GARRETT GRAYSON MAX MORGAN AARON DAVIS TRENT MATTHEWS TY SAMBRAILO vs. DECEMBER 20 2014 ALL-MOUNTAIN WEST 2014 Honorees GARRETT GRAYSON TY SAMBRAILO FIRST-TEAM ALL-MOUNTAIN WEST FIRST-TEAM ALL-MOUNTAIN WEST RASHARD HIGGINS STEVEN WALKER FIRST-TEAM ALL-MOUNTAIN WEST FIRST-TEAM ALL-MOUNTAIN WEST AARON DAVIS DEE HART SECOND-TEAM ALL-MOUNTAIN WEST SECOND-TEAM ALL-MOUNTAIN WEST 15 CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS | 3 MOUNTAIN WEST CHAMPIONSHIPS | 14 BOWL APPEARANCES | 45 WEEKS IN THE POLLS SINCE ‘94 Colorado State Football Media Contacts Paul Kirk, Assistant A.D. for Communications O: (970) 491-4672 | [email protected] | @PaulKirk_CSU Stuart Buchanan, Athletics Communications Assistant O: (970) 491-0472 | [email protected] 311 McGraw Athletic Center | Fort Collins, CO 80523 245 FIRST-TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE SELECTIONS | 23 ALL-AMERICANS | 3 COLLEGE FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME SELECTIONS | 1 JIM THORPE AWARD WINNER 2014 SCHEDULE Colorado State (10-2, 6-2 MW) At A Glance No. 22 Utah (8-4, 5-4 PAC-12) Date Opponent Time/Result TV 8/29 vs. Colorado* W, 31-17 Fox Sports 1 RAMS Date .......................Sat., Dec. 20 UTES 9/6 at Boise State L, 37-24 ESPN2 9/13 UC DAVIS W, 49-21 CSURams.com Time .....................1:30 p.m. MT 9/27 at Boston College W, 24-21 ROOT Sports 10/4 TULSA W, 42-17 MWN TV ....................................... ABC 10/11 at Nevada W, 31-24 CBS Sports Location ............Las Vegas, Nev. 10/18 UTAH STATE W, 16-13 CBS Sports 10/25 WYOMING W, 45-31 ROOT Sports Venue ..........Sam Boyd Stadium 11/1 at San José State W, 38-31 CBS Sports 11/8 HAWAI’I W, 49-22 ESPNU Surface ................................Turf 11/22 NEW MEXICO W, 58-20 ROOT Sports Capacity ..........................36,800 11/28 at Air Force L, 27-24 CBS Sports 12/20 vs. Utah# 1:30 p.m. MT ABC Series ..........Utah leads 55-22-2 * Sports Authority Field at Mile High (Denver, Colo.) # Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl (Sam Boyd Stadium) All times Mountain, home games in ALL CAPS NEED 2 KNOW WORKING ON A MILESTONE A win in the Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl would give Colorado State its 23rd victory over 23 Utah. The Rams last defeated the Utes on Oct. 8, 2005 (21-17). Colorado State has 16 wins in its last 20 games. Only Florida State (20-0), Alabama (19-1), Mich- igan State (18-2), Marshall (18-2), Ohio State (17-3), Oregon (17-3) and UCF (17-3) have better 16 records in their last 20 games. The Rams are the only team from the non-Power 5 conferences to own an active three-game winning streak over teams from Power 5 conferences. (Washington State, 2013; Colorado, 3 2014; Boston College, 2014) Senior QB Garrett Grayson holds the top spot in 14 CSU statistical categories (single game, The Rams’499 58-20 victory over New Mexico (11/22) gave single season and career). CSU its 499th win. The Colorado State football program, 14 which started playing in 1893, can reach its 500th Sophomore wide receiver Rashard Higgins - finalist for the Biletnikoff Award - ranks first victory with a school-record-tying 11-win season. Below nationally in receiving yards per game (149.1) and receiving TDs (17). is a look at other milestone victories: 1 Higgins’ career receiving yards per game average of 99.1 is the highest among all active FBS FIRST WIN players. Jan. 28, 1893 Longmont Academy, 24-16 1 50th WIN Colorado State had a school-record 15 players earn All-Mountain West honors, including Oct. 23, 1920 Colorado Mines, 27-0 six players who earned a first- or second-team nod. Senior QB Garrett Grayson was named 100th WIN 15 Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year. Oct. 19, 1929 at Colorado Mines, 12-0 150th WIN Junior linebacker Cory James ranks 5th on Colorado State’s all-time career sacks list. In 34 Sept. 21, 1946 at Fort Warren, 25-0 games, James has racked up 22 sacks. 200th WIN 5 Oct. 8, 1955 at Wyoming, 14-13 James ranks seventh among all active FBS defenders with 22 career sacks. 250th WIN Sept. 27, 1969 Wichita State, 50-21 7 300th WIN Colorado State is one of 13 FBS teams ranked in the top-34 of both scoring offense and Oct. 27, 1979 Air Force, 20-6 scoring defense, and one of three FBS teams from a non-Power 5 conference. 350th WIN 13 Oct. 10, 1992 UTEP, 42-24 The Rams are making their 14th bowl appearance, and enter the Royal Purple Las Vegas 400th WIN Bowl with a 6-7 postseason record. Oct. 17, 1998 at New Mexico State, 47-28 14 450th WIN Sept. 29, 2005 Air Force, 41-23 COLORADO STATE VS. UTAH | ROYAL PURPLE LAS VEGAS BOWL 12/20/14 NOTES IN 140 #TEAM • The Rams rattled off 9 consecutive victories this season, the longest CSU win streak in a single season since 1997. That year CSU also won 9 consecutive games • The Rams have rattled off three consecutive wins (Washington St., 2013; CU, 2014; Boston College, 2014) over teams from the Power 5 conferences • CSU is 1 of only 4 teams from the non-Power 5 conferences that has at least 1 win over a team from the Power 5 conferences in each of the past three seasons (BYU (9) UL-Monroe, N. Illinois) • BYU leads the nation with a victory over a Power 5 opponent in each of the last nine seasons • CSU has won 6 of its last 9 true road games dating back to last season...including neutral site games, CSU has won 8 of its last 11 games outside Fort Collins • At Hughes Stadium the Rams have won 8 consecutive games and 13 of their last 15, dating back to the 2012 season • This is the best period of success at home for the Rams since winning 15-of-17 stretching across the 1997-2001 seasons • The Rams are 16-4 in their last 20 games, and started 10-1 this year for the first time since 1994 • Only one time in program history have the #CSURams won 11 games, and that was in 1997 • The Rams finished undefeated at home (6-0) for the first time since 2000 (5-0), and fourth time overall since 1955. • CSU finished non-conference play undefeated (4-0) for the first time since 1994 • The Rams have secured their first back-to-back winning seasons since 2002-03, when CSU went 10-2 and 7-6, respectively • It its last six games, Colorado State is 4-2 against teams from Power 5 conference (wins - Colorado (2), Washington State and Boston College) • With interim HC @CoachBaldwinTD as off. coord., the Rams have eclipsed 500 yds. of total offense 14 times & scored at least 40 points in 11 games • Additionally, the Rams have logged five of CSU’s top-7 single-game total offensive productions in Baldwin’s three seasons • The Rams’ 31 points vs. Colorado (8/29) were the most scored in a season-opener by CSU since 2003, when the Rams scored 35 points in a loss to the Buffs #OFFENSE • CSU is the only FBS school with a 3,500-yard passer, 1,500-yard receiver and 1,000-yard rusher • CSU has successfully converted 51.2% of its third-down opportunities (5th FBS), which would stand as the best by a Rams team. Previous best: 46.3% in 1985 • The Rams’ offense is averaging 497.8 yards of total offense through 12 games, which is on pace to crush the school record of 470.8 set last season. • The Rams averaged 10.3 yards per play vs. Wyoming (10/25), the third-most in a game in CSU history. In the past 2 yrs, CSU has recorded 3 of the top 4 spots (UTEP in ‘13 - 9.4, UC Davis - 10.1, Wyo - 10.3). • Senior OL Ty Sambrailo has graded out above 90% and recorded over 50 knockdown blocks since returning from injury at Boston College (9/27) • Senior QB Garrett Grayson is Colorado State’s all-time leading passer (8,963). The record was previously held by Kelly Stouffer (7,142; 1984-86) • Grayson is the first CSU QB to toss back-to-back 400-yard games (at Boise St., vs. UC Davis) since Terry Nugent in 1983 • Grayson has thrown 64 touchdowns in his career, to break the school record (51, Moses Moreno) • Before Grayson’s career-best 434 passing yards at Boise State, the last CSU QB to accomplish this feat was Justin Holland (419) vs. Wyoming in 2005 • The Rams’ senior QB has 19 career victories, tied for the fouth-most by a CSU signal-caller since 1993 (BVP - 23, Moreno - 21, Newton - 19) • Grayson has six fourth-quarter game-winning drives in his career, tied for the 4th-most among active FBS quarterbacks • On third down this season Grayson has completed 59-of-93 (63.4%) passes for 844 yards and picked up 48 first downs • WRs Rashard Higgins and Joe Hansley both had 100-yd receiving days at Boise State, the first time since 2005 the Rams have accomplished this feat • Higgins, a @biletnikoffawrd finalist, has 1,640 receiving yards (2nd FBS), and averages 149.1 receiving yards/gm (1st FBS) • The 1,640 receiving yds are the most in a single season by a CSU pass-catcher. David Anderson held the record w/ 1,293 yds in 2003 • His 99.1 receiving yards per game in his career are the most nationally among active pass catchers • Higgins has 9 100-yd receiving games this season, including seven consecutive games w/ at least 140 receiving yds.