The critics can say all they want. On Thursday night against Western State Colorado University, Colorado Mesa University “left no doubt” on the field by the end of the game.
Domination doesn’t even come close to describe what the Mavericks accomplished in week one of the brand new 2017 season. Every ounce of the game was swarmed by maroon jerseys and Mountaineer bodies were left on the turf.
Quarterback Eystin Salum lead the charge for the CMU offense. The senior from Denver produced a highlight reel as he constructed seven combined touchdowns for only three-quarters of play.
Salum finished the game 14-20 for 290 yds and 5 TD’s. He added an extra 61 yards and 2 TD’s on the ground.
By the start of the fourth quarter, Salum was taken from the game to give sophomore Rope Ruel some in-game experience against a struggling Western defense.
CMU started off strong by scoring on the second play of the game with a 30yd Salum touchdown pass to Marcus Hines. Three minutes later, Salum followed with another touchdown pass to David Tann.
Tann would have a combined 97 yds from both the ground and the air on Thursday night. It was a rather quiet game for Tann, but Salum and the deep receiving core produced an offensive showcase to pick up the slack.
Five different receivers caught a touchdown pass on Thursday.
Peter Anderson lead the receiving core with 3 receptions for 85 yards and 1 TD. The two Junior stars, Josh Brown and Marcus Hines, combined for 5 receptions, 100 yards, and 2 TD’s.
Western State would make a late push in the fourth quarter scoring three touchdowns but the first half surge was not enough for the Mountaineers to make a significant comeback.
The late gush of points Western put up in the fourth quarter proves the Mavericks do need to work on some kinks such as reducing penalties during key situations, and not giving up easy plays on defense.
Penalties did cost CMU some points during the course of the game. Two punt returns would have been touchdowns if not for two holding and block-in-the-back penalties.
However, these are just small mental mistakes to be ironed out throughout the course of the long season.
CMU would eventually win the game 49-23 and start the season on a very high note heading into next week, where they will be on the road.
The Mavericks will travel to Chadron State next week in hopes to capitalize on their week one success.
