NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION

Merry belated Christmas and a Happy New Year Ram fans! Hopefully 2011 will bring a little prominence back to Ram football and hopefully the schedule will be kind enough for us to so. Here are some resolutions for next season for the program.

1. Go undefeated in-state. We play Northern Colorado next year so there will a true Colorado champion if we can beat all three schools.

2. Adding some new names to the "Ring of Fame" at Hughes. How about Sonny Lubick? What about Joey Porter, Pete Rebstock, BVP, Brady Smith, Dexter Wynn, Sean Moran, Kevin McDougal, Matt Newton, Anthony Cesario, David Anderson, Keli McGregor etc… What exactly are the requirements?

3. Get to a bowl game. I don't care if it's the freakin’ New Mexico Bowl again. At least it's the postseason.

4. Rush for 1000 yards. The nominees include Raymond Carter, Chris Nwoke and Kapri Bibbs.

5. Have a defense that's ranked in the top 50 overall. It'll take some tweaking but it’s doable.

6. Go back to playing on Thursdays. We used to win those games, get lots of exposure and win championships. Why are we NOT doing this? I remember some of the best CSU games were being played on Thursday night.

7. Fill up the stadium just once. Granted, our team performed poorly, but our student representation was pathetic.

8. To score at least one touchdown and/or more than 10 points a game next year. How embarrassing was it not to score a dudge in 5 of 12 games. Not to mention to not score more than 10 points in 8 of 12 games.

I'm sure they'll be working on these this next year. On that note, we'll be working on some new features on Ramifications beginning this new year.

Go Rams!

ANSWERS FROM STEVE

In case you didn't read a couple posts ago, we had some questions for Steve-o about the Ram football program since he offered to answer questions from anyone and everyone. Well... he answered them, except 5 (referenced by Steve himself), in classic Fairchild fashion. Speaking of that, Ramifications submitted 4 questions. 2 of them were answered through similar questions submitted by others: #1.

Do you really think Larry Kerr is the right coach for defense? You can tell in Steve's answer that he was not very happy with the results we had this past year. Neither was anyone else. I would say 80% of season made my guts hurt, not like I just ate a bean burrito from T-Bell that some zitty teenager made for me, but more like somebody kicking me in the junk.

A question we sort of asked but not quite like this was As head coach, was it apparent to you that the team seemed to lack intensity and motivation this year? Steve would make a great interviewee, because he always puts a positive spin on things: "What we lacked, Mark, was consistency and confidence. We are improving our talent level and as we gain experience, our team will improve." I like that answer but I would have liked it more if you were to explain how you were going to motivate the defensive line to be quicker off the ball by strapping a fishing pole to the tops of their helmets and dangle a steak sandwich in front of them. That might make them move a little quicker. The other two questions we asked must have gotten lost in the landslide of emails Steve got. For the most part, I liked the answers he provided but still, even though some questions directly asked 'how', we got a response of "Our offensive line has a chance to be outstanding next season".

I get it, positive reinforcement. I like hearing things like that and so does the rest of the Ram fan base but I guess I want to hear "During the offseason, I'm making it mandatory that Madsen, Richburg, and the rest of the O-line are blasting their quads, shoveling rock and welding together a five story building. Richburg's the building supervisor."

Although, it is kind of hard to answer questions like "With the recent hire of Jon Embree at CU, what are your thoughts on both schools being headed by former alumni?" like Addison asked.  How are you supposed to answer that and more importantly who cares? Is he supposed to say "Yeah, I hear that, EVERYDAY on sports talk radio especially on that crappy radio station 87.7 where all they talk about is Buff football." Out of the five you didn't answer, this should have been one of them.

Thanks coach for answering our questions. Keep up the positivity because I think we have a special team.

Go Rams!

IT"S GETTING CROWDED BACK HERE

After the recent signing of Thompson Valley running back Dorian Brown, one (or at least me) tends to think "What's the deal with the party in the backfield? How is Steve gonna shuffle these guys around so they can get some playing time? Why, in the first question I asked, sound like Jerry Seinfeld doing stand up?" Presuming Kapri Bibbs out of Chicago will sign a commit, there seems to be an abundance of talent that the 2011 running game of the Rams will have to sift through. Is this a good thing? Let's see how we can do this.


Raymond Carter - Senior in 2011
Having a some success this year with a couple of huge games, Carter still makes a solid argument for starting. He demonstrated at times his ability to catch and go but still needs to attack the line of scrimmage hard. If he can stay healthy, he can easily be the center piece of a great back field.

Derek Good - Senior in 2011
As a 2010 Rudy Award nominee, Derek definitely showed heart this past season and contributed to a promising specials team. If he continues to be a leader on this team and show some of the younger guys what it takes to have success at the college level, he'll have no problem running the ball back for a couple of dudges next year. I think he should stick with being a return man and maybe use him as a wide out on third downs. He does have great hands.

Chris Nwoke - Sophomore in 2011
What can I say, I love the way this kid looked this year. He looked huge this past year and he's only going to get bigger. I love his up the field, power running style with a little speed to match. I feel he's gonna be running over fools and stepping on people's faces next year. He's the tops. Either give Chris full time duty at running back or give him the majority of the carries.

Tony Drake - Sophomore in 2011
I know he's listed as a wide receiver but I still like him as a running back. I love his speed and I think they can still throw him in from time to time to be used as a running weapon. I also like the idea of using him as a wheel route guy or a swing pass guy. Short little dump offs so he can haul ass down the field.

Kapri Bibbs - Freshman in 2011
Red shirt the guy. I think we have plenty of talent. Save him for another so he can destroy people after gaining some lbs. He's big enough now but one year under a college training regiment, oh man. Look out son!

Dorian Brown - Freshman in 2011
Dorian kind of has the same running style as Nwoke but Dorian has quicker feet and makes people miss. He also has that power running style which I love too. Keep him healthy. Limit his playing time as a freshman but don't red shirt him. Especially if he's coming for Spring semester. He'll be ready for the fall.

Mark Woodbury - Junior in 2011
I can't really say much about Mark because I haven't really seen him play. By the looks of his high light videos, he seems like a dude that can make people miss. Looks tough and hard to bring down. Maybe use him as a third down specialist.





So many choices, what's Steve to do? He's got a lot to play with. Pretty good problem to have.

Go Rams!

AN OVER DUE CONGRATS

Badass Weston Richburg

(AP Photo)

(AP Photo)

We need to give an over due congratulations to Weston Richburg for earning the CollegeFootballNews.com 2010 Freshman All-American and Phil Steele 2010 Freshman All-American honors. Moving from guard to center after the third game of the season, starting every game, leading the team with 54 knockdowns, allowing only one sack, being the pillar of an up and coming offensive line, a true leader as freshman, busting fools in the face all season long; it's hard to believe Richburg used to play quarterback as a freshman in high school. I guess it shows he's been a leader his entire football career. Keep working on your skills Weston because the Rams are gonna be a force to be reckoned with soon.

Go Rams!

Side note:
Thanks Craig for giving us a swift kick. We know sometimes we get too harsh and we forget about the accomplishments.

CAPTION CONTEST WINNER FOR DECEMBER

And the winner is, (drum roll...)

Justin, Monument, CO
"Who let the ram crap on the field. Ah man, I'm gonna need new cleats!"
I like it Justin. You were probably referring to the big pile of crap that we called a football team this year. You just won yourself a brand new CSU flex fit hat.


Thanks to everyone who participated. Be on the look out for another Caption Contest in the near future and remember, you can enter as many contests as you want.

QUESTIONS FOR STEVE

Steve talking to Pete (AP Photo)

In case you haven't heard, CSURams.com has given the fans the opportunity to ask Coach Fairchild some questions about the football program. I know I'm re-reporting news but here's the link: http://www.csurams.com/genrel/120710aaa.html     You have until 5 pm Friday, December 10th to get your questions in.

We've got a couple questions:
The forward pass was implemented in 1906. Do you plan to incorporate it into future game plans?

Speaking of the passing game, do you plan on recruiting wide receivers that can actually catch the ball instead of relying on guys like Matt Yemm and Tyson Liggett?

On third down situations, do you plan on successfully converting one at some point so I don't have to see Ben DeLine shank the ball off his foot and or another player?

How did you really get Kapri Bibbs to commit to CSU?

How do you plan on fixing your disgusting defensive schemes?

I used to see you at 24 Hour Fitness, did you change gyms or did you not have enough time in your day to workout?

Which loss pissed you off the most, BYU's senior day embarrassment or Wyoming's boot stuffing?

The next time you're on the Steve Fairchild Show on channel 9 with Susie Wargin, can you tell her she had huge boog in her nose in the episode following the UNLV crushing?

On last question and it's a two parter. Can you let Pat Meyer call the offensive plays next year sinse he is the coordinator and can you stick to just coaching?

Go Rams!

KISS OF DEATH

Larry Kerr as the Godfather and a guy with hair

I know we had a little fun taking our shots at Dan Hawkins and the entire CU football program, but how can I possibly go after their new head coach Jon Embree. What can I say, what a great hire. To add Eric Bieniemy would just solidify an all round "great day". Trust me, growing up in Colorado during their years when they were playing, I remember the shared national championship they won (I'm reminded of it every freak'n day after work because Alfred Williams won't shut the hell up about it on the radio.) and how Bieniemy totally dominated. I'll give him props.

Having said that. I think Larry Kerr just gave Jon Ebree the kiss of death in an article written by the Denver Post. Just like when Michael Corleone gave Fredo the kiss of death on the dance floor in The Godfather.

Denver Post

12/3/10

CSU's Kerr has high praise for Embree

Larry Kerr and Jon Embree used to be UCLA coaching colleagues sharing a history of a rivalry in Colorado. Now they will be Rocky Mountain Showdown rivals if Embree, as expected, becomes CU's new head coach.

Colorado State's defensive coordinator would prefer to be on the same sideline instead of coaching against Embree.

"I'm happy for him," Kerr said Thursday. "I don't look forward to playing him, because he does such a good job. That's a great choice, a good guy and a sharp football coach."

Embree coached at UCLA for three years starting in 2003. There was always an undercurrent of the Rocky Mountain Showdown rivalry when he was there. Kerr and ex-Bruins assistant Brian Schneider represented CSU interests. Embree, Eric Bieniemy and Karl Dorrell all had CU ties.

"There was always a little ribbing going on," Kerr said. "He'd remember the games they won. I'd only remember the games we won."

Remember the boat scene? I hope Embree doesn't have any plans to go fishing soon because I think Larry Kerr just jinxed him. Ummm... maybe not.

Go Rams!

COLORADO STATE COMBAT UNIFORMS

To follow up on my last post, I thought it would be sweet to show off some ideas for some combat unis. These examples below I generated from the Russell Athletic Uniform Creator on their website so a lot of the looks are generic to what the site limits as far as options go. It's still pretty cool though. Check out the site if you ever have time.

Alternate 1: Pretty standard but I like the color combo.

Alternate2a: Going for a futuristic feel on this one.

Alternate 2b: Same thing but Aggie style.

Alternate 3: This one has a machine feel to it. 

Alternate 4a: I like the simplicity to this one.

Alternate 4b: With the gold.

Alternate 5a: The golden boy look.

Alternate 5b: Same but white.

Alternate 6: I started to get a little crazy.

Alternate 7: I like the black and green only.

 

Go Rams!

Alternate 8: My fav.