Jay Norvell, Colorado State being ‘realistic’ amid difficult start to season | Rams Gameday

FORT COLLINS — Jay Norvell sought the advice of a trusted friend this week.

As the Colorado State coach gets ready for a difficult home game against Fresno State on Friday night (7 p.m., CBS Sports Network), he’s just trying to right the ship.

Fresno State running back Elijah Gilliam (33) reacts after scoring a touchdown during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Kansas on Saturday, Aug. 23, 2025, in Lawrence, Kan. (AP Photo/Colin E. Braley)

So, Norvell reached out to Indianapolis Colts general manager Chris Ballard.

“When things aren’t going good, the key is (to) emphasize great effort and eliminate mistakes, and that’s what we’re doing as a program as a team,” Norvell said Ballard told him.

The tone and rhetoric coming out of Fort Collins have changed drastically and quickly.

Even one week into the season, after an encouraging performance in a loss at Washington, Norvell boldly said he believed his Rams roster had “championship DNA.”

CSU has promptly responded by going 1-3 over the next four games, barely beating FCS Northern Colorado in the home opener before losing three straight against UTSA and Washington State at home, and then last week at San Diego State in the Mountain West opener.

The Rams are 1-4, which already matches the amount of regular season losses the program had during what seemed like a breakthrough in 2024.

But less than a year after winning eight games for the first time in a decade, Norvell is saying he and his coaching staff need to be “realistic” about the 2025 Rams. That word ‘realistic’ is one he used multiple times this week as his group is set to be home underdogs again versus a Fresno State team that comes in at 5-1 overall and with a 2-0 record in the Mountain West.

Colorado State head coach Jay Norvell walks on the sideline during an NCAA college football game against Washington, Saturday, Aug. 30, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

“As excited as I was about this roster a month ago, we’re a little bit different now,” Norvell said. “From a roster perspective, we gotta be realistic with where we are. Right now, when I look at our roster, we only have starters that were starters last year that are playing for us and that’s Aaron Karas and Armani Winfield. The rest of the starters on offense are all new. We don’t have any returning starters on defense, and we don’t have any returning starters on special teams. 

“We still have a lot of kids that need to be brought up to speed.”

Yes, the injuries continue to mount. Veteran defensive end Mukendi Wa-Kalonji was supposed to be the lone returning starter on defense, but he’s been lost for the season. So has left guard Tanner Morley, a sophomore and team captain who might just be the most talented player on the offense. 

In all, CSU has already ruled out 10 players for this week’s game and half are listed as out for the rest of 2025.

But the Rams just haven’t played well enough, either. The offense got to a point where Norvell had to bench third-year starting quarterback Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi during the first month in favor of redshirt sophomore Jackson Brousseau, who will continue to start going forward.

Colorado State redshirt sophomore quarterback Jackson Brousseau (7) celebrates a first down in the second half of a game against UTSA on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025 at Canvas Stadium in Fort Collins. (Courtesy of Yesenia Enriquez, CSU Athletics)

Defensively, bringing in new coordinator Tyson Summers hasn’t really worked. CSU has only forced five total turnovers and has by far the fewest amount of sacks in the conference, with 30.

On both sides of the ball, simple is better right now.

“Just trying to get some spark with this group,” Norvell said. “The biggest thing that we’ve tried to do is limit what we’re doing, play with great effort, and play without making mistakes. We feel like if we do that, we can continue to get better, but from a roster perspective, we gotta be realistic about where we are.

“The margin for error is not big and it just forces you as a coach to be right on every goal. It’s challenging, but it is what it is. We’ll continue to probe and put the right schemes on the field to help our guys execute.”

The definition of success in Fort Collins has simplified, too.

“I think we gotta improve and play better every time we walk on the field,” Norvell said.

King’s Prediction

Fresno State 27, Colorado State 17

Jay Norvell said the quiet part out loud. The Rams have to focus on making improvements on both sides of the ball before they can focus on winning football games at this point of the season. It’s disappointing for a team that had high expectations coming into the year, but this has quickly become a season of development at CSU. Trying to build around a growing young core is objective No. 1 — and that likely means another loss against a Fresno State team that will be a Mountain West contender the rest of 2025.

King’s Players to Watch

Colorado State: QB Jackson Brousseau, OLB JaQues Evans

CSU is going to continue leaning into what Brousseau does best, but the young quarterback still learning his way as a starter, has to continue to show signs of improvement in other areas, too. Last week was encouraging for the Rams’ offense, even if they were playing catch up the entire time, and Brousseau could really benefit from a few solid drives to begin Friday’s game. On defense, CSU is just desperate for any sort of big play. On a banged-up defensive line struggling to generate pressure, it’s on someone like Evans to step up.

Fresno State: RBs Bryson Donelson and Rayshon Luke, LB Jadon Pearson

You can’t separate one Bulldogs running back from the other. Both Donnelson and Luke have over 340 rushing yards so far this season and they’ve combined for eight touchdowns. Against a Rams defense that couldn’t stop the San Diego State rushing attack in any way last week, expect Fresno State to lean into this talented duo. Defensively, Pearson is one of just three Mountain West players with over 50 tackles so far this season and he’ll be relied upon to limit a CSU rushing attack that is gaining momentum behind Jalen Dupree.