The football team finishes it non-conference schedule this weekend as it travels to Fort Collins, Colorado to play Colorado State University, a week before the stadium opener.
The Wildcats took on New Mexico last weekend and lost 38-14 dropping them to 0-1 start to the season.
Colorado State has already played two games this season resulting in a one-sided 58-27 season opening win over Oregon State and a 17-3 loss to rival Colorado University.
Redshirt junior QB Dallas Sealey says his team will have to be on its A-game against the Rams.
“Their defense is really good,” Sealey said. “They held Colorado, which was a team that finished in the top of the Pac-12 last year, to 17 and also shut down a good Oregon State offense, so we know they’re disciplined and well coached.”
Sealey leads the team offensively going into the matchup against the Rams as he posted 240 yards passing on 33 completions out of 55 attempts with a touchdown and two interceptions against the Lobos last week.
Senior outside linebacker Bryson Gates leads the Wildcats defensively after picking up four tackles and 1.5 sacks and tackles for a loss last week.
Colorado State returns two of its offensive stars from last year in redshirt senior QB Nick Stevens and senior wide receiver Michael Gallup.
In 2016, Stevens completed 129 passes on 201 attempts for 1936 yards and 19 touchdowns with five interceptions. Stevens has also completed 50 of his 86 attempts for 643 yards and three touchdowns with three interceptions this season.
Gallup recorded 76 receptions for 1,272 yards and 14 touchdowns in 2016. He finished 14th in the nation last year with those 1,272 yards. He has also caught 16 passes for 201 yards and no touchdowns this year.
Head coach Adam Dorrel says that it will be a tough environment to play in Saturday, considering Colorado State just opened a brand-new stadium.
“They’re a tough football team,” Dorrel said. “I want to see us learn from our mistakes last week, when we get a chance to make plays Saturday I want to see us make those big plays.”
Kickoff against Colorado State is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. central time (1:30 MDT) and can be heard on Abilene’s 98.1 FM or watched on Mountain West network.
