Spring football is about making an impact as much as it is about taking advantage of opportunities.
Colorado State junior linebacker Chase Wilson is doing both.
The Ralston Valley grad knows that after the loss of longtime mainstays at linebacker, Dequan Jackson and Cam’Ron Carter, the opportunity is there for him to have a big season next fall.
He has spent the spring making sure he is noticed, making plays all over the field as he establishes himself as a potential leader among the linebacking corps.
“I’m so grateful for it and just to kind of mature under those guys and be able to step into this role now and be able to kind of be that leader for other guys is something I don’t take for granted,” Wilson said. “It is an awesome privilege to have to be able to set the standard for the guys on the field.”
It hasn’t been an easy climb to where Wilson is now. He saw action in two games as a true freshman. He then played in two of the Rams’ first three games his sophomore year before being injured and taking a redshirt season.
His role grew last season and he saw playing time in all 12 of CSU’s games while making 29 tackles with two and a half sacks and a forced fumble.
With Carter and Jackson gone, his role is expected to expand even more and the coaches are seeing the work he has been putting in to fill the void left by those two in the fall.
“Chase has had a really good spring,” CSU head coach Jay Norvell said. “He is really smart, really has a great appetite for the game and he is super intense. We need that from the heart of our defense, just that appetite to hit and to play aggressively and he’s a super bright kid. So, really excited about him.”
RB Vann Schield turning heads in practice
With the running back room in a state of disarray with last year’s leading rusher Avery Morrow still off the team with pending legal matters and reinforcements anticipated to arrive in the fall, some of the younger players are taking advantage of their opportunities.
One of those is redshirt sophomore Vann Schield, a Rock Canyon product who began his college career at CSU Pueblo, although he didn’t play in a game for the Thunderwolves.
During last Saturday’s scrimmage, he scored a couple of touchdowns with the Rams’ first-team offense.
“He’s been a kid thatap played really hard. He’s been a kid thatap trying to help us on special teams. Now he’s got his opportunity and thatap what spring ball is all about. You don’t have your depth and so you get a lot of backup players that get a chance to get opportunities and we’ve told him. ‘Take advantage of them.’ He’s a guy we can probably use in the fall.”
Spring practice has given him a chance to be noticed, and he has. The same can be said for redshirt freshman Ryan McConnell from Erie, who also has had some impressive runs in the Rams’ two scrimmages leading up to Saturday’s spring game.
The work of Schield, and the anticipated arrival of several more running backs in the fall, has Norvell looking forward to seeing the room full once August rolls around.
“We like our backs and we feel like we’ve got some home run hitters coming in the fall, some guys with some experience,” Norvell said. “We are excited about that position in the fall.”
More praise for the offensive line
Norvell had more praise for his offensive line following last Saturday’s scrimmage.
A unit under a watchful eye this spring is becoming more cohesive with each practice and has performed well in the two scrimmages so far.
“I think that core of guys is really prideful,” Norvell said. “Saveyon Henderson, Oliver Jervis, Jacob (Gardner) and moving Teivis (Tuioti) to right guard, and then Drew Moss, they all have a hungry mentality. They are very prideful. And we told them we’re going to ride them and we’re going to run the football and then itap got to be a street fight whenever we pass it. They’ve taken that to heart.”
Last year’s line allowed 59 sacks, but some of that can be attributed to injuries and players leaving that left the line having to adjust and fill holes almost every week.
Moss knows the numbers from a year ago and wants to be a part of the solution.
“I thought that sucked a lot and I definitely want to improve,” Moss said. “I just want to win games and thatap all. We do tons of team reps. I’ve never done that many team reps and itap helped a lot, playing with each other, talking, communicating, just learning every day.”
The line will get one more chance for live action before the conclusion of spring practice and that will come Saturday in the annual Gold and Green game, which kicks off at 1 p.m. at Canvas Stadium.
