FORT COLLINS — And the starter is…
Nick Stevens.
The Monday announcement that the redshirt sophomore has won Colorado State’s No. 1 quarterback job wasn’t a surprise, but the timing was. During Monday morning’s practice, CSU disclosed and Twitter that coach Mike Bobo earlier had informed the team that Stevens won the competition with redshirt freshman Coleman Key.
The decision followed Saturday’s closed scrimmage at Hughes Stadium, and the Rams also have another scrimmage coming up Saturday in advance of the Sept. 5 season opener against Savannah State.
Bobo discussed the choice after practice, but neither Stevens nor Key were available for comment because the schedule called for only defensive players to be available to the media on Monday.
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“We met (Sunday) as a staff and watched the film and watched it with the players and met with the kids this morning, the two guys, and told them that Nick was going to be No. 1 and Coleman’s No. 2,” Bobo said.
“Both handled it the way I thought they would handle it, professionally. I still think both have a bright future and I think both will continue to compete daily. That’s the only way you get better. Competition is a good thing and we’re going to continue to have it.”
Stevens has been taking the majority of the snaps with the first offense.
“The main thing was consistency,” Bobo said. “You need a guy that’s going to be consistent every play and get us in the right play … and I thought over the 26 practices, the 15 (in the spring) and 11 (preseason), Nick was the most consistent guy. Coleman has had his moments and really the last five days, I thought Coleman was really, really good. He’s got to continue that.”
Stevens, from Murrieta, Calif., backed up the record-setting Garrett Grayson last season as a redshirt freshman, playing in five games and completing 15-of-25 passes for 136 yards and one touchdown.
“I talked about it all the time, every setting I had with these guys,” Bobo said. “We’re going to compete here at CSU and it’s the same at every position. At the same time, I don’t want Nick looking over his shoulder, that if he makes one mistake, he’s coming out. He’s got to know that Coleman’s there, Coleman’s going to push him and he’s going to have to respond and keep his level of play up to help this team get better.”
Bobo, a former quarterback at Georgia, said he understood the emphasis on the competition.
“Both guys are young and trying to still figure out how to play the game themselves,” Bobo said. “The leadership part will come as they keep gaining experience. Obviously, making plays and playing in games will give the guys confidence, and (Stevens) is doing a nice job of being a little bit more vocal. They’ve got their heads spinning right now with what we’re trying to do offensively. They’re probably at phase one out of 10 phases of where they’re eventually going to be.”
Why make the decision now?
“I just thought it was time,” Bobo said. “I knew that Nick was going to be the starter and I wanted to go ahead and name it. There’s a process of now knowing you’re the guy, and how are you going to handle that and how are you going to handle every day. It’s a process of knowing, ‘I’m No. 2. … I’m in competition but the coach has said this guy is going to start. I have to be professional and go out there and try to get better every single day and push that guy.’ And that’s easier said than done.”
Terry Frei: tfrei@denverpost.com or twitter.com/tfrei
