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OUR COLORADO STATE RAMS 2002 COLLEGE FOOTBALL PREVIEW
Thursday, August 22, 2002 - Time: 7:30 PM Comcast SportsNet & Fox SportsNet South
Scott Stadium - Charlottesville, Virginia
Capacity (61,500)
Dubious Distinctions: The Rams were 0-4 last season when the opponent had a 100-yard rusher.
Stellar Stats: During Coach Sonny Lubick's tenure the Rams are 34-17 on the road.
For the third time in five years, the University of Virginia Cavaliers will encounter a team from the Mountain West Conference. In 1998 and 1999 the Hoos faced off against the BYU Cougars, this season they'll host the Colorado State Rams in the Jim Thorp Classic at Scott Stadium. This is an intriguing "preseason" matchup and should give both 2nd year Virginia Head Football Coach Al Groh and Colorado State's 4-Time Conference Coach of the Year Sonny Lubick an early read on their 2002 prospects. This is the second consecutive year the Hoos have played in a preseason contest, losing in the Eddie Robinson Classic last season 26-17 at Wisconsin. This is the first time the Rams have faced a current Atlantic Coast Conference opponent.
Colorado State got off to a rocky start in 2001, losing 4 of their first six games, 3 by a touchdown or less. Four wins in the final five games of the season got the Rams over the .500 mark, placing them second in the Mountain West Conference and landing the Rams in the New Orleans bowl against a 5-6 North Texas team a game which the Rams won 45-20 to end the season at 7-5. Considering Virginia posted a 5-7 record, criticizing a team that ended 2001 with a winning mark may seem a little "bush" but we'll do it anyway.
First, give the Rams credit, they won most of the games they were supposed to win and lost the games they were supposed to lose. CSU lost a heart breaker in overtime to then undefeated Fresno State (11-2) 25-22 at home. They lost big to a Colorado (10-3) team that contended for the "mythical" national championship, lost to a quality Louisville (11-2) team by 5 and a solid BYU (12-2) team by 24, all on the road. Their ugly loss was 14-7 defeat by a 3-8 San Diego State team at home. The seven Ram wins came over teams with a combined 37-39 record, with only two wins coming against teams with a winning record. What has to concern Ram fans further is the fact that even with a winning record, the Rams were still out scored (23.1 to 23.0), and they gave up more yards passing (216.4 to 153.6) and rushing (211.1 to 190.4) than they accumulated.
The 2002 Rams return 6 starters and on both sides of the ball and 2 additional players that saw action as starters, one on offense and defense along with two kicking specialist. Coach Lubick also returns for his 10th season at the helm of the Colorado State program during which he has posted a 74-34 record, including 3 straight trips to post season play and 6 overall.
The Colorado State offense is led by Michigan State transfer quarterback Bradlee Van Pelt (Jr. 6-3 220). Van Pelt, son of former New York Giant All-Pro Brad Van Pelt, finished 2001 completing 94 of 194 passes for 1247 and 8 touchdowns. His 546 (5.5 ypc) yards rushing and 4 touchdowns were good enough to make Van pelt the third leading rusher on the team. He started the final 9 games of 2001 and was named honorable mention All-MWC.
An early indication of how well the season may go for the Rams is how well Van Pelts inexperienced receivers develop. The Rams bid farewell to Pete Rebstock, and Dallas Davis, two key ingredients to the string of three consecutive bowl game appearances. Now Rebstock and Davis look to become parts of their respective team's success in the NFL. Rebstock signed a two-year deal with the Kansas City Chiefs, while Davis signed a three-year contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The duo accounted for 50 receptions (40% of the teams' 2001 total), 792 yards (46%) and 5 touchdowns (45%). Of the six players who will be vying for playing time at the wide receiver and tight end positions, they own collectively 3 career starts among them and accounted for 20 catches and 352 yards last season. Joey Cuppari (Sr. 6-1, 175) will likely get the starting nod at one wideout. Cuppari finished 4th on the team in 1999 with 20 catches for 308 yards and third in 2000 with 31 receptions for 438 yards and was expected to be one of the go to guys in 2001. His season was plagued by injuries and he finished the year with 6 catches for 151 yards. We look for Cuppari to return to his sophomore and junior year form in 2002. Chris Pittman (Jr. 6-1 182) should be penciled in at the other starting wide receiver spot for the Rams. He finished 2001 with 10 catches for 143 yards and a touchdown. Pittman has excellent speed and the Rams like to use him on reverses. Also competing for playing time will be juniors Eric Hill (6-0 185, 4 catches for 58 yards in 2001) and Russell Sprague (Jr 6-4, 210). Sprague served as a reserve wideout and special teams player for Colorado State in 2001 and is coming off knee surgery. Both James Sondrup (Jr. 6-6 251) and Matt Baldischwiler (So. 6-3 235) are reserve tight ends with little in game experience.
The lone starter in the receiving corps for Colorado State is Joel Dreessen (So. 6-6 235). Dreessen mans the H-Back position in the Colorado offense an accounted for 22 receptions last season for 205 yards. He is the Rams leading returning receiver.
The force of the Colorado State offense is the running game. Not only is Van Pelt a serious threat to run, but also the Rams return a stable of solid running backs. The Rams return their leading rushers from 2001, Henri Childs (Sr. 6-2, 217) and 2000, Cecil Sapp (Jr. 6-1, 225), who sat out last season after having a benign tumor removed from his heel. Sapp was back in top form though his duty was limited in the annual Gold-Green spring game. He rushed twice for five yards and caught one pass for a 29-yard gain. Ram head coach Sonny Lubick said, "Cecil looked good. He looks strong, and showed a bit of speed." Sapp was a 1st Team All Conference performer on 2000 accounting for 841 yards and 10 touchdowns. The versatile Childs carried the ball 166 times a year ago gaining 841 yards (5.1 ypc, 4 tds), he caught 13 passes for 117 yards (1 td), and was 2 for 2 on halfback option passes, accounting for a touchdown as well. His 87 yards per game average was good enough for 2nd on the team in all purpose yards. Also returning from an injury riddled 2001 season is Rahsaan Sanders (Jr. 6-0, 212). Sanders has started 8 games over his career and was 2nd on the team in rushing in 2000 carrying 131 times for 524 yards and 4 touchdowns. With a very inexperienced defensive backfield, Sanders spent most of the spring working out at free safety and will in all likelihood be moved to the other side of the ball with the running back position firmly secure with the likes of Childs and Sapp. Even without Sanders, offensive coordinator Dan Hammerschmidt has a strong 1-2 punch in the backfield.
While there are no questions about the potential of the Ram backfield, the same cannot be said for the Colorado State offensive line. While center Mark Dreyer (Jr. 6-4, 281) and All-MWC honorable mention in 2001 guard Morgan Pears (Sr. 6-8, 309) accounted for 24 starts last season, the rest of the offensive line two-deep includes 8 players that have a combined 8 starts between them. Five of those starts belong to weak side tackle Aaron Green (Sr. 6-5 275) who is likely to return as a starter at that position in 2002. Look for massive Terrell Gardner (Jr. 6-6 347) and Kelly Wall (Jr. 6-4 300) to via for the open position at strong side guard and Erik Pears (So. 6-8 310, Morgans' brother) who started 3 games last season and the undersized Zeke Hacker (Jr. 6-3 280) to fight it out for the strong side tackle position.
The big concern for the Rams this season will be on defense where they only return 6 starters. The deepest losses and the primary area that will likely require Ram defensive coordinator Larry Kerr to keep a bottle of Tums close by will certainly be a secondary which has accumulated a grand total of 13 Division 1-A college starts among them and may well feature a redshirt freshman at the pivotal free safety position. Gone from the 2001 Ram secondary are Jason and Justin Gallimore (Arizona Cardinals free agent signee) and Aaron Sprague. The three combined for 33 starts, 244 tackles (48% of the team total), 10 tackles for loss (20%), and 9 interceptions (56%). Of the 13 career starts in the Colorado State secondary, 10 of those belong to 1st Team All-MWC cornerback Dexter Wynn. A threat both on defense and on special teams, Wynn accounted for 52 tackles a year ago, tied for second on the team in tackles for loss and led the Rams with 9 pass breakups. When you add to those accomplishments to his exploits as one of the MWC's and the nations top kick return specialists and you have the makings of a dangerous player.
That's where the good news ends in the Colorado State secondary. Looking for playing time at the other cornerback spot is Rhett Nelson (Sr. 6-1, 194) who played in 8 games last season and was responsible for 28 tackles and redshirt freshmen Jesse Rivers (6-0, 185). Both safety spots could be manned by underclassmen. After an injury plagued 2001 season, David Vickers (Sr. 6-0, 208) will likely return to the starting lineup but not in his former position as strong side linebacker, but at strong safety. Vickers was an honorable mention all-league performer who started all 12 games for the Rams in 2000, finishing 3rd on the team in tackles. According to coach Lubick, "He has really had a good spring, and looked comfortable at safety." Landon Jones (So 6-2, 222) who saw action is one game in 2001 will compete with juniors Jason Hepp (Jr. 6-2, 191) and Junior College transfer Guy Porter (Jr 6-1, 200) for the starting position at strong safety but we believe the experienced Vickers will be there on August 22. Look for either Miles Kochevar (R-Fr 6-1, 185) or Travis Campbell (Jr 6-0, 190), to emerge as the starting free safety. Defensive backs coach Marvin Sanders in an article in the Rocky Mountain Collegian stated "We still don't have a definitive depth chart at free safety," "A lot of it has to do with chemistry and how well certain guys work with each other, so we tried to give a lot of guys some looks back there. Rashaan (Sanders), David Foley, Travis Campbell and Lenzie Williams all got a chance to show what they could do with the first team. This is probably something that we will continue during fall practice."
The Rams appear thin on the defensive front as well, especially on the two deep. Figuratively and literally. With an average height of 6-3 and average weight of 263 pounds, the Rams front line is smaller than Dukes' (6-4, 265) and will likely be the smallest front the Cavs face this season next to Akron (6-3, 254). The real struggle may come if one of the starters gets injured. Of the 6 guys fighting for back-up playing time, only one has any real game experience (Andre Sommersell, Jr. 6-3, 210). Colorado State does return 2nd team all MWC performer and their leading sack man from a year ago Peter Hogan (Sr. 6-3, 255). Hogan, who started 11 games last season including one at nose tackle, accounted for 37 tackles including 4 for loss from his position on the left side of the line. The "behemoth" of the undersized Rams defensive line is 7-time 2001 starter Patrick Goodpaster (So. 6-3, 285). As a true freshman, Goodpaster was responsible for 13 tackles, 3 tackles for loss and a sack. The Rams do return two other players with starting experience for coach Tom Ehlers in tackle Bryan Save (Jr. 6-2, 270) and Wallace Thomas (Sr. 6-3, 245) with 4 and 3 starts respectively. Save tied for the team lead in fumble recoveries and added 11 tackles while Thomas simply tied for top honors in the tackles for loss (6) and quarterback sacks (3) category.
While the defensive front may be light on experience, Virginia fans and offensive line coach Ron Prince would do well not to underestimate this group. Coach Tom Ehlers is an up-and-comer in the coaching ranks and is a proven commodity having coached eight all-conference performers and 6 of the top 10 ranked career leaders in quarterback sacks in CSU history.
One area where there is no concern on defense is with the linebacker corps where the Rams feature one of the nation's best. All three 2001 starters return this season. This group combined for 279 tackles in 2001, 33% of the team total. Drew Wood (Jr. 6-2, 224) should return to his starting spot at middle linebacker where he was 2nd on the team in tackles (96) last fall and tied for the team lead in interceptions with 3. Two starters from a year ago, Eric Pauly (Jr. 6-4, 220) and Adam Wade (Jr. 6-1, 210) will fill the weak side and strong side outside linebacker spot for CSU. Pauly led the Rams and the MWC in tackles with 115 in 2001 and Wade finished 6th on the team in tackles and tied Wallace Thomas for tackles for loss honors with 6. All the members of the backer two deep have game experience and should be solid backups for the starting three. Vickers could also spell the starters if some of the younger players step up in the secondary.
Special teams was an area all to often mired by breakdowns by the Hoos last fall and Virginia fans should get an early look as to how well Corwin Browns' charges have improved against Colorado State. The Rams blocked 4 kicks in 2001, each resulting in a score (3 touchdowns, 1 safety). The CSU special teams are loaded with top-flight performers across the board. Punter Joey Huber (Sr. 6-4, 223) was a finalist for the Ray Guy award and was named first team all MWC and led the Rams to a 5th place finish in the nation in net punting (40.3). Place kicker Jeff Babcock (So. 5-10, 180) will take over all of the kicking duties this season for Colorado State after handling the kick-off duties a year ago. Of his 60 kicks last season, only 21 were returned. The humid Virginia air should make that a little more difficult in late August, but Babcock posses a strong leg and gets exceptional lift on his kicks. The Cavs will not have to deal with departed kick return specialist and 2001 team MVP Pete Rebstock (27.6) who was 11th in the nation last fall in kick-off returns. They will however need to find a way to manage Dexter Wynn who led the MWC in punt returns (15.1) and was 3rd in the conference in kick-off returns with a 26.1 ypr average. Overall, the Rams were 1st in the league returning kicks with a 26.6 ypr average.
The Virginia staff can approach this game two ways; look to pound the undersized CSU defensive front in the muggy Virginia August humidity, or test the Ram pass defense early and often. While the defensive line is suspect, the Ram linebackers are not. Although State gave up 211 yards per game rushing a year ago (in a passing conference) the strength early on for the Hoos might be with an experienced quarterback in Matt Schaub and a solid group of returning guys to throw the ball too. With receivers like Billy McMullen, Ottawa Anderson and Michael McGrew, plus solid receivers out of the backfield like Alvin Pearman and newcomer Wali Lundy, look for Bill Musgrave and the offense to try and exploit the young Ram secondary, and then pound the ball late.
The Cavs will likely be featuring a lot of new faces on both sides of the ball when this game starts and anytime you start true freshmen, especially a lot of true freshmen, one should be cautious with their expectations. That said, this game should end a little different than the last time a Mountain West Team visited the friendly confines of Scott Stadium, with a UVA victory.
Virginia - 24 CSU - 13
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