FORT COLLINS — After being one of three finalists for the Biletnikoff Award and earning Walter Camp All-America first-team honors as a true sophomore, what’s next for Colorado State wide receiver Rashard Higgins?
Jim McElwain’s successor, whether that’s a promoted interim head coach Dave Baldwin or an outsider, isn’t going to come in and install the full-house T or the wishbone, so it’s hard to imagine any scenario in which the goal isn’t going to be to keep getting the ball in Higgins’ hands as much as possible.
“I’m not concerned at all,” Higgins said. “I’m going to just keep catching the ball, just keep working on my game. Whatever coach comes in, I’m pretty sure he will throw me the ball. I mean, I wouldn’t go unnoticed, I wouldn’t think.”
Even though he missed one game because of a shoulder injury, Higgins has 1,640 yards receiving this season — the second-highest total in the country — and is No. 1 in touchdown receptions with 17.
CSU’s top candidates to replace senior quarterback Garrett Grayson are freshman backup Nick Stevens and redshirting freshman Coleman Key. Grayson will have one more game with Higgins — in the Las Vegas Bowl, where CSU (10-2) plays Utah (8-4) on Saturday.
While praising Higgins as “a special receiver,” Baldwin added: “He’s got a way to go to be the best ever, and he can be that at this place — the best ever at Colorado State. I think he needs to learn from that experience how the great ones continue to grow, and then come back and do that.”
How can he improve?
“He can come out of breaks a lot better. He can make sure he gets off releases a little better,” Baldwin said. “He struggles at times when they jam him.”
Higgins said of not winning the Biletnikoff Award, which went to Alabama star Amari Cooper: “I’m going to keep working, and my team is going to keep working to push me. It’s like I have a grudge that I didn’t win it.”
Said Grayson: “You can always perfect your craft when it comes to route running and things like that. I’ve read articles about Jerry Rice. He said he never really slept when it came to route running. He was always trying to perfect his route running. With Rashard’s hands, I don’t think he needs to worry about that, but you can always get better as a route runner as a receiver.”
The surprising part of all this is that Higgins was lightly recruited while in high school in Mesquite, Texas, and that was only two years ago. Because he didn’t redshirt, declaring himself eligible for the NFL draft isn’t a possibility until after next season. Footnote. The Rams had Sunday off and are scheduled to practice Monday and Tuesday. They leave for Las Vegas on Tuesday night.
Terry Frei: tfrei@denverpost.com or
