Rams rocked by fraud charges
Now Colorado State knows how the other half lives.
The Rams find themselves embroiled in scandal as they prepare to face the rival Colorado Buffaloes in the annual Rocky Mountain Showdown. The fans who will pack Invesco Field in Denver this Saturday have seen the Buffs program suffer black eyes related to sexual harassment charges and alleged recruiting violations. But now it's Colorado State getting all the bad ink. Three current players are among those facing felony charges stemming from a bank fraud investigation. All three have been suspended.
The players in question are senior cornerback Robert Herbert, defensive back Micah Crews and defensive lineman Brian Abata. The loss of Herbert will be a crushing blow to the Rams' title hopes in the Mountain West Conference. He was considered one of the best pass-defending corners in the country, racking up 72 tackles and leading the MWC with four forced fumbles. Neither Crews nor Abata figured to crack the Rams lineup this season.
Colorado State kept Herbert out of the starting rotation in the Rams' season opener against Weber State, but that wasn't about to prevent them from beating the Division I-AA Wildcats 30-6. That's more than can be said for the Buffaloes, who got the Dan Hawkins Era off to a shockingly poor start with a 19-10 loss to Montana State, another DI-AA squad. Hawkins has some issues to deal with in his first year as head coach. James Cox showed in Week 1 that he doesn't have the tools for the starting quarterback job; the Buffs also went through three punters against Montana State.
The upbeat Hawkins isn't ready to hit the panic button. "To me, this is only devastating if people make it devastating," the former Boise State coach told reporters. "We understand that most people are going to jump on when it's rosy, but we'll find out about ourselves when things aren't going so good."
This Saturday will be Colorado's real acid test for the 2006 season. The Rams are vulnerable; not only are they missing their best defensive player, they're also without the top offensive producer, running back Kyle Bell. He's out for the year after tearing an ACL during the last week of practice. Without him, Colorado State will be in tough against the Buffs' established run defense.
The Rams (the designated home team at Mile High) remained 2-point favorites at the time of publication, with no total posted for this matchup.
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Now Colorado State knows how the other half lives.
The Rams find themselves embroiled in scandal as they prepare to face the rival Colorado Buffaloes in the annual Rocky Mountain Showdown. The fans who will pack Invesco Field in Denver this Saturday have seen the Buffs program suffer black eyes related to sexual harassment charges and alleged recruiting violations. But now it's Colorado State getting all the bad ink. Three current players are among those facing felony charges stemming from a bank fraud investigation. All three have been suspended.
The players in question are senior cornerback Robert Herbert, defensive back Micah Crews and defensive lineman Brian Abata. The loss of Herbert will be a crushing blow to the Rams' title hopes in the Mountain West Conference. He was considered one of the best pass-defending corners in the country, racking up 72 tackles and leading the MWC with four forced fumbles. Neither Crews nor Abata figured to crack the Rams lineup this season.
Colorado State kept Herbert out of the starting rotation in the Rams' season opener against Weber State, but that wasn't about to prevent them from beating the Division I-AA Wildcats 30-6. That's more than can be said for the Buffaloes, who got the Dan Hawkins Era off to a shockingly poor start with a 19-10 loss to Montana State, another DI-AA squad. Hawkins has some issues to deal with in his first year as head coach. James Cox showed in Week 1 that he doesn't have the tools for the starting quarterback job; the Buffs also went through three punters against Montana State.
The upbeat Hawkins isn't ready to hit the panic button. "To me, this is only devastating if people make it devastating," the former Boise State coach told reporters. "We understand that most people are going to jump on when it's rosy, but we'll find out about ourselves when things aren't going so good."
This Saturday will be Colorado's real acid test for the 2006 season. The Rams are vulnerable; not only are they missing their best defensive player, they're also without the top offensive producer, running back Kyle Bell. He's out for the year after tearing an ACL during the last week of practice. Without him, Colorado State will be in tough against the Buffs' established run defense.
The Rams (the designated home team at Mile High) remained 2-point favorites at the time of publication, with no total posted for this matchup.
Click here for Live Lines, Cash Games and more...
