[jwplayer tJPh0k22-sNi3MVSU]
Colorado State vs Middle Tennessee: Game Preview, How to Watch, Odds, Predicition
The Rams head east to face the Blue Raiders.
Contact/Follow @J0shFr3d & @MWCwire
Can the Rams get out of the starting block?
WEEK 4: Colorado State Rams (0-2) vs. Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (1-2)
WHEN: Saturday, September 23rd — 5:00 p.m. MST / 4:00 p.m. PST
WHERE: Johnny “Red” Floyd Stadium; Boulder, CO (30,788)
WEATHER: Partly Cloudy, high of 78 degrees
STREAMING: ESPN+
RADIO: K99-FM 99.1 / ESPN 1600 AM (Colorado)
SERIES RECORD: This will be the 2nd matchup between these two schools. Middle Tennessee leads the series 1-0.
LAST MEETING: Middle Tennessee won 34-19 in Fort Collins last season.
WEBSITES: CSURams.com, the official Colorado State athletics website | GoBlueRaiders.com, the official Middle Tennessee athletics website
GAME NOTES (PDF): Colorado State | Middle Tennessee
ODDS: Middle Tennessee -3
OVER/UNDER: 52.5
SP+ PROJECTION: Middle Tennessee by 6.3
FEI PROJECTION: Middle Tennessee by 5.5
PARKER FLEMING PROJECTION: Colorado State 51.61% win probability (27.02 to 26.42)
Colorado State heads to Murfreesboro, Tennessee to face the Blue Raiders. The are coming off a deflating loss to Colorado in the Rocky Mountain Showdown that they could’ve won. Now it’s up to the Rams to keep their heads up and not let last week affect them.
Middle Tennessee is led by Rick Stockstill in his 18th season at the helm. The Blue Raiders offense is led by Nick Vattiato under center, Jaiden Credle in the backfield, and a large wide receiver in Jeremy Tate. The defense is led by LB Sam Brumfield and S Jakobe Thomas.
𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐨𝐧 𝐂𝐒𝐔𝐑𝐚𝐦𝐬.𝐜𝐨𝐦…
Offensive line collectively moving forward
"… we all want to be able to see things through the same set of eyes."https://t.co/kvpHGVVagO
— Colorado State Football (@CSUFootball) September 21, 2023
Now onto some keys to victory for the Rams.
Three Keys to a colorado state victory
1. No Let Down!
Colorado State is coming off of one of their better performances in a couple seasons. It didn’t result in a win, but it showed they can be a team who can compete. They took it to Colorado in a rivalry game and went to 2OT as a 24 point underdog.
Now, the Rams have to stay up and show they can keep going. Take the lessons learned from the loss and move forward. You can’t get too high and you can’t get too low. Take it one play at a time. It’s all cliché, but it’s true. CSU has to be ready to play and they must forget about last week.
2. Get the run game going
CSU Head Coach Jay Norvell runs the air raid offense, but he also likes to mix in the run to keep defenses honest. They got 100 yards against Colorado, but it wasn’t easy. The Rams ran the ball 39 times for 102 yards for a 2.6 yard average with a long run of 13 yards.
The Rams brought in North Dakota State transfer Kobe Johnson and returned last years leading rusher Avery Morrow. They played a stout defense against Wazzu, but couldn’t really find room against Colorado. Against Middle Tennessee they have a chance to reestablish the run game that helped them last season.
3. Pressure, Pressure, Pressure
Rams defensive coordinator Freddie Banks relies on the front four to get pressure as he rarely blitzes. The front four has been good so far for the Rams this year combining for six of the Rams seven sacks. They need to keep up the pressure.
Mohamed Kamara has three of the previously mentioned six sacks. However, he is going to miss the first half of this game due to being ejected for targeting against Colorado. It’s up to the rest of the Rams front to keep up the pressure in his abscence.
what will happen
The Rams won’t let last week get them down. They’ll use it as fuel for the rest of the year as an example of what they can do. The Blue Raiders will keep this close early, but Colorado State will find their grove through both phases of the game and pull away in the end.
Final Score: Colorado State 42, Middle Tennessee 24
