Pac-12 · Jim Mora, year 1 (2-0) · Canvas Stadium · 36,500 · 38,147 avg in 2026
LastW 58–24 vs Southern Utah · Sat Sep 12 · Hauss Hejny 325 pass yds, 4 TD, 1 INT
Nextvs BYU · Sat Sep 19 · 7:30 pm ET · Canvas Stadium · BYU by 17.5 · series 27-39-3, lost the last 7 · Game preview
Updated Tue Sep 15 · through week 2
| Wk | Date | Us | Opp | Line | Opponent | Result | Record | Conf |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sep 5 | #79 | #111 | -3✓ | Wyoming | W 35–13 120 | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| 2 | Sep 12 | #84 | #149 | -19.5✓ | Southern Utah | W 58–24 133 | 2-0 | 0-0 |
| 3 | Sep 19 | #81 | #10 | +17.5 | BYU | |||
| 4 | Sep 26 | #80 | #14 | @UTSA | ||||
| 5 | Oct 3 | Oregon State | ||||||
| 7 | Oct 16 | @Texas State | ||||||
| 8 | Oct 24 | San Diego State | ||||||
| 9 | Oct 31 | @Utah State | ||||||
| 10 | Nov 7 | Boise State | ||||||
| 11 | Nov 15 | @Washington State | ||||||
| 12 | Nov 22 | @Fresno State |
| Date | Opp | Result | Yds | TO | TOP | EPA/play | Success% | Explosive% | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 12 | Southern Utah | W 58–24 | 678 | 1 | 26:42 | +0.492 | 49.3% | 180.3% | |
| Sep 5 | Wyoming | W 35–13 | 396 | 0 | 29:19 | +0.301 | 48.5% | 120.9% | |
| Season average (2 games) | 537 | 0.5 | +0.396 | 48.9% | 150.6% | ||||
Colorado State is the Fort Collins program that finally got a real stage — a Pac-12 invite — at the exact moment it had to fire its coach and start over to prove it deserves the seat.
Rams fans have spent a generation watching Colorado get the cameras, the recruits, and the benefit of the doubt while Fort Collins gets called the other Colorado school. The Pac-12 move is the chance…
The season in chapters
What fans said
Real posts from the day of the game, chosen by community score · usernames not shown
What it is like to watch them2025 · 2-10 · last season
✓ measured from 12 games · ranks are among Mountain West teams the same season
Recent form · last 10 games · incl. 2025
Cooling. 3-7 over the last 10, and won the last two.
We have to enjoy this for 24 hours, and then we need to get to the next challenge
Next Sep 19
vs BYU · at home
~ our read on style
Market outlook
Sportsbook consensus · best odds across multiple books · 2026-09-14
the open questioncan a new staff change the trajectory?
Jim Mora, who previously coached at UConn, begins his first season at Colorado State with 50% production returning and a program that hasn't reached a milestone since the Jay Norvell era.
our readdeveloping
Norvell's top-2 Pac-12 portal class targets CB and DL after losing Winfield and Harrison — a rebuild with 50% returning production.
our readbackground
Tommy Maher sees a real spike in usage once the game is out of reach, and his efficiency in competitive snaps sits below the position baseline -- the numbers lean on the opponent giving up.
our readdeveloping
Jay Norvell enters his 4th season at Colorado State with a 2-10 losing record and a #92 talent rank, raising questions about whether the program can elevate beyond its lower-tier FBS status.
our readdeveloping
Jay Norvell enters his fourth season with a 2-10 losing record to address, as Colorado State's rebuilding effort hinges on coordinator-driven unit reshaping and renewed fan confidence.
our readdeveloping
Lavon Brown is used almost exclusively underneath -- a low share of his targets are downfield shots.
our readbackground
Tay Lanier is used almost exclusively underneath -- a low share of his targets are downfield shots.
our readbackground
Tommy Maher is used almost exclusively underneath -- a low share of his targets are downfield shots.
our readbackground
Colorado State collapsed 31 spots in SP+ — the steepest drop in the Pac-12 this cycle, and Jay Norvell's fourth season opens with a 2-10 record to explain it.
our readbackground
Jay Norvell enters his fourth season at Colorado State with a 2-10 losing record to address, as the program's identity hinges on rebuilding confidence and reshaping units under new coordinators.
our readbackground
Mora, who previously coached at UConn, inherits a 2-10 roster and 40% returning production — the third head coach in five years adds another layer to a program still searching for its identity.
our readdeveloping
Colorado State's 2-10 record contrasts with its historical identity as a program defined by the Sonny Lubick 1990s dynasty and the promise of Jay Norvell's era.
our readdeveloping
Outcome band · Colorado State · 2026
Floor, base and ceiling come from the season-path projection, which plays out conference title games and the CFP — so a ceiling can run past 12 games.
Jim Mora took over as Colorado State's head coach, replacing Tyson Summers. It is replaces 4-year head coach Jay Norvell (18-26). It's not the hire that's the story anymore — it's everything it set in motion. The room is genuinely divided — believers and skeptics both have receipts.
The 'this hire changes everything' takes -- new-era believers making the case early.
The 'show me the body of work' counter -- resume gaps, scheme fits, and 'not that guy' reads.
This event was in 30 of 600 board posts (5%) over the last 60 days — engaged but not consumed. Fan text shown verbatim, attributed to the community not the individual poster.
Board health this week (167 posts): 28% positive · 49% neutral · 23% negative. Team-level weekly mood — not specific to this event. The boards ≠ the fanbase: a self-selected vocal slice.
Colorado State signed a top-40 transfer-portal class — 32 additions headlined by Hauss Hejny (QB) from Oklahoma State and Caleb Presley (CB) from San José State. It is the No. 1 portal class in the Pac-12 this cycle. Portal pickups are proven college players — the split isn't about development, it's about whether they fit the scheme and win their position battles. Coverage is split on whether volume or positional fit is the bigger story.
The 'portal class fills the gaps' believers -- upgrades at real positions of need.
The 'portal is a gamble' counter -- departure losses and the 'plug-and-play doesn't work' read.
Only 14 of 600 board posts mention it — below our floor to call a community stance. Shown as texture, not a verdict.
Board health this week (167 posts): 28% positive · 49% neutral · 23% negative. Team-level weekly mood — not specific to this event. The boards ≠ the fanbase: a self-selected vocal slice.
Fan mood index · most recent r/cfb data
More in this tab
Colorado State is the Mountain West program whose Sonny Lubick 1990s dynasty + Canvas Stadium 2017 opening + Jay Norvell era under construction define what Fort-Collins-G5-football looks like.
The program ledger
since 2025Wyoming's Jayden Williams apologizes to CSU fans
Williams apologizing to Rams fans is bulletin-board noise Mora's room doesn't need — a #73 class and a win total sliding from 4 to 3.5 means CSU has bigger fires to put out than a rival's trash talk.
Win total: 4 → 3.5 (▼0.5)
Top-33 portal class didn't move the needle — books shaved another half-win off Norvell's total because a #106 recruiting class and a WR room still under pressure means that portal haul has to work perfectly just to stay at four.
Top 3 commits
Recruiting Footprint · 2026
CA leads the 2026 class with 7 commits. National footprint reaching 14 states.
Where they recruit · 2023-2026
97 signees across 27 states, 2023-2026. CA leads the pull.
Miles from home · 2026 roster
The median Colorado State player grew up 876 miles from campus.
Half this roster came from closer than that; half came from farther.
Straight-line distance from each player's listed hometown to Canvas Stadium. Hometowns are placed at city-centroid precision, not street address — fine at this scale, but a player's true door-to-door number can differ by a few miles. 157 of 165 listed players have a geocoded hometown. Source: CFBD roster hometowns.
No high-engagement r/cfb discussions tracked for this program in the last year.
Among the stronger offseasons on record for this program
90th percentile among FBS programs
Recovering 50% of the fumbles they've forced — running hot vs. the ~46% league rate.
3 of 6 forced fumbles recovered, 2026 only.
Converting 42% of pass disruptions into takeaways — well above the ~18% league rate.
5 interceptions of 12 disrupted passes (7 deflected, 5 intercepted), 2026 only.
Winning the penalty battle: 6 penalties committed vs. 12 drawn on opponents, a 33-yard edge.
56 penalty yards committed vs. 89 drawn on opponents, 2026 season total.
Outcome band · Colorado State · 2026
Recruiting Footprint · 2026