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The Colorado State Rams fell to 3-4 on the season (1-2 Mountain West) with a heartbreaking 28-23 loss to the No. 15 ranked Boise State Broncos on Saturday night in Boise. The Rams mounted a huge fourth-quarter comeback, scoring 20 points in a span of one minute and 25 seconds in the game’s final five minutes, but ultimately came up just short.
Junior quarterback Nick Stevens, making his first start since the season opener against Colorado, went 17-of-31 for 184 yards and two touchdowns. Junior Dalyn Dawkins led the Rams on the ground with 66 yards rushing and a receiving touchdown, while sophomore Izzy Matthews added 55 yards and a rushing touchdown. Michael Gallup, who was held to one catch for two yards in the game’s first 55 minutes, finished as the Rams’ leading receiver with four catches for 91 yards, including a 53-yard touchdown.
The Rams opened up a 3-0 lead over the Broncos in the game’s opening minutes, marking the first time this season that Boise State has trailed in a game. Colorado State’s defense was stout through much of the first half, holding the Broncos scoreless until game’s first touchdown with 27 seconds to play in the first half. Dating back to last week’s win over Utah State, the Rams’ defense had gone nearly four quarters and 13 consecutive opponent possessions without allowing a point.
The Broncos responded with 28 unanswered points, and held a 28-3 lead with 5:53 remaining in the game. The Rams then used an Izzy Matthews touchdown, two successfully recovered Hayden Hunt onside kicks, a Michael Gallup touchdown reception and a Dalyn Dawkins touchdown reception to make it a 28-23 game with 3:35 remaining. After a third onside kick attempt failed, the Rams defense made a big 4th down stop, but the offense was unable to get off a last-second Hail Mary attempt as an offensive penalty forced a 10-second runoff, thus ending the game.
Sophomore Josh Watson led the Rams with eight tackles, while senior Kevin Davis recorded six tackles, including two for a loss. Freshmen Jamal Hicks, Toby McBride, Richard King, and O’Shea Jackson all had big days against the nation’s 33rd ranked offense. Hicks recorded six tackles in his first career start, McBride logged two tackles for a loss and a sack, King recorded his first career sack and Jackson recorded a career-high five tackles.
Colorado State takes on UNLV on the road next Saturday, with kickoff pegged for 3:30 p.m. MT on ROOT Sports