In The Year of Our Lord 2026, Stevens remains the last CSU quarterback to be named to the Mountain West’s all-conference team. That was, what, 2017? Rams faithful are staring at a nine-year drought. Imagine how much more fun the New Belgium Porch would’ve been if Trey McBride or Tory Horton were celebrating in front of it.

In fact, if Jay Norvell had given CSU a Strong passing game, chances are, he’d still be here. As in,

You’d like to picture every outgoing CSU coach, like Presidents of the United States, leaving a note of good-luck-and-Godspeed for their successors to find on that desk whenever they take over at Canvas Stadium. It could afford the outgoing boss a chance to reflect on what he did wrong. Or would do all over again, if given a chance.

2019: Dear Steve Addazio, try not to lose all those rivalry games. Signed, Mike Bobo

2021: Dear Jay Norvell, try not to be a complete @#$&%# Ìýjerk. Signed, The Daz (P.S. Go sign some duuuuudes)

2025: Dear Jim Mora, try not to make QB promises you can’t keep. Signed, Jay

Norvell was hired four years ago, in part, because he was a good guy — a refreshing personality contrast to the coach (Addazio) who directly preceded him. He was also hired because of Carson Strong, the strapping young QB who’d put up video-game-level numbers under Norvell at Nevada from 2018-2021 — 32 games, 74 TDs, 19 picks, 293 passing yards per game. It was promised, if not expected, that Jay would find Rams fans a Strong of their own to embrace.

As we know, that … never happened. Clay Millen was supposed to be “the guy” and got thrown into the fire as a true freshman behind an awful offensive line. The roof fell on his head routinely. Millen got shell-shocked, got phased out and eventually transferred out.

His replacement, Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi, looked more comfortable throwing and processing while also running for his life, which seemed like an upgrade at the time. BFN also had unusual moxie, if terrible mechanics, for a redshirt freshman, and was blessed with one of the best wideouts in program history, Horton, to play pitch-and-catch with. The problem? Fowler-Nicolosi more or less peaked as a redshirt freshman. Kid got shell-shocked, got booed, got booed even louder, got phased out annnnd … eventually transferred out, too.

Neither of them turned into Strong. In fact, funny enough, the closest CSU ever got to having its own Strong was having Strong himself working on Norvell’s staff at one point. Rams AD John Weber didn’t give his coach a third chance to try and groom a “franchise guy,” canning Jay last Oct. 25 after a 2-5 start.

The new Pac-12 will be a strange, hybrid footballing beast, a marriage of strange bedfellows. But the passing verities never throw out of style. The last five Mountain West champions post-pandemic — Boise State thrice (’25, ’24 and ’23), Fresno State once (’22) and Utah State once (’21) have had one thing in common, offensively. All possessed one, if not two, quarterbacks who could find the end zone consistently.

The last five MW champions featured offenses that averaged 26 touchdown passes per season. CSU hasn’t had a season with more than 24 TD tosses since 2017, when Stevens — there’s that name again — threw for 29 (against 10 interceptions).

If anyone knows about Pac-12 signal-callers, it’s Mora. At UCLA, his passing games averaged 26 passing scores per season, thanks largely to Brett Hundley and Josh Rosen. Once Joe Fagnano turned a corner under Mora at UConn, so did the Huskies — his QBs averaged 28 passing touchdowns over the ’24 and ’25 campaigns.

Which is why I asked him Saturday afternoon at Canvas Stadium: What exactly are you looking for from your QB1?

“I would say that the keyword is consistency,” the first-year Rams coach replied.

“Can he operate in our offense with consistency? Can he take care of the football? Can he make great decisions with the football in his hand? And that may be throwing it away. At times, that may be taking a sack. (Or) That may be running and getting out of bounds. Is he going to slide and protect himself? Is he going to be able to operate down-to-down and move us down the field and get us in scoring position? And do all those things on a consistent basis that we can count on as a staff?”

He’s got options. The official word is that it’s a two-man derby between Ksaan Farrar, who transferred in from UConn, and former TCU and former Oklahoma State signal-caller Hauss Hejny, another transfer. The latter’s got the best straight-line speed and elusiveness of the group, but is also slight in frame, standing about 6-foot-even in stocking feet.

“Why should you be the No. 1 guy for Wyoming?” I wondered.

“Shoot. I’m not going to say why I should be the guy,” the young Texan replied. “But, I mean, I’m going to work my ball — er, Ìýwork my nuts off until Week 1 to be that guy, just because that’s who I am.

“I’m a competitor, and no matter if I’m named a starter three weeks ago or I’m named the starter (in) Week 3, I’m going to compete just the same and be the same person every day.”

Points for swagger, at least. CSU hasn’t featured a QB who threw a consistent deep ball since Stevens — or maybe Garrett Grayson, the slinger who predated him. Locals insist that a little unknown behind center, for now, is a good thing. Mora insinuated that an honest-to-goodness QB battle in FoCo could continue through the summer months.

“Well, first of all, we’re a long ways from making that decision,” Mora said. “A long ways. I mean, we’ve got (time) … we don’t have to make that decision until kickoff before the first game.”

He knows the drill. Hundley was an All-Pac-12 choice under him in 2014. Rosen made the conference’s second-team offense three years later. If CSU is to live well in its new neighborhood, FoCo can’t be a place where QB careers go to die. When the right arm pops, the Rams can’t afford to pass him up.

The Rams released their 2026 football schedule on Wednesday evening,

CSU will play four of its first five games at home, including a season-opening tussle with rival Wyoming in the Border War on Sept. 5. It’s the earliest Battle For The Bronze Boot in the game’s history.

The opener is followed by an “Orange Out”/Ag Day game against Southern Utah on Sept. 12, then a visit from Big 12 power BYU on Sept. 19. After three home dates, the Rams visit UTSA on Sept. 26 before hosting Oregon State for homecoming on Oct. 10.

Following an Oct. 17 bye, CSU will finish the season with four out of its next six games on the road. San Diego State visits Canvas Stadium on Oct. 24; Boise State visits on Nov. 7.

The Rams’ first league slate will feature a unique wrinkle at the end — a home date on Nov. 28, Thanksgiving weekend, against a “flexed” opponent. Per the university’s news release, the “Pac-12 will retain the right to adjust the matchup based on the best interests of the league, including College Football Playoff (CFP) considerations at that time.”

The Rams will officially join the Pac-12 on July 1, the start of the new university fiscal year. CSU and former Mountain West members Boise State, Utah State, San Diego State and Boise State will join Pac-12 holdovers Oregon State and Washington State and newcomer Texas State in the league’s inaugural season.

“Think about this: I’m sitting in an office with a guy who was a coach for 25 years in the NFL,” Mullen High coach Jeremy Bennett told me Friday. “Having never met with him before, talking with him, it was like being with a buddy I’ve known for 20 years. It was comfortable. It was authentic.”

How authentic? Last Wednesday, Mora, the CSU Rams’ new football coach, popped his head into the football offices at Mullen just to say, “Hi.” Only as Bennett remembers it, that ‘pop’ lasted for about 55 minutes.

They talked shop. Mutual friends. The insanity of the transfer portal. Twenty minutes became 30. Then 40. Then 45. After 50, Mora glanced at his watch. Oh, crud.

“Coach, I gotta get going,” Mora said to Bennett. “My wife’s been out in the car this whole time.”

“Coach,” Bennett laughed, “she could’ve come in.”

“No, no, she gets it,” Mora said. “I just got caught up in the conversation.”

Time flies when you’re having a Rams run. Or a Rams Rush, in this case.

“And here’s the thing: We could have sat there for another hour,” Bennett recounted with a chuckle. “We would have just kept chopping it up.”

Mrs. Mora was left waiting, Bennett was told, because the couple planned to do some car-shopping in Denver on their way back to FoCo. Talk about Front Range multi-tasking at its finest. While we’re running errands, why not make new friends, build some bridges, while we’re at it?

“So I feel we’re going to see out of (CSU) better (recruiting) coverage in-state,” Bennett said. “I really do … it’ll be interesting to see how many ’26 guys (are signed) and how many offers are out in ’27. You can say, ‘We’ve got to see.’ But I think it is going to be better out of Fort Collins. I do.”

National Signing Day — like drive-ins, yes, it’s still a thing — falls on Wednesday. The Rams have just one in-state signee so far for the Class of 2026, They’re trying to improve on that number for 2027, for obvious reasons.

“We want Colorado kids to play in Colorado,” Mora told me by phone early in the week. “Now, they have to fit our profile. But the only way you find that out is if you spend time around them and build those relationships … (so) it’s not just a one-time thing. It’s an ongoing process.”

To that end, this past January 15, with the transfer portal spinning at about 50,000 rpm, Mora and CSU tried something a little different:

The Rams had 11 staffers out on the highways, driving to and visiting with Colorado high school coaches as part of Operation: Ram Rush, posting updates to social media with the hashtag #RamRush.

Mora’s ‘pop,’ in fact, was the Rams’ second trek to Mullen in 13 days. Bennett said that was new, too.

“It was way, way different,” Bennett said. “It was apologetic. And not that they needed to be, but they understand (the dynamics).

“You hear (that) all the time, but for some reason, it just hit different. They understand they’ve got to take the top guys in Colorado to be successful — not only on the field, but in the community. You’ve got to recruit your backyard.”

And now, maybe, more than ever. Why? For one, open transferring and revenue-sharing for players have made Power 4 schools more inclined to swoop in and pluck smaller schools’ more finished products rather than develop their own. CU football coach Deion Sanders’ newest portal haul reads like a Group of 5 all-star travel team.

Part of the CSU football brand is baked into getting the not-quite-fast enough, not-quite-big-enough Colorado prospects that the Buffs traditionally take a pass on. Some of the best Rams teams of the last 30 years had enough chips on their respective shoulders, collectively, to fill the entire snack aisle at King Soopers.

Based on the 247Sports database, CU offered eight in-state recruits for the Class of ’26 and had one Colorado signee as of last Friday afternoon. They’ve reportedly got five in-state offers out for 2027. CSU has 12.

“(Sanders and I) know each other very well,” Mora said of Coach Prime. “But I’m not competing against anybody but our standard. We don’t spend one section of our day worrying about other people. We just do the best we can.”

Sanders has targeted players that the Buffs can plug-in-and-play immediately, be they freshmen or former Mid-American Conference/Sun Belt Conference seniors. CU has checked in — but so have about 25 other major programs.

In fact, local coaches will tell you that The Prime Method of transfers first + recruiting nationally has only opened doors for CSU’s new staff when it comes to Colorado kids. If they want to run through them. The Rams haven’t produced a class with more than two in-state prep recruits since 2023. They haven’t produced one with more than seven since 2014.

Mora, no dummy, has already noticed. CSU, per 247, had 23 in-state offers out in the Class of ’26 and a dozen so far for the Class of ’27. This after the Rams offered one for the Class of ’25, 13 for ’24 and 14 for ’23.

“Like I said when I took the job, you’ve got to try to win your state (by) recruiting high-school players,” Mora told me. “And the only way that you can do that is to get out and meet people and create relationships and build trust.”

Unlike his previous three predecessors, Mora’s already got one foot in several doors on that last front. His dad helped coach Dave Logan while the latter was starring at CU. His quarterbacks coach/pass game coordinator, Matt Mitchell, is the brother-in-law of Valor coach Mike Sanford. He’s known Legend coach Jake Heaps for years and the Pagano family forever.

“We want to be able to go and to see people,” Mora continued, “but it’s important that we try to get as many players and coaches as possible up to our campus to watch our spring practices and get with our coaches and exchange football ideas.”

And not just at clinics, either. Bennett says he landed a personal invite to Canvas Stadium. One he plans to accept.

“For all that he’s done, everywhere he’s been, for all the success he’s had in our industry, (Mora) didn’t treat me any differently,” the Mustangs coach recalled. “He just sat, and he talked to me like a ball coach. It was different.

“My staff was in there with us. And every one of them, when he left said, ‘Wow, what a great guy. That was cool.'”

He wants every kid in Colorado to grow up dreaming to play for the Rams. But that requires signing a few with 303, 970 and 719 area codes.

In the current 2026 class, CSU and CU added one player each from our state among 247Sports’ top 47 recruits. The Rams welcomed Arvada West safety Atticus Tillman, while the Buffs inked Thompson Valley offensive lineman Josiah Manu. The Buffs show little interest in recruiting in their own backyard, not helped by the fact that coach Deion Sanders cannot be bothered to leave campus for at-home visits.

Mora plans to throw a fence around the state, aiming to keep elite recruits in Fort Collins. Coaches make these promises, but rarely keep them. It was understandable when our state was not producing many D1 players. That is no longer the case. The top 25 players are all going to big-time schools.

You don’t think Cherry Creek tight end Ty Goettsche would draw comparisons to Trey McBride if he chose CSU over BYU? He is the ninth-ranked tight end in the country. What about Windsor’s tower of power Deacon Schmitt? You are telling me he would not be an upgrade over the sieve that CU passes off as an offensive line? He is headed to Oklahoma.

And I challenge you to find a player in the state that fits the scheme of new CU offensive coordinator Brennan Marion better than Cherry Creek’s Jayden Fox. He flipped to UCLA along with Legend High quarterback DJ Bordeaux.

Here’s the deal. CU and CSU will always land in-state walk-ons like Charlie Offerdahl, who love the school, learn the fight song and spend Saturday nights enjoying off-campus dinners with family. Mora needs to put his words into action with his next class, and prioritize in-state stars and a handful of risks.

Getting a few of the best to stay will help the Rams in multiple ways.

It builds the brand, shows CSU cares about Colorado preps. It also improves relationships with high school coaches, and leads to the identification of prospects with potential. That two-star offensive lineman can become a starter in his third season if you have a vision for him. Those are the ones that form the foundation of the program, make you less desperate to get old and stay old in the portal. They build camaraderie and chemistry, something that is hard to bake in with transfers.

Mora has called CSU his last stop. He wants people to be proud to support the program. They will if he keeps more local kids, the best and projects alike, around.

Bruising Broncos: What our eyes told us last Sunday, the facts support. The Packers-Broncos game felt like a playoff game, defined by eye-opening physicality and multiple injuries. That is not the first time we have seen Denver throw down the sawdust and engage in a bare-knuckle fight. Teams are 3-10 the week after playing the Broncos. It is why the Bears are expected to punch the Pack this weekend.

Adios Diego: Quarterback Diego Pavia has been a great college football story. He willed Vanderbilt to relevance. But it is clearly time for him to move on. He turns 25 in April. On my first Heisman Trophy ballot, he was second. When he did not win, he posted on social media “F all the voters” with a thumbs down emoji. He doesn’t owe me an apology.ÌýHe owes the winner Fernando Mendoza one for acting so selfishly and immaturely.

Portal Patrick: Dylan Raiola hit the transfer portal, leaving Nebraska. The quarterback was supposed to restore glory to the Cornhuskers, a program where his father played, but never met expectations. His lack of a mobility is an issue. And the Temu Patrick Mahomes act is getting old. If he transfers to Texas Tech, Mahomes should insist that Raiola change his hairstyle and number — both of which are identical to the Chiefs star — or get hit with a restraining order.

“Yes. 100%,” Rams athletic director John Weber told me with a straight face Monday. “If other programs out of the Mountain West and the Pac-12 can do it, CSU can and will do it.”

“You’re convinced Jim will get you there?” I asked.

“Yes,” Weber replied. “Absolutely.”

Didn’t blink.

Didn’t stutter.

“I love to go uphill,” Jim Mora, CSU’s fourth new football coach in seven years and sixth since 2010, said during his introductory news conference at Canvas Stadium on Monday.

“And I think that’s a metaphor for my personality in general, because I love to embrace hard things. And I stood here (Monday) and I (looked out) there and I saw the top of those mountains. I said, ‘I’m going to get up there, you know?'”

At that point, the Rams coach stopped. Turns out he had a question for the rest of us.

“How many 14ers are there in this state?” Mora asked the crowd.

“Fifty-four,” came the reply.

(Actually, it’s 53. Or 58. Or 74.)

“I didn’t say I was going to tell you all our goals, OK,” Mora continued with a grin. “We’re going to win a Pac-12 championship. All right? We’re going to go (try) to win a national championship. And I’m going to scale 54 14ers.”

The football mountains facing CSU might be the tougher climb. Although give him credit for this much — Mora, an outdoors enthusiast, arguably rolled into town Sunday as the best FBS football coach within a 90-mile radius of Fort Fun.

Deion Sanders made the CU Buffs marketable and sexy, yes — but also maddeningly inconsistent on the field. He’s 16-21 since 2023. Air Force’s Troy Calhoun, long the gold standard, is just 9-15 with the Zoomies over the last two seasons.

Mora won at UCLA. He won at UConn.

“It’s about the opportunity to compete for a championship and get in the CFP and win when we get there,” Weber continued. “That’s what we’re about, that’s what we aspire to, that’s what we’re focused on. And he was clearly set on an opportunity that allowed him to do the exact same thing. That’s how we came together.”

Connecticut’s path to the College Football Playoff, as an independent, is a pipe dream. CSU, meanwhile, hosts BYU next fall. Arizona is slated to visit FoCo in ’27. CSU heads to Wisconsin in September 2027 and Oklahoma the September after that. The Rams have got CU at home in ’29 and away in ’30.

Keeler: How did CSU Rams land Jim Mora? Give assist to this former Broncos QB

Nail one solid Power 4 hide toyour wall in August or September, followed by a league championship with an undefeated (or close to it) record, and who knows?

"Go look at the Tulanes of the world, the North Texases," former CSU offensive lineman Jake Bennett told me Monday. "To say, just because you're in Fort Collins, you can't do it?"

Bennett's a believer. Mind you, he's been fooled before. Mora spoke to a full house on the fourth-floor suites at Canvas, with Rams football alumni scattered among the staff, alumni, boosters and reporters. The No. 1 complaint I get from CSU friends is they're backing a program that hasn't performed anywhere near the levels aspired to by the construction of Canvas in the first place. Jay Norvell is the only football coach to win more than seven games with a Rammie squad since the building debuted in August 2017. Over the last nine seasons, seven have been losing ones.

"I was here when we opened it, and we went 7-6 (in '16) and 7-6 (in '17) and from there, it's just been kind of woefully underperforming," Bennett, who was among the Rams letter-winners in attendance to hear Mora. "Like he was saying, (like) every coach that's been here before him, the foundation’s here. The city's great. Why can't you get it done?"

To that end, Weber said, he put Mora's name down for consideration early in the process. TurnkeyZRG, the search firm CSU hired, had also pegged the former collegiate and NFL coach as possibly looking to move away from UConn.

"We continued to work our way through that entire process and came back to him -- and came back to him again," Weber recalled. "(Mora) definitely knew about us, knew about the area, knew about the opportunity, knew about the investment that we've been making here."

That's because Mora admitted he'd actually put his name in the hat for the CSU job back in 2019, when Mike Bobo was relieved of his duties. And oh, lordy, what might have been. Only in this timeline, Urban Meyer was running the CSU search then, more or less, and put forth his old pal and Florida coordinator Steve Addazio -- who wasn't exactly beloved at Boston College for reasons that became all too obvious once he showed up.

COVID-19 set Rams football back about a year. The Daz set it back about four.

Alas, what's done is done, and there Jim was Monday, six years after the fact. If you're of a certain age, the Mora family looms large in your folk memory. Jim's father, in particular. Before Sean Payton hoisted the Saints to another level, the elder Jim Mora helped put the 'Aints on the NFL map two decades earlier. Although the old man's most famous sound bite came during a trying 2001 news conference while coaching the Colts after an even more trying defeat to the 49ers. Someone had asked Mora about playoff hopes after Indy had fallen to 4-6.

"Playoffs?" the senior Mora countered, voice climbing three octaves in just two syllables. "Don't talk about ... playoffs? You kidding me? Playoffs? I just hope we can win a game."

They won two more and finished at 6-10. Trivia: Peyton Manning was the QB on that team -- one that, did, in fact, miss the playoffs. The Colts' defensive coordinator? Vic Fangio. The Colts' receivers coach? Jay Norvell.

"Jay coached for my dad," Mora said of Norvell, who was let go by Weber in October. "I grew up in this business, so I'm always very, very sensitive to the changes that take place. But as a football coach, we all understand that change is inevitable, and it's something that we have to accept if we're going to be in this business. When the program decided to move on from Jay, I was immediately interested."

In a weird way, this is home for Jim. Always has been. The new CSU football coach spent his grade-school years along the Flatirons while his father was an assistant at CU under Eddie Crowder. Mora's son Trey, who was part of the family entourage, is a Buffs grad who's currently studying at CU's Leeds School of Business. The coach's mountain-scaling exploits are already the stuff of legend.

"There is no top to the mountain. There is no top," Mora said. "You just keep going, you keep climbing. And when you reach one peak, you find a way to get to another peak ... I will never put any limitations on what this football team can be ever, if we do the work. Which we will."

It took three minutes during the presentation for Sonny Lubick's name to come up. It took another 22 or 23 minutes for Wyoming to cross anybody's lips, and Mora did so with the relish of a man itching for a friendly scrap.

"I think it's Sept. 5 or 6, the Border War," Mora said. "Let's go!"

It's Sept. 5, but time flies when you're having this much Fort Fun. Jim's line about this being his last coaching job, according to those who know him better, came from the heart. Mora had his Lane Kiffin phase. He'll be 65 next November. Fort Collins is the kind of college town you aspire to retire in -- that's true for coaches too, from Lubick to ex-Nebraska volleyball coach Terry Pettit, who won a national championship and 21 league titles with the Cornhuskers.

Playoffs, though?

That's some serious uphill, coach.

"It's very realistic," Mora said. "We have the resources -- and when I speak about resources, I'm not speaking about money. I'm speaking about people and the vision and the commitment ... The commitment that we make, that will determine how far we go. I'm very confident that we can do those things."

On Monday, that confidence proved contagious. One of those proud Rams who was here to see Mora stopped me as we disembarked from the elevator at Canvas.

"That was good," she wondered. "Wasn't it?"

Sure was. How good, we're all about to find out.

“I think CSU had a heck of a lot of boxes that Jim needed checked,” Hugh Millen, the former Broncos quarterback and father of ex-CSU signal-caller Clay, explained to me over the phone Friday while the Rams’ season met a merciful end. “But it started with, ‘Do they have the support system to get to (my) goals?’ ”

Mora, who on Monday will be introduced as CSU’s fourth football coach since 2018, decided they did. But not before doing his homework.

Among the voices the Connecticut football coach reached out to in recent weeks was Millen, his old Washington Huskies teammate. He knew Clay was a Rammie. Another of Millen’s sons, Cale, played for Mora at UConn.

So they began a series of long text exchanges about 10-12 days ago to break down the CSU job. Mora wanted to know about the facilities. About the player experience. About the infrastructure. About the campus. About FoCo and Larimer County.

Are the conditions right?

Can you win there?

Can you win BIG there?

“I said, ‘Look, the facilities are better than UConn,'” the elder Millen recalled as CSU fell to Air Force, 42-21, putting the bow on a 2-10 season and on The Jay Norvell Era. “‘There’s a culture in Colorado, a football culture, that exceeds what (you have) at UConn.”

Papa Millen, John Elway’s old backup in ’94 and ’95, was Mora’s roomie back at U of Washington in the ’80s, when Don James had knocked USC from its old Pac-10 throne. Hugh spoke at Jim’s wedding.

Millen said Mora’s wife, Kathy, recently visited Fort Fun. Like a lot of newcomers, she immediately fell in love with it.

Not long after that, Millen’s phone blooped. Turns out Jim was smitten, too.

“I’m doing this,” Mora texted. “There’s a path to the College Football Playoff here.”

Sure is. Assuming you’ve got a Power 4 win on your resume and a Pac-12 title locked down tight.

“So in his mind, it’s like, ‘CFP or bust,'” Millen continued.

As for UConn, let’s just say the Moras had probably maxed it out. Nobody had won nine games at UConn since Randy Edsall in 2007, and Mora’s done it twice.

“You’re gonna love him,” Hugh said.

Then he added: “For some reason, amateur football in the northeast is just — lacrosse is bigger than high school football. So when you go to a UConn game, which is 30 miles’ drive from campus — of course (the Huskies) have a great basketball culture — but you have to stand on the sidelines to really absorb just how bad that job is.”

Yet Mora went 27-23 over four seasons there. Three of those teams were (or are) bowl-bound. He’s 18-7 over his last 25 contests. Context matters, too. Winning eight-plus games in Storrs is like winning eight-plus in Tucson or Lexington or Chapel Hill or Lawrence — it’s still a hoops school.

So is UCLA, mind you. And what’s happened with the Bruins since joining the Big Ten has made Mora’s 46-30 mark in Westwood from 2012-2017 loom even larger.

“Let me say it like this,” Millen laughed. “I think he’s a substantial upgrade over Jay Norvell.”

He’s biased, of course, of his own admission. Clay was benched for Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi in 2023, the former transferred to Florida, and that was that.

“Explain the ‘substantial’ part,” I said.

“Because he knows how to assemble a staff that puts players in winning positions,” Millen countered. “He knows how to relate to players. He’s got a lot of experience as a CEO. Players respond to him. He understands players. He makes staff changes …

“I don’t want to say that (this) was Jay’s undoing (at CSU). I think (Mora’s) in-game coaching, his adjustments … I just think he’s just demonstrated that he’s a superior coach.”

He’s also a mountain man. Jim spent his elementary school years in Boulder while his father was on Eddie Crowder’s Buffs staff.

“If anybody who’s wringing their hands and saying, ‘I’m concerned about Jim’s age,’ I want you to go meet Jim at the base of a summit,” Millen quipped. “I don’t care what your age is, I’ll lay (odds) he’ll beat you up that mountain. That guy is 64 going on 44.”

Good thing, too, as Friday was one of those games that could age a coach in a hurry. Already down 7-0 on its opening drive, CSU faced a third-and-15 at its own 20. Lloyd Avant flashed open along the right hash. No Air Force defender was within 8 or 9 yards of him.

Rams QB Jackson Brousseau threw short anyway, skipping it off the turf the way a shortstop skips a throw from deep in the hole. If the path to the CFP starts now, CSU’s got miles to go. And some serious mountains to climb.

Ìý

When: 1 p.m. Friday

Where: Canvas Stadium

TV: FS1

Radio: 104.3 HD2, 1600 AM

CSU +1.5, 45.5 over/under

43 degrees, cloudy

Air Force leads 39-22-1; CSU won 21-13 last year in Colorado Springs

Three storylines

CSU’s revolving QB door: The Rams entered the season seemingly set at quarterback, with Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi entering his third year as the starter. But the key position has been exceedingly volatile for CSU. Fowler-Nicolosi started the first three games before losing his job to Jackson Brousseau; “BFN” then quit the team. Brousseau then started the next seven games before giving way to Darius Curry last week. Now, with Curry suspended for spitting at an opposing player, CSU likely turns to Tahj Bullock this week.

New regime coming to FoCo: News broke on Tuesday that UConn coach Jim Mora will be CSU’s next head coach. The son of a longtime coach of the same name, Mora’s been the head coach of the Huskies for the last four seasons. He also was head coach of the Falcons (2004-06), the Seahawks (2009), and UCLA (2012-17). His imminent arrival in Fort Collins means the tenures of interim coach Tyson Summers and other staffers are likely coming to an end — and that the Rams will see lots of transfers from its roster.

Owen Long’s tackling title: While the Rams need a win to avoid posting the program’s worst non-COVID season since going 1-10 in 1988, CSU sophomore linebacker Owen Long has plenty to play for. The team captain currently leads the nation with 134 tackles, three more than UTEP’s Micah Davey. Long’s tally ranks 10th all-time in program history, as Kevin McLain holds the record with 198 in 1974. Long’s had double-digit tackles in nine of his 11 games, including 12 tackles each of the last two weeks as one of CSU’s silver linings.

Predictions

Kyle Newman, sportswriter: Air Force 20, CSU 19

The Falcons are also without their starting QB after Liam Szarka, a Grandview alum who was having a stellar season, broke his arm in the loss to UConn a couple weeks ago. That means Air Force has two options at QB in juniors Kempher Hodges and Josh Johnson. Even with that, and Air Force’s struggles this season, the triple-option remains tough to stop — even more so for a porous CSU defense that ranks last in the Mountain West with 194.82 yards allowed per game on the ground this season. Air Force wears the Rams down up front, then Hodges’ rushing TD delivers the knockout blow on the game’s final possession.

Sean Keeler, sports columnist: Air Force 22, CSU 17

The Ram-Falcon Trophy, the Jan Brady of college football rivalry prizes, could be getting a long, long rest soon, as the Pac-12/Mountain West split ends a series that had run annually — save for 2020’s COVID strife — since 1978. Both teams’ QB rooms are a mess. Both defenses are soft as mashed potatoes. Although Air Force probably plays keepaway — and converts on third down — better than the Rams at this point. At least CSU faithful can toast some New Belgiums to Jim Mora, all while passing the hat to help pay for the players he’ll want to revamp this roster.

The school announced that Jim Mora will take over the football program. Mora, who revived UConn over the past four seasons, will be introduced Monday afternoon in Fort Collins.

“I would like to thank President Amy Parsons, Director of Athletics John Weber, and all those involved for providing Kathy and me this very special opportunity,” Mora said. “I am truly humbled to join CSU as we transition to the Pac-12 Conference. I am excited to meet the team and look forward to connecting with the former players. I can’t wait for our family to become part of the Northern Colorado community.”

CSU athletic director John Weber made it clear that his goal is for the Rams to challenge for a spot in the college football playoff and that he believes the school has the resources to do so. Weber fired Jay Norvell on Oct. 19 after a disappointing 2-5 start, which saw the football team unable to build on last season’s bowl berth or provide a compelling product.

Mora, 64, brings a wealth of experience in college and the NFL. He revived the UConn program, guiding the Huskies to a 9-3 record this season and a pending third bowl berth in four years. Mora fits the profile in experience and resume CSU sought as it moves into the reshaped Pac-12 next season. Mora coached in the conference for UCLA, compiling a 46-30 record and four bowl berths from 2012-2017.

“Our goal from the very start was to execute a comprehensive search to find the next leader of the Colorado State football program,” Weber said. “We did that, and it was extremely energizing to have such significant interest from so many accomplished coaches. From our very first conversation, Coach Mora’s desire to serve student-athletes, his comprehensive experience, and passion to win was evident. I could not be more excited to welcome Jim and his wife Kathy to CSU and Fort Collins.”

Mora featured an explosive offense this season in UConn with a 1,000-yard rusher (Camryn Edwards), 1,000-yard receiver (Skyler Bell) and an efficient quarterback (Joe Fagnano, 28 touchdowns, one interception). The Huskies finished the season on a four-game winning streak, including victories over Air Force and Duke.

Early Wednesday, UConn athletic director David Benedict issued a statement confirming that Mora was headed to Fort Collins.

“Jim Mora informed me late last night that he has accepted the head coaching position at Colorado State. We are grateful for Coach Mora’s contributions to UConn over the past four seasons,” Benedict said.

“He took on the challenge of rebuilding our football program and delivered results that exceeded expectations. Under his leadership, the Huskies won 27 games and achieved bowl eligibility in three of his four seasons, including back-to-back nine-win seasons for the first time in program history. Coach Mora brought energy and a winning culture back to UConn football and put our program back on the national stage. We thank Jim for his dedication to our student-athletes and wish him, his wife Kathy and his family the best at Colorado State.”

Mora is the son of longtime NFL boss Jim Mora, who coached the Saints and Colts. Peyton Manning was his quarterback during his final four seasons in Indianapolis.

Mora, whose hiring was first reported by ESPN late Tuesday night, brings Colorado connections. He lived in Boulder for part of his youth and expressed interest in the CU job after Mel Tucker bolted for Michigan State.

The changing college landscape doomed Norvell in Fort Collins. With the school wanting to at least match or improve on last season’s 8-5 season, the Rams sputtered in September as veteran starting quarterback Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi slumped. He was eventually benched and later left the school. It did not help Norvell when CSU looked overmatched against future conference opponent Washington State in an ugly 20-3 home loss on Sept. 27.

The hope is that Mora can bring stability and success to a CSU program that wants to reap the rewards of an on-campus stadium that opened in 2017.

Since that time, CSU has had three coaches — Mike Bobo, Steve Addazio, Norvell. All posted losing records, finishing a combined 23 games under .500.

Mora received a four-year, $10-million extension at UConn in December of 2024. Norvell made $1.9 million this season, and was owned a $1.5 million buyout from CSU, per terms of his contract.

Mora is known in coaching circles for his energy and confidence. He brought UConn back to life, now he appears ready to embrace the challenge of restoring glory to CSU.

When/where: 5 p.m. Saturday/Albertsons Stadium

TV/Radio: FS1/Rams Radio Network

CSU +16.5, 44.5 over/under

42 degrees, partly cloudy

Boise State leads 12-1; CSU won last matchup on a Hail Mary, 31-30, in Fort Collins in 2023

Three storylines

Rams QB question: After Jackson Brousseau was injured in last week’s loss in New Mexico, freshman Darius Curry came on and mixed flashes of positivity with three interceptions. The QB completed 26 of 34 passes for 248 yards and two TDs. He has a 136.8 rating through four games on the season, while Brousseau is at 124.2. Curry will start in Boise with Brousseau out due to his injury. And at this point, it makes sense for CSU interim head coach Tyson Summers to hand the keys to Curry for the final two games and see what he does with it.

Broncos QB question: Boise State starting QB Maddux Madsen remains sidelined due to injury, so the Broncos are rolling with Max Cutforth under center. Their leading wideout, Chris Marshall, has also been dealing with an injury. That puts pressure on the Boise State run game to carry the load. Dylan Riley has been the team’s featured back and is averaging 6.6 yards a pop. Considering the CSU defense is last in the Mountain West in run defense, allowing 186.4 yards per game, a run-heavy game plan for Boise State is likely in the cards.

What’s left to play for: For the Rams, the final two games present an opportunity for players to prove their worth for 2026, whether that be in Fort Collins or in the portal. There’s also a matter of pride: If the Rams lose out, two wins would be the fewest for the program since a 1-10 season in the WAC in 1988 (not counting the shortened 2020 COVID schedule). For the Broncos, they are playing for better bowl positioning, which is important to a program used to going to bigger bowls and coming off a College Football Playoff appearance.

Predictions

Kyle Newman, sportswriter: Boise State 38, CSU 16

The Broncos are coming off consecutive losses to Fresno State and San Diego State, so this is far from the 12-2 team of a year ago that made the quarterfinal of the College Football Playoff. Still, CSU has no chance in this one. Rams fans should save their hopes for a third win in the season finale against Air Force. Dylan Riley runs wild, and the Rams offense continues to lack an identity in a blowout loss.

Sean Keeler, sports columnist: Boise State 30, CSU 13

Since Max Cutforth took the reins at QB in relief of an injured Maddux Madsen, the Broncos’ offense has stalled and BSU faithful have been pointing fingers. CSU QB Darius Curry showed enough juice at New Mexico to give Rams fans some hope, but … this is still the Land of the Blue Turf, CSU’s historic house of horrors. Best keep those expectations tempered. ÌýBoise hasn’t lost a home finale since 2015.

Matt Schubert, sports editor: Boise State 26, CSU 19

The Rams at least provided a glimmer of hope in last week’s down-to-the-wire loss at New Mexico. Darius Curry looked more than competent for a redshirt freshman thrown into the fray, and at least two of his three interceptions were either poor luck or poor execution from someone other than Curry. Do the Rams still have enough fight in them to go into potato country and pull off a stunner? Probably not. But it isn’t hard to envision them at least making a game of it.

Keeler: Trying to fix CSU football pays better — Jay Norvell was slated to make $2 million in 2026, if he had been given a 2026. But that’s an easy call for Kordell. It’s CU. For one, Rams football is not a starter job, unless you were born on third base or are bringing a Heisman-level quarterback with you to build around from Day 1. , only Washington State, Oregon State and San Diego State had bigger Pac-12 purses to play with than the Rams. You’re not expected to just hang around and collect checks from this new league. FoCo faithful expect you to try and win it.

Renck: I will never forget the first time I saw Stewart working out in Boulder. He looked like a Greek god and could throw a football 80 yards. And he showed it during the “Miracle at Michigan.” He would need another Hail Mary to land the CSU job. The Rams cannot afford to take this big of a risk on someone lacking experience, unless it is Texas A&M offensive coordinator Collin Klein. They need the next Jason Eck, who has revitalized New Mexico’s program. Or Eck himself with an offer he cannot refuse. Former Boise State coach Bryan Harsin, who melted at Auburn, would also fit. It is hard to see CSU considering Stewart when alumni Tony Alford and Matt Lubick are on the radar.

Keeler: Eck, who played under Barry Alvarez at Wisconsin and later coached at CU, would be wise to angle for a better, bigger job than CSU’s to open up. If you can make people notice the Lobos, you’ve got the chops to make some noise in the Power 4. (Looking at you, Bucky Badger.) If the Rams can’t land Klein, whose unbeaten Aggies just rallied from a 30-3 halftime deficit to beat South Carolina, they need a proven, plug-and-play coach who can hit the high ground running. If we’re chasing wild cards, why not UC-Davis boss Tim Plough?

Renck: Would an AI Chatbot be a good fit for AD at CU? Deion Sanders earned his contract, but the extension gave him keys to the kingdom. The next athletic director will need the chops to hold honest, if not sterile, conversations with Coach Prime about his health and vision for the program. You can’t have a coach make $10 million a year and not be competitive on multiple Saturdays. Asking Stewart to walk into this CU hornet’s nest is not fair to him. The role requires a seasoned front office vet — Jeremy Bloom has stumped for former Broncos vice president of player personnel Matt Russell — with a plan to provide Sanders long-term success or create an exit strategy that makes sense. Would Sanders forego a future in television, for instance, to serve as the general manager of CU football? Again, uncomfortable talks are required. Stewart needs a soft landing spot to start. And this is not that.

Keeler: Coach Prime’s circle of trust is tighter than the security at Fort Knox. But as an old friend, Stewart has owned a pass code for years. That’s not insignificant. Rick George’s replacement has a tricky needle to thread. Sanders has become Buffs football — he is the CU brand, the university, the icon, the bread-winner. He knows it. They know it. The leverage is entirely his. But if health issues persist and force everybody’s hand, the university also needs a Plan B that keeps the Buffs in the national discussion and television networks coming to Boulder. Make Coach Prime football coach emeritus. Or GM. Or whatever. Sanders’ greatest gift to CU, other than Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter, isn’t his coaching. It’s his presence.