Saturday will be a day filled with expectations in Fort Collins.
The Rams open their brand-new on-campus stadium against Oregon State with aspirations of competing for a Mountain West title. With senior quarterback Nick Stevens and preseason All-American Michael Gallup leading the offense, CSU has every reason to be optimistic.
Stevens joined Renaud Notaro and Dan Jacobs on Tuesday after practice to talk about some of those big expectations for 2017.
CSU is loaded with explosive offensive playmakers this year, something Stevens certainly appreciates.
“What we have is a quarterback’s dream,” Stevens said. “We have explosive guys all over the field when it comes to our exterior with our receivers. We have returning backs that all have experience that have all had good years and can put up numbers, and then an experienced line. I think that on top of that we have tight ends that don’t have as much game experience, but they’re a really, really talented group and I think that they’re going to contribute a lot as well. Those guys are a little different because they’re in the run game, in the pass game as well, so you’re going to have to rely on them a lot. I think we have guys that are dependable, that we can rely on.
Stevens is particularly excited about the big play potential from his playmakers once they have the ball in their hands.
“What I like about it, obviously, I think the biggest thing, is being able to throw the ball under the sticks and have guys go make plays – get you first downs, get you touchdowns. I think we have potential for a really, really good amount of yards after the catch. Everybody we get the ball to has the potential to take it to the house. So, I think that’s a really, really cool thing. We saw it in a couple games last year where we throw a screen, which is behind the line of scrimmage, and Mike Gallup or Detrich Clark are taking it to the house,” he said.
Being able to protect the football will be crucial for Stevens this year, so he’s thrilled he can be confident drawing up plays that don’t require him to make risky throws.
“That’s the best play a quarterback can draw up, when you don’t have to throw the ball very far and you get the yards for it and the touchdown for it.”
More importantly, he and the coaching staff are drawing up plays for a group that this year is all on the same page and ready to get off to a fast start.
“I think we have a ton of those guys on our offense, and I think this year what we have that kind of differs from previous years is we have a lot of guys who really, really know the game plan and know what to do. I think some of our slow starts the past couple of years have been kind of attributed to not everyone being on the same page. I think right now what we have is 11 guys on the field all on the same page, and that’s why we’re playing really well as a unit right now. I think that’s what we need to bring in Saturday to give ourselves an opportunity to win.”
Stevens will be the first quarterback to start in the schools $220-million on-campus stadium, an opportunity he wasn’t sure he’d have when he arrived at CSU.
“It’s crazy. I thought I was going to be playing in Hughes my whole career here,” Stevens said. “When talk started about this new stadium at first there was a lot of opposition and so we were sort of like, ‘Okay, it might not happen while we’re here,’ and then they got the deal started and broke ground and you’re like, ‘Okay, this thing’s really starting to spring up. It’s going to be crazy if I’m going to be able to play in it.’ Two years later, it’s one of the top stadiums in the country I believe. We have incredible facilities here. And then just being able to walk into it with the team and see how excited guys get. This was built for us and there’s so much that went into it, so many people behind it, all looking out for our best interests, all wanting us to succeed and wanting us to have the best facilities that are possible. And I think that’s a really cool deal. We’re grateful and appreciative, and we want to open this thing up the right way.”
In order to do that, they’ll have to beat an Oregon State team that Stevens believes will challenge his talented offense.
“I think they have some really good returning talent, like you want to see in your own defense. Guys that fly around to the ball, play hard. I was watching film the other day; it looks like they have the ability to create turnovers, which also is what you want in your defense. I think I see a really, really good defense, so we have to come prepared to put up yards against them,” he said.
One key to putting up yards is preseason All-American Michael Gallup, who exploded onto the college football scene last year in CSU’s sixth game. After a slow start to the year, he put up 140 yards and a touchdown on seven receptions to help defeat Utah State. He had at least 91 yards in every game that followed, including a season-high 213 yards against Air Force.
Stevens has major expectations for Gallup, whom Stevens expects to come prepared to put up big numbers right out of the gate.
“My expectations are through the roof for him. I think that he can have an even better season that he did last year,” Stevens said. “People thought that his season last year was incredible, but I think that he was one of those guys that wasn’t really all the way there in the first couple weeks of the season. So, I think you didn’t start to see those explosive number from him until [after] the first few games of the season. This year I think you’re going to see those numbers, those stats, from day one. That just gives him the potential to make many, many more plays. Have a ton more yards, more touchdowns. I think that he’s been putting in the work this offseason to really, really improve craft. He’s going to be a better receiver than he was last year.”
While he wants his receiver to put up big numbers, Stevens doesn’t like to set specific numbers as goals for himself. He won’t be counting yards or touchdowns, just wins.
“Honestly, I think I’m taking my personal goals as team goals. I want to, personally, I want to win a conference championship, which is obviously more of a team goal,” he said.
“If I did have to put benchmarks, it would be limiting turnovers. Because that is one way where you can really impact a game. If you don’t have any turnovers, the odds go up extremely in your favor. So that’s going to be my goal. No turnovers every game. I don’t really have a mark set for yards or touchdowns. As long as we’re winning games, that doesn’t really matter to me.”
The Rams are expected to win a lot of games this season thanks to Stevens and the talent around him on offense. As for his expectations for Saturday’s opener, Stevens says expect an electric atmosphere on and off the field.
“I would expect a great time. I think it’s going to be bumpin’ here. Gonna’ be loud. Gonna’ be great energy. You hope to see a lot of explosive plays by the offense and a lot of big hits by the defense. Guys running around, running to the ball, making plays and playing for each other.
Listen to the full interview with Nick Stevens, including his thoughts on having CSU legend Anthoney Hill on the football operations staff, in the podcast below…
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