FORT COLLINS — Colorado State coach Jim McElwain on Monday continued to take the approach that if his name is being mentioned in connection with major openings, that at least means the Rams are doing something right in his third season.
After the Sunday announcement that Will Muschamp is stepping down at Florida after the season, McElwain’s name was brought up in media speculation about being a possible successor. He is under contract through 2018 at CSU, with an initial buyout of $7.5 million.
“First of all, I hate this time of year for the people I know, and Will’s one of those guys,” McElwain said at his weekly news conference. “I know what a really good coach he is and what he stands for and the things that he instills in young men. You hate to see that.
“For us, the key there is somebody’s actually saying, ‘Colorado State University’ over and over and over. That’s our mission, that’s what we’re here to do. And I go back to it, I think it’s pretty cool. For me personally, it has to do with taking notice for all the hard work these coaches do, the players, what they’ve committed to. I think that’s pretty exciting and every time we can get our name out there, that helps.”
CSU is 9-1, 5-1 in the Mountain West and plays host to New Mexico (3-7, 1-5) on Saturday.
“It’s all for naught, no matter what, even for the university, if we don’t figure out how to win these ballgames,” McElwain said of the attention.
The Rams are ranked 22nd in the Associated Press media poll and 23rd in the USA Today/coaches’ poll.
Also Monday, one of the 10 semifinalists for the Biletnikoff Award, which goes to the player voted the nation’s top receiver.
“You think about some of that stuff that happens when you’re winning,” McElwain said. “Any of those individual accomplishments the guys get are well-deserved. His numbers probably prove that he should be in that company and yet he’ll be the first to tell you that without the guys around him, the guy pitching him the ball and the guys blocking up front … he’s just doing his job. And the expectation is to go make plays and that’s something I love about his confidence. He’s a guy who believes that’s what he should do.”
Higgins missed the Hawaii game with a minor shoulder injury, and he dropped to second in receiving yardage nationally. Still, his total of 1,280 yards is only 23 yards behind Alabama’s Amari Cooper. Higgins and Will Fuller of Notre Dame are tied for the national lead in touchdown receptions, with 13 apiece.
Terry Frei: tfrei@denverpost.com or twitter.com/TFrei
