FORT COLLINS — Treyous Jarrells, the No. 1 running back going into preseason drills, returned to action for Colorado State against Minnesota on Saturday after recovering from minor arthroscopic knee surgery. The senior had seven carries for 28 yards against Minnesota as the Rams used the running back-by-committee approach.
Dalyn Dawkins, a sophomore transfer from Purdue and a nephew of former Broncos safety Brian Dawkins, led the Rams with 92 yards — including a 17-yard TD run — on 19 carries, and Jasen Oden added 30 yards on eight carries.
“I just made sure I fought to the end, but I have to give a lot of credit to the offensive line,” said Dawkins. “Our receivers blocked downfield, and our defense played ball all game. We were trying to score for them.”
When Coleman Key threw a short pass to him on the first play of overtime, Dawkins was charged with a fumble, leading to a turnover, but replays seemed to show that it should have been ruled an interception.
“My initial thought was I didn’t have possession of the ball, because right when I turned around, I got hit,” Dawkins said. “But that’s life. Everything’s not going to go your way.”
Clutch kick. This was overshadowed after the Gophers won in overtime, but freshman kicker Wyatt Bryan, from Larkspur and Douglas County High, was 2-for-2 on field goals and drilled the 37-yarder on the final play of regulation to extend the game.
“It was nerve-wracking, I’m not going to lie,” Bryan said. “I had no doubt in my mind that I was going to make it.
Minnesota called two timeouts to try to ice him.
“I think it makes it easier,” he said. “I was more nervous the first time going out there, then you get more time to focus on the kick and making it.”
Minus Higgins. With Rashard Higgins out of the lineup with an apparent ankle injury, and with starting quarterback Nick Stevens struggling, the only big-gain pass the Rams had was Key’s 49-yard TD connection with Joe Hansley. Among the wide receivers, Xavier Williams had four catches for 16 yards, and the five wideouts who caught passes combined for only 101 yards on 11 receptions.
“It’s tough,” said Hansley. “It stinks to lose to a power five team like that when we all think we should have got them. But I think the positive thing coming out of it is a lot of guys on this team realize the kind of talent we have and the kind of plays that we can make. It’s hard to wrap your hands around how we lost, but look out for us next week and through the season, because everyone realizes we can be something pretty special.” Terry Frei, The Denver Post
