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NEW LEAGUE, NEW IDENTITY
By Justin Michael
AFTER 27 SEASONS in the Mountain West, a conference that Colorado State once helped form, the Rams are now set to begin the Pac-12 era in 2026.
Under the guidance of veteran football coach Jim Mora, who was hired to replace Jay Norvell after a disastrous 2-10 campaign in 2025, CSU is looking to rebuild from the rubble and create a new identity in a league that presents both hope and opportunity.
The modern version of the Pac-12 might not have the star power of the original lineup. But the conference consists of a scrappy group of schools — all of which are betting on themselves during turbulent times of realignment across the sport.
With a handful of the biggest leagues slowly creating more and more separation between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots’, it’s never been more pressing for schools like CSU and its peers to fight for relevance. And while the loudest skeptics might not be able to see the forest through the trees when
it comes to the decision to leave the Mountain West in hopes of returning glory to the Pac-12, it’s a gamble worth taking when considering how these schools have all been left for dead by the SEC, Big 10, and even the Big-12.
In a time where the biggest decision makers in the sport are solely interested in their own bottom line, schools like CSU, San Diego State, etc., have been forced to get creative in hopes of keeping pace in the arm’s race. There are some sad realities of abandoning a handful of former conference mates, but the truth is that the modern landscape has forced all of the Pac-12 members to really go bold.
While there are no guarantees, this new league is a life preserver amid a storm that’s been slowly building for years. And the hope is that with an accomplished coach of Mora’s status now steering the ship, the Rams will finally be able to take full advantage of the potential that this football program has always had. If so, we might finally
Rams enter the Pac-12 era in rebuild mode
get to see the type of program that was envisioned with the creation of Canvas Stadium. More importantly, we’d get to stop seeing a football team that finds ways to less with more.
Mora has gone on record multiple times saying that he has no intentions of letting year one be an excuse. In fact, he’s put it out there that he intends for the Rams to compete for a championship, even despite going into the 2026 campaign with close to 70 new players on the roster. But that just seems to be the kind of coach that Mora is. He believes in himself and he thinks that he can win at CSU. It’s why he left UConn — even after experiencing unprecedented success as the head coach of the Huskies — and he came to a program that’s done nothing but come up short for the better part of two decades.
As the great Sonny Lubick proved during his historic run, then was further validated by Jim McElwain, the right coach can do great things at CSU. The problem is that far too consistently over
Oumar Diomande
the last two decades, the Rams have had neither the right coach, nor the right quarterback.
Going into fall camp, it’s still unknown who will be under center when Wyoming comes to town in Week 1. And based on what we saw over the spring practices, as well as Mora’s comments regarding the timeline of it all, there doesn’t seem to be much of a rush to publicly back Hauss Hejny or K’Saan Farrar as ‘QB1’. The encouraging thing is that while neither player has officially been given the title of starting quarterback ahead of the regular season, both transfers have flashed enough talent in practice to get the fans excited about what they could bring to the table.
Hejny, a third-year player now at his third school, was the higher rated recruit coming out of high school. A onetime four-star prospect who won back-to-back state championships at Aledo High School (Texas) prior to signing with TCU, the dual-threat athlete is hoping to revive his collegiate career after a broken ankle ended his year for Oklahoma State in Game 1 of the 2025 season.
He doesn’t have much FBS experience to this point, however, Hejny did win the starting gig for the Cowboys prior to getting hurt last fall. And based on the athleticism he displayed in the spring, it’s easy to understand why he’s such an intriguing option for the staff. Hejny is not just fast for a football player, he’s got track star speed. It’s why despite being a bit undersized, the ability to turn any carry into an explosive run is a big asset for the offense, especially when he also happens to throw a really nice ball.
Farrar is a few inches taller than Hejny and more of a pocket passer, though the redshirt sophomore does also move well when he elects to break the pocket and take off.
Frankly, given the hype for Hejny, the fact that Farrar has battled as well as he has is a testament to him. Farrar made sure that he did everything in his power to take advantage of the reps available to him. And when there were big plays on the table for him in the live settings, he tended to seize the opportunity. A great example of this was in the spring scrimmages, when Farrar connected for touchdowns of 50+ yards in back-to-back weeks.
Regardless of which guy ends up being CSU’s starter, clearly, the Rams need a lot more consistency under center than what we’ve seen in recent years. After committing multiple seasons to Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi, having to bench him before getting out of the non-conference slate epitomized Norvell’s tenure. And if CSU is ever going to make a leap and truly be the type of team that’s envisioned with this move to the Pac-12, elevating the quarterback play is a great place to start.
CSU has now gone eight straight years without an allconference quarterback, and it’s been over a decade since the Rams have a QB play well enough to be the league’s offensive player of the year. Between 1999-2003, CSU had two QBs
discover delights downtown
Photo credit: Natalie Dyer
account for three total Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year awards, and unsurprisingly, the Rams won three conference championships over that fiveyear period.
CSU’s last QB to receive OPOY honors, Garrett Grayson, never won the league. He did, however, lead the Rams to their last postseason victory (2013). Grayson is also responsible for CSU’s only 10-win season post-Lubick, as well as producing two of the most prolific offenses in school history.
Asking for Hejny or Farrar to be on par with the true greats might be a bit much right out of the gate. But if the Rams are going to make a leap in 2026, the first domino that needs to fall is finding a quality starting quarterback.
Finally, while the spotlight will be heavily focused on the QBs, there is also a lot of excitement around town for the transfers brought in to bolster the skill positions.
Tight end Juice Vereen is projected
to do big things after scoring five touchdowns in a breakout season under Mora with the Huskies last fall. The tight end room in general looks pretty stacked, though. Between the UConn additions and bringing over Pearce Spurlin, expectations are pretty high across the board.
The running back room is also one of the deeper positions on the team. Mel Brown, Oliver Lundberg and Malichi Greaves all looked the part during the spring. Durrell Robinson has big-play potential, too. But we’ll have to see how he recovers after injuries derailed him at Auburn in 2025. In 2024, when he played under Mora at UConn, Robinson was a big play machine.
Defensively, losing the nation’s leading tackler to Arizona State was a tough blow for the fanbase. That said, Oumar Diomande is now in position to improve his NFL stock with the Rams after a really stellar season at UConn. Power four schools went after him
hard, so being able to bring Diomande over with the staff was a big win for CSU. And it will be fun to see what the linebacker’s addition, as well as the return of some injured starters, and a few other transfer additions can do on that side of the ball.
2025 ultimately proved to be a throwaway year with everything crashing and burning before we even made it to Halloween. Regardless, it’s been far too long since the Rams lived up to their potential with any type of consistency.
Maybe a change of scenery and an old-school football coach is exactly what CSU needed to finally turn things around. 2026 is a massively important season for the program, though. A new era needs to bring new trends. The time for CSU to step up and finally live up to its potential as a football program is now.
The Pac-12 can be a new beginning
2026 CSU RAMS FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
Sept. 5 (Sat.) Wyoming Fort Collins, CO
Sept. 12 (Sat.) Southern Utah Fort Collins, CO
Sept. 19 (Sat.) BYU Fort Collins, CO
Sept. 26 (Sat.) UTSA San Antonio, TX
Oct. 3 (Sat.) Oregon State Fort Collins, CO
Oct. 15 (Thu.) Texas State San Marcos, TX
Oct. 24 (Sat.) San Diego State Fort Collins, CO
Oct. 31 (Sat) Utah State Logan, UT
Nov. 7 (Sat.) Boise State Fort Collins, CO
Nov. 14 (Sat.) Washington State Pullman, WA
Nov. 21 (Sat.) Fresno State Fresno, CA
Nov. 28 (Sat.) Flex Game TBD Fort Collins, CO
2
0
2026 COLORADO STATE FOOTBALL ROSTER
36 Casey Carr Kicker San Jose, Calif. / Santa Teresa
39 Nathan Sutcliffe Punter Buninyong, VIC, Australia
40 Kali Nguma Kicker Mission, TX / Sharyland
42 Declan McKernan Long Snapper Boulder, Colo. / Fairview
44 Oliver Lundberg Running Back Gothenburg, Sweden / RIG Academy
84 Stephon Daily Wide Receiver Phoenix, Ariz. / Sierra Linda
85 Grant Houser Tight End Wapakoneta, Ohio / Wapakoneta
87 Antoine Martin Jr. Wide Receiver Houston, Texas / Iowa Colony
88 Nader Chirchi Tight End Alexandria, Va. / Edison
90 Keegan Shank Defensive Line Scottsdale, Ariz. / Chaparral
92 Mukendi Wa-Kalonji Defensive Line Aurora, Colo. / Grandview
93 Robby Harrison Defensive Line Greenwood, S.C. / Emerald
94 Alton Tarber IV Defensive Line Pompano Beach, Fla. / Deerfield Beach
95 Gabe Jones Defensive Line Dallas, Texas / W.T. White
96 Brandon Kelley Defensive Line Pottstown, Pa. / Owen J. Roberts
97 Amare Bell Defensive Line Phoenix, Ariz. / Cesar Chavez
99 TaVeon Robinson Defensive Line Olathe, Kans. / Olathe East
99 Cavan Craig Punter Charleston, S.C. / Bishop England
Yasser Jackson Wide Receiver Oakland, Calif. / Oakland
Uluaki Tatafu Offensive Line Waimanalo, Hawaii / Kailua
Packs Ahovelo Offensive Line Waimanalo, Hawaii / Kailua
Luke Van Auken Offensive Line Franklinville, N.J. / Delsea Regional
Texas / North Crowley
27 Jaylen King Linebacker Clayton, N.C. / Cleveland
28 Marc Pretto Linebacker Montclair, N.J. / St. Peter’s Prep Fordham / NIU
29 Xavier Wimbush Nickelback Ashburn, Va. / Stone Bridge
30 Kallen
Jim Mora Head Coach
Tyson Summers Defensive Coordinator
Pryce Tracy Offensive Coordinator
Kyle Krantz Special Teams Coordinator / Jacks
Christian Pace Associate Head Coach / Run Game Coordinator / Offensive Line
McClendon
Tyrone Fitten Defensive Line Hogansville, Ga. / Callaway
Jaden Hernandez Linebacker Carson, Calif. / Long Beach Poly
Mickey Williams Linebacker San Francisco, Calif. / Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep
Atticus Tillman Safety Arvada, Colo. / Arvada West
Isaiah Watson Wide Receiver Aurora, Colo. / Vista Peak Prep
Eli Rich Wide Receiver Boise, Idaho / Boise
Head Coach / Co-Defensive
/ Defensive Line
Matt Mitchell Passing Game Coordinator / Quarterbacks
Matty Ah You Nickelbacks
Jordan Frost-Dixon Linebackers
Brayden Herdic Safeties
David Hill Running Backs
Caleb Wilson Wide Receivers
Pat Welsh Tight Ends
Trent Matthews Cornerbacks
Jordan Frost-Dixon Linebackers
return to dominance
Can CSU regain its juggernaut form?
By Justin Michael
Karsyn Fetzer
AFTER WINNING 17 REGULAR season conference championships and six more postseason tournament titles in 27 seasons in the Mountain West, Colorado State volleyball is set to begin a new journey in the Pac-12.
Under the legendary Tom Hilbert, the program earned the reputation of being the big, bad bullies on the block — a status that arose after years of running the league — but was also frequently reinforced by the way CSU would dominate teams from major conferences. Schools out of the ACC, Big 10, etc., would come to Moby Arena and be completely outclassed on the court. And while those same schools might be able to triple CSU’s football attendance on any given Saturday, the atmosphere they would experience on campus for a top 25 volleyball matchup would be truly surreal.
The point here is that things were quite good for CSU in the Mountain West. The Rams won a whole lot of trophies, and the
fans had a whole lot of fun building one of the more unique volleyball communities in the country. The crucial thing for CSU to do now, though, both as a program as well as a fanbase, is let the past be something to be proud of, while focusing on moving forward.
For one thing, the Rams have not earned anything in this new league. So, while the brand is certainly strong going into the Pac-12, it’s now up to Emily Kohan and Co. to uphold it.
Secondly, while Kohan guiding CSU to a sweep of both MW championships in 2024 was a much-needed bounce back for the Rams, the truth is that the gap has closed. That’s not to say that the program has less potential to be special, but conference peers like Boise State and Utah State have upped their investment into their own programs and it shows.
Nobody’s ring count comes even close to CSU’s historically, but after 12 regular season championships in a 15-year span between 2007 and 2021,
the Rams only won one in their last four years in the Mountain West.
Going into the Pac-12, CSU should feel confident about the opportunities on the table. A lot like what you would envision on the women’s basketball side of things, the recently constructed league has a higher competitive floor than the MW. And what’s great about that is while the Rams might be less dominant over their peers year to year, having a more realistic chance of getting more than one team into the NCAA Tournament is a good thing for everyone.
CSU should also be hungry to conquer a new crown. Owning the MW for all of those years was great, but now the Rams can show that a change of scenery is not enough for their peers to be able to catch up. The Rams have a chance to prove to the rest of the Pac12 that no matter what conference the schools are currently affiliated with, there are still levels to this. So, while it’s great that teams like Boise State and
Photos
Courtesy of CSU
CSU VOLLEYball ROSTER 2026
Rams Volleyball Coaching Staff
Emily Kohan—Head Coach
Utah State have climbed a few tiers, the standard is still set in Fort Collins.
If the Rams are going to reach their goals in year four under Kohan, not only will they have to make it through a tough league slate, but the non-conference portion of the schedule is far from a cakewalk. After taking on former conference foes Air Force and UNLV in exhibition matchups, CSU will open the regular season by hosting UC-Davis (Aug. 28) and SMU (Aug. 29), two schools who combined to go 48-13 in 2025.
The Mustangs were especially impressive, sweeping their way through the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament before falling to No. 12 Purdue in the regional semifinal. Both teams should be a solid test for the Rams over the opening weekend, through a two-game stretch that historically draws big crowds and a lot of excitement.
On Sept. 1, CSU will play what is arguably the most important match of the opening month when Northern Colorado
comes to town. The Bears have gotten the best of the Rams in four straight years, so you know that Kohan is dying to get her first win in the regional rivalry. Not to mention how eager Ram fans are to see CSU restore some order.
Rounding out the key non-conference matchups, CSU will go on the road to take on North Carolina (Sept. 4) and James Madison (Sept. 5). The Rams will also host the UCSB Gauchos on Sept. 11 before playing Wyoming in Laramie the next day. CSU will play its annual homeand-home with Colorado ahead of the Pac-12 schedule on Sept. 17 (Boulder) and Sept. 18 (Fort Collins).
Though there are quite a few new faces, the roster will have a strong regional presence in 2026 with three Colorado-born players – Karsyn Fetzer, Brooke Homan, Olivia Ewing, and three more from adjoining states.
The Rams will also have the benefit of being able to rely on returning middle blocker Brenna Rowland and a veteran
transfer addition in Sophie Stephenson (LMU / Illinois).
Much of the roster, though, consists of underclassmen that were signed by Kohan. That’s not necessarily a negative, especially when looking at how acclaimed the signees were coming into the program. But it just means that this group is a little less battletested together than, say, the 2024 championship team which was infamously made up of a bunch of fifth-year players.
The 2026 season could be the beginning of something special in the Pac-12. It’s up to the Rams to avoid complacency and continue to strive to be a championship caliber program. It takes time to build up a true juggernaut like CSU did in the MW era, but the fall of great programs tends to happen much quicker than anyone ever sees coming.
Will the Rams still be the team to beat as we push forward through these uncharted waters? It’s time for Kohan to either sink or swim.
2026 CSU VOLLEYball SCHEDULE
DATE
Aug 15 (Sat.)
Aug 22 (Sat.)
Aug 28 (Fri.)
Aug 29 (Sat.)
Sep 1 (Tue.)
Sep 4 (Fri.)
Sep 5 (Sat.)
Sep 10 (Thu.)
Sep 11 (Fri.)
Sep 12 (Sat.)
OPPONENT
LOCATION
Air Force (Exhibition) Fort Collins, CO
UNLV (Exhibition) Las Vegas, NV
UC Davis Fort Collins, CO
SMU Fort Collins, CO
Northern Colorado Fort Collins, CO
North Carolina Chapel Hill, NC
James Madison
Chapel Hill, NC
South Dakota Fort Collins, CO
UCSB Fort Collins, CO
Wyoming Laramie, WY
Sep 17 (Thu.) Colorado Boulder, CO
Sep 18 (Fri.)
Sep 24 (Thu.)
Sept 26 (Sat.)
Colorado Fort Collins, CO
San Diego State Fort Collins, CO
Texas State San Marcos, TX
Oct 1 (Thu.) Gonzaga Spokane, WA
Oct 3 (Sat.)
Utah State Logan, UT
Oct 8 (Thu.) Washington State Fort Collins, CO
Oct 10 (Sat.)
Oct 17 (Sat.)
Oct 22 (Thu.)
Oct 24 (Sat.)
Oct 29 (Thu.)
Oct 31 (Sat.)
Oregon State Fort Collins, CO
Utah State Fort Collins, CO
Washington State Pullman, WA
Boise State Boise, ID
Fresno State Fresno, CA
Oregon State Corvallis, OR
Nov 5 (Thu.) Gonzaga Fort Collins, CO
Nov 7 (Sat.)
Boise State Fort Collins, CO
Nov 12 (Thu.) Fresno State Fort Collins, CO
Nov 14 (Sat.)
Nov 17 (Tue.)
San Diego State San Diego, CA
Texas State Fort Collins, CO
Continuity with success CSU roster boasts experience, potential
By Justin Michael
RUN IT BACK.
Colorado State men’s basketball will have the benefit of having real continuity going into year two under Ali Farokhmanesh.
In an era where it has become the norm for teams to turn over their entire lineup—either by order of the staff or the players themselves electing to leave—the Rams are going into 2026-27 with cohesion.
Coming off of a 21-win campaign in which CSU had some real highs, like beating a good South Florida team in November, taking down Colorado at home, and eventually winning eight straight in the Mountain West slate, the hope is for the Rams to build off of the good we saw when this core was rolling. And ideally, now with a group of predominantly upperclassmen, a more experienced CSU team will be able to find some consistency and collectively make a leap together.
That concept may feel foreign to those who have only known the sport in the
chaos of the transfer portal era. But it used to be the norm for teams to grow together. And for Farokhmanesh and Co., it was not just a nostalgic move, it was the best bet the Rams could make in hopes of returning to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time this decade.
Going into the second season for this staff, the coaches could have leaned hard on the portal again, like they had to after Niko Medved’s departure to Minnesota. The thing is, bringing in five transfers and really needing to hit on them all like CSU did in the first recruiting cycle under Farokhmanesh is a pretty tough process to replicate.
Hanging onto a few kids who you know have good potential, plus who have already spent at least a year in the system, is a more realistic path to success. And honestly, given the way injuries proved to limit this group’s ceiling in 2025-26, there’s good reason to believe that if the rotation can stay a little bit healthier, the Rams will have a chance to be solid in the first season in
the Pac-12.
We have already seen how effective Kyle Jorgensen and Rashaan Mbemba can be as bigs in CSU’s four and fiveout looks on the offensive end. Finding centers that can handle all of their passing and screening responsibilities is borderline impossible. Let alone players who can play with their backs to the basket and handle the physicality in the post, but still step out to the top of the key and open up the spacing by being a respectable shooter. Because of that, being able to bring those two bigs back for a third and fourth season, respectively, was a major win for the coaches. It was a major win for the fanbase, too.
The fans should also be thrilled that after seeing them break out in their first year in the program, both Carey Booth and Jase Butler made the savvy decision to not mess with a good thing and stay with a staff that has given them a chance to flourish.
After transferring over from
Jase Butler
Photo
Washington, it took a minute for him to find his footing, but Butler was a top 15 player in the conference over the last six weeks of the season. It will be interesting to see if having two more capable ball handlers in the mix can free him up even more as a shooter. Big things could definitely be in store for the junior, though.
And for Booth, who is as naturally athletic as anyone in the country, the hope is that he’ll be able to just continue to evolve as a player. He’s already a more efficient 3-point shooter than anticipated, which is key, because defenders having to respect him along the perimeter is only going to open up driving opportunities.
But if Booth can continue to grow as a creator, and he can play with the confidence and trust in himself that started to come as this past season progressed, there is a world in which he really takes things to a new level. Especially if he can also become a more
consistent rebounder and rim protector. Finally, the biggest wildcard at the moment might be the role of point guard. JoJo McIver is back for his sophomore season and if all goes well, we’ll see him make the type of jump that leaves the skeptics feeling silly for ever doubting him in the first place. But if some of the offensive struggles he displayed as a freshman continue to persist, maybe he becomes more of a defensive specialist off the bench. And in turn, one of the transfers assumes the role of being the primary facilitator.
The encouraging thing is that in addition to signing the highest rated group of freshmen in program history, including the Colorado Gatorade Player of the Year, the Rams went out and signed two veteran guards to hopefully eliminate some of the struggles that last year’s team had against more aggressive defenses.
Justin Menard comes to CSU by way of Marist College, which is the same
program where his now-teammate Josh Pascarelli started. And Amondo Miller has landed in Fort Collins for his final stop after most recently starring for Lubbock Christian University. Prior to being a Division II standout, though, Miller initially began his career at CU. For CSU, the expectations might not be on par with Gonzaga, who will likely be the preseason pick to win the league every single year. But this is a program that has been on the rise for the better part of a decade. And while losing Medved to his alma mater was a bit of a speedbump, the plan is still very much for the Rams to continue to climb the ladder and elevate nationally to be on par with the best mid-major brands in the sport.
Hopes are high for the Rams going into a new league with significant potential. We’ll see what 2026-27 has in store for this team in the end, but the possibilities are certainly endless for a roster that on paper looks good enough to go dancing.
2026-27 Colorado State University mens BASKETBALL ROSTER
Fanning the flames
By Justin Michael
THE COLORADO STATE WOMEN’S basketball team went out on top in the Mountain West.
En route to an epic battle with No. 20 Michigan State in the NCAA Tournament—a game which the Rams lost 65-62, but earned the respect of the nation with an admirable performance as 18.5-point underdogs—CSU was finally able to get over the hump and deliver the second conference championship of the Ryun Williams era.
Led by a group of veteran players who had all been through the fire before and knew just how gut wrenching it feels to come close to your dreams, only to come up short in the conference tournament, CSU won nine straight games between Valentine’s Day and March 10th, including the three games in Las Vegas to punch their ticket to the big dance.
And although Hannah Ronsiek’s 3-point attempt at the buzzer missed against Michigan State, tragically bringing the Cinderella story to an end, seeing the Rams catch fire last spring was one of the more fun and memorable stretches the program has produced in years.
The big question moving forward is whether CSU can keep that flame going in a newly constructed league that will hopefully have a more viable path to multiple bids.
Under Williams’ leadership, CSU has won 20 or more games 10 different times, including four different campaigns with 25+ wins. In a one-bid conference, though, the Rams have only made two NCAA Tournaments over the last two decades, which is a trend that would ideally change during a time
Rams
hope to catch fire with new faces
when the women’s game is exploding with popularity.
It was easy to take things for granted when the Rams received five bids in seven years in the late stages of the WAC and the early years in the Mountain West. And if we are being realistic, it’s tough to imagine CSU pulling something quite like that off again now that the transfer portal has become so prevalent. Just imagine the type of NIL offers that players like Becky Hammon would have commanded after she exploded onto the scene.
But while it might be tough to expect the kind of sustained dominance as a mid-major in the modern era, the hope should still be to build off of the success of 2025-26 and hit the ground running in the Pac-12.
Kloe Froebe
2026-27 Colorado State University womens BASKETBALL ROSTER
Marcie Johnston—Director of Women’s Basketball Operations SUPPORT
Annie Lopez-Bauman—Athletic Trainer
Michael Taylor—Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach
Ross Barr, Psy.D, LP—Assistant Athletic Director for StudentAthlete Mental Health and Performance
Unfortunately, for the Ram faithful at least, Brooke Carlson cashed in on her monster performances down the stretch last spring and transferred to the University of Washington. The Huskies saw her average 17 in the Mountain West Tournament before dropping 26 points against the Spartans last March, and were able to sway Illinois native to take her talents to the Big 10.
Replacing a scorer of Carlson’s caliber is always to be challenging, particularly when they prove to be as clutch under the bright lights as she was last year. The silver lining, of course, is that Williams has had a terrific hit rate on transfers over the last half-decade. So, the odds of the Rams hitting on another one feel solid after seeing CSU have the MW Newcomer of the Year in four straight seasons (2022-26).
In total, CSU signed five transfers this past cycle.
Camryn Runner is the most
accomplished of the bunch, having averaged 18.2 points per game for Evansville as a sophomore this past season. In addition to being the team’s leading scorer, the 5-foot-8 guard also dished out a little over five assists per game and was active on the glass, too (5.6 rebounds).
With the loss of Carlson, adding an all-conference talent like Runner, who has proven she can stuff the stat sheet if needed, is a nice move for the Rams. Runner, in just two seasons, has already scored 1,000 points in her collegiate career. She’s already produced a tripledouble as well, which is pretty incredible in a 40-minute basketball game.
Along with Runner, the other big name in the transfer class is Sophie Sene. A 6-foot-3 center out of Nice, France, Sene was originally someone the Rams had to design a game plan to try and slow down when she was starring for Utah State. Now wearing
green and gold, if Sene can bounce back from injury, she’ll have a strong chance to be one of CSU’s key players.
Sene averaged 9.3 points and 6.3 rebounds per game in 20 total appearances for the Aggies last season. What really stood out was her 3-point shooting, though. Even as a true five, she was able to shoot an impressive 41.7 percent from deep. That ability to use her size in the post or stretch the floor with her shooting makes Sene a really tough matchup for the opposition defensively.
Anna Wikstrøm, a native of Bergen, Norway, came to CSU by way of Duke. After averaging about 10 minutes of action in 18 appearances as a freshman for the Blue Devils, the 6-foot guard gives CSU an up-andcoming player who won’t be coming in completely green.
Finally, Maryn Archer (redshirt senior) will be wrapping up her career after initially playing at Arkansas. The 5-foot9 guard played in 43 total games for the Razorbacks, primarily as a reserve, but was at one point a blue-chip prospect coming out of high school.
And rounding out the group, Heiður Karlsdóttir, a 6-foot-4 junior forward has also joined the team after playing about 15 minutes for Wyoming last year.
Though the rotation will look much different from the group that went on a magnificent run in 2026, CSU will have the benefit of bringing back guards Kloe Froebe and McKenna Murphy, both of which played key roles as underclassmen. The key question is how much they can elevate their games given what was lost from a production standpoint. And obviously, in the portal era, it’s always going to be interesting to see how quickly this many new players can gel.
The Rams did some big things this past spring and really gave the fans some much-needed hope. We’ll see if they can build off that success and help create a new standard for CSU women’s hoops in the Pac-12 era.
Opportunity is knocking right now. Will the Rams answer?
Photo
Football Recruiting Colorado’s Top 12 Instate Recruits — Class of 2027
#1 Jackson Roper IOL 6-5 / 305
NA, Position 17 Cherry Creek / Englewood, CO
#2 Cristian Mbamarah CB 6-1 / 175 National NA, Position 37 Cherokee Trail / Aurora, CO
#3 Troy Mailo EDGE 6-3 / 252 National NA, Position 53 Mullen / Denver, CO
#4 Reis Russell IOL 6-3.5 / 290
#5 Jackson Coleman WR 6-3 / 185
#6 Matthew Schimberg TE 6-6 / 235
#7 Quentin Dorsey DL 6-3.5 / 240
#8 Caleb Camping TE 6-5 / 220
#9 Jayden Bradley S 6-1 / 170
#10 Ryan Pankey ATH 6-6 / 230
NA, Position 62 Valor Christian / Littleton, CO
NA, Position 115 Valor Christian / Littleton, CO
NA, Position 43 Grandview / Aurora, CO
NA, Position 111 Grandview / Aurora, CO
NA, Position 49 Fossil Ridge / Fort Collins, CO
NA, Position 143 Eaglecrest / Aurora, CO
NA, Position 118 Montrose / Montrose, CO
#11 Alijah Landrum-Hamilton WR 5-8 / 165 National NA, Position 210 Cherry Creek / Englewood, CO #12 Marquise Reese QB 6-1.5 / 195 National NA, Position 95 Mountain Vista / Littleton, CO
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