies.
Terry Frei: tfrei@denverpost.com or
Below is the latest AP poll:
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| TEAM | RECORD | POINTS | PREVIOUS RANKING |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Mississippi St. (48) | 9-0 | 1,488 | 1 |
| 2. Florida St. (12) | 9-0 | 1,446 | 2 |
| 3. Oregon | 9-1 | 1,334 | 5 |
| 4. Alabama | 8-1 | 1,326 | 4 |
| 5. TCU | 8-1 | 1,273 | 6 |
| 6. Baylor | 8-1 | 1,193 | 10 |
| 7. Arizona State | 8-1 | 1,142 | 11 |
| 8. Ohio State | 8-1 | 1,086 | 13 |
| 9. Auburn | 7-2 | 981 | 13 |
| 10. Mississippi | 8-2 | 948 | 12 |
| 11. Nebraska | 8-1 | 830 | 15 |
| 12. Michigan State | 7-2 | 782 | 7 |
| 13. Kansas State | 7-2 | 742 | 9 |
| 14. UCLA | 8-2 | 691 | 18 |
| 15. Notre Dame | 7-2 | 630 | 8 |
| 16. Georgia | 7-2 | 622 | 17 |
| 17. Arizona | 7-2 | 471 | 21 |
| 18. Clemson | 7-2 | 457 | 19 |
| 19. Duke | 8-1 | 431 | 22 |
| 20. LSU | 7-3 | 429 | 14 |
| 21. Marshall | 9-0 | 297 | 23 |
| 22. Wisconsin | 7-2 | 225 | 25 |
| 23. Colorado State | 9-1 | 128 | NR |
| 24. Georgia Tech | 8-2 | 127 | NR |
| 25. Utah | 6-3 | 87 | 20 |
| Others receiving votes: Oklahoma 85, Texas A&M 83, Missouri 68, Southern Cal 47, Minnesota 26, Louisville 12, West Virginia 6, Stanford 4, Boise St. 1, Georgia Southern 1, Miami 1. | |||
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| USA Today Coaches’ Poll, Week 12 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Team | Record | Points | 1st Place Votes | Prev. |
| 1. | Mississippi State | 9-0 | 1,528 | 41 | 1 |
| 2. | Florida State | 9-0 | 1,496 | 20 | 2 |
| 3. | Alabama | 8-1 | 1,389 | 0 | 4 |
| 4. | Oregon | 9-1 | 1,382 | 1 | 5 |
| 5. | TCU | 8-1 | 1,297 | 0 | 7 |
| 6. | Baylor | 8-1 | 1,223 | 0 | 10 |
| 7. | Ohio State | 8-1 | 1,148 | 0 | 11 |
| 8. | Arizona State | 8-1 | 1,146 | 0 | 12 |
| 9. | Auburn | 7-2 | 962 | 0 | 3 |
| 10. | Mississippi | 8-2 | 944 | 0 | 13 |
| 11. | Nebraska | 8-1 | 925 | 0 | 14 |
| 12. | Michigan State | 7-2 | 865 | 0 | 6 |
| 13. | Kansas State | 7-2 | 738 | 0 | 9 |
| 14. | Georgia | 7-2 | 693 | 0 | 17 |
| 15. | UCLA | 8-2 | 662 | 0 | 18 |
| 16. | Notre Dame | 7-2 | 654 | 0 | 8 |
| 17. | Clemson | 7-2 | 500 | 0 | 19 |
| 18. | Arizona | 7-2 | 487 | 0 | 21 |
| 19. | Duke | 8-1 | 466 | 0 | 20 |
| 20. | LSU | 7-3 | 371 | 0 | 15 |
| 21. | Marshall | 9-0 | 285 | 0 | 22 |
| 22. | Wisconsin | 7-2 | 265 | 0 | 24 |
| 23. | Georgia Tech | 8-2 | 142 | 0 | 28 |
| 24. | Oklahoma | 6-3 | 135 | 0 | 16 |
| 25. | Colorado State | 9-1 | 118 | 0 | 27 |
| Others receiving votes: Missouri 90; Minnesota 83; Utah 70; Southern California 29; Texas A&M 22; Louisville 13; Boise State 7; Stanford 6; Miami (Fla.) 3; East Carolina 3; Cincinnati 2; Florida 1. | |||||
