Mountain West Conference News and Notes

Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) – AIR FORCE: With the government shutdown that took place last week Air Force was in jeopardy of not facing Navy in Annapolis, but the Department of Defense allowed the games to continue, resulting in a 28-10 loss for the Falcons. Air Force generated just 231 rushing yards, with no one player reaching even 70 yards in the outing as Anthony LaCoste scored the lone touchdown for the visitors on an 18-yard run in the second quarter. The other points came from kicker Will Conant who knocked through a 45-yard field goal to begin the scoring. Quarterbacks Karson Roberts and Nate Romine combined to hit 7-of-16 passes for 82 yards, with both tossing an interception. With the loss to Navy, the Falcons have now bowed in five straight games since opening 2013 with a 38-13 victory versus Colgate. With the first part of their involvement in the Commander-In-Chief’s Trophy series now out of the way, the Falcons can focus their attention on Mountain West foe San Diego State this week. Playing a special Thursday night contest, Air Force leads the all-time series with the Aztecs by a 19-12 margin, but the Academy lost last year’s battle, 28-9.

BOISE STATE: Back in action this weekend, the Broncos hit the road to tangle with the Utah State Aggies in MWC action. The most recent matchup between the squads took place three years ago, with Boise State blowing the doors off the Aggies, 50-14. With the win, the Broncos moved to 13-4 in the all-time series. BSU is tied with Wyoming for second place in the MWC’s Mountain Division at 1-0 in conference and 3-2 overall.

COLORADO STATE: Following their first break in the 2013 schedule, the Rams are set to welcome the San Jose State Spartans to Fort Collins this Saturday. Last year CSU bowed to the Spartans in a 40-20 final, which means the all-time series is now locked at three games apiece. The Rams are the last team in the MWC to finally play a league bout here in 2013

FRESNO STATE: One of the most dominant offenses in college football was back at it last week as the Bulldogs cruised to a 61-14 win over the Idaho Vandals at the Kibbie Dome in Moscow. Now the 21st-ranked team in the land, Fresno State generated 734 yards of total offense and forced five turnovers while moving to 5-0 on the season. Derek Carr didn’t play the entire game, yet still had plenty of time to convert 37-of-48 passes for 419 yards and five touchdowns. Davante Adams reeled in 16 of those passes for 185 yards and three scores, while Marteze Waller ran the ball 19 times for 157 yards and two scores in the romp. Carr has now thrown at least one touchdown pass in 25 straight games, the longest active streak in the country, which is why the Bulldogs are sixth in the country this week in scoring with 47.4 ppg and fifth in passing yards (374.0 ypg). The Bulldogs, off to their best start since 2001 when they began with six straight wins and reached as high as eighth in the rankings, take a break this week and will be back in action on Oct. 19 versus UNLV in California. FSU won the last meeting between the squads in 1997 by a 46-28 score, which means the Bulldogs now own an 11-4 advantage in the all- time series.

HAWAII: Quarterback Sean Schroeder helped get the Rainbow Warriors out to an early lead against visiting San Jose State on Saturday night, but the hosts ended up running out of steam as they bowed in a 37-27 final at Aloha Stadium. Schroeder completed 28 of his 50 pass attempts for 342 yards and three touchdowns, but he was sacked twice and suffered three interceptions along the way. Vasquez Haynes responded with six catches for 128 yards and a score, while Chris Gant chipped in with one touchdown on the ground, all while the Hawaii defense surrendered 534 yards of offense to the Spartans. This is the worst start to a season for the Rainbow Warriors (0-5, 0-3 MWC) since they went winless back in 1998. The Rainbow Warriors head back to the mainland this coming weekend for a meeting against conference rival UNLV. One of Hawaii’s three wins from last season came against the Rebels, 48-10, at Aloha Stadium, which means the islanders now lead the all-time series, 14-8.

NEVADA: Running more than 100 offensive plays generally means a team is hitting on all cylinders and should translate into a victory, but that simply wasn’t the case for the Wolf Pack on Friday night when it bowed to San Diego State on the road, 51-44, in overtime. Winners of three of their previous four outings heading into last week, the Pack scored touchdowns on all six red zone opportunities thanks to the efforts of Cody Fajardo who converted 32-of-51 passes for 387 yards and two scores. Fajardo, typically an aggressive ball carrier as well, finished with just 54 net yards on 18 carries, while Kendall Brock posted 107 yards and three touchdowns on 24 rushing attempts. Brandon Wimberly caught a game-high 11 passes for 121 yards and a TD in the losing effort. The Wolf Back are scheduled to play back-to-back games on the road, but that next trip doesn’t take place until Oct. 19 when the squad clashes with Boise State. Nevada came up just short in last year’s meeting, 27-21, allowing BSU to take a 26-13 edge in the all-time series.

NEW MEXICO: Kasey Carrier ran for 126 yards and scored three touchdowns as the New Mexico Lobos crushed the New Mexico State Aggies, 66-17, in the Rio Grande Rivalry at University Stadium on Saturday night. Carrier was credited with 14 rushing attempts for the Lobos (2-3) as the team snapped a two-game slide while taking a break from their Mountain West Conference schedule. Quarterback Cole Gautsche completed half of his four pass attempts for 48 yards and a TD, while also posting a team-best 127 yards and scoring once on 12 carries. One of the top running teams in the nation heading into the weekend, ranked third with an average of 324.5 ypg, the Lobos dialed up a staggering 541 yards on 56 attempts, compiling 608 yards of total offense. The Lobos are back out on the road this coming week for the first time in nearly a month as they pay a visit to the Wyoming Cowboys in Laramie. New Mexico lost to the Pokes by just five points last season, 28-23, which means UNM now trails the all-time series by a 35-30 margin.

SAN DIEGO STATE: Last season, the Aztecs were involved in a high-scoring overtime affair with Nevada and this year the teams repeated the performance, only they put up even more offense as San Diego State pulled out a 51-44 victory on Friday night at Qualcomm Stadium. Keeping the hosts in the mix was quarterback Quinn Kaehler who converted 23-of-32 passes for 286 yards and three touchdowns, with Eric Judge collecting six passes for 54 yards and two TDs. Running backs Adam Muema and Donnel Pumphrey combined to post 246 of the unit’s 255 net rushing yards, scored three times. The Aztecs rolled up 541 yards of total offense on 71 plays, while the defense had to endure a staggering 109 snaps by the Nevada offense as they won for the second time after opening the campaign with three consecutive defeats. The Aztecs are dealing with a short week this time around as they make the trip to Colorado to meet up with the Air Force Falcons on Thursday night. San Diego State won last year’s conference meeting by a 28-9 score, but still it is the Academy that owns the 19-12 edge in the all-time series.

SAN JOSE STATE: Trailing by double digits in the first quarter against Hawaii at Aloha Stadium on Saturday night, the Spartans needed a spark to get them moving in the right direction and they eventually found it in David Fales as the quarterback led the squad to a 37-27 road win. Just their second victory in five tries on the campaign, SJSU was guided by Fales who threw for 318 yards and three touchdowns, although he did complete less than 50 percent of his attempts and was intercepted twice. Tyler Winston responded with six catches for a game-high 159 yards and a score, while the rushing attack produced another 216 yards and a TD on 55 attempts. Defensively, Christian Tago notched a sack and an interception, while Simon Connette tallied an INT and a fumble recovery. Out on the road for the second straight week, the Spartans head to Fort Collins and Hughes Stadium to challenge the Colorado State Rams. San Jose State doubled up CSU a year ago, 40-20, and in the process knotted the all-time series at three games apiece.

UNLV: Back to playing football this week after a well-deserved weekend off, the Rebels try to continue their winning ways on Saturday as they host the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors in the desert. A revenge game for sure, UNLV lost to Hawaii last season at Aloha Stadium, 48-10, in the season finale. With the setback the Rebels fell six games behind in the all-time series, 14-8. The Rebels are 3-2 on the season thanks to a three-game win streak which may not sound all that significant, but considering the squad has won no more than two games in each of the previous three campaigns it is rather monumental given that there is still half the schedule to be played. Also, the win streak is the longest, sustained stretch of success since the program defeated the likes of Wisconsin, Hawaii and Nevada in consecutive outings back in 2003.

UTAH STATE: The Aggies lost their in-state meeting against BYU on Friday night, 31-14, but the bigger story coming out of Logan was the loss of quarterback Chuckie Keeton to a knee injury. Keeton, who is listed as doubtful for next week’s outing against Boise State, converted 4-of-10 passes for 26 yards and a touchdown, but he was also picked off on the first play from scrimmage by BYU’s Kyle Van Noy who then returned it 17 yards for a touchdown. Backup quarterback Craig Harrison stepped in during a difficult situation and completed 18-of-41 for 185 yards and a late TD as well. Joey DeMartino accounted for a team-best 80 rushing yards on 16 carries for a USU squad that turned the ball over three times. Because the Aggies played on Friday night, they get some additional time to prepare for their meeting against BSU at Romney Stadium this coming weekend. It has been three years since the Broncos last tangled with USU, but you can be sure that the Aggies have not forgotten that 50-14 beat down brought on by BSU. With the loss, USU currently trails in the all-time series by a 13-4 margin.

WYOMING: Out of action this past week following a 42-21 loss at Texas State on Sept. 28, the Cowboys have a two-game homestand set to kick off this coming weekend as they host the New Mexico Lobos at War Memorial Stadium. One of the older series on the schedule for Wyoming this season, the team won the most recent meeting by a score of 28-23 a year ago and now owns a 35-30 edge overall. The Cowboys head into the week ranked 16th in the country in total offense with 516.2 ypg, yet the squad is last among 123 teams in the FBS in terms of time of possession at just 24:33 per contest.

Categorized in: NCAA Football