Fans of Colorado State sports have reason to crow.
The school’s four “major” sports — football, women’s volleyball and men’s and women’s basketball — compiled 91 victories during the 2014-15 academic calendar, a number that tied Stanford for third among the 125 NCAA Division I schools that participate in all four sports.
As for combined winning percentage of those sports, Colorado State is unmatched. The Rams (91-21) compiled an .813 winning percentage. Next best for the four sports was Kentucky (94-24) at .797.
CSU football went 10-3, women’s volleyball 31-3, men’s basketball 27-7 and women’s basketball 23-8.
“It makes me feel good as an alum,” said former CSU defensive back Bernard Blake, who hopes to give pro football a shot.
Blake said CSU programs feed off the success of others.
“All athletes support each other,” Blake said. “As athletes, we all have similar schedules, so we see each other and hang out with each other. We understand what others are going through and what it takes to win.
“You sure don’t want to be the program that isn’t pulling its weight.”
Five years ago, for the 2009-10 academic year, the CSU women’s volleyball team was the only one of the four to post a winning record. Tom Hilbert’s women’s volleyball team went 25-6 and qualified for the NCAA Tournament. CSU men’s basketball (16-16), women’s basketball (13-17) and football (3-9) were struggling.
Hilbert, preparing for his 19th season at CSU, said the “cultural shift” in the school’s athletic department began to take hold following coaching changes.
Those included Tim Miles (beginning with the 2007-08 season) in men’s basketball, Jim McElwain (2012) in football and Ryun Williams (2012-13) for women’s basketball. Miles left for Nebraska in the spring of 2012 and was replaced by perennial winner Larry Eustachy. McElwain departed for Florida following the 2014 season and was replaced by Mike Bobo, formerly offensive coordinator at Georgia.
The next step for CSU sports teams is to become more successful in postseason play.
Hilbert’s women’s volleyball team qualified for the NCAA Tournament last fall and won two matches before getting eliminated in a regional semifinal. But the football team, albeit with an interim coach, lost 45-10 to Utah in the Las Vegas Bowl.
The Colorado State women’s basketball team won the Mountain West regular-season title and earned the No. 1 seed in the MW Tournament but was stunned in its first game by ninth-seeded San Jose State. The Rams were then upset by Northern Colorado in the Women’s National Invitation Tournament. The CSU men’s team set a school single-season record with 27 victories but was snubbed by the NCAA Tournament selection committee then lost its first game in the NIT to South Dakota State.
Hilbert said Mountain West teams in all sports must beef up their nonconference schedules to prepare for tougher competition in the postseason.
“If you make it into a (postseason) tournament, those tough games you played early will help you,” Hilbert said. “That’s going to be a big part of it as all the CSU teams progress. You have to take on some of the big dogs. Your players need to see the speed and the athleticism you’re going to face in the postseason.”
Tom Kensler: tkensler@denverpost.com or twitter.com/tomkensler
CSU shines
A look at the Division I schools with the most combined number of wins in football, men’s and women’s basketball and women’s volleyball during the 2014-15 school year (125 NCAA Division I schools participated in those sports.):
Rank, school Record
1, Kentucky 94-24
2, Florida State 92-25
3, CSU 91-21
(tie) Stanford91-30
5, Duke 89-27
Source: CSU