ALAMOSA, Colo. – The No. 22/24th-ranked Colorado State University Pueblo football team outscored Adams State 58 unanswered points over the final three quarters here Saturday afternoon to post a 66-10 victory over Adams State in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference action at Rex Field.

With the win, the ThunderWolves improve to 4-1 overall and 3-0 in the RMAC and extend its win streak in league play to 10 consecutive victories, which is the fifth longest active conference win streak in Division II. Adams State falls to 0-4 overall and 0-2 in the league.

The 56-point win was tied for the seventh largest margin of victory in school history, while 66 points scored are tied for the fourth most points in a game in school history.  

The Pack trailed 10-8 after the first quarter but scored three touchdowns in the second quarter to take a 29-10 lead at the half and then scored four more touchdowns in the third quarter and added a touchdown and field goal in the fourth quarter to set the final margin.

"It's not how you start, it's how you finish. We gave them about every opportunity there in the first quarter to make this a game. The defense held strong and our offense found their grounding and we were able to put some points on the scoreboard. I was happy with the way we answered today," said CSU Pueblo second-year head coach Philip Vigil following the game. "We've got to protect the football offensively. We gave them three turnovers in the first half and that's very uncharacteristic of our team. We've got to do a better job at holding on to the ball. Credit to Adams State, they did a good job of ripping the ball, holding guys up and trying to get after it." 

For the game, the Pack finished with a season-high 718 yards of offense as they rushed for 301 yards on 38 carries and averaged 7.9 yards per carry, while going 23-for-31 passing for 417 yards with an interception and tossing a school record tying seven touchdown passes. The 718 yards of offense is the second highest total in school history as the Pack gained a school record 764 yards in last season's 85-7 win at Fort Lewis.

"Offensively, we were throwing the ball well and guys were making plays with the ball on the edge and then we ran the ball well, too. When it's rolling, it is a well oiled machine and it's fun to watch," added Vigil, who improved to 12-4 as the Pack's head coach and 19-19 in his fourth season as a collegiate head coach with Saturday's victory.

Senior quarterback Devin Larsen (Gilbert, Ariz./Western New Mexico) was 16-for-24 passing for 268 yards and had four touchdown passes and an interception, while junior Roman Fuller (Decatur, Texas/University of Tulsa) was 7-for-7 passing for 149 yards and added three touchdown passes. So far this season, Fuller is a perfect 13-for-13 passing for 196 yards and has had three touchdown passes. 

The Pack's ground game was led by senior running back Howard Russell V (Phoenix, Ariz./Eastern New Mexico) as he rushed 13 times for 168 yards and scored two touchdowns and averaged 12.9 yards per carry. He also caught two passes for 11 yards to finish with 179 all-purpose yards.

Adams State, who has now lost 10 straight games dating to last season, got on the scoreboard first in Saturday's game as Brysen Gardner connected on a 35-yard field goal with 9:38 left in the opening quarter.

Following the field goal, the Pack drove five plays in 75 yards in three plays and capped the drive with a 69-yard touchdown pass from Larsen to senior receiver Reggie Retzlaff (Corona, Calif./Riverside City College) with 8:24 left in the quarter. The receiving touchdown was the sixth of the season for Retzlaff and 18th of his career. On the ensuing extra point, senior defensive lineman Cody Ramming (Littleton, Colo./Columbine) added a two-point conversion run to give the Pack an 8-3 lead.

Retzlaff finished the game with three catches for 83 yards and has now hauled in 30 passes for 642 yards through the first five games this season.

ASU would retake the lead as Traivian Denetso picked off a Larsen pass and returned it 12 yards for a touchdown to give the home team a 10-8 lead with 3:46 left in the first quarter.

That would be the final time in the game that the Pack would trail as they used a 4-yard touchdown pass from Larsen to junior tight end Tyler Dvorak (Englewood, Colo./Cherry Creek) to take a 15-10 lead.

The Pack added its third touchdown of the game on a 12-yard pass from Larsen to senior receiver Taylor Tosches (Temecula, Calif./SW Oklahoma State) to take a 22-10 lead with 6:47 left in the second quarter. The drive was aided by a 53-yard pass from Larsen to Tosches. Tosches finished the game with two receptions for 85 yards.

After an interception on ASU's next drive by sophomore defensive back Donovan English (Pomona, Calif./Colony), the Pack added its third touchdown of the second quarter on a 26-yard touchdown run by senior running back Howard Russell V (Phoenix, Ariz./Eastern New Mexico).

In the first half, the Pack gained 326 yards of offense on 30 plays as they rushed for 125 yards on 13 carries and passed for 201 yards.

The Pack extended its lead to 36-10 on its first possession of the third quarter as they drove 63 yards in three plays and capped the drive with a 32-yard touchdown pass from Larsen to junior receiver Zack Rakowsky (Loveland, Colo./Loveland) with 12:58 left in the quarter. The touchdown by Rakowsky was his first of the season.

Russell added his second touchdown of the game following a 6-yard touchdown run with 10:37 left in the third quarter to give the Pack a 43-10 lead.

Redshirt senior receiver Nigel Mitchell (Red Bank, N.J./Red Bank Regional) gave the Pack a 50-10 lead after catching a 67-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Roman Fuller (Decatur, Texas/University of Tulsa) with 7:15 left in the third quarter. Mitchell finished the game with three receptions for 89 yards in the win.

The Pack's lead grew to 56-10 following a 48-yard touchdown pass from Fuller to junior receiver Xavier Marshall (Bakersfield, Calif./Bakersfield College) with 2:34 left in the third quarter. The touchdown pass came one play after sophomore defensive back Kahden Rullo (Denver, Colo./Grandview) returned an interception 50 yards to the ASU 48-yard line.

After forcing the Grizziles to give up the ball on downs at midfield with 33 seconds left in the third quarter, the Pack would add another touchdown to its tally thanks to a 7-yard touchdown pass from Fuller to sophomore running back Moosah Alsaffar (Aurora, Colo./Grandview) to give the Pack a 63-10 lead with 12:06 left in the game.

The Pack would complete the scoring on its next offensive possession as they drove 40 yards in 10 plays and capped the drive with a 35-yard field goal by sophomore kicker Evan Lyons (Superior, Colo./Monarch).

While the Pack offense gained 718 yards on 69 plays and averaged 10.4 yards per play, the Pack defense held ASU without an offensive touchdown and limited them to 141 yards of offense as they rushed for 59 yards on 41 carries and averaged 1.4 yards per carry and passed for just 82 yards.

The Pack defense also collected three sacks to push their season total to 15, and also had 10 tackles for a loss and picked off two passes in the win.

The Pack will return home next Saturday, Oct. 5 as they host New Mexico Highlands for its annual Homecoming game. Kickoff for the Homecoming 2024 game is set for 2 p.m. at the CSU Pueblo ThunderBowl.