Colorado State is exactly where it was a season ago.

After four games, the Rams are 2-2 and won the two games they were expected to and lost the two games they were expected to.

But something still doesn’t feel right. After CSU suffered a disappointing loss to in-state rival Colorado last weekend, the Rams jumped out to a 24-3 lead against UTEP before sputtering and holding on for a 27-17 win. The defense hasn’t shown an ability to stop a quality offense and the CSU offense has yet to produce an explosive game.

Still, Jay Norvell isn’t concerned.

“Very, very proud of how we bounced back and proud of our coaching staff of how we handled our kids this week and they responded,” Norvell said after Saturday’s game. “We didn’t play perfect. We had some plays and some things we could have done better. We came up short on some fourth downs. Gave up a couple big plays on screens but overall we fought and we played really hard for four quarters.”

The win over UTEP was a fourth straight game in which the Rams rushed for over 100 yards as a team. To start the season, freshman Justin Marshall had the hot hand. In Week 2, it was local product Keegan Holles (Cherry Creek). The last two games, it’s been veteran Avery Morrow, who’s been with Norvell every stop of the way in his college career.

On Saturday, Morrow churned out 156 yards on 21 carries, including one 73-yard touchdown run.

“It’s amazing,” Norvell said. “When we have explosive runs it changes our team. That’s a deflating thing for a defense. When you can run the ball on them like that and when you can get chunks of yards, that changes the game. We want to continue to build on that.”

But that effectiveness running the football has not opened up the passing attack to this point.

A year after Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi averaged nearly 300 passing yards per game as a freshman, he’s thrown for just a little over 600 through four games and that’s the biggest difference from last year to this year.

Star wide receiver Tory Horton has been banged up for a few weeks and didn’t play Saturday, but the Rams have yet to have someone else step up among the pass-catching group.

“We still have some young receivers that still haven’t played with Brayden very much,” Norvell said. “I’m really proud of Brayden. His numbers don’t always look like they used to last year at times, but he’s doing a lot of good things to help us win football games. He’s very much involved in the running game. He’s very much involved in making sure we’re in the right plays and I think his maturity and leadership has been really good.”

Luckily for CSU, a much-needed bye week has arrived. It will allow more time for guys like Horton and top pass rusher Nuer Gatkouth to get healthy before a tough road game at Oregon State.

“We’ve got two weeks now where we can kind of get healed up a little bit,” Norvell said. “It’s going to be important that we get some guys back. We just have some really good players that haven’t been on the field that we really need to get back.”

It’s been far from a perfect or pretty start to the season, but every Norvell and his team want to accomplish this season is still right in front of them.

“We’re a work in progress,” Norvell said. “We have to get better every day, but I’m convinced that the confidence we gained from winning is going to help this football team. It’s a mental thing with our kids. We have to understand how to prepare and play a very tough, competitive contest every week. That’s what we have to do. If we continue to improve and build on what we’re doing, that gives us a chance. We will play as well as we practice.”