Colorado head football coach Mike MacIntyre has often said that Colorado State has an advantage over the Buffaloes by playing an early game.
After facing Hawaii on Saturday night in Fort Collins, the Rams are used to game speed and their newcomers have got the first-game jitters out of the way.
With the annual Rocky Mountain Showdown coming up Friday at Broncos Stadium at Mile High in Denver, however, the Buffs at least still have their preseason optimism intact.
CSU has to quickly regroup after a surprising 43-34 loss to Hawaii.
"We can't feel sorry for ourselves," CSU head coach Mike Bobo said.