The Colorado State offensive line has not lived up to expectations this season coming off a 22-7 loss to North Dakota State in which they were held to just 72 yards on the ground.
In this in-depth article from Kelly Lyell of the Coloradoan, multiple players share the sentiment that the team didn't prepare properly last week with an FCS opponent coming into town following a big win over the rival Colorado Buffaloes. Here's what head coach Jim McElwain had to say on NDSU's front seven domination of the Rams' line following the loss:
"They definitely won the line of scrimmage ... I don't think you can play this game unless you have a toughness to get down and get after it up front."
And it's not getting easier anytime soon as CSU will undoubtedly have their hands full with San Jose State defensive end Travis Johnson this weekend. The senior pass rusher had four sacks and two tackles for loss in the Spartan's 45-13 victory over UC-Davis this past Saturday. In continuing with a list of scary stats, Johnson's 23 career sacks are the most in the nation for an active player and his 35 career tackles for loss are fifth most in SJSU history.
The Rams do have three returning starters on the line from last season but they'll have to get in sync sooner rather than later if they're to be victorious against a San Jose State team that held Stanford to a mere 72 rushing yards two weeks ago.
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