Beavers Storm Fort Collins In Commanding Win Over Rams
Ricky McKinley // Dam Daily • Published: November 14th, 2026
The Pac-12 was abuzz with Coach Leon's guarantee to defeat the Boise State Broncos next week at Reser Stadium, but everyone knew that the unspoken truth of that promise lay in Fort Collins. If the Beavers didn't take care of business and stay undefeated away from Corvallis, the results next week would matter little outside of potentially lightening Leon's wallet.
They took the field like a team with something to prove from the opening kickoff, knocking the fillings out of kick returner Carlos Volk and forcing a fumble on the opening kickoff. Kallen Gutridge would convert the short field into a 9-yard touchdown pass, but was rocked on the throw and would be forced out of the game with an AC sprain.
The Beavers defense would hold strong throughout the 1st-quarter, but would still end the frame in a 7-7 tie after Rowe's first interception was returned 9 yards for the pick-six by AJ Noland. A second interception by Rowe would gift the Rams the ball at midfield and almost instantaneously, the Rams took advantage as Lloyd Avant slashed through the Beavers' defense for a 38-yard scamper and a 14-7 lead.
Coach Mando was seen on the sideline laying into a number of his players after the score, most notably MLB Jalen Woods and SS Kyle Chen, who were both caught out of position on the play. Whatever words were exchanged lit a fire under the Beavers.
By the end of the contest, the Beavers walked out of Fort Collins with a 48-14 win behind 12 tackles for loss, 8 sacks, and their own pick-six late in the 4th quarter.
The Rams offense, which had led the Colorado State resurgence of late, was left in shambles. QB Darius Curry only completed 12 of his 31 passes without a touchdown, and was never able to utilize his scrambling ability as the Dam quickly erased any escape routes.
"This is what we needed to do, period," declared HC Jonathan Smith when walking off the field post-game, a sentiment that DC Armando Leon echoed in his post-game press conference.
•••
Question One - Charles Murray (The Rocky Mountain Collegian): "Coach, what was said on the sideline after Avant's 38-yard touchdown run? It seems the intensity of your defense ratcheted up a notch after that pow-wow."
Armando Leon: "I told them they needed to start playing like they wanted to be on the field, or I'd put guys in that did. It wasn't to any player in particular, just to the leaders of this defense. And they passed the message out to everyone else. We need to stop living off the fumes of "hanging" with Oregon, 'cause that isn't going to win us jackshit. And you saw the response. Sometimes you just have to snap them out of a funk with tough love, remind them who they are and what brought us to this situation."
Question Two - Olivia LeRusso (Oregonlive): "Coach, despite some heavy criticism that your defense was stubbornly sticking to their guns, you once again utilized man-coverage and disruptive blitzes to wreak havoc on the Rams. What do you say to those critics who question your aggressive playstyle?"
Armando Leon: "They're invited to come watch some tape, Olivia. We play and coach this way for a reason, because when we execute, it works. You saw the results on the field tonight. And as I've said before, there are always slight tweaks to the game plan, but at the same time I'm not going to completely shift what got us here, based on a bad half, or even a bad game. You take the punches and just get ready for when it's your turn to counter. We did that tonight. And the plan is to do it again next week with Boise State."
Question Three - Danny Marks (CW Sports): "Did your mindset shift at all when you saw Gutridge go down early in the game? Was there any thought of trying to play more conservatively and make the Rams earn the win, rather than stumble into a mistake?"
Armando Leon: "We coach to win the game, Danny. We don't coach to not lose. We've got faith in our offense that they'll come through when we need them, just like they have faith we will step up and do our part. Shoutout to James, though. He entered a tough situation in what was frankly a must-win game for us, shook off some early mistakes, and led us to the promise land. If it's Kallen or James under center next week, my promise doesn't waver. Sean Lewis may use that excuse, but damned if I will."
•••
Coach Leon might not have been worried, but when CSU went up 14-7 with our backup QB in the game, after throwing two interceptions, I was taking double-shots to calm myself down....kidding of course.
A dominant performance—knock 'em down, jump on them early, and never let up. The Rams offense ran face-first into the Dam tonight and it is exactly the type of confidence boost we needed after that deflating loss to Fresno State. Now, the real challenge begins.
Texas State did us a favor, knocking off Fresno State earlier this afternoon. Now, the path ahead is exceedingly simple. Win and we're in.
And it all starts next week against the Boise State Broncos.
•••
|
| Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final |
| Oregon State | 7 | 14 | 10 | 17 | 48 |
| Colorado State | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
|
| Q | Team | Time | Play | Oregon State | Colorado State |
| 1st | Oregon State | 9:01 | Jackson Bower, 9 Yd Pass From Kallen Gutridge | 7 | 0 |
| 1st | Colorado State | 2:10 | AJ Noland Returned Interception 9 Yds | 7 | 7 |
| 2nd | Colorado State | 9:22 | Lloyd Avant, 38 Yd Run | 7 | 14 |
| 2nd | Oregon State | 2:42 | Cooper Jensen, 5 Yd Pass From James Rowe | 14 | 14 |
| 2nd | Oregon State | 0:11 | Zachary Card, 11 Yd Pass From James Rowe | 21 | 14 |
| 3rd | Oregon State | 5:47 | Jackson Bowers, 5 Yd Pass From James Rowe | 28 | 14 |
| 3rd | Oregon State | 0:18 | Logan McCreery, 40 Yd FG | 31 | 14 |
| 4th | Oregon State | 7:43 | James Rowe, 1 Yd Run | 38 | 14 |
| 4th | Oregon State | 5:31 | Logan McCreery, 25 Yd FG | 41 | 14 |
| 4th | Oregon State | 2:10 | Sailasa Vadrawale, Returned Interception 83 Yds | 48 | 14 |
Oregon State Colorado State
Passing | Stats Passing | Stats
----------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------
James Rowe | 18/33, 215 Yds, 3 TD, 2 INT Darius Curry | 12/31, 129 Yds, INT
Rushing | Stats Rushing | Stats
----------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------
Salahadin Allah | 24 Att, 70 Yds Lloyd Avant | 13 Att, 59 Yds, TD
James Rowe | 7 Att, 6 Yds, TD Darius Curry | 10 Att, -53 Yds
Receiving | Stats Receiving | Stats
----------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------
Zachary Card | 6 Rec, 86 Yds, TD Willie Rodriguez | 7 Rec, 83 Yds
Jackson Bowers | 5 Rec, 65 Yds, 2 TD Armani Winfield | 3 Rec, 32 Yds
David Wells Jr | 4 Rec, 48 Yds Jordan Hamilton | 1 Rec, 9 Yds
Defensive | Stats Defensive | Stats
----------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------
MLB Jalen Woods | 5 Tkl, 3 TFL, 2 Sacks CB CJ Blocker | 6 Tkl, TFL, 0.5 Sack
DE Ka'eo Akana | 3 Tkl, 2 TFL, 1.5 Sacks DT Gabe Jones | 2 Tkl, TFL, 0.5 Sack
CB Sailasa Vadrawale | 2 Tkl, INT, TD SS AJ Noland | 6 Tkl, TFL, INT, TD
Pac-12 Week Eleven Results
29 Fresno State (5-5) @
Texas State (5-5) 34
30 San Diego State (3-7) @ Utah State (1-9) 27
14 Washington State (2-8) @
Boise State (7-3) 45
Notable Week Eleven Results
17 Tennessee (7-4) @
#3 Georgia (9-1) 48
17 #15 Oregon (8-2) @
#7 USC (9-1) 34
