Cherry Plays Bowl Bound College Football

[Cherry 1,302]

Beating out the other teams with five total votes of 13, the selection for Cherry's first coaching job is Colorado State.

2015 - 6-7 (3-5)

2016 - 0-0 (0-0)

Edited December 17, 2015 by Chernobyl426

[JetsFan4Life 542]

Vote Buffalo guiz.

[OSUViking 505]

If you want to fight for everything good in life, voting for Minnesota would be a good option. I was talking to some people in the Shoutbox and we all agreed that voting for any of these teams besides Minnesota means you support ISIS in some way or another.

 

Choose wisely...

[Cherry 1,302]

The Colorado State Rams are coming out to a commanding lead. Get your votes in by 9 PM EST, or the Rams will be your winner.

[OSUViking 505]

This is some BS. We need to overhaul the voting systems... these types of things are just controlled by the money now.

[Cherry 1,302]

This is some BS. We need to overhaul the voting systems... these types of things are just controlled by the money now.

You're outgunned, brother. Just take the L and support one of the big three. Minnesota likely not snagging 3 more by 9.

[Piggly Wiggly 960]

I was the first one to vote Colorado State. People just like to follow greatness.

[Bay 2,003]

Never voting for a team named Rams

[Cherry 1,302]

Out to a 3 vote lead Colorado State is looking likely.

 

Also, make sure to let me know what all you would like to see in terms of stats, other teams, awards, bowl games, and huge matchups across college football each week. I'll be happy to oblige the info. Split on whether or not I should include a full roster as well on the opening post. Up to you guys. I can give as much info as is asked.

Edited December 7, 2015 by Chernobyl426

[OSUViking 505]

Cherry, where did you get this game? It looks cool from what I've seen.

[Bucman 891]

Cherry, where did you get this game? It looks cool from what I've seen.

Its a steam game.

[Cherry 1,302]

It's a steam game, OSU.

 

 

I've decided to begin my coaching career with the Colorado State Rams!

 

I'll have the basic info up tomorrow including schedule, expectations, star players, and the top 25 poll. If you want anything else feel free to ask!

[Bay 2,003]

Alright at least it's a Colorado team.

[Cherry 1,302]

Alright at least it's a Colorado team.

We get that yearly showdown hype

[Cherry 1,302]

2015 season

 

Weeks 1-6. Training Camp

 

Yearly expectations

 

The alumni expect a competitive showing in the conference, and a finish somewhere around 4th or 5th. They expect to be around .500 in conference games, and would like to have a good recruit class this year. Last years recruit class was ranked 60th overall.

 

Star Players (Overalls tend to be low. The best player in the nation is usually around 92 or so.)

 

Senior QB David Meredith 60 OVR (Great passer. Terrible runner.)

Senior LT Elmer Johnson 62 OVR (Weak, but fundamentally sound.)

Junior WR Marvin Barker 59 OVR (Great vertical threat due to speed down the field.)

Senior DE Arthur Kenny 69 OVR (Incredible instincts and durability.)

Senior FS Thomas Garcia 69 OVR (Very weak, but a good gang tackler and playmaker.)

 

Schedule

*Denotes an away game

 

Week 1. North Texas 24-13 W

Week 2. Texas State 41-10 W

Week 3. #1 Alabama 24-51 L

Week 4. *UNLV 24-21 W

Week 5. Utah State 14-29 L

Week 6. *Wyoming 28-12 W

Week 7. Hawaii 16-17 L

Week 8. *San Jose State 17-26 L

Week 9. Boise State 14-41 L

Week 10. Air Force 6-23 L

Week 11. Bye

Week 12. *New Mexico 20-3 W

Week 13. Bye

Week 14. Bye

Week 15. Colorado 62-20 W

 

Cherry's guess: 8-4 Regular Season finish.

 

The first 6 games should be relatively easy. Alabama is an obvious loss barring an immaculate upset. Boise State and Air Force will be tough. Colorado is a toss-up, and so is Utah State, but I believe we'll come out with a win in at least one of those games. I don't think we'll make it to the conference championship given that we have Air Force, Utah State, and Boise State in our side of the conference. However, I think we'll finish good enough to receive a solid bowl berth.

 

Top 25 Media Poll

1. Alabama

2. Auburn

3. Ole Miss

4. USC

5. Oregon

6. Georgia

7. Baylor

8. Florida State

9. Ohio State

10. LSU

11. TCU

12. Arkansas

13. UCLA

14. Tennessee

15. Mississippi State

16. Arizona

17. Florida

18. Michigan State

19. Missouri

20. South Carolina

21. Oklahoma

22. Texas A&M

23. Arizona State

24. Notre Dame

25. Clemson

Edited December 14, 2015 by Chernobyl426

[Cherry 1,302]

Coach Cherry Optimistic About Future

 

"I think this is a very good football team, and I'm lucky to be taking the reins of it. It's a very good job to start with, I'll tell you that. It's very rare a coach gets an opportunity to take a 10-2 football team despite lack of experience. I'm blessed to have this opportunity, and I know this is a great group of kids who are eager to go win. We look forward to establishing ourselves as the dominant force in the Mountain West."

 

When asked about potential plans for the future, Cherry responded saying, "I don't know as of now where I will end up at in five or ten years down the road. Right now I'm focused on pushing this program to the next level. I want to build a Colorado State mansion, not house hunt across the college football landscape."

 

In response to questions about recruiting Cherry stated, "I think we will be able to get some of the best recruits across the nation, especially in Colorado. We may not be able to steal the star running back who is ranked #1 away from a team like Alabama or USC, but we will make sure to recruit smart and hardworking kids who know where their priorities are. We have no tolerance for poor academics or lack of effort in the weight room or on the practice field. Give me a 3.0 GPA kid who does his job on and off the field over a bad egg any day."

 

One of the first questions that Cherry faced, and will continue to face over the next few weeks, is the upcoming match-up with #1 ranked Alabama Crimson Tide. Cherry was one of Colorado State's representatives to make the deal with Alabama that scheduled the game at Colorado State.

 

"I'm a firm believer that to be the best, you have to play the best. We had some options who we could have faced. Arizona State came to the table with an offer, but there is nothing more exciting than taking on the big bad juggernaut of college football. We're looking forward to putting up a fight in front of the home crowd. I can't imagine a better way to start my coaching career here than fighting the best team over the last few years in college football."

Edited December 8, 2015 by Chernobyl426

[Cherry 1,302]

North Texas @ Colorado State (Preview)

 

Colorado State opens up as a 9-point favorite in this matchup, with expected weather to be 81 and sunny. The offenses are fairly evenly matched, with no one team having the edge over the other. Colorado State's defense is far and away better than that of North Texas. The big question is will the new coach be able to call the defensive plays effectively enough to use the talent to his advantage? North Texas has the special teams and coaching edge, as of now, but the game is very much a toss-up.

 

Prediction: 31-24 Colorado State

[Cherry 1,302]

 

 

The clouds rolled in just before kickoff, but the temperature stayed steady at around 80. 21,000 fans showed up to cheer on the Rams in their home opener.

 

14-0 Rams at the end of the first quarter on a 72-yard TD to Marvin Barker and a 44-yard TD to #2 receiver Leonard Schmidt.

 

A 19-yard TD pass to Leonard Schmidt makes it 21-0 in the middle of the 2nd.

 

After a poor special teams play to allow an 18 yard return on a punt, a facemask added another 15 to the penalty. North Texas got the ball on the Rams 23, but was held back from advancing the ball. A 32-yard field goal made it 21-3 Rams.

After a big return by the Rams on the kickoff, the following play resulted in a fumble that was returned 37 yards, setting North Texas up on the Rams 44.

 

The Mean Green pick up a quick first, but are fought backwards to the 30 on a great hold by the Rams defense. They miss the 47-yard field goal attempt.

The Rams drive down the field and manage to attempt a 50-yard field goal with 20 seconds left on the clock, but the kick falls short.

 

North Texas knees to finish the half.

 

Halftime score

 

North Texas 3

Colorado State 21

 

Second Half

 

The Rams hit a 32-yard field goal with about 5 minutes left in the third quarter. 24-3 Rams.

 

The third quarter ends 24-3 after a somewhat uneventful start to the second half.

 

North Texas pushes its way down the field but gets stopped in the redzone. 24-6 with roughly 12 minutes left.

 

North Texas hits a 51-yard TD to make it 24-13 with 48 seconds left.

 

Colorado State wins 24-13.

 

Box score

http://i.imgur.com/Rp2ui98.png

 

Player Stats

http://i.imgur.com/8msQY3s.png

 

Player of the Game

FS Thomas Garcia. 17 tackles. Forced fumble & fumble recovery.

Edited December 8, 2015 by Chernobyl426

[Cherry 1,302]

Primetime showdown - Week 1

 

#4 USC vs. #24 Notre Dame. Dame was expected to keep within a single score, but the match ended in a 52-17 blowout at Notre Dame. An embarassing start to a prestigious program.

 

Top 25

1. Alabama

2. USC

3. Auburn

4. Ole Miss

5. Oregon

6. Georgia

7. Baylor

8. Florida State

9. LSU

10. Ohio State

11. Texas Christian

12. Arkansas

13. UCLA

14. Tennessee

15. Mississippi State

16. Arizona

17. Florida

18. Michigan State

19. Missouri

20. South Carolina

21. Oklahoma

22. Texas A&M

23. Arizona State

24. Utah

25. Texas

[Cherry 1,302]

Coach Cherry speaks out on first career win

 

"It's a hell of a milestone, I'll tell you that. It's going to go down as the start of something great here in Fort Collins. It wasn't as pretty as we liked, but we got the job done. My goal in every game where we're favored to win is to beat the spread by at least two possessions. We nearly did it, but we gave up that big touchdown pass at the end. We can't tolerate having those things happen when we want to close out games for real."

 

When asked about who he thought the player of the game was, he was hesitant at first to answer, but eventually revealed who he believed deserved the game ball the most.

 

"Most of our guys on offense had a terrific day. Meredith had one of the best days I've seen from a QB at this level, and played terrific mistake-free football. Velez did a good job moving the chains. Barker and Schmidt destroyed that secondary. But if I had to pick one player for the game ball? I'd probably take Tommy. He had 17 tackles, which doesn't sound all that good until you turn on the film. Every play he'd be in the backfield. He was supposed to cover deep a good majority of those plays, but he got up to the line to stop the run at a two or three yard gain."

 

Cherry once again faced questions about the week 3 matchup, but refused to comment on the game with Alabama.

 

"I understand you guys are excited for that game, but I can't look ahead in the middle of the season. We have to go one game at a time, and right now we're taking on Texas State. That's what our guys are doing in the film room. That's what we're practicing for. We're every bit excited as the fans, but we have a job to do this week before we can think about Bama."

 

When asked about the eligibility issues that his quarterback David Meredith may face, he quickly moved on to a new subject.

 

"He's getting help in the classroom and we'll make sure he is able to compete on saturdays. Next question."

 

Critics of Alabama believe that Colorado State may have been wise to schedule them. While it could just be shaking off rust, the Crimson Tide only defeated Akron 21-0, with 10 of those points coming in the 4th quarter. The defense is as good as ever, but there are huge questions about the Tide on offense.

[Cherry 1,302]

North Texas @ Colorado State (Preview)

 

Colorado State opens up as a 13-point favorite to win, with some analyst saying they should win by up to 20. Unlike the much more balanced showdown with North Texas, Colorado State severely outguns the Texas State offense, and has a defense that is far away better. The only edge Texas State has is special teams, which is a very narrow edge at that. The Bobcats gave up 587 total yards last week in comparison to the Rams 301. The weather should be around 82 with some clouds rolling in.

 

Prediction: 38-20 Colorado State

[Cherry 1,302]

 

 

 

The Rams have a somewhat disappointing turnout again, as only 21,000 fans showed up again to cheer on the Rams. The stadium can hold 34,000. The temperature hovered between 80-85 with a light overcast.

 

After two stuffed run plays, Texas State tried to make a big play on a 3rd & 7 on their first drive. The gamble failed, as Rams CB Gerold Chapman grabbed his second pick of the year. He returned in 68 yards to the house with less than a minute gone in the game.

 

Colorado State drives down the field but the Texas State defense holds at the 9. The Rams elect to kick. And the 27-yard field goal is wide right. A terrible kick, and it may lose this kicker his job.

 

Texas State makes it to midfield before Thomas Garcia jumps a pass and returns the pick 17 yards.

 

Colorado State gets to the 2 but gets stuffed on all three attempts. The Rams elect to take a field goal to make it 10-0.

 

A very interesting call by the Texas State team to decline a holding penalty that would set the Rams back on 3rd & long. Instead they've elected to give them the ball at 4th & 1 at their own 29. A QB sneak picks up the first down.

 

Meredith is picked off at the Texas State 12 with around 10 minutes left in the first half.

 

The teams trade possessions back and forth with multiple three and outs. However, with only 20 seconds left on the clock Meredith launches an 85-yard TD pass to Marvin Barker. The Rams go up 17-0 at half.

 

Halftime Score

 

Texas State 0

Colorado State 17

 

Second Half

 

After being stopped despite starting on their own 45, the Rams pin the Bobcats on their own 1 with a beautiful punt.

 

Colorado State guns it for the QB on all three plays, and the Bobcats only get to their own 3 before having to punt back.

 

A 60 yard drive is capped off with a touchdown from the backup running back.

 

The kick is returned a long ways and a 15-yard piling on penalty forces the Rams to start defending at their own 30.

 

The Rams defense holds, and they keep it to a 24-3 game. They follow it up with a huge return to start them at midfield.

 

They make it to the 20 and kick a field goal. 27-3 Rams near the end of the third.

 

On the following drive DE James Jennings jumps up to pick off a short pass, setting the Rams up on the Texas State 32.

 

The Bobcats butcher coverage after sending an all-out blitz. The pass gets out for a 32-yard TD. Rams take a 34-3 lead.

 

The following play is picked off by the Rams again, and they start on the edge of the Bobcats redzone. After a hold by the Texas State defense, they drive down the field and score to make it 34-10.

 

The Rams drive the clock and Meredith leaps into the endzone on a sneak. 41-10 Rams.

 

The Rams kill clock after getting another interception and end the game.

 

Colorado State wins 41-10.

 

Box Score

http://i.imgur.com/YyVafBc.png

 

Player Stats

http://i.imgur.com/rkghO6H.png

 

Player of the Game

FS Thomas Garcia. 8 tackles.1 sack. 2 interceptions. 1 pass defended.

[Cherry 1,302]

Primetime showdowns - Week 2

 

#7 Baylor vs. Stanford. Stanford wins 38-27

 

#25 Texas vs. #5 Oregon. Oregon wins 41-17.

 

#1 Alabama vs. #18 Michigan State. Michigan State wins 48-21.

 

Top 25

1. USC

2. Oregon

3. Auburn

4. Ole Miss

5. Georgia

6. Alabama

7. Florida State

8. LSU

9. Ohio State

10. TCU

11. Arkansas

12. Michigan State

13. Baylor

14. UCLA

15. Tennessee

16. Mississippi State

17. Arizona

18. Florida

19. Missouri

20. South Carolina

21. Oklahoma

22. Wisconsin

23. Texas A&M

24. Stanford

25. Utah

[Cherry 1,302]

Cherry answers on Alabama questions

 

"No, I don't think it devalues the game for us," Cherry said when questioned about the Alabama loss impacting the upcoming game.

 

"I wish we would have scheduled it for week 2 so we could be the first one to knock them down, but I think the Spartans are a much better team than people are giving them credit for. It doesn't shock me that they'd beat Alabama in Lansing. 48-21? It's a little bit of a smacking, but Alabama is still a very talented team with very good coaches. They'll be more fired up to win next week than if they came in off a good win."

 

Alabama is coming in as a 9-point favorite despite the recent blowout loss. Many analysts predict a much more lopsided win for Alabama though. While Colorado State is off to a good start at 2-0, they're a relatively unpredictable team. While the late touchdown by North Texas in week 1 was with the game essentially wrapped up, it's somewhat frightening to only defeat North Texas by 11 at home. The showing against Texas State was much better, but they've played two bottom-feeders. If Colorado State can keep within a touchdown or two, they'll likely have chance for the upset. However, they haven't shown what they can do while they aren't leading.

 

Against North Texas they jumped out to a 21-0 lead, and against Texas State they took a 24-0 lead. If they fall down to Bama in the early stages, it's very unlikely they'll be able to push the ball down the field and score effectively.

 

Thomas Garcia answered a couple questions as well with the coach, and when asked about his two straight Player of the Game awards he stated, "I'm just happy we've been winning. It's good to know that I've been doing what this team asks of me. Coach told me back in training camp that I'd be the glue of this defense, and he meant it. He allows me to play with my heart and make decisions to act how I choose. It's helped a lot with creating turnovers and stopping big plays."

[Cherry 1,302]

Alabama @ Colorado State (Preview)

 

Colorado State comes in as the 9-point underdog against #6 Alabama. The weather should once again be a bit cloudy with the temperature in the 80s. The biggest rumor as of late is that Colorado State QB David Meredith will not play this week against Alabama. When questioned, Cherry tried to avoid explaining why. "It's an academic thing. We've worked with David on it for a while, but he has to be the one to take the next step. He knows what he has to do to make it onto the field on saturdays."

 

Without Meredith, the Rams hopes of beating the Tide are getting increasingly smaller. While the backup Tyler Myers isn't a terrible replacement, he's not as nearly as efficient as Meredith. The hope for Colorado State was to spread the Alabama defense around. Without their star quarterback it's not gonna be easy.

 

Colorado State is currently 35th ranked on offense, and 10th ranked on defense.

 

Prediction: 34-7 Alabama

Edited December 9, 2015 by Chernobyl426