Hawaii (5-2, 2-1 Mountain West) at Colorado State (2-4, 1-1 Mountain West)
When/where: 5 p.m. Friday/Canvas Stadium
TV/Radio: MW App/Spectrum/Rams Radio Network 99.1 FM
BetMGM Line: CSU -1.5, 54.5 over/under
Weather: 42 degrees, clear
Series History: CSU leads 16-12; Hawaii won last matchup, 27-24, in O’ahu in 2023
Three storylines
Which offense gets going?: Even after CSU’s 49-point outburst against Fresno State last week — aided by a scoop-and-score to make for the program’s largest point total since a 59-52 OT loss to Boise State on Nov. 11, 2017 — the Rams still rank 10th in scoring offense in the Mountain West at 22.33 points/game. Hawaii isn’t much better, ranking eighth at 28.29 points. In particular, the Rainbow Warriors’ run game (99 yards/game, last in the conference) is nonexistent, which is good news for CSU’s struggling run D (179.33 yards/game, 11th).
Owen Long vs. everybody: The sophomore linebacker’s name keeps popping up in these previews, and for good reason. Long leads the nation with 85 tackles, 15 more than the next closest players. He is on pace for 170 tackles this season, which would rank third in program history. Kevin McLain holds the CSU single-season record with 198 tackles in 1974; the next season, McLain was an All-American and then was selected in the first round of the NFL draft. CSU better allocate some more NIL money for Long to keep him around in ’26.
The new captains: Of the six captains the Rams elected in preseason, only Long was healthy last week. Offensive lineman Tanner Morley and defensive lineman Mukendi Wa-Kalonji are out for the year. So CSU named two more captains in QB Jackson Brousseau and running back Jalen Dupree. Those two will be critical to CSU’s continued turnaround going forward. Brousseau (three passing TDs vs Fresno State) needs to keep settling in as the starter, while the running game is powered by Dupree and Justin Marshall.
Predictions
Kyle Newman, sportswriter: CSU 35, Hawaii 24
The Rainbow Warriors might be 5-2, but their schedule has been soft as Charmin. Of Hawaii’s five wins, none of those opponents has a winning record, and those opponents have a combined record of 6-24. Two of them are winless (Sam Houston and Portland State), and Air Force has won one game. No wonder the Rams are favored. CSU rides the momentum from last week’s upset, Owen Long terrorizes the Hawaii offense, and the Rams get revenge for their last-play defeat in the 2023 season finale that cost them bowl eligibility.
Sean Keeler, sports columnist: CSU 26, Hawaii 23
Timmy Chang’s Rainbow Warriors are the anti-Air Force. And Hawaii QB Micah Alejado ain’t Fresno State’s E.J. Warner. Can the Rammies finally close the deal on a close one? It’s probably going to come down to takeaways — like Fresno, the Rainbow Warriors can be generous when pressed: Hawaii ranks among the bottom 20 FBS programs in giveaways per game (2.0). Alejado posted a 1-to-4 TD-to-interception ratio in two losses — and it’s 8-to-1 in his three victories. This is the week the Rams prove whether Fresno was a happy fluke — or a blueprint for how they’ve got to look going forward.
Matt Schubert, sports editor: CSU 28, Hawaii 20
For the second week in a row, the Rams get a team with a bloated record that is seemingly very beatable. Last week, that resulted in the biggest blowout of the Jay Norvell Era. While it’s hard to see the Rams dropping 49 points on another opponent, it isn’t difficult to see them taking down the Rainbow Warriors in FoCo. When in doubt, pick against the team traveling four time zones from sea level to mile-high elevation.
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