Colorado State lost 56-26 to Oregon State, and defensive coordinator Tyson Summers did not finish the game in his job. Coach Jim Mora removed Summers as defensive play caller in the first half. By the end, Summers was no longer with the program.
That is an unusual sequence. A coordinator usually loses a game, answers for it afterward, and perhaps loses his job later. Colorado State made the change while Oregon State was still scoring.
Mora said Summers was relieved of play-calling duties, then left the field on his own. “He is no longer with this football program,” Mora said after the game, adding that the separation was permanent.
The public explanation is clear enough on its face. But it leaves questions open. Why was the play-calling change made in the first half rather than at halftime? Why did Summers leave immediately? And why did the program confirm the separation before the stadium had emptied?
Those are fair questions, not accusations. A coach can make a difficult decision quickly. A coordinator can decide he cannot continue in a reduced role. Both things can be true without anyone behaving badly.
Still, the timing invites scrutiny. Colorado State had already lost two straight games, and reporting after the game said the defense had allowed 100 points across those previous two contests. A 56-26 defeat made it three losses in a row.
So the change did not arrive from nowhere. The defense had been failing for weeks. The question is whether removing Summers during the game was a response to that failure, or a public display of urgency after it had become impossible to ignore.
What actually changed
Kenny McClendon, the assistant head coach and co-defensive coordinator, took over the defensive calls. Cornerbacks coach Trent Matthews handled the signals. Mora said McClendon would remain the primary play caller going forward.
McClendon’s first call reportedly produced a sack and a forced fumble. That is a good beginning, and Mora praised both the coach and the players’ response.
But one play cannot erase a 30-point defeat. It also cannot tell us whether the defense will improve next week. The useful question is simpler: what did Colorado State believe was broken, and why did it believe a mid-game change could fix it?
A play caller can be replaced in seconds. A defensive system cannot. Players still have to tackle, cover, rush, and adjust. If the problem was communication, then a new voice may help. If the problem was talent, injuries, preparation, or matchups, then the scoreboard may look much the same next Saturday.
Why this story travels
The obvious reason is the strangeness. A coordinator being removed during a game is rare enough that it becomes the headline before the final score does. The loss was severe, but the personnel news was more immediate.
There is also a broader media incentive here. “Coordinator fired during game” is a clean, dramatic phrase. It gives people something to argue about: Was it justified? Was it humiliating? Was it decisive leadership or panic?
I do not know which it was. Neither does anyone outside the program. What we know is that Mora removed Summers from play-calling duties, Summers left the field, and the separation became permanent after the game. The rest is interpretation.
That interpretation matters because it shapes how we view Mora’s first season. If Colorado State improves quickly under McClendon, the move will be remembered as firm leadership. If the defense keeps giving up points, the same decision may look like a reaction made under pressure.
The result could be the same either way. The framing will not be.
The part that should concern Rams fans
Summers had history at Colorado State. He returned as defensive coordinator in 2025, served as interim head coach for the final five games after Jay Norvell was dismissed, and stayed on when Mora took over.
That makes the breakup more than a routine staff move. Summers was not a new hire still learning the program. He had been trusted with the defense, then briefly with the entire team, and then retained by the new head coach.
So why did that trust end so abruptly?
Mora’s answer addresses the mechanics but not the cause. He said he relieved Summers of play-calling duties and did not expect to tell him to leave the sideline. That explains what happened. It does not explain what changed in the coach’s mind between kickoff and the first-quarter timeout.
Maybe the answer is performance. Oregon State scored on its first two drives and led 14-0 before the change. Maybe the answer is a larger pattern that had been building. Maybe it was both.
But the public record does not say. And when a program offers a narrow explanation for a dramatic decision, the absence of detail becomes its own story.
What remains unknown
We do not know whether Summers was told to leave, asked to leave, or chose to leave after losing authority over the defense. Mora said Summers made that decision himself.
We do not know what Summers would say, because the available reporting does not include a response from him. We also do not know whether the decision was discussed with university leadership beforehand, or whether it was entirely Mora’s call.
And we do not know whether this solves anything. Colorado State is 2-3 after the loss. The Rams have a new play caller, a permanent vacancy at defensive coordinator, and a defense that just gave up 56 points.
The score will fade. The image may not: a coordinator removed before halftime, a coach explaining the decision after the final whistle, and a team left to play the rest of a lost game under new instructions.
A change like that can signal control. It can also reveal how little control remained. The next few weeks should tell us which one Colorado State was showing.
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