Three weeks into the 2025 campaign, nobody truly knows how good UTSA football is. Inconsistent offensive output and lackluster defensive performances leave the Roadrunners with a meager 1-2 record, the lone win coming against Football Championship Subdivision foe University of Incarnate Word. The ‘Runners’ performance against the Cardinals may seem impressive for fans who couldn’t catch the game and only looked at the box score for reference, but in reality, something about the win felt unfulfilling. Luckily for the Roadrunners, they head out west to face a team with a similar number of question marks plaguing its roster.
Colorado State University opened its season in a similar vein as the Roadrunners, matching pace with a superior Power Five opponent before sneaking past an FCS adversary and leaving fans yearning for a statement victory. The best part about this matchup is someone has to come out on top. One side will exit week three with a clearer sense of their potential, and other will be forced to head back to the drawing board.
The Paisano spoke with both sports editors at The Rocky Mountain Collegian, Michael Hovey and Sophie Webb, to discuss the matchup.
Q: How has the Colorado State offense changed since the end of last season?
MH: Since losing [Tory Horton], we brought in some transfers. We brought up some guys who didn’t really see the field a whole lot. We got back Jackson Warren, who was redshirted last year because of a shoulder injury. We also lost our leading rusher, Avery Morrow, from last year. So, there’s been a good amount of turnover on offense. The offensive line, too, there were questions about that. So far though, our offensive identity might be the same. Last year, we were very balanced. We ran the ball a lot. Unless something clicks with either [Brayden] Fowler-Nicolosi or whoever starts, we might be running the ball a lot this game.
Q: What is Colorado State’s achilles heel?
MH: We turned the ball over five times last game. So, it was crazy that we won at all because the starting field position on offense was bad. It was really bad on defense. I think our defense actually played a lot better than people realized, but they were given the short end of the stick. So, I think if turnovers get any better than last week, then we can avoid a similar game as last week.
Q: What do you expect to see out of Owen McCown this week?
SW: If performs like he did [against Incarnate Word], I could definitely see us falling apart. I hope [Colorado State] used this bi-week to — instead of resting — get better.
MH: I agree. I actually think our secondary and our linebackers are very solid this year. Lamondre Joe, specifically, he’s probably our top cornerback. We got some transfers that are being brought up on our defense. We only have one returning starter. So, we’re kind of in a situation similar to UTSA. But our defense is also a lot more aggressive this year since we have a new defensive coordinator in Tyson Summers. So, they’re focused on pressuring a lot more. With that, I’m not really sure how McCown necessarily plays. But, if he can avoid pressure or if the UTSA offensive line holds up then, I agree, we could be in some trouble.
Q: Who wins on Saturday and why?
SW: I think if we play like we did against Northern Colorado, I don’t think it’s going to be a win for us. We showed a lot of promise in our game against Washington. Despite the loss, we started off really good. I hope they clean it up this week.
MH: I’ll say based on what I’ve heard about your defense and the fact that your offense will put up some points, I’ll say 34-17 UTSA wins. I’m not really sure how our offense is going to look but I feel like you guys will put up some points. I think this is a week to kind of figure things out, but it doesn’t give me a lot of confidence in terms of winning.
UTSA will face Colorado State at 8:30 p.m. Saturday at Canvas Stadium.
