Last August, after a Colorado State practice, I asked Rams offensive tackle Ty Sambrailo if he ever had been a Colorado Buffaloes fan.
The question was a natural, and not only because the Rams' 2014 opener against CU was imminent. His father, Mark, was a former CU pole vaulter and a Buffs fan as he and his wife, Karen, a University of Denver graduate, raised their family in coastal northern California. And Ty's older brother, Erik, also was a CU graduate.
Ty said, "I was ..."
The pause was brief, but noticeable.
" ... not.