College Football Preview: New Mexico at Colorado State

The Colorado State Rams return to action following their bye week and will host the New Mexico Lobos on Senior Day at Hughes Stadium. The Rams will be looking for their ninth straight win. The game will be broadcast locally on Root Sports with kickoff set for 11:30am.

The offense for the Rams has been potent all season and Saturday should be no different. The Lobos struggle to stop the run and it won’t get any easier facing Dee Hart. The Lobos have allowed seven rushing touchdowns over the past two weeks and both Hart and Treyous Jarrells will be licking their chops.

The running game will open up the passing game for quarterback Garrett Grayson. The Lobos are decent versus the pass but that has more to do with the fact that teams have so much success on the ground that they don’t need to throw it.

More from CSU Rams

• The Top Prospects From Each College in Colorado
• Colorado State Rams: Rammies are Back With Huge SEC Win over Arkansas
• Rocky Mountain Showdown Reaction
• 5 Bold Predictions for the Rocky Mountain Showdown Tonight
• Colorado vs Colorado State Preview and Prediction

The Rams offense is based on balance and they will throw the football when that’s what the defense dictates. Wide receiver Rashard Higgins returns after missing a week with a shoulder injury, and should continue to put up big numbers versus the secondary of the Lobos.

The one area on defense that the Lobos have been good in is forcing turnovers and if they are going to have any chance on Saturday, they will need to force the Rams into some mistakes. If the Rams take care of the ball on offense, then another 40 point afternoon is all but assured.

The Lobos are an option team on offense which will provide a challenge to the Rams defense. They have not seen the option attack yet this season and will now see it both this week, and next week when they close out the regular season versus the Air Force Academy.

The good news for the Rams is that they’ve had two weeks to prepare for the option, and have been pretty good versus the run all season. As with any option offense, it will be vital that the Rams play disciplined assignment football. Middle linebacker, Max Morgan will be the key if the Rams are going to slow down the Lobos running attack.

The secondary for the Rams will also be counted on to help set the edge on the outside, and make tackles in the open field.

The one chance the Lobos have to keep the game close is to control time of possession and keep the football away from Grayson and the Rams offense. The option offense is set up to do just that and if they can also force a couple of turnovers, then the Lobos might have a chance in the fourth quarter.

In the end though, the Rams are just playing too well and have too much fire power. The Lobos will score some points and they will make their share of plays, but it won’t be enough. Throw in the emotion of senior day and the Rams roll to their tenth win of the season.

Prediction: Rams-41 Lobos-23