Five keys for Colorado State’s fall camp

Mike Bobo has to teach his CSU football team new offensive and defensive schemes, break in a new coaching staff and learn how to be a head coach himself after 17 years as an assistant.

So even though Colorado State University returns 15 starters -- seven on offense and eight on defense -- from last year’s 10-3 team, there’s still plenty of work to do during the 29 practices of fall camp that begin Friday. Practices are closed to the public.

Here’s a look at the most important tasks for the Rams leading up to their Sept. 5 season opener against Savannah State:

1. Select starting quarterback. Sophomore Nick Stevens, last year’s backup, and redshirt freshman Coleman Key were battling for the job throughout spring practices without a clear-cut winner.

Stevens, a 6-foot-3, 205-pounder from Murrieta, California, played in five games last season and completed 15 of 25 passes for 136 yards and one touchdown as the understudy to Colorado State University career passing leader and third-round NFL draft pick Garrett Grayson.

Key, a 6-4, 220-pounder from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, ran the CSU scout team in practices while redshirting. He threw for 2,628 yards and 29 touchdowns as a high school senior, earning first-team all-state honors from the Oklahoma Coaches Association.

Both quarterbacks have shown they’re capable of leading the Rams this fall, Bobo said last week, but neither has stepped up yet and seized the job. Stevens is a quick learner, teammates said, who had the edge coming out of spring practices based on his knowledge of the offense. But a lot of learning takes place over the summer, and Bobo wanted to keep the pressure on both and see how each responded.

“You don’t like going into camp without a quarterback, the leader of the football team just by the nature of the position,” Bobo said. “That’s something we’ve got to shore up and answer sooner rather than later I would hope.”

The coach hopes to have a winner by the second scrimmage, Aug. 22, but said he’ll continue the competition into the season, if he doesn’t feel comfortable declaring a winner sooner.

2. Determine running back rotation. The Rams are going to use more than one running back this season in an offense designed around a power running attack.

But Bobo wants to have a primary back take the bulk of the carries, and he isn’t sure who will fill that role.

Senior Treyous Jarrells, a 5-foot-7, 185-pounder who ran for 450 yards and six touchdowns on 87 carries last year while playing behind 1,275-yard rusher Dee Hart, was locked in a tight battle with Purdue transfer Dalyn Dawkins, 5-9 and 175 pounds, for the top spot coming out of spring practices.

Senior Jasen Oden, a 5-11, 220-pounder who ran for 276 yards and two TDs on 43 carries last season, could also factor into the equation, along with sophomore 5-11, 205-pound sophomore Bryce Peters; sophomore Deron Thompson, a 5-10, 178-pound speedster; and incoming freshman Izzy Matthews, a 6-0, 215-pounder out of Redding, California.

“One of the positions you can play the quickest at is running back,” Bobo said. “Obviously, some protections are always an issue for a young guy, but you can do things to protect him. If a guy can tote the ball, we’ll figure out a way to get him on the field and not put him in a position that might cost us.”

3. Pick up the pace. Nothing the Rams work on over the next four weeks will be as important as learning to play fast. Bobo is a firm believer in an uptempo offense designed to keep the defense on its heels.

Players have to know their assignments well enough to quickly get into what formation is called for an execute whatever play is called by Bob, a former Georgia quarterback and offensive coordinator who plans to call his own plays this season.

“The guys have worked extremely hard this summer, seeing guys preparing not only in the weight room and on the field but in the film room, which was good to see,” Bobo said. “So, I’m expecting to see a big jump, one in communication, one in understanding what we’re trying to do. I think we’re going to be able to play faster offensively and defensively.”

4. Identify playmakers. Bobo has a pretty good idea of the kind of talent he has in receiver Rashard Higgins, a consensus All-American who led the nation in receiving yards (1,750) and touchdown catches (17) a year ago.

But he and his staff have to figure out who their other go-to players are going to be, guys they can count to come through when the pressure’s on.

Senior receiver Joe Hansley, senior tight ends Steven Walker and Kivon Cartwright, and speedy receiver and kick returner Deionte Gaines come to mind on offense, while senior safeties Trent Matthews and Kevin Pierre-Louis, linebackers Cory James and defensive end Joe Kawulok stand out defensively based on past performance.

The coaching staff can then design game plans to take advantage of the strengths of their best players and hide whatever weaknesses are uncovered.

5. Pick a kicker. Walk-on Berto Garcia, who backed up Jared Roberts last season, left the program after spring practices to get a job to help pay for school, Bobo said. Wyatt Bryan, a redshirt freshman from Larkspur, was the Rams’ best place-kicker during spring drills.

But he’ll face added competition in fall camp from a trio of true freshmen – Braxton Davis out of Poudre High School in Fort Collins; Sam Fluegge from Apple Valley, Minnesota; and Kyle Jacobs from the Classical Academy in Colorado Springs.

It’s a critical role. Roberts scored 270 career points while making a school-record 77.8 percent of his field goals (42 of 54) and 144 of 147 point-after touchdown kicks, including a Mountain West record 111 PATs in a row.

Follow reporter Kelly Lyell at twitter.com/KellyLyell and facebook.com/KellyLyell.news