Colorado State head coach Jay Norvell roams the sideline during the green and gold spring game on Saturday, April 22, 2023, at Canvas Stadium in Fort Collins.

Colorado State coach Jay Norvell takes veiled jab at Deion Sanders

Colorado State head coach Jay Norvell and the Rams are headed to Boulder to play the Colorado Buffaloes, where ESPN’s “College GameDay” and a flock of energized locals are sure to greet the in-state rival.

Norvell said on his coach’s show on Wednesday that underdog CSU is tired of the pomp and circumstance around the game with much of the attention cast on new Colorado coach Deion Sanders and the hot-ticket Buffs.

Colorado enters the game ranked 18th in the Top 25.

In particular, Norvell took a thinly veiled jab at Sanders’ press conference attire after he was interviewed in a baseball cap and sunglasses. Norvell consistently wears a visor on the sideline.

“We had to do a bunch of ESPN videos, and it was great, I loved it,” Norvell said on his coach’s show. “But our kids came out of all those videos really with a chip on their shoulder. They’re tired of all that stuff. They really are tired of it.

“I sat down with ESPN today. And I don’t care if they hear it in Boulder. I told them I took my hat off and my glasses off. And I told them, ‘When I talk to grownups, I take my hat and my glasses off.’ That’s what my mother taught me.”

The Rams have dropped 24 consecutive games against ranked opponents since beating then-No. 7 Colorado in 2002 during Sonny Lubick’s tenure as Rams coach.

Colorado State has lost the past five meetings — the most recent was in 2019 — in the Rocky Mountain Showdown.

–Field Level Media

Washington State Cougars defensive back Sam Lockett III (0) recovers a fumble by Wisconsin Badgers tight end Clay Cundiff (not pictured) against Wisconsin Badgers wide receiver Chimere Dike (13) and Wisconsin Badgers linebacker Jake Ratzlaff (25) late in the fourth quarter during their football game Saturday, September 10, 2022, at Camp Randall in Madison, Wis.

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Washington State looks to continue trends vs. Colorado State

Washington State and Colorado State are going in different directions starting off the season under new coaches heading into Saturday’s game at Pullman, Wash.

The Cougars, in Jake Dickert’s first full season as permanent coach after he led the program on an interim basis for the latter half of 2021, are coming off a 17-14 win last week at then-No. 19 Wisconsin.

Washington State’s Cam Ward went 17 of 28 for 200 yards with two interceptions in the upset victory, which earned the Cougars (2-0) votes in the AP Top 25.

Colorado State lost to Middle Tennessee State 34-19 at home to drop to 0-2 under Jay Norvell, who was hired away from Nevada after last season. The Rams are suddenly trying to avoid their first 0-3 start since 2010.

Norvell said he called meetings with some of his players Monday after the turbulent start of the season, which launched with a 51-7 loss at Michigan.

“I think we still have a ways to go in understanding the type of preparation you have to have,” Norvell said. “Good football teams all over the country, they come back and watch film, they’re getting with their coaches, they’re spending extra time, really sinking their teeth into the game plan.

“We’ve got some guys who have done that; we’ve got some guys who don’t understand that at all.”

Washington State showed it is in sync with Dickert his staff by topping Wisconsin at Madison, Wis., in front of 80,000 fans.

“We believed we could do it,” Dickert said. “This wasn’t some upset of a lifetime. … We just kept throwing things at them. You can never do just one thing against a good run team.

Washington State’s defense limited Wisconsin’s Braelon Allen to 98 yards rushing, just the second time in his last 11 games that was held below 100.

“I’m so proud of our run defense,” Dickert said. “To not give up a huge, explosive run — which is something their offense really depends on — is important.”

Now the Cougars will line up against a CSU offense that has managed 72 net yards rushing on 73 attempts this season – an 0.99-yard average that ranks 130th out of 131 in the nation. That stat is certainly influenced by Colorado State quarterbacks being sacked 16 times — the most in the nation, or about once for every two completed passes (36).

–Field Level Media