Football
Colorado State football goes back 115 seasons, and experienced its most successful run under head coach Sonny Lubick. Since Sonny Lubick took control over the Rams as head coach in 1992, the Rams have made nine bowl appearances. CSU had only two previous bowl appearances. Lubick won nearly 75% of home games in the stadium that would later bear his name, leading the team to six conference titles and an overall record of 108-74. CSU was consistently a top 25 contender from 1994-2002, with a 79-32 record during that period and 3 top 25 finishes. Lubick, conference coach of the year four times, coached former Denver Broncos Cecil Sapp and Erik Pears, and all-pro NFL linebacker Joey Porter.
On November 27, 2007, following significant drops in attendance and a 17-30 record over the past 4 seasons, including 3-9 in 2007, CSU made the difficult and controversial decision to relieve Lubick of his head coaching duties. The school hired Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Steve Fairchild to take the helm. Fairchild was a Rams quarterback from 1978-80, and served under Lubick as quarterback's coach and later as offensive coordinator from 1993-2000. After going 7-6 in his first season and leading CSU to a win in the New Mexico Bowl over Fresno State in 2008, Fairchild's Rams fell back to mediocrity. The Rams would finish each of the next three seasons 3-9. On December 4, 2011, just one day after losing the season finale to Wyoming 22-19, Fairchild was fired.
On December 13, 2011, Colorado State hired Alabama offensive coordinator Jim McElwain to take over as head coach. McElwain remained with the Crimson Tide through the remainder of the bowl season before taking over at CSU, and won a second national championship with Alabama when they defeated LSU 21-0 in the BCS Championship Game on January 9, 2012. McElwain's tenure at CSU began on a high note. In his first game the Rams defeated rival Colorado 22-17 on September 1, 2012. The Rams finished 4-8 in McElwain's first season.
Read more about this topic: Colorado State Rams
Famous quotes containing the word football:
“... in the minds of search committees there is the lingering question: Can she manage the football coach?”
—Donna E. Shalala (b. 1941)
“You can’t be a Real Country unless you have A BEER and an airline—it helps if you have some kind of a football team, or some nuclear weapons, but at the very least you need a BEER.”
—Frank Zappa (1940–1993)
“In this dream that dogs me I am part
Of a silent crowd walking under a wall,
Leaving a football match, perhaps, or a pit,
All moving the same way.”
—Philip Larkin (1922–1986)