Hauss Hejny tosses 5 TDs as Colorado State beats Wyoming 35-13 in Rams debut for coach Jim Mora

FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) — Hauss Hejny threw five touchdown passes, Colorado State’s buzzing defense had three interceptions and the Rams got off to a successful start under new head coach Jim Mora with a 35-13 win over Wyoming on Saturday night.

Hejny, a transfer from Oklahoma State, connected with RJ Vick for three scores, including a 57-yard reception as the Rams began their tenure in the Pac-12 Conference on the right note. Hejny finished with 214 yards passing and had a 28-yard catch on a trick play that set up a Colorado State TD on its opening drive.

The Rams brought home the Bronze Boot trophy as part of their “Border War” rivalry with Wyoming. For the first time in decades, though, the Rams and Cowboys did not meet as conference foes. Colorado State moved to the Pac-12 this season, while Wyoming remains in the Mountain West. The teams are currently not slated to play next season but will resume again in 2028.

Soon after the final whistle, the players sprinted to the sideline and grabbed the trophy as fans filtered onto the field. Mora, the longtime NFL and college coach, later sat with the trophy at his news conference. He arrived at Colorado State from Connecticut, where he spent the last four seasons, and has instantly provided a boost to the program.

Not that he was reading too much into one game.

“Right now, I’m just happy for the players,” said Mora, who had lots of family in the stands, including his father, Jim. “We’ll see see where it goes. I preach to them not get too high or too low. So if I’m not steady, then they can’t be — they won’t be.”

Mora brought in 76 new players this season, including 41 transfers. Two of those newcomers were Hejny and Vick, who landed in Fort Collins after stints with Virginia Union and Wake Forest. Vick had six catches for 75 yards.

“CSU is a place that was hungry to win and hungry to have success,” Hejny said. “I just wanted to be a part of it.”

Wyoming had a short-lived momentum swing at the end of the first half when Rams kicker Kali Nguma missed a 54-yard field goal with 33 seconds left. The Cowboys made it a 14-6 game after Erik Sandvik connected on a 48-yard field goal.

Quarterback Tyler Hughes scrambled for a 9-yard score on the opening drive of the third quarter to draw the Cowboys to 14-13. Colorado State’s defense then came up big with Oumar Diomande’s interception as the Cowboys were driving. Two plays later, Hejny found Vick to extend the lead. The Rams closed out the game by recovering a fumble.

“We’ve got a lot of things to fix,” said Cowboys coach Jay Sawvel, whose team was 0-for-8 on third-down conversions. “We’ve got to stick together and do it, and we will.”

Commissioner visit

Pac-12 commissioner Teresa Gould visited the stadium — with 40,546 in attendance on Saturday — and went to a pep rally the night before.

“This place is amazing, and more people need to know about it,” Gould said. “That’s where I think the Pac-12 and the association to the Pac- 12 hopefully can help elevate the brand.”

Following along

Diomande, who followed Mora from UConn, didn’t know much about rivalries until he showed up on campus.

“I heard we hate Wyoming, so I decided to hate Wyoming, too,” the linebacker cracked.

The takeaway

Colorado State: Before Mora, the last football head coach to win their Colorado State debut was Mike Bobo in 2015. Steve Addazio lost in 2020 and Jay Norvell in 2022.

Wyoming: The last time Wyoming opened against the Rams was in 1964 when the Cowboys won 31-7 at home.

Up next

Wyoming: Host Northern Colorado on Saturday.

Colorado State: Host Southern Utah on Saturday.

___

Sign up for Top 25 poll alerts here. Visit the Top 25 here and see AP’s full college football coverage here