FORT COLLINS — Jay Norvell knows how Mountain West games often go.

He’s coached in dozens of them over the last eight years. He knows the formula. He’s talked about it often. The games almost always come down to the final four minutes with one team trying to steal the game and the other trying to hold on.

No matter if his Colorado State team has been one trying to steal it or hold onto it, the Rams just haven’t been able to come away with enough wins.

After CSU’s 31-24 win on Saturday over a good San Jose State team in the Mountain West opener, the tide might be turning in Fort Collins.

“I think this is probably pretty indicative of all of our conference games of how they’re going to be,” Norvell said. “We’re going to play teams that are very similar, that are knowledgeable about us, that are well-coached. You’re going to have to fight and you’re going to have to do the right things all the way through the end of the game to win. It takes toughness and discipline and mental toughness and all the things that we’ve worked on all year long.

“The mentality of our football team has got to show now. All the things that we’ve been working on for so many months have got to show in these moments.”

The Rams seem to have found a formula that works for them.

They lean on their veteran offensive line and stable of talented running backs to control games early and build leads, mixing in explosive passing plays when the defense is forced to sell out to stop the run.

“We got in a rhythm early and we were able to take some shots and get some completions early and that was very beneficial for me and the receivers, as well,” quarterback Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi said. “As an offense, we really understood where we had to attack the defense and we did a great job of it.”

CSU did all of that in the first half Saturday and appeared set to take a two-score lead into halftime, until a fumble resulted in a scoop-and-score touchdown for the Spartans and a tie game.

“The fumble kind of took the wind out of everybody’s sails and I could feel it,” Norvell said. “I just reminded them that we talked about this before the game. We have to handle adversity. When it strikes we have to be strong enough to push through.”

The Rams did just that, getting a defensive stop on SJSU’s offensive possession to open the second half.

From there, CSU built a 10-point lead on the back of a nine-play, 91-yard touchdown drive and a 58-yard field goal by Jordan Noyes.

Even when San Jose State scored a touchdown with five minutes left to make it a three-point game again, CSU had an answer.

With star wide receiver Tory Horton battling a knee injury he suffered in the first half, the Rams needed one of their many young wide receivers to step up. This time, it was sophomore Armani Winfield.

On a critical 3rd-and-8 on the Rams’ side of the field, Fowler-Nicolosi found Winfield on a short crossing route and he did the rest,for a 62-yard touchdown that put the game to bed.

“I was expecting to get the ball, but once I saw the green grass in front of me, my legs just started running faster than they ever ran before,” Winfield said.

Fowler-Nicolosi completed a program record 16 straight passes during the game and looked as comfortable as ever. Avery Morrow had his third straight game with at least 100 rushing yards. The defense allowed just 17 points to the Mountain West’s top passing attack.

After a disappointing loss to Oregon State the week prior, the Rams needed a win to show not just the conference, but also themselves, that they had this type of performance in them. One where they seize control of a game early and hold onto it through the final whistle.

“That was what we’ve really been pushing for and a lot of the things we’ve been working on really since the end of last season are starting to show up now,” Norvell said. “We took a really hard look at our season last year and what we needed to do and win close games in our conference.

“We have a tough group of guys, we really do. They’re mentally tough. They fought through today and you’ve got to be willing to sacrifice. When it’s played the right way, you can see it.”