Mountain West Conference News and Notes

Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) – AIR FORCE: The Falcons got caught up in a wild, offensive shootout against Nevada on Saturday night and ended up crumbling in the final minute of the 45-42 setback in Reno. Quarterback Karson Roberts, who ran for a game-high 161 yards and scored twice on the ground, also completed 5-of-10 passes for 55 yards and a score, but with the team trailing by three and time running out, the signal caller caught his own batted pass and then threw down field for the second time on the same play. Not only was it a penalty, the second effort was intercepted by the Wolf Pack and they ended up running out the clock. Air Force, which has lost four straight since opening the campaign with a victory over Colgate, finished with 375 yards and five touchdowns on the ground, averaging 296.0 ypg rushing through five games to rank eighth in the nation entering play this week. The Falcons are on their way to Annapolis this coming weekend for the first portion of the annual Commanding-in-Chief’s Trophy series versus the Navy Midshipmen. Air Force lost in overtime a season ago, 28-27, to Navy which means the series now stands at 27-18 in favor of the Falcons.

BOISE STATE: Joe Southwick threw for 268 yards and three touchdowns as the Broncos buried the Southern Miss Golden Eagles, 60-7, in non-conference action at Bronco Stadium over the weekend. Southwick completed all but four of his 23 pass attempts for the Broncos and survived three sacks as the team won for the third time in the last four outings. Seven different players scored offensive touchdowns for Boise State, including Matt Miller who caught five passes for a game-high 107 yards. The Broncos, who held USM to just 2-of-13 success on third down, generated 545 yards of total offense in the meeting and sent the visitors to their 16th straight loss, tied with New Mexico State for the longest slide in the FBS at the moment. Boise State is now 17-0 in non- conference home games under head coach Chris Petersen. The Broncos catch their first break in the schedule this week and will be back in action on Oct. 12 when they visit the Utah State Aggies in a Mountain West Conference showdown.

COLORADO STATE: The Rams left no doubt on Saturday as they steam rolled to their fifth straight home win with a 59-42 romp over visiting UTEP at Hughes Stadium. The scoring output for CSU was the most since the team blanked Hawaii, 63-0, back in 1997 and tied for the ninth-most points in a single game in program history. En route to 591 yards of total offense, the Rams were led by quarterback Garrett Grayson who completed 17-of-28 passes for 307 yards and three touchdowns. Reeling in six balls and turning them into 156 yards and two TDs was Rashard Higgins, while Kivon Cartwright took both his catches during the meeting into the end zone as well. Running back Kapri Bibbs exploded for a game-high 147 yards and three TDs on a mere 13 rushing attempts as the Rams generated 250 yards on 34 carries during the high-scoring affair. Unfortunately, the CSU pass defense was a bit too lax as it permitted 365 yards and five touchdowns to Jameill Showers. The Rams are off this coming week and will not be back on the field until Oct. 12 when they host the San Jose State Spartans in MWC play.

FRESNO STATE: As the only team in the Mountain West Conference ranked in the Top-25, the Bulldogs figured to have an easy road against Hawaii in Honolulu on Saturday night, and that appeared to be the case in the third quarter after the visitors built a massive 42-3 lead in the third quarter. However, FSU turned the ball over four times in the second half and went cold on offense as they had to hold on for the 42-37 triumph at Aloha Stadium. Up two spots from 25th in the rankings last week, the Bulldogs notched their first 4-0 start to a campaign since 2001 thanks to the efforts of quarterback Derek Carr who completed 33-of-47 passes for 324 yards and two touchdowns, although he was also picked off twice. Carr, who also scored once on the ground, has now thrown at least one TD pass in 24 straight games, the longest active streak in the FBS. Josh Harper logged nine receptions for 123 yards and two TDs, while Marteze Waller gave the team a boost on the ground with 95 yards and two scores on 22 rushing attempts. The next opponent lining up to challenge the Bulldogs is Idaho this coming weekend in Moscow. Former foes in the Western Athletic Conference, Fresno State crushed the Vandals in the most recent meeting two years ago, 48-24, which means the all-time series now stands at 10-4 in favor of the Bulldogs.

HAWAII: With a never-say-die attitude, the Rainbow Warriors stormed back from a 39-point deficit against 25th-ranked Fresno State on Saturday night, drawing to within five points before suffering loss at Aloha Stadium. Hawaii, which is still winless on the season after four games, trailed 42-3 early in the third quarter before mounting a massive comeback bid which fell just short. While quarterback Ikaika Woolsey completed just 7-of-19 passes for 56 yards, was intercepted once and sacked five times, fellow signal caller Sean Schroeder led the second-half charge as he converted 17-of-27 passes for 321 yards and three TDs. Steve Lakalaka was credited with a team-best 66 net yards on 13 rushing attempts and hit the end zone twice, but with the Hawaii defense giving up 530 yards to the Bulldogs, his efforts went for naught. The Rainbow Warriors are back home in Honolulu again this weekend as they host the San Jose State Spartans in conference play. Hawaii fell by just a single point (28-27) in the most recent encounter two seasons ago which means the all-time series is now tied at 17-17-1.

NEVADA: Cody Fajardo’s two-yard touchdown run with under two minutes remaining was just enough to get the Nevada Wolf Pack into the win column with a 45-42 triumph over the Air Force Falcons in Mountain West Conference play at Mackay Stadium on Saturday night. Fajardo, who had missed the two previous games for Nevada with a sprained knee, not only ran for 81 yards and two touchdowns, he also converted 38-of-54 passes for 389 yards and three more TDs in the triumph. Brandon Wimberly caught 15 passes for 134 yards and a score, while Aaron Bradley reeled in 11 balls for 135 yards and a TD as well for the hosts. Nevada ran a total of 100 plays in the meeting, generating 599 yards of offense, while the Falcons gained 453 yards on 38 fewer snaps. The Pack has a short week this time around as it prepares to take on San Diego State at Qualcomm Stadium on Friday night. Nevada lost to SDSU last season, 39-38, which means the Aztecs now hold a slim 3-2 edge in the all-time series.

NEW MEXICO: Rarely does a team run for close to 500 yards in a single game. Even more rare does such an offensive explosion result in defeat, which is what happened to the Lobos in their 56-42 home loss to UNLV over the weekend. The Lobos got 192 yards rushing from Kasey Carrier, 119 yards by Carlos Wiggins and 108 from quarterback Cole Gautsche, marking the first time in program history that three players eclipsed the 100-yard mark in the same outing. UNM averaged 8.4 yards per carry and still lost by double digits to a team that had not won more than two games in any one of the previous three campaigns. Unfortunately, the Lobos again failed to pose a threat through the air as Gautsche and Clayton Mitchem combined to hit on just 5-of-13 passes for 84 yards and a score. The Lobos, who are now third in the nation in rushing with 324.5 ypg, are again at home this coming weekend as they host the New Mexico State Aggies in the annual matchup for state bragging rights. UNM captured a 27-14 win in last year’s meeting, which means the squad is now ahead in the all-time series by a significant 67-31-5 margin.

SAN DIEGO STATE: Trailing by 16 points in the second quarter on Saturday night versus New Mexico State on the road, the Aztecs got the wake-up call they needed as they closed out the meeting with 26 unanswered points to claim the double-digit victory. Donnel Pumphrey ran for a career-high 167 yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries for San Diego State, while Quinn Kaehler threw for 229 yards on 22-of-34 passing, and Ezell Ruffin caught eight passes for 101 yards in the comeback win. Defensively, David Lamar chipped in on the scoreboard when he returned a blocked PAT for two points in the second quarter following the last points scored by NMSU, a team which has now lost 16 consecutive outings. The Aztecs have a short week this time around as they prepare for the arrival of the Nevada Wolf Pack for an MWC battle on Friday night. San Diego State pulled out a 39-38 overtime victory last year between the squads to gain a 3-2 edge in the all-time series.

SAN JOSE STATE: The Spartans saw their Mountain West Conference debut go down in flames last Friday night when the team bowed to visiting Utah State, 40-12, at Spartan Stadium. On a night when SJSU was honoring former quarterback Dick Vermeil, current signal caller David Fales was held in-check by the USU defense as he completed 25-of-48 attempts for 314 yards, but was picked off twice and held out of the end zone. Chandler Jones caught seven passes for 115 yards, but the team hurt itself time and time again, particularly in the first half, as it committed 11 penalties for a loss of 108 yards overall. Fales began the game without injured receiver Noel Grigsby and finished without two more receivers, Jabari Carr and Bene Benwikere, as both suffered injuries in the meeting. Kicker Austin Lopez converted his first two field goals of the meeting, extending his run of makes to 23 in a row, tying the NCAA record for consecutive field goals made to begin a career, but he ended up missing a 42- yard effort as the first half ended. The Spartans are back on a Saturday schedule this coming week as they visit the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors at Aloha Stadium. San Jose State managed to pull out a 28-27 win in the most recent meeting two seasons ago, the victory pulling the team in the series, 17-17-1.

UNLV: In a game that saw very little defense played on either side, the Rebels managed to come out on top of a rowdy 56-42 final in Mountain West Conference action against New Mexico on Saturday. Sure, the UNLV run defense was scorched for a staggering 497 net yards and five touchdowns on 59 attempts, but the goods news is the visitors never backed down as they posted their third straight win since losing back-to-back games versus Minnesota and Arizona by a combined 109-36 to kick off the campaign. Caleb Herring hit on 24-of-34 passes for 293 yards and four touchdowns, three of those going to Devante Davis who turned 10 receptions into 164 yards. Running back Tim Cornett accounted for a career-high 179 yards and three touchdowns on 25 rushing attempts as the Rebels finished with 568 yards of total offense. The Rebels, who have three wins in a season for the first time since 2009 and are enjoying their first three-game win streak since 2003, take some time off this coming week and will be back in action on Oct. 12 when they host the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors in conference play. UNLV was crushed by Hawaii last season, 48-10, which means the Rebels trail in the all-time series by a 14-8 margin.

UTAH STATE: Now members of the Mountain West Conference, the Aggies won their 13th straight league bout on Friday night as they dismantled the San Jose State Spartans, 40-12, on the road. Utah State, which used to compete against the Spartans in the Western Athletic Conference before that league ceased to sponsor football, rolled up 520 yards of total offense, thanks in large part to quarterback Chuckie Keeton who converted 29-of-42 passes for 260 yards and three touchdowns. Keeton, who was frequently flushed out of the pocket, was also credited with 52 net rushing yards and one score on the ground. Joey DeMartino contributed a team-best 120 rushing yards on 17 carries as the Aggies won their eight straight conference road outing, extending their school record in that department. Keeton, who has now thrown at least one TD pass in all five games this season, has 17 scoring tosses on the campaign, the most in the nation heading into play on Saturday. The Aggies are again slated to play on Friday night of this week, this time challenging in-state rival BYU in Logan. The teams scored a total of just nine points in last year’s meeting, a 6-3 victory for the Cougars, which means BYU now leads the all-time series by a 45-34-3 count.

WYOMING: Out on the road in the Lone Star State over the weekend, the Cowboys not only had to deal with Texas State on the football field, the team also had to contend with weather concerns that delayed the contest for three hours and 28 minutes. Unfortunately, the lengthy delay did little to help out the visitors as they ended up suffering a 42-21 setback. The Cowboys, who saw their three-game win streak come to an end, were led by Brandon Miller who gained 72 net yards and scored twice on 14 rushing attempts. Brett Smith converted 25-of-48 passes for 292 yards and a score through the air, but he was picked off once and sacked three times in the setback. Texas State controlled the action for close to 38 minutes, generating 452 yards of total offense. At this point in the campaign Wyoming ranks 121st in the nation in time of possession (24:33) per game, a big part of that stemming from the fact that the squad is 113th in stopping the run, allowing 236.2 ypg. A break in the action is on tap for the Cowboys this week. The team will be back on the field Oct. 12 when it takes on New Mexico at home.

Categorized in: NCAA Football