FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) — The 91-year-old coach soaked in the scene from the back of the room as he wore a Colorado State hat and matching shirt.
For more than three hours on Saturday night, Jim E. Mora watched his son's coaching debut for the Rams through the dual lens of a father and longtime coach.
The dad in him couldn't have been more proud as Jim L. Mora led the Rams to a 35-13 win over Wyoming. The coach in him, though, felt nervous and uneasy at times before Colorado State pulled away in the second half.
Once a coach, always a coach.
“I was really worried today,” the father said after the game, “until all that good stuff happened.”
Which he knew it would because he knows his son, who takes after his father. The younger Mora followed in his father's footsteps, learning lessons and tips from him, before branching out. They constantly talk about all things football.
Between the two of them, they've been a head coach for north of 500 games on the college and pro levels. That's not even counting all those games as an assistant coach, defensive coordinator, grad assistant, quality control coach, consultants or any other football job. Just as head coaches.
The son: NFL head coaching stints with Atlanta and Seattle, along with NCAA jobs at UCLA, UConn and now Colorado State.
The father: NFL head coaching tours with New Orleans and Indianapolis — including one iconic “Playoffs?” rant — along with a USFL job with the Philadelphia/Baltimore Stars and at Occidental College.
“He works hard at coaching. He’s smart. He knows the job,” the father said. “He knows what he needs to do to be successful. He is a good coach for the players to play for. He’s very demanding.”
All traits that the younger Mora just so happened to inherit from dad. Which is why it meant so much for the son to have family at the game and attend his postgame news conference.
“This family’s played a lot of football, been involved in a lot of football,” said the son, who arrived at Colorado State after a four-year run at UConn. “These are special moments where you get to walk in here and see your mom and your dad and your wife and your kids and their spouses and your cousins and your best friends. It’s awesome. It’s unique, it's rare, it’s humbling.”
The younger Mora grew up learning the game down the road in Boulder, Colorado, where his father served as an assistant coach for the Buffaloes. He's pleased his son ended up back in the state.
“I’ve always loved Colorado,” the elder Mora said. “I love working in the city, in the state, in the mountains.”
He's certainly planning to spend more time in Fort Collins and dispensing advice any way he can.
It's welcomed input, too. Asked how much it mean to share the victory with the “old guy," the younger Mora didn't miss a beat.
“He ain’t old,” the 64-year-old son cracked. “I’ve been doing this since the day that my mom gave birth to me. This is what we do. This is what our family has done.”
About that tough stretch in the game toward halftime that carried into the third quarter, when Wyoming turned a 14-3 deficit into a 14-13 nail-biter: “I was worried,” the dad said. “I didn’t think they were playing as good.”
Colorado State, led by quarterback Hauss Hejny, reeled off 21 straight points to take back control.
“They came on strong,” the dad said. “I was excited about that.”
The Rams started on the right note as they made their football debut as members of the Pac-12. It's a conference the Mora family knows well. The elder Mora was a longtime assistant when it was the Pac-8. The son played in the league as a defensive back for Washington when it was the Pac-10 and coached in it at UCLA as part of the Pac-12.
His father has no doubts his son will find success in the foothills of Fort Collins.
“Jim is a good man to work for and work with,” the father said. "He loves coaching football.”
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FILE - Colorado State University football head coach Jim Mora warms up before throwing the ceremonial first pitch before the Colorado Rockies host the Kansas City Royals in the first inning of a baseball game Aug. 1, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
FILE - Indianapolis Colts coach Jim Mora watches an NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y., Oct. 1, 2000. (AP Photo/Don Heupel, File)
MONZA, Italy (AP) — Kimi Antonelli took a big step to becoming the youngest champion in Formula 1 history with a fightback for the ages at his home grand prix on Sunday.
Antonelli stormed to victory at the Italian Grand Prix, despite having started 19th on the grid. It took the Mercedes driver fewer than 17 laps to fight his way to the front.
The rest of the race was spent tussling with teammate and title rival George Russell for the lead. Antonelli passed him for the final time with three laps remaining, going on to become the first Italian to win at Monza in 60 years.
“Oh my God ... It feels like a dream,” Antonelli said on team radio after crossing the line.
“I did not expect it," Antonelli said later. “Unbelievable, unbelievable. I am so happy, I could not have imagined to be here today but we managed to pull it off and I am really, really happy.”
It was the second furthest back anyone has come from to win a grand prix. John Watson won at Long Beach in 1983 despite starting 22nd.
“The best (race) is yet to come. But I feel like it was one of the best races I've done so far and one that I will remember forever,” said the 20-year-old Antonelli, who is in his second season in F1.
Antonelli’s triumph at least gave the crowd something to cheer about after Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc crashed out of the scuderia’s home race early on. In the other Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton finished sixth.
Max Verstappen was a distant third behind the two Mercedes, just ahead of the McLaren duo of defending champion Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.
It was Antonelli’s seventh win of the season — and his fledgling F1 career — and extended his lead in the overall standings to 66 points ahead of Russell.
Russell had been hoping to make up some ground on Antonelli in the title race as his teammate took on a hefty grid penalty at Monza after Mercedes opted to swap his car’s power unit.
“Kimi is in control of it and he’s deserving to be in control of it,” Russell said about the title race. "For me personally, I’m not even thinking about a fight or a comeback or anything.
“He’s performing incredibly well. It’s going to be exceptionally challenging to overcome that gap so I’m just sort of accepting that it is what it is.”
Russel started Sunday's grand prix second and got ahead of surprise polesitter Pierre Gasly at the start of the second lap.
Moments later the race was red-flagged after Leclerc lost control coming out of Parabolica at the end of Lap 2 and swerved off into the barriers at high speed. He got out of his car and sat down near the track, looking heartbroken.
The hordes of passionate, red-clad tifosi around the track looked similarly despondent, with many in tears.
By that point Antonelli was already up to 12th and — as he later admitted — starting to believe in victory. When the race resumed, he continued to slice swiftly through the field, picking off the cars one by one until he only had Russell ahead.
The Mercedes duo were told off by their team as they yo-yoed for the lead and instructed to build a gap over Verstappen before fighting it out for the victory.
Antonelli was brought into the pits under the virtual safety car on lap 29, while Russell stayed out. Antonelli came out in sixth but, with fresh tires, started reeling Russell in for the second time in the race.
“To be honest, I thought we were both going to stay out,” Russell said. "I was surprised to see him pitting.
"In the end it was a roll of the dice both ways. In the moment, the team wouldn’t have known which strategy was better, made sense to split the car. In the end Kimi had great pace.”
Antonelli looked as though he may have blown his chances of a stunning comeback win when he ran through the gravel as he attempted to get past Russell on Lap 49. But such was his pace that he soon closed the gap that had opened up and breezed past the following lap.
See AP’s full auto racing coverage here
From left Mercedes driver George Russell of Britain, Simone Resta, the Deputy Technical Director for the Mercedes, Mercedes driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Italy, and Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands celebrate after the Italian Formula One Grand Prix race, in Monza, Italy, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)
Mercedes driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Italy celebrates on the podium after winning the Italian Formula One Grand Prix race, in Monza, Italy, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Mercedes driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Italy crosses the finish line to win the Italian Formula One Grand Prix race, in Monza, Italy, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026. (Anna Szilagyi/Pool Photo via AP)
Mercedes driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Italy celebrates on the podium after winning the Italian Formula One Grand Prix race, in Monza, Italy, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)
Mercedes driver Mercedes driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Italy celebrates after winning the Italian Formula One Grand Prix race, in Monza, Italy, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)
Mercedes driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Italy steers his car during the Italian Formula One Grand Prix race, in Monza, Italy, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)
Mercedes driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Italy crosses the finish line to win the Italian Formula One Grand Prix race, in Monza, Italy, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)
McLaren driver Lando Norris of Britain smiles in his garage during the third free practice ahead of the Italian Formula One Grand Prix, in Monza, Italy, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)
Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain steers his car during the qualifying session ahead of the Italian Formula One Grand Prix, in Monza, Italy, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Alpine driver Pierre Gasly of France celebrates with his pole position trophy after the qualifying session ahead of the Italian Formula One Grand Prix, in Monza, Italy, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)
Mercedes driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Italy walks through the pits after the qualifying session ahead of the Italian Formula One Grand Prix, in Monza, Italy, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Mercedes driver George Russell of Britain steers his car during the third free practice ahead of the Italian Formula One Grand Prix, in Monza, Italy, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)
