Click HERE to read more about the MWC Fans' Football Game of the Week.

No. 4/4 TCU (11-0, 7-0) at NEW MEXICO (1-10, 1-6), 2 P.M. MT
TV: VERSUS HD

The lowdown: TCU, which has a 24-game regular season winning streak, can clinch its second straight outright MWC title and its third in six years. A victory would give the Horned Frogs their second consecutive undefeated regular season. New Mexico, which has not beaten TCU since 1997, is trying to avoid finishing 1-11 for the second straight season. After meeting in the 2008 season opener in Albuquerque, TCU and New Mexico are closing the regular season against each other for the second straight year. Since beginning MWC play in 2005, TCU has won all five meetings with New Mexico, including a 51-10 victory last season. New Mexico's last two wins over TCU came when Horned Frogs coach Gary Patterson was the Lobos' defensive coordinator --- 27-7 in 1996 and 40-10 in 1997.

TCU: The Horned Frogs, who are coming off a bye week, have outscored New Mexico 190-62 in going 5-0 against the Lobos since 2005.TCU has outscored MWC opponents this season 276-58. The Horned Frogs rank No. 1 in the nation in scoring defense (10.9 ppg), total defense (223.4 ypg) and pass defense (134.6 ypg). TCU also ranks No. 1 in the country in fewest first downs allowed per game (11.6). Senior quarterback Andy Dalton needs 40 yards to pass former BYU quarterback Max Hall (11,569) as the MWC career leader in total offense. In three games against New Mexico, Dalton has thrown for 497 yards and six touchdowns. Asked if his team needed to beat New Mexico by a substantial margin to maintain its lead over Boise State in the BCS standings, coach Gary Patterson said: "Do I want to win a national championship? Yes. But not at the expense of (running up the score). You have to do things the right way. I'm one of those people who still believes that's what college football is all about. It's not about teaching young people the wrong message."

New Mexico: New Mexico is coming off a 40-7 loss at BYU. Junior middle linebacker Carmen Messina, who had 10 tackles against the Cougars, became the first Lobos player since Brian Urlacher (1998-99) to record 100 tackles in back-to-back seasons. The leading tackler in the nation last season, Messina has 104 tackles this season despite being limited by a high ankle sprain. "Carmen Messina is a byproduct of what a lot of our players have done this season," said coach Mike Locksley. "Obviously, injuries have played a huge role in our season this year, but no one has made excuses. Carmen is a great player, and the good thing for us is that he'll be back for another year. We're really looking forward to him getting healthy during the off-season and helping us take that next step next year." Despite working with four different quarterbacks this season, sophomore tight end Lucas Reed has 21 catches for 328 yards and four touchdowns over his last five games. New Mexico has rushed for more than 100 yards in five of its last six contests.

UNLV (2-9, 2-5) at SAN DIEGO STATE (7-4, 4-3), 5 P.M. PT
TV: The Mtn. HD

The lowdown: In last year's meeting, UNLV erased a 24-7 deficit en route to a 28-24 win when quarterback Omar Clayton threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Phillip Payne with 1:24 left. Prior to that match-up, the Aztecs had won three in a row and six of seven against the Rebels. San Diego State has won the last four games in the series at Qualcomm Stadium by an average margin of 15.8 points. UNLV"s last victory in San Diego was a 31-24 decision on Nov. 25, 2000.

UNLV: UNLV is coming off a 35-20 loss to Air Force last Thursday in Las Vegas. True freshman running back Tim Cornett has eight touchdowns this season, tying the mark by former Rebels wide receiver Lenny Ware for the most touchdowns by a freshman in the program's history. Cornett has scored a touchdown in five straight quarters. Senior Omar Clayton, who sits in second place behind Randall Cunningham on the school's career list for passing yards, has played a school-record 38 games at quarterback. Wide receiver Phillip Payne is tied for fourth place on UNLV's career receiving touchdown list with 18. In last season's game against SDSU, Payne had five catches for 107 yards and a touchdown. The Rebels are averaging 43.6 points in their two victories this season and 13 points in their nine losses. UNLV has returned an interception for a touchdown in six straight games vs. SDSU. Of Aztecs quarterback Ryan Lindley, who has averaged 346 yards passing in two starts against the Rebels, UNLV coach Bobby Hauck said: "He sees the field well. He knows what defenses are trying to do, and he's got all the throws."

San Diego State: The Aztecs, who are bowl eligible for the first time since 1998, are looking to snap their first two-game losing streak of the season. SDSU amassed 587 total yards last week against No. 25 Utah, but was unable to overcome a minus -3 turnover margin and a blocked punt inside its 5-yard line, falling 38-34 after building a 27-10 lead. Junior quarterback Ryan Lindley threw for a career-high 528 yards and four touchdowns and senior wide receivers Vincent Brown (eight catches, career-high 184 yards, three touchdowns) and DeMarco Sampson (season-high 12 catches, 154 yards) each surpassed 1,000 receiving yards for the season. Brown posted his 12th career 100-yard receiving game and second in as many weeks. Linebacker Miles Burris leads the MWC in sacks (8.0) and tackles for loss (15.5). It's the final home game for 17 SDSU seniors. "We look forward to Saturday night," said second-year coach Brady Hoke. "In this program, we always play for our seniors. They'll always remember their last home game as a class. We have 17 guys who have done a tremendous job of leading this team and handling a transition. They've done a great job of understanding expectations that we all have. It's been a great group and one that we want to do a great job of honoring with loved ones and family. We're going to go out and play our tails off for them."

So it stands to reason, naturally, that Hamson's daughter, Jennifer, currently a freshman at BYU, grew up with a basketball in her hands.

Uh, no.

"I was definitely not one of those kids," Jennifer Hamson said. "When I was little, my best friend was really small. Crazily enough, she got me interested in gymnastics. I really enjoyed it. But I stopped competing when I was in the eighth grade and started playing basketball and volleyball."

And still is.

While Jennifer Hamson's mother may have been a member of the 1984 Olympic Team, may have earned All-America honors four straight years and may hold BYU records for points in a single game (50), field-goal percentage (.609, minimum 150 attempts), career blocks (494) and blocks in a single game (11), she never pulled off the kind of feat her daughter did last Saturday.

After contributing five rebounds, five blocks, one point and one steal in the basketball team's 80-55 win over Washington at the Marriott Center, Jennifer Hamson headed straight to Smith Fieldhouse for BYU's volleyball match against New Mexico, the second-place team in the Mountain West Conference. In the Cougars' 3-1 upset of the Lobos, she finished with 13 kills, a .423 hitting percentage, one dig and four blocks.

Top that, Mom.

"I was really excited because both teams played really well and both teams won, but I was pretty tired the next day," said Hamson, one of the MWC's top candidates for Freshman of the Year in volleyball. "You don't want to disappoint your team if you're not there to play."

Heading into Wednesday night's volleyball match at Wyoming, Hamson ranks second among MWC freshmen (ninth overall) in points and third overall in service aces. After enduring a volleyball season that has spanned 28 matches with two to play, she has played in two of BYU's three basketball games but is averaging 5 blocks and 3.5 rebounds per game.

In the basketball team's first exhibition game of the season, Hamson finished as the Cougars leading scorer with 16 points.

"I think you saw a young lady who could be a great player someday," coach Jeff Judkins told the BYU Universe, the school's student newspaper. "Jen Hamson can be a real force."

Even if it's not in gymnastics, where going through a growth spurt that takes you from aspirations of being the next Shawn Johnson to being 6-foot-6 puts a bit of a damper on your dreams. In addition to BYU, the former Pleasant Grove (Utah) High School standout was offered the opportunity to play both volleyball and basketball at Utah, Oklahoma and Louisville.

Not that there was a considerable amount of consternation involved in her decision to attend BYU. Not only is she following her mother's basketball legacy, an uncle, Ben Hamson, and an aunt, Britt (Hamson) Kelly, also played volleyball at BYU.

"I had one person tell me I was crazy to try and play both (volleyball and basketball), but it really hasn't been that difficult at all," she said. "The coaches have been really good about working it out and allowing me to play both (sports), and my mom has been a huge influence. She got me into basketball and she really encouraged me to play both (sports) in college. It's really awesome, because she's helped me learn a lot about the game.

"It's a lot of work, but it's also a lot of fun."

Heading to Indiana:

• The New Mexico men's and women's teams each received automatic bids to the NCAA Championship after earning first-place honors, respectively, at the Mountain Regionals on Saturday, Nov. 13, in Salt Lake City, Utah. On the men's side, BYU received an at-large berth to the championship after finishing third in the 10K race at the Mountain Regionals.

• Air Force's Jeremy Drenckhahn and Justin Tyner, BYU's Kate Bowen, TCU's Festus Kigen and Utah's Amanda Mergaert also were selected to compete individually at the NCAA Championships after posting standout performances at their respective regional meets.

History:

• Over the past 11 years, the MWC has won three NCAA team titles and one individual crown. BYU's women's cross country team claimed NCAA Championships in 1999, 2001 and 2002, respectively. On the men's side, BYU's Josh Rohatinsky collected first-place honors at the 2006 NCAA Championship, clocking a 10K time of 30:44.90.

How They Got There:

• The Lobo men's squad received an automatic bid to NCAAs after finishing first as a team at the Mountain Regionals. Senior Keith Gerrard led New Mexico, finishing fourth (29:45.9) in the 10K race. Fellow Lobo runners David Bishop (29:58.4), Rory Fraser (30:01.9) and Ross Millington (30:04.0) finished fifth, sixth and seventh, respectively, to help the Lobos earn their highest finish ever at a regional run.

• BYU's Miles Batty, the 2010 MWC Men's Runner of the Year, finished second overall in the 10K (29:30.1) to lead his team to a third-place finish at the Mountain Regional.

• Tyner, who placed 10th at the NCAA Mountain Region Championships with a time of 30:11.9, earned an automatic selection as one of the top four finishers not on an automatically qualifying team. Drenckhahn's 13th-place finish (30:17.3) at the regional meet also moved him into an automatic berth for the NCAA Championships The two selections mark the most Air Force representatives at the national championship meet since the Falcons sent a full squad to the 2004 NCAA Championships.

• Kigen will make his third NCAA Cross Country Championship appearance after being named was the South Central Region Male Athlete of the Year. The Eldoret, Kenya, native became the first male in TCU history to win a regional title, clocking a time of 30:11.1 to win the 10K event last weekend.

• On the women's side, New Mexico earned an automatic bid after earning the team title at the Mountain Regional. The Lobos held off second-place Texas Tech, 55-53, by placing three runners in the top six, and five in the race's top 20. New Mexico's Natalie Gray (20:28.6), Sarah Waldron (20:30.8) and Ruth Senior (20:32.9) paced the Lobos, finishing the race third, fourth and fifth, respectively.

• Bowen finished 12th in the 6K race at the Mountain Regional, recording a time of 20:50.7 to earn an individual invite to the NCAA Championships.

• Mergaert earned a ninth-place finish at the Mountain Regional, clocking a personal-best time of 20:45.2 to also qualify for the NCAA Championships.

How They Were Chosen:

• Thirty-one teams were selected to participate in each championship. The top two, seven-person teams automatically qualified from each of the nine regions, for a total of 18 teams. Thirteen additional teams were at-large selections. Thirty-eight individuals were selected to participate in each championship through an automatic qualifier and at-large selection process. All individual qualifiers finished in the Top 25 in their region.

Follow the Action:

• Indiana State University will host the NCAA Championships at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course located at the Wabash Valley Family Sports Center in Terre Haute, Ind. The women's race will begin at approximately 10:08 a.m. MT, followed by the men's race at approximately 10:48 a.m. MT.

• To follow along as all of your favorite MWC runners compete at the 2010 NCAA Cross Country Championships, click HERE to view a live webcast of the event on NCAA.com starting at 10 a.m. MT.

Follow Mountain West Conference Olympic Sports on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/TheMWCOlySports!

Six Mountain West men's basketball coaches will put their free throw shooting skills to the test during the 2010-11 season as part of "Shots from the Heart," a project designed to help raise awareness for the growing problem of heart disease. Created by CollegeInsider.com, the bracket-style tournament event will benefit the American Heart Association while also paying tribute to the late Skip Prosser, the Wake Forest head coach who passed away on July 26, 2007 of a heart attack.

Taking part in this year's inaugural event from the Mountain West will be head coaches Tim Miles (Colorado State), Steve Alford (New Mexico) and Lon Kruger (UNLV), and assistant coaches DeMarlo Slocum (Colorado State), Craig Neal (New Mexico) and Greg Gensing (UNLV).

The event is formatted after the NCAA Tournament with two 64-person fields, one for head coaches and one for assistant coaches. Each round will consist of 25 free throws, shot by the coaches at their convenience, with the winners advancing to the next round. The coaches' results will be recorded by a member of their respective athletic department. First-round competition will be held in November, followed by second-round action in December. The Round of 16 and Round of 8 are slated for January and February, respectively, with the semifinals and finals scheduled to take place at the NCAA Men's Final Four in Houston. To avoid ties, the first 20 shots made in each round will be worth one point, shots 21-24 will be worth two points and shot 25 will be worth three points.

Below are the first-round match-ups for each of the six MWC coaches taking part in the event. Fans can follow their coach's progress by clicking on the respective tournament links. For more information, or to make a donation to the American Heart Association, go to CollegeInsider.com.

The Mountain West Conference will track our coaches' progress and post the results on Twitter and on Facebook. Check back often to see who advances!

• HEAD COACH TOURNAMENT
• ASSISTANT COACH TOURNAMENT

Week of Nov. 15-21
HEAD COACHES - EAST REGION
Tim Miles (Colorado State) vs. Jeff Bzdelik (Wake Forest)

ASSISTANT COACHES - SOUTH REGION
DeMarlo Slocum (Colorado State) vs. Eric Konkol (George Mason)
Steve Merfeld (Creighton) vs. Craig Neal (New Mexico)
Rick Croy (St. Mary's) vs. Greg Grensing (UNLV)

Week of Nov. 22-30
HEAD COACHES - NORTH REGION
Kermit Davis (Middle Tennessee) vs. Steve Alford (New Mexico)
Lon Kruger (UNLV) vs. Bob McKillop (Davidson)

TCU's Sverrisdottir and San Diego State's Johnson Get Look from ESPN.com

In its 2010-11 preview, ESPN.com women's basketball writers Mechelle Voepel, Graham Hays, Charlie Creme and Melanie Jackson ranked the top five players in the nation at each position. TCU's Helena Sverrisdottir ranked fifth among the small forwards, while San Diego State's Paris Johnson received at least one vote from the panel at her position. Click HERE for the full story.

Record Performance by TCU's Carter

On Tuesday night TCU needed two overtimes to beat metroplex rival SMU, 87-73. But it was senior Emily Carter's performance on the court that opened a lot eyes to the options available to the Horned Frogs. Carter scored a TCU-record 43 points in the game, the second most points scored in a single game in MWC history. Combine that with Carter's first game scoring performance of 26 points against Houston Baptist, the Bossier City, La. native is averaging 34.5 points per game to start the season.

Heaven knows, of course, that the bulk of the free world was perched on the edge of its collective Barcalounger, gasping for air during the final minutes of what was billed as a "crucial MAC East showdown." My wife tells me it's also crucial to clean the gutters before the onset of the rainy season.

At any rate, in a game that made the Three Hundred Years' War seem like the blink of an eye, this classic threatened to displace SportsCenter --- on Wednesday morning. In comparison to Ohio-Temple, Noah could have built the ark, bicycled to subsaharan Africa to grab a pair of aardvarks, hauled the boat out of dry dock and won the Henley Royal Regatta.

Meanwhile, in Spokane, Wash., fans, coaches and players, some having celebrated multiple birthdays during the delay, apparently grew weary of waiting for ESPN2 and agreed to start a game that I'd been told would be "seen in its entirety." Apparently, unbeknownst to me, the first half of college basketball games are now limited to nine minutes, which was roughly the time left on the clock when we joined the game.

None of which matters to ESPN, of course, which defines the last frontier as anything west of Hoboken. It's a sentiment seemingly shared by Las Vegas Review-Journal columnist Ron Kantowski, who on Thursday showered enough praise on ESPN's coverage of San Diego State-Gonzaga to leave Lou Holtz in need of a blowdryer.

Kantowski suggests that had it been any network other than ESPN providing coverage of the game, no one would likely have a clue that basketball exists at San Diego State, that The Mtn., VERSUS and CBS College Sports Network couldn't possibly aim a camera at a basketball court and convey the notion that the Aztecs (79-76 winners) are one of the best teams on the West Coast. Are we really to believe, as Kantowski argues, that SDSU coach Steve Fisher's quote, "This one I know got national attention," was a poke at the MWC's television partners and had nothing to do with beating the No. 11 team in the nation? Having covered Fisher's teams for the better part of a decade, I'm relatively certain he would have been ecstatic with beating Gonzaga on the Cartoon Network.

But just when Kantowski is on the verge of nomination for treasurer of the ESPN fan club, he takes the network to task for scheduling a UNLV-Tulsa men's basketball game at 8:30 p.m. on Thanksgiving. Life isn't necessarily fair nor necessarily easy, Ron, but you can't have it both ways.

Or perhaps you've forgotten ESPN Big Mondays? Nothing like whipping a crowd into a frenzy at a game with a tip time of 10 p.m. It's the primary reason the Mountain West starts the majority of its basketball games at 7 p.m. and has no interest in playing football on Tuesdays, when the atmosphere at college football stadiums is about as juiced as a saturated electric blanket.

And can we please, once and for all, get it right before we write? In a story paralleling the thrust of Kantowski's column, Los Angeles Times reporter Diane Pucin last week incorrectly quoted MWC associate commissioner Javan Hedlund as saying, "The way things are right now, if you're not on the ESPN family of networks, you're not on television." That quote, which wouldn't escape Hedlund's lips if it were Houdini, was taken completely out of context and the Times ran a correction:

FOR THE RECORD: VERSUS sports TV network: An article in Friday's Sports section about the VERSUS network airing two of the top college football games quoted Javan Hedlund, associate commissioner of the Mountain West Conference, as saying, "The way things are right now, if you're not on the ESPN family of networks, you're not on television." In context, Hedlund talked about how that was only the perception of some people, not the reality, adding in a statement not used in the article, "You have to educate people that games aren't just on ESPN."

It amazes me that in an attempt to educate Ms. Pucin that college football is not just played on ESPN (but actually on several different networks every week), and the fact that almost 80 million households across the country would be able to watch the San Diego State-TCU and Oregon-Cal football games on VERSUS that Saturday in question, she chose to run just a snippet of the actual statement he made to fit her story angle.

Kantowski, however, in an attempt to solidify his argument on behalf of ESPN, opted to employ the exact quote again. Perhaps the Review-Journal can also duplicate the wording of the Times' correction.

Assuming, of course, the gaffe hasn't already been reported by ESPN.

Included below is a sampling of Patterson's live appearances (all times Central) on the ESPN family of networks Friday:

8:15 a.m. - Mike and Mike (ESPN2 and ESPN Radio)
10:20 a.m. - First Take (ESPN2)
10:45 a.m. - The Herd (ESPNU and ESPN Radio)
2:10 p.m. - SportsCenter (ESPNews)
2:30 p.m. - College Football Live (ESPN)
3:30 p.m. - ESPN.com live chat: Click HERE to participate.

Some of Patterson's other interviews will air on SportsNation and radio shows hosted by Scott Van Pelt, Doug Gottlieb and Freddie Coleman. There will also be spots with local ESPN outlets and Web sites.

ESPN College GameDay is taking place at Wrigley Field as the Chicago Cubs' home will host the Northwestern and Illinois football game. Patterson will appear Saturday on the set of the road show at 9:20 a.m. CT.

Click HERE to read more about the MWC Fans' Football Game of the Week.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 18

AIR FORCE (7-4, 4-3) at UNLV (2-8, 2-4), 7 P.M. PT (THURSDAY)
TV: CBS College Sports Network HD

The lowdown: Air Force has won seven of its last eight against UNLV. The Falcons, who are bowl eligible for the fourth straight season during coach Troy Calhoun's tenure, are coming off a 48-23 win against New Mexico. UNLV, which is averaging 43.6 points in its two wins this season, rolled to a 42-16 win over Wyoming last week. The last two games played in Las Vegas between the Falcons and Rebels have been decided by a combined four points.

Air Force: The Falcons, who are playing their regular-season finale, can finish with at least eight wins for the fourth straight season. Quarterback Tim Jefferson, who left the game with a broken nose late in the first half last week against New Mexico, is expected to play. If Air Force has an advantage here it's on the ground. The Falcons, whose average of 315.64 yards rushing per game ranks first in the MWC and second in the nation, will be matched against a defense that is yielding 211.9 yards on the ground, a total that ranks 114th among the nation's 120 FBS teams. Running back Asher Clark finished with 160 yards and three touchdowns against New Mexico last week. "(UNLV is) playing the best football they have all season," fullback Nathan Walker told the Colorado Springs Gazette. "We definitely can't take them lightly, and be ready to go."

UNLV: This is home finale for the Rebels, who have won their final home game three straight years. UNLV snapped a five-game skid against Wyoming last week, as freshman running back Tim Cornett earned MWC Offensive Player of the Week honors by accounting for four touchdowns. Establishing rhythm is key for the Rebels, whose two victories have come by 35 and 26 points but whose offense has managed an average of just 12.1 points in the team's eight losses. Senior quarterback Omar Clayton needs 191 passing yards to move into second place behind Randall Cunningham on the school's career passing list. "I wish I had one more or two more years to play for Coach (Bobby) Hauck," senior defensive tackle Isaako Aaitui told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. "I can see this program (being) good for the next (few) years."

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 20

COLORADO STATE (3-8, 2-5) at WYOMING (2-9, 0-7), Noon MT
TV: The Mtn. HD

The lowdown: This is the season finale for both teams, who are meeting for the 102nd time in the battle for the Bronze Boot. Colorado State has won eight of the last 11 meetings in the series, which began in 1899 and is the oldest rivalry for both teams. The home team in the series had won six straight in the "Border War" before CSU posted a 31-20 win in Laramie in 2008, and Wyoming came away with a 17-16 victory last year in Fort Collins. Both CSU and Wyoming have claimed the Bronze Boot 21 times since its inception in 1968. This is longest continuous rivalry west of the Mississippi.

Colorado State: The Rams, who prior to last week's 49-10 loss to BYU had won two of their previous three, have posted an average margin of victory of 15 points in their eight wins against Wyoming in the teams' last 11 meetings. CSU has won two of its last three season finales, all against the Cowboys. Rams quarterback Pete Thomas, a candidate for freshman All-America honors, leads the nation among freshmen with a .662 completion percentage. That mark ranks 18th in the nation overall and fourth among quarterbacks with at least 358 attempts. No true freshman on record has compiled a higher completion percentage, the closest being Tennessee's Peyton Manning (.616) in 1994. Linebacker Ricky Brewer had 13 tackles last week against BYU, becoming the first CSU player since Eric Pauly (2002-03) to record multiple 100-tackle seasons. "I think that this year has been exactly what I thought it would be in terms of progress," said coach Steve Fairchild. "We knew that we were going to be awfully young in certain spots. ...In some ways, I'm more encouraged. I think we've taken some huge steps and I think we have some talented kids in our program. Now it's just up to us to develop them as quickly as we can, and get them in the right spots. We would certainly like to close out this season on a good note with a win up in Laramie, and then get back to work in January."

Wyoming: The Cowboys, who are trying to avoid finishing winless in conference play for the third time since 2000, got 92 yards rushing from Alvester Alexander in last week's loss at UNLV. Alexander, who scored on a 72-yard run on the game's first play from scrimmage, has rushed for 243 yards and four touchdowns in the team's last two games. Wyoming has two players ranked among the top 50 tacklers in the nation in strong safety Shamiel Gary (No. 28) and free safety Chris Prosinski (T-34), one of 13 Wyoming seniors playing in their final game. "It's important because it's our rivalry game and that makes it the most important game on our schedule," said coach Dave Christensen. "It'll always be the most important game on our schedule. It's big to the people of the state of Wyoming, it's big to everyone in our fanbase, our alumni and the kids in our program."

NEW MEXICO (1-10, 1-5) at BYU (5-5, 4-2), 4 P.M. MT
TV: The Mtn. HD

The lowdown: BYU has won five straight in the series, including a 24-19 decision in Albuquerque last year in which New Mexico had two field goals and an extra point hit the upright and had another field goal blocked. The Lobos have not won in Provo since posting a 21-14 victory in 2004.

New Mexico: The Lobos, who snapped a nine-game losing streak a week earlier, are coming off a 48-23 loss at Air Force in which they rushed for more than 100 yards for the fourth time in five games. Over the last four contests, New Mexico sophomore tight end Lucas Reed has caught 19 passes for 287 yards and four touchdowns. Junior linebacker Carmen Messina, the nation's leading tackler last season, has recorded double-digit tackles in six consecutive games. "It's been a long, long year for us and we need to finish this thing off with some enthusiasm and some momentum as best we can as we get ready to head into next season," said coach Mike Locksley. "It's our job as coaches to try and pull these guys along, and they've continued to let us do that as a team."

BYU: The Cougars have rebounded with three straight wins and can become bowl eligible for the sixth straight season with a win, a notable reversal of field considering the Cougars started 1-4. The contest marks BYU's final home game of the season before facing rival Utah next week. The Cougars, who have never lost to New Mexico under coach Bronco Mendenhall, averaged 15.2 points over the first five games but have averaged 31.2 over the last five while going 4-1. Defensively, BYU allowed 28.8 points during its 1-4 start but has surrendered an average of just 17.8 over the last five games. After leading UNLV 38-0 at the half two weeks ago, the Cougars built a 35-0 lead at intermission last week at Colorado State to win their first road game of the season. It marked the first time BYU has scored at least five touchdowns in the first half of consecutive games since 2001. "It's hard to gauge, but I have certainly seen it growing, and I have seen it grow every week for about the past five or six weeks," Mendenhall said of the rise in the team's confidence level. "I've lost track, but I have seen it being built, and I have seen it from different areas and different players, and really where it shows is in smiles on their faces, even when the game is being played. Just because they feel prepared, and they have a great chance to execute and to have success. I think that's gratifying for any coach, knowing that all we are trying to do is help these kids perform better."

• Week 12 Review ... New Mexico beat No. 13 Colorado State, 3-0 on Thursday night in Albuquerque, only the second win by the Lobos over the Rams in the last 31 attempts ... With wins on Saturday, the Rams remain in first place at 12-1, followed by the Lobos in second at 10-3 ... Utah split matches with Air Force (3-0) and UNLV (2-3) to hang on to third place at 8-4, while Wyoming split matches with TCU (3-1) and UNM (0-3) to stay in fourth at 7-6 ... San Diego State and BYU are tied for fifth at 6-6 ... TCU, UNLV and Air Force round out the bottom of the standings ... UNLV went 1-1 in 3-2 matches, losing Thursday to BYU and beating Utah on Saturday.

• Conference Title Race ... With the loss to New Mexico last week, the gap between league-leading Colorado State (12-1) and second-place New Mexico (10-3) narrowed just a bit. The Rams must win two of their three remaining matches to win the 2010 Mountain West Conference title outright. The Lobos have to win their last three matches of the season to have a shot at a share of the league title, if CSU stumbles at all in the last two weeks of the regular season.

• Meeter Named CVU.com National Player of the Week ... In addition to being named Mountain West Conference Player of the Week on Nov. 15, New Mexico senior Lisa Meeter was named the CVU.com (Collegiate Volleyball Update) National Player of the Week on Nov. 16. Meeter, a 5-11 outside hitter from Colorado Springs, earned a pair of double-doubles last week in wins over No. 13 Colorado State and Wyoming as the Lobos maintained their hold on second place in the MWC. Meeter is the first Lobo to receive the national honor and fourth from the Mountain West Conference. Previous MWC honorees were Lauren Miramontes of UNLV (Nov. 26, 2007), Lori Baird of Utah (Oct. 7, 2008) and Lindy Hartsock of BYU (Sept. 27, 2005).

• Seven Named to ESPN/CoSIDA Academic All-District Teams ... Seven Mountain West Conference volleyball student-athletes were named to the 2010 ESPN/CoSIDA Academic All-District Teams on Nov. 4. Air Force senior Caroline Kurtz (District VII), Wyoming senior JennaRae Jester (District VII) and New Mexico junior Kelly Williamson (District VI) were First Team honorees and advance to the ESPN/CoSIDA Academic All-America ballot ... Colorado State's Dana Cranston and Air Force's Nichole Stillwell were named to the District VII Second Team, while New Mexico's Jade Michaelsen (District VI) and BYU's Nicole Warner (District VIII) were named Third Team ... The ESPN/CoSIDA Academic All-America Teams are scheduled for announcement on Nov. 22.

• A New Attendance Record!! ... The Mountain West Conference established a new overall league attendance mark on Thursday, Nov. 11 when the 114,358th fan came through the door at one of four sites hosting that night. With 15 home matches to go, the current total of 121,388 will continue to grow. MWC volleyball fans are coming through the turnstiles at an average of 1,003 per home match, an average of 50 fans per match better than the 2009 record of 953. 2010 is the second year in a row that the league has recorded an attendance over 100,000. The first season over 100,000 fans watched MWC volleyball was in 2009 (114,357) with a final average of 953. The last time the league had averaged over 900 fans per match previous to the 2009 season was in the 2001 season (925).

• And ... if you can't make it out to your favorite MWC volleyball arena for a match or want to see how other teams are doing, you can be one of the many fans watching along at home on The Mtn., CBS College Sports or BYU-TV. There are two televised matches this week - Thursday's matches between Utah and New Mexico in Salt Lake City on The Mtn. and BYU and TCU in Provo on BYU-TV ... If you have DirecTV, that's channel 616 for The Mtn. and channel 374 for BYU-TV or check with your local cable operator for the channel listing in your area ... The MWC ranks second in the nation with 19 nationally-televised matches this season.

• Other ways to follow the action ... several MWC programs webcast matches throughout the season. San Diego State and Utah will webcast matches this week from their respective institutional home pages. Fans can watch from afar through All Access accounts set up for a reasonable fee through the CBSSports.com College Network. And don't forget to sign up on Facebook and Twitter to follow the Mountain West Conference and its member schools. Several teams have their own Facebook and Twitter sites as well. See what the league's coaches have to say about their teams.

• Three MWC student-athletes were among the 30 candidates for the inaugural Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. New Mexico's Jade Michaelsen, TCU's Christy Hudson and Wyoming's JennaRae Jester are on the list for their excellence on and off the court, and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - classroom, character, community and competition. Congratulations, Jade, Christy and JennaRae!

• 1,000-Kill Club ... All it took was one match last week for three MWC volleyball players to reach the 1,000-kill club. TCU seniors Christy Hudson and Irene Hester and Wyoming senior Lauren Whitney each got what they needed in their Nov. 11 match against each other to become the 36th, 37th, and 38th players in league history to record 1,000 career kills. Hudson had 10, Whitney had 11 and Hester had 16 in the 3-1 Wyoming win ... Earlier in the season, Utah senior Karolina Bartkowiak became the 35th Mountain West volleyball player to join the 1,000-kill club, at the time the third this season along with Colorado State senior Danielle Minch (Oct. 14) and New Mexico senior Lisa Meeter (Oct. 14). Bartkowiak recorded 19 kills in a 3-2 win over BYU on Oct. 29 to join the elite group ... San Diego State senior Lauren Salisbury returned from injury on Saturday and is sitting at 970 career kills. If she remains healthy, Salisbury has four matches to try for 30 kills to join the group.

• Air Force (4-23; 1-13) ... has one match this week, at San Diego State on Saturday ... This season the Falcons, under the direction of new head coach Matt McShane, are playing in the intimate confines of Falcon Court at East Gym after five seasons in Clune Arena ... On Oct. 21, in front of a national television audience, Air Force ended a 74-match losing streak in conference action with a 3-1 win over San Diego State at Falcon Court ... Senior setter Jessica Hellman became just the third Air Force player to record over 2,000 assists in a career, reaching the mark against BYU on Nov. 13 ... Senior Caroline Kurtz is second in the MWC with 3.58 kills per set and fifth in points at 3.85.

• BYU (11-15; 6-6) ... hosts TCU (Thursday) and New Mexico (Saturday) to wrap up the home season ... Sophomore Nicole Warner ranks 33rd in the nation with 1.25 blocks per set this season ... Senior setter Kiana Rogers ranks among the top 10 in the league with 9.65 assists and 0.30 service aces per set ... Jennifer Hamson ranks second among league freshmen in points per set with 3.53.

• No. 15 Colorado State (23-3; 12-1) ... travels this week, just up the road to Wyoming for a Thursday night match ... The Rams have been ranked in the AVCA Top 25 poll all season ... CSU leads the nation in blocking at 3.07 per set as a team. Sophomore Megan Plourde is third in the nation with 1.56 blocks per set and is second in the MWC in hitting percentage at a .364 clip ... Junior setter Evan Sanders is third in the league in assists with 10.43 per set ... Danielle Minch became the 34th MWC player to reach 1,000 career kills on Oct. 14 against TCU.

• New Mexico (18-8; 10-3) ... returned to the receiving votes category of the AVCA Top 25 poll this week ... UNM goes on the road to face Utah (Thursday) and BYU (Saturday) this week ... Senior Taylor Hadfield is among the league's top hitters. In fact, she is one of two MWC players in the top 10 in hitting percentage (9th; .282) and kills per set (8th; 3.08 kps) ... Senior Lisa Meeter earned her 1,000th career kill and 1,000th career dig on Oct. 14 at Wyoming, becoming the 33rd player to reach the 1,000 kills mark and 17th in digs in MWC history ... Senior setter Jade Michaelsen became the Lobos all-time career assist leader on Oct. 23 against Utah with 3,838. Michaelsen broke the 4,000 career assist mark on Nov. 13 vs. Wyoming and is in second on the MWC assists list at 10.49 per set ... Junior Allison Buck cracked the 1,000 career dig mark on Nov. 13 against Wyoming. Buck is third in the league with 3.95 digs per set.

• San Diego State (14-14; 6-6) ... wraps up the home portion of the season this week with UNLV on Thursday and Air Force on Saturday ... Freshman setter Johnna Fouch leads the league in assists with 10.52 per set ... Sophomore Andrea Hannasch ranks 29th in the nation in blocks with 1.27 per set.

• TCU (13-14; 4-9) ... travels this week, BYU on Thursday, followed by Utah on Saturday ... Senior Irene Hester leads the league in kills (3.67), points (4.30) and aces (0.41) per set, while sister Kristen Hester ranks third in hitting percentage at . 332 ... Christy Hudson and Irene Hester reached the 1,000 career kills mark on Nov. 11 against Wyoming.

• UNLV (9-19; 4-10) ... has one match this week, at San Diego State on Thursday ... Senior Sara Nehf ranks third in the league in kills per set at 3.43 ... Senior libero Kela Lau Hee is among the top 10 in the league in digs with 3.67 per set.

• Utah (14-13; 8-4) ... hosts New Mexico (Thursday) and TCU (Saturday) this week ... Senior Karolina Bartkowiak is among the league's top hitters. In fact, she is one of two MWC players in the top 10 in hitting percentage (7th; .292) and kills per set (9th; 2.97 kps) ... Freshman Erin Redd leads the league in attack percentage at .377 ... Freshman Morgan Odale is seventh in kills per set with 3.27 and fourth in points at 3.91 ... Senior Keisha Fisher continues to climb the MWC career digs chart. Fisher is currently sixth with 1,540 since the start of the 2007 season and leads the league this season with a 4.22 average per set.

• Wyoming (22-7; 7-6) ... hosts Colorado State on Thursday for the Cowgirls only match of the week ... The Cowgirls started the season with an 11-0 run ... Sophomore Jodi Purdy is second in the MWC in service aces with 0.39 per set, second in points per set (4.06) and sixth in kills per set (3.30) ... JennaRae Jester is 16th in the nation and second in the league in blocks per set at 1.37 ... Sophomore Jadranka Tramosljanin is second in the league in digs per set with 4.18 ... Senior Lauren Whitney recorded her 1,000th career kill on Nov. 11 at TCU.

Follow Mountain West Conference Olympic Sports on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/TheMWCOlySports!

Utah, which as of Oct. 31 was ranked No. 5 in the BCS and No. 6 in both major polls, has lost two straight for the first time since 2007. Following their 47-7 loss to TCU on Nov. 6, the Utes dropped a 28-3 decision at Notre Dame last week, marking the first time the team has scored in single digits in consecutive games since 1990.

"We've got to find out who we are; we're facing adversity," coach Kyle Whittingham said Tuesday. "Most everybody in the country goes through it at some point in time. It's nothing unusual in this business and it's nothing unusual to the sport of football. It's part of the deal. We've got to get back to doing the things we did during the first eight ballgames. We've got our work cut out for us."

Having slipped to No. 23 in the USA Today Coaches' poll and No. 25 in the Associated Press poll, Utah this week travels to San Diego State to face the resurgent Aztecs (7-3). Though SDSU is coming off a 40-35 loss at No. 3 TCU, its 35 points were 12 more than the Horned Frogs had allowed in their previous six Mountain West Conference games and the most TCU has allowed this season.

While quarterback Jordan Wynn has endured his share of struggles the last two weeks, completing 40-of-74 passes for 342 yards with one touchdown and three interceptions, Whittingham said he plans to stick with the sophomore. Nonetheless, he also indicated he'll make changes if necessary.

Said Whittingham: "We'll think about replacing anybody who struggles and who's not being productive."

Hitch in Their Stride

Prior to last week's 49-10 loss to BYU, Colorado State appeared to be finding its feet. The Rams had won two of their previous three, the loss coming in a 24-19 decision at San Diego State. CSU concludes its season on Saturday in its annual Border War game against Wyoming.

"I really (didn't see it coming)," said coach Steve Fairchild. "Obviously, the blame falls on my shoulders. Emotionally, we weren't ready to play. We didn't have that edge you need. I knew BYU was a good football team; they were coming on. (But) when you go out and play the way we did in the first quarter, the game got out of hand immediately. Fortunately, we had not been playing that way of late and we hope to bounce back this Saturday."

Reliable Pinch-Hitter

With Air Force starting quarterback Tim Jefferson on the sideline with a broken nose suffered during last week's 48-23 win New Mexico, Connor Dietz entered the game with four minutes left in the first half. The Falcons didn't miss a beat. The junior completed 5-of-7 passes for 67 yards and a touchdown. He also rushed eight times for 34 yards and scored on a 14-yard run.

Yet to refer to Dietz as a backup would be a bit of a misnomer. He started three games last season before missing the final five contests with a broken hand.

"It's not like we had a guy out there who was completely green," said coach Troy Calhoun. "In the last two springs, he's gotten a ton of work. He's more than ready. He's a competitive guy who has won a lot of football games."

Calhoun said he was uncertain as to whether Jefferson would be ready for Thursday's game at UNLV.

Attitude Adjustment

When asked if he considered last week's 40-35 loss at No. 3 TCU a moral victory, San Diego State quarterback Ryan Lindley cut to the chase.

"Moral victories are done at San Diego State," Lindley told the San Diego Union-Tribune. "We're over that. That's not a part of who we are anymore."

It's certainly not part of who Lindley's coach is.

"Since we got here as a staff, the goal and the objective has been to win," said Hoke, who in his second season has orchestrated one of the biggest turnarounds in college football. "It's that way in life, it's that way in the classroom. You've got to compete every day; you can't go out there and not have great focus and great preparation. We haven't believed in (moral victories) since we've been here."

The Weekly Ups and Downs

TCU slipped to No. 4 in the polls this week following its 40-35 win over San Diego State. The Horned Frogs, who remain No. 3 in the BCS Standings, have a bye this week before closing out the regular season at New Mexico on Nov. 27.

"It's our fault that it ended up 40-35, and you have to give San Diego State credit," said coach Gary Patterson. "But we lost an offensive line coach (Eddie Williamson, who suffered a heart attack just before halftime) against a defense that stunts all over the place, and that threw our kids for a little bit of a loop. We also didn't play the way we usually do on defense the last six minutes of the ballgame.

"If (the margin of victory affected the voters), I can't do much about it. I'm not going to trade my team. I didn't think the win was any different than the 15-13 win (No. 1) Oregon had over Cal."

Plenty Left to Play For

While both Wyoming and Colorado State have been eliminated from the 2010 bowl picture, the battle for bragging rights will be on the line when the two teams meet for the 101st time on Saturday in the annual Border War for the Bronze Boot.

"I've been part of Washington-Washington State, Toledo-Bowling Green and Missouri-Kansas, and this one is as big as any of those," said Cowboys coach Dave Christensen. "Some schools don't have as big a rivalry. But I've been at schools where the rivalry game is huge, and this is certainly one of them."

CSU has won 12 of the last 17 meetings in the series and has won six times in its last eight trips to Laramie.

Growing Pains

BYU has rebounded with three straight wins and can become bowl eligible for the sixth straight season with a home win Saturday over New Mexico, a notable reversal of field considering the Cougars started 1-4. Saturday's contest marks BYU's final home game of the season before facing rival Utah in Salt Lake City on Nov. 27.

Coach Bronco Mendenhall said he believes the adversity endured by the team this season can benefit the team's younger players.

"I think some our (younger) players came here thinking it was going to be another 11-2 or 10-3 year, regardless of what they did in terms of preparation," said coach Bronco Mendenhall. "But that baseline has been re-established, which is good considering how long some of these guys are going to be around."

Back to Work

New Mexico was brought back to earth after posting its first win of the season when the Lobos fell 48-23 at Air Force last week. Nonetheless, coach Mike Locksley said the team still had a bounce in its step when it returned to practice on Monday.

"The big coaching point for us right now is that it's going to be very important that we practice with enthusiasm," Locksley said. "It's been a long, long year for us and we need to finish this thing off with some enthusiasm and some momentum as best we can as we get ready to head into next season. It's our job as coaches to try and pull these guys along, and they've continued to let us do that as a team."

A Look at the Future

UNLV freshman running back Tim Cornett earned MWC Offensive Player of the Week honors after accounting for four touchdowns in the Rebels' 42-16 win over Wyoming. During a season in which UNLV has been forced to employ more than 20 true and redshirt freshmen because of injuries, Cornett rushed for three touchdowns and caught a scoring pass. He became the first UNLV player to score four touchdowns in a game since Henry Bailey in the 1994 Las Vegas Bowl.

"I was happy to see him named the Mountain West Offensive Player of the Week, but any time you see a running back scoring like that, obviously the guys up front are doing a good job," said coach Bobby Hauck. "I'm excited about Tim. I think before his career is over that he will be an awfully good player."

Having covered San Diego State for the better part of a decade, I think I know a little something about subpar. I witnessed the 70-7 loss against New Mexico two years ago. I saw the Aztecs get beat --- twice --- by FCS Cal Poly. I was around the team in 2008 when SDSU was en route to finishing with its worst record in 48 years before beating UNLV in its season finale. That was the same season the Aztecs finished 100th or worse among 119 FBS teams in 10 of the 17 statistical categories tracked by the NCAA.

Had TCU lost to any of those SDSU teams, the Horned Frogs would have been dragged before a congressional committee to explain taking one of the biggest dives in the history of sports.

Now, I'm not suggesting the Aztecs are on the verge of taking up residence in the same neighborhood occupied by TCU since joining the MWC in 2005. What I am suggesting is that SDSU, under second-year coach Brady Hoke, has made one of the biggest turnarounds in college football since, well, since TCU had five winning seasons from 1970-1999.

Sure, the Horned Frogs endured some out-of-character moments in their 40-35 win on Saturday, but they also did so against a team that was 7-2 and two spots removed from climbing into the Top 25 in both the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches' polls. A San Diego State team that now has just three losses on the year, all on the road by five points or less, with two of those coming against Top 15 teams. Amazing how most of the talking heads and poll voters don't remember that one of those losses came at No. 15 Missouri. The Tigers needed a last-minute 68-yard touchdown pass to pull out the 27-24 win in Columbia. No. 1 Oregon wins 15-13 against a Cal team that's 5-5 and no one says a word? No. 2 Auburn finds itself trailing 21-7 in the first quarter against Georgia and no one finds fault? Keep in mind this is the same Georgia team (5-6) that lost to Colorado, which fired its head coach last week with three games remaining in the season.

All I know is that TCU is 11-0 and beat a team that is headed for its first bowl game in 12 years and has a chance to finish with nine wins for the first time since 1973. I also know that if Brady Hoke hangs around Montezuma Mesa long enough, those forecasting a future of gloom and doom for the MWC may want to get started on deep-sixing their blinders.

Follow MWC Correspondent Mick McGrane on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/MWCMick.

The day kicks off Mountain West Conference action at 3 p.m. CT as San Diego State visits No. 3 TCU. The Aztecs (7-2, 4-1) are off to their best start in 33 years and are receiving votes in both the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches' polls.

TCU (10-0, 6-0) meanwhile, still strongly in the hunt for a spot in the national championship game, has won 23 straight regular-season games and can clinch at least a share of the MWC title.

The Aztecs-Horned Frogs matchup will be followed by the Oregon-California game at 4:30 p.m. PT. Oregon, ranked No. 1 in the nation, has dropped three of its last four against Cal, which is unbeaten at home this season. The game matches the Ducks' high-powered offense, ranked No. 1 in the Pac-10, against the conference's top-ranked defense.

In addition to the 79 million television households that VERSUS is available in, you can get involved online as well on Saturday. Make sure your voice is heard during the live online chat taking place during the TCU/SDSU game that will start at 4 p.m. ET. Click HERE to participate.

Make sure to check out all of the college football talk on VERSUS.com.

We could distinguish heroes from hype, we could separate fact from fiction, we could pledge our allegiance to non-BCS schools and not be told that such thinking ran counter to the country's collective good.

We could, believe it or not, even postpone discussion of the Heisman Trophy voting until spring football concluded.

No longer. If ESPN tells me in March that Elmer Fudd is the frontrunner for the Heisman, naturally I concur, regardless of whether Fudd has been fitted for a helmet or knows a football from a frying pan.

So when I'm told in Week 11 of the 2010 season that the top five candidates for the award are, in order, Auburn's Cam Newton, Oregon's LaMichael James, Boise State's Kellen Moore, Stanford's Andrew Luck and Oklahoma State's Justin Blackmon, who am I to argue? Lead on, ESPN. I'm your lemming.

But before casting myself from the cliffs and into the raging sea, allow me this act of supplication: Have you ever heard of Andy Dalton?

Pardon me if this sounds a bit presumptuous, because far be it from me to question your infinite wisdom, but this guy can play a little. You even allowed him to display his talents --- twice --- in front of a television audience of 638 trillion, or whatever the figure is now that you've cornered the market in east-central Tasmania.

Oh, I know Cam Newton is your odds-on favorite, but this scandal thing could get messy. Besides, throwing for 317 yards and four touchdowns last week against FCS Chattanooga (5-4) doesn't exactly light the lamp of legitimacy.

LaMichael James is like a rocket awaiting clearance from the control room, but rushing for 121 yards last week against Washington, a team with the seventh-worst rushing defense in America, kind of zaps LaMichael's zip.

I like Kellen Moore. When you throw for 507 yards, as Moore did last week against Hawaii, you're a Heisman hopeful. Even by ESPN standards.

Andrew Luck is an interesting pick, but he has beaten only three teams with winning records, one of those being Sacramento State. And that win at USC? Maybe you didn't know, but no team in the Pac-10 and only five others in the nation have a worse pass defense than the Trojans.

As a wide receiver, Justin Blackmon is tearing it up in Stillwater, having posted eight straight 100-yard games. But this is where it gets a bit dicey. Seven of those games have come against teams with a pass defense that ranks 100th or worse, including Tulsa (dead last at 120th) and Texas Tech (118th).

Which brings us back to Andy Dalton.

In last week's 47-7 rout of Utah, a team ESPN had ranked No. 6 in the country in its weekly power rankings, Andy threw for a career-high 355 yards and three touchdowns. Against a team that ranked sixth in total defense (267.8 ypg). Against a team that ranked sixth in scoring defense (14.1 ppg). Against a team that ranked 10th in pass defense (165.0 ypg). Of TCU's 558 total yards, Andy had a hand in 369 of them.

A semifinalist for the Davey O'Brien Award as the nation's best quarterback on a team in the hunt for a national championship, Andy's 39 career victories lead the nation among active players. He has the third-lowest-lowest career interception percentage (2.33) among active quarterbacks with a minimum of 800 attempts.

And at a school where they've produced some quarterbacks (see O'Brien, Davey and Baugh, Sammy), he is TCU's career leader in passing yards, touchdowns, completions, attempts and completion percentage.

What's more? He has more than a modicum of character.

I could go on, but I hate to risk your wrath. Besides, there are more pressing matters.

After all, you wouldn't want me to miss SportsCenter?

Click HERE to read more about the MWC Fans' Football Game of the Week.

BYU (4-5, 3-2) at COLORADO STATE (3-7, 2-4), Noon MT
TV: The Mtn. HD

The lowdown: BYU, which has won six in a row against Colorado State, has recovered from a 1-4 start to win three of its last four. The Cougars can become bowl eligible for a sixth straight season by winning two of their last three. In its last visit to Fort Collins in 2008, BYU won 45-42 when CSU surrendered a touchdown with 22 seconds left. The lead changed hands five times during the course of the contest.

BYU: In last week's 55-7 win over UNLV, the Cougars opened the game by scoring 38 unanswered points, their highest total in a half this season and the most since scoring 42 in the opening half against UCLA in 2008. Much of BYU's recent success can be attributed to its rush defense. After holding its previous three opponents to first quarter rushing totals of minus-10 (San Diego State), 20 (TCU) and minus-31 (Wyoming) yards, respectively, the Cougars did not allow a single yard on the ground against UNLV in the first quarter. BYU has yet to win a road game this season. "To make a phantom out of playing on the road, to make it bigger than it is, I'm not going to do that," said coach Bronco Mendenhall. "The games we have lost on the road were representative of where the team was at that time, and hopefully we're at a different time. Our execution is still what I'll be spending most of my emphasis on."

Colorado State: Despite a 24-19 loss at San Diego State last week, the Rams continued to make significant strides, particularly on defense. Facing an offense ranked No. 2 in the conference and No. 23 in the nation, CSU held the MWC's leading passer, Ryan Lindley, to a season-low 171 yards. Lindley's 14 completions matched a season low. The Rams also held in check the conference's top two receivers, DeMarco Sampson (two catches, 23 yards) and Vincent Brown (three catches, 40 yards). Sampson's yards were a season low and his catches tied a season low. Brown's catches also matched his lowest output on the year. The Rams' five takeaways (two interceptions, three fumble recoveries) were their most in a game since a 35-20 win over Nevada last season. CSU has a chance to finish 4-1 at home, its best mark since 2005. It's the final home game for 16 CSU seniors. "We've had tremendous leadership; we're going to miss this senior class, just the way they've handled themselves," said coach Steve Fairchild. "They're very talented players. It is a good way to honor them at this last home game, and I know they're excited to go out there at Hughes (Stadium) one more time. It's a very good class with a lot of good senior leadership; it's been a pleasure to coach this football team."

No. 15/15 UTAH (8-1, 5-1) at NOTRE DAME (4-5), 2:30 p.m. ET
TV: NBC HD

The lowdown: This is the first meeting between the teams. Utah is 1-3 all-time against independents, its lone win coming against Navy in the 2007 Poinsettia Bowl. Notre Dame is 28-8 against current MWC members, but is just 1-8 (0-4 last season) in games played in November over the last two years. Utah is 8-3 on the road in November since 2002.

Utah: The Utes are coming off a 47-7 loss to No. 3 TCU, a setback that equaled the fourth-worst defeat in school history. Utah surrendered more than 500 yards for the first time this season. After climbing as high as No. 5 in the BCS Standings and No. 6 in the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches' polls on Oct. 31, Utah is No. 14 in this week's BCS Standings. The Utes need one win to secure their fourth consecutive nine-win season. The game against Notre Dame marks the latest date the Utes have played a non-conference opponent since they beat Utah State on Nov. 12, 1988. Their last November game against a non-conference opponent played outside the state of Utah was on Nov. 19, 1977, a 38-29 loss at Florida. Utah is 2-4-1 in non-conference games played on Nov. 13. "We will find out what we are made of this weekend and the leaders need to step to the forefront," said coach Kyle Whittingham. "We got whipped and we can't feel sorry for ourselves; we need to move on."

Notre Dame: The Irish have been wildly inconsistent, losing three straight from Sept. 11-Sept. 25 before winning three straight from Oct. 2-Oct. 16, with one of the wins coming against Big East Conference leader Pittsburgh. Currently, Notre Dame, which is coming off a bye week, has dropped two straight, its last outing resulting in a 28-27 loss to Conference USA member Tulsa on Oct. 30. The Golden Hurricane rushed for 102 yards on 11 carries in the first quarter, an average of 9.3 yards per carry. Tulsa also registered a 66-yard interception return for a touchdown and a 59-yard punt return for touchdown. The last Notre Dame opponent to record a defensive and special teams touchdown in the same game was Michigan State on Sept. 12, 1998. Asked about Utah, coach Brian Kelly said: "Well, it's a confident group, certainly. You look at some of the scores that they have had. They really believe in what they do offensively. It's a physical presence. So I think what I take away from Utah is a personality. They clearly have a personality on the football field. Very confident about what they can do, and they have exhibited that on a very consistent basis."

NEW MEXICO (1-8, 1-4) at AIR FORCE (6-4, 3-3), 4 p.m. MT
TV: The Mtn. HD

The lowdown: Air Force has won two in a row and five of its last six against New Mexico. The Falcons, who are bowl eligible for the fourth straight season under coach Troy Calhoun, have not lost to the Lobos in Colorado Springs since Oct. 21, 2000.

New Mexico: The Lobos snapped a nine-game losing streak last week with a 34-31 win over Wyoming. True freshman quarterback Stump Godfrey completed 16-of-20 passes for 211 yards and two touchdowns. Godfrey, who was expected to redshirt but was pressed into service due to a rash of injuries at the quarterback spot, also rushed 23 times for 69 yards and a touchdown. Tight end Lucas Reed had seven catches for 100 yards for New Mexico, which put the game away on a 38-yard field goal by James Aho as time expired. The Lobos had dropped 23 of their previous 24 games. "It means a lot to get the team its first win and coach (Mike) Locksley's first win (of the season)," Godfrey told the Albuquerque Journal. "He does a great job with us. You've got to respect him for all the stuff he goes through. But he puts that aside when he comes out to practice, and he gives us his all and we give him our all. So, to be able to get him a win, it's a great feeling."

Air Force: The Falcons put the brakes on a three-game skid at Army last week, capturing their first Commander-In-Chief's Trophy since 2002 with a 42-22 win. Fullback Nathan Walker rushed for a career-high 109 yards and a touchdown against the Black Knights, while Jonathan Warzeka had touchdown catches of 53 and 63 yards. This is the final home game for Air Force's seniors. The class has posted a 31-18 overall record and has helped Air Force to three bowl games, winning the 2009 Armed Forces Bowl. The seniors will join the classes of 1986 and 1993 by playing in four straight bowl games. "It's pretty awesome for these kids to do that, especially at a service academy and playing in one of the best conferences in college football," coach Troy Calhoun said of the team becoming bowl eligible. "But we aren't done one bit. We've got to play better football this week. We better not have bruises from patting ourselves on the back. We need to realize how lucky we are to have a chance to have a winning season."

WYOMING (2-8, 0-6) at UNLV (1-8, 1-4), 7 p.m. PT
TV: The Mtn. HD

The lowdown: In a series tied 9-9, the home team has won this game the last three years by an average of just five points. Wyoming has won five of the last six, including a 30-27 victory last year when UNLV fumbled a game-tying field goal snap with 1:15 left.

Wyoming: The Cowboys, who are trying to avoid going winless in MWC play for the third time since 2000, got a career-high 151 yards rushing and three touchdowns from running back Alvester Alexander in last week's loss at New Mexico. Alexander's 94-yard touchdown run was the second-longest in Wyoming history behind a 95-yard scoring run by Nate Scott against Central Michigan in 2000. Running back Robert Herron and quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels also had career days against the Lobos, rushing for 122 and 119 yards, respectively. "Our kids have not quit, which is very encouraging," said coach Dave Christensen. "It's a young team. They know this is not the end of the road for them. We've got 12 seniors who are going to soon be playing in their last game, but the majority of this football team is going to be here for a couple more years, and they know what you have to do to win games. A number of people have said, 'Last year, you had great success,' but five plays changed our season last year. One drive on offense or defense in four games this year could have made a different season this year. It's a game of inches and doing all the little things right. The difference between winning and losing changes dramatically if you don't make plays in crucial situations."

UNLV: The Rebels, who beat Wyoming 22-14 in the teams' last meeting in Las Vegas in 2008, are trying to avoid their first six-game losing streak since dropping eight in a row in 2007. Quarterback Omar Clayton completed 26-of-43 passes for 260 yards in last week's loss at BYU. The contest against Wyoming marks the team's Homecoming game, where members of the Rebels' 2000 squad, which won the Las Vegas Bowl, will serve as honorary captains. "Everybody around here's pressing, I guarantee," said coach Bobby Hauck. "No one around here likes what's going on. There's an adage in my house which was, 'Show me a good loser and I'll show you a loser.' No one here likes to lose and we're going to keep instilling and developing the hate to lose around this program, because we've got to detest it."

• Week 11 Review ... No. 14 Colorado State (11-0) stayed atop the league standings with a 3-1 win against UNLV on Thursday and a 3-0 win over Air Force on Saturday ... New Mexico (8-3) earned a 3-0 win over TCU to stay just ahead of Utah (7-3) for second place ... Wyoming moved into fourth place (6-5) with wins over Air Force and UNLV, while San Diego State (6-6) is in fifth place with a loss to Utah and a 3-2 comeback win over BYU ... BYU, TCU, UNLV and Air Force round out the bottom of the standings.

• Seven Named to ESPN/CoSIDA Academic All-District Teams ... Seven Mountain West Conference volleyball student-athletes were named to the 2010 ESPN/CoSIDA Academic All-District Teams last week. Air Force senior Caroline Kurtz (District VII), Wyoming senior JennaRae Jester (District VII) and New Mexico junior Kelly Williamson (District VI) were First Team honorees and advance to the ESPN/CoSIDA Academic All-America ballot ... Colorado State's Dana Cranston and Air Force's Nichole Stillwell were named to the District VII Second Team, while New Mexico's Jade Michaelsen (District VI) and BYU's Nicole Warner (District VIII) were named Third Team.

• The Mountain West Conference is on track to set new volleyball attendance records. MWC volleyball fans are coming through the turnstiles at an average of 1,000 per home match with a total of 112,039 watching 112 home matches across the league. The MWC single season overall attendance record of 114,357 (2009) should fall Thursday night with home matches at Air Force, New Mexico, TCU and UNLV. 2010 is the second year in a row that the league has recorded an attendance over 100,000. The first season over 100,000 fans watched MWC volleyball was in 2009 (114,357) with a final average of 953. The last time the league had averaged over 900 fans per match previous to the 2009 season was in the 2001 season (925). With 24 home matches remaining on the schedule, the opportunity is there to greatly surpass last year's total.

• And ... if you can't make it out to your favorite MWC volleyball arena for a match or want to see how other teams are doing, you can be one of the many fans watching along at home on The Mtn., CBS College Sports or BYU-TV. There is just one televised match this week - Thursday's match between Colorado State and New Mexico in Albuquerque on The Mtn. ... If you have DirecTV, that's channel 616 for The Mtn. Other MWC networks are channel 374 for BYU-TV and channel 613 for CBS C or check with your local cable operator for the channel listing in your area ... The MWC ranks second in the nation with 19 nationally-televised matches this season.

• Other ways to follow the action ... several MWC programs webcast matches throughout the season. New Mexico, San Diego State and TCU will webcast matches this week from their respective institutional home pages. Fans can watch from afar through All Access accounts set up for a reasonable fee through the CBSSports.com College Network.

And don't forget to sign up on Facebook and Twitter to follow the Mountain West Conference and its member schools. Several teams have their own Facebook and Twitter sites as well. See what the league's coaches have to say about their teams.

• 1,000-Kill Club ... Utah senior Karolina Bartkowiak became the 35th Mountain West volleyball player to join the 1,000-kill club and the third this season along with Colorado State senior Danielle Minch (Oct. 14) and New Mexico senior Lisa Meeter (Oct. 14). Bartkowiak recorded 19 kills in a 3-2 win over BYU on Oct. 29 to join the elite group ... Three more Mountain West Conference volleyball players are on track to join the 1,000-Kill Club this season - Christy Hudson (TCU, 996), Lauren Whitney (Wyoming, 996) and Irene Hester (TCU, 986) ... Injured San Diego State senior Lauren Salisbury is sitting at 967 career kills.

• Air Force hosts Utah (Thursday) and BYU (Saturday) this week ... This season the Falcons, under the direction of new head coach Matt McShane, are playing in the intimate confines of Falcon Court at East Gym after five seasons in Clune Arena ... On Oct. 21, in front of a national television audience, Air Force ended a 74-match losing streak in conference action with a 3-1 win over San Diego State at Falcon Court ... Senior Caroline Kurtz is second in the MWC with 3.52 kills per set and sixth in points at 3.79 ... Senior Kelly Spencer ranks in the MWC top 10 in digs per set with 3.33.

• BYU has two road matches this week, at UNLV (Thursday) and at Air Force (Saturday) ... Sophomore Nicole Warner ranks 32nd in the nation with 1.26 blocks per set this season ... Senior setter Kiana Rogers ranks among the top 10 in the league with 9.53 assists and 0.31 service aces per set ... Jennifer Hamson ranks second among league freshmen in points per set with 3.54.

• No. 13 Colorado State sits atop the leaderboard with the only unblemished conference record at 11-0 ... CSU travels this week, starting at New Mexico on Thursday then on to TCU for a Saturday match ... The Rams have been ranked in the AVCA Top 25 poll all season ... Sophomore Megan Plourde is fifth in the nation with 1.53 blocks per set and is second in the MWC in hitting percentage at a .374 clip ... Junior setter Evan Sanders is third in the league in assists with 10.35 per set ... Danielle Minch became the 34th MWC player to reach 1,000 career kills on Oct. 14 against TCU.

• New Mexico host Colorado State (Thursday) and Wyoming (Saturday) this week ... Senior Taylor Hadfield is among the league's top hitters. In fact, she is one of two MWC players in the top 10 in hitting percentage (6th; .302) and kills per set (8th; 3.14 kps) ... Senior Lisa Meeter earned her 1,000th career kill and 1,000th career dig on Oct. 14 at Wyoming, becoming the 33rd player to reach the 1,000 kills mark and 17th in digs in MWC history ... Senior setter Jade Michaelsen became the Lobos all-time career assist leader on Oct. 23 against Utah with 3,838. Michaelsen has moved into second on the MWC assists list at 10.43 per set.

• San Diego State has one more non-conference match this week, at home against Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday. On Tuesday, the Aztecs lost to Cal State Fullerton, 3-0 on the road ... Freshman setter Johnna Fouch leads the league in assists with 10.62 per set ... Sophomore Andrea Hannasch ranks 31st in the nation in blocks with 1.26 per set.

• TCU will host Wyoming (Thursday) and Colorado State (Saturday) this week ... Senior Irene Hester leads the league in kills (3.66), points (4.26) and aces (0.39) per set, while sister Kristen Hester ranks third in hitting percentage at . 345.

• UNLV hosts BYU (Thursday) and Utah (Saturday) this week ... Senior Sara Nehf ranks third in the league in kills per set at 3.37 ... Senior libero Kela Lau Hee is among the top 10 in the league in digs with 3.59 per set.

• Utah travels to Air Force (Thursday) and UNLV (Saturday) this week ... Freshman Erin Redd leads the league in attack percentage at .378 ... Freshman Morgan Odale is sixth in kills per set with 3.27 and fourth in points at 3.93 ... Senior Keisha Fisher continues to climb the MWC career digs chart. Fisher is currently sixth with 1,508 since the start of the 2007 season and ranks second in the league this season with a 4.23 average per set.

• Wyoming continues to add to its best season in program history at 21-6. The Cowgirls started the season with an 11-0 run ... Wyoming is on the road this week, at TCU (Thursday) and New Mexico (Saturday) ... Sophomore Jodi Purdy is second in the MWC in service aces with 0.38 per set, is second in points per set (4.05) and fifth in kills per set (3.29) ... JennaRae Jester is 11th in the nation and second in the league in blocks per set at 1.40 ... Sophomore Jadranka Tramosljanin leads the league in digs per set with 4.26.

Follow Mountain West Conference Olympic Sports on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/TheMWCOlySports!

With his team having been dealt a loss equaling the fourth-worst in school history, Utah football coach Kyle Whittingham said Monday that he believes TCU is fully deserving of a shot at the national championship.

The No. 3-ranked Horned Frogs (10-0) are coming off a 47-7 win over the Utes, amassing more than 500 yards against Utah for the second straight season. The Utes entered the game ranked No. 6 in the nation in total defense and scoring defense and boasted the third-highest scoring offense.

"They are definitely one of the top two or three (teams in the nation), if not the best," said Whittingham, whose team has been outscored 102-35 by TCU in the teams' last two meetings. "When we played them last year (a 55-28 Horned Frogs win), I made the statement that they were the best team we'd faced since I'd been at Utah (since 1994).

"This year's version of TCU is better than last year's version. I know (No. 1-ranked) Oregon is playing exceptionally well, (No. 2-ranked) Auburn is undefeated and that (No. 4-ranked) Boise State is in the mix, but from personal experience, TCU is a great football team. And if there's a better one out there, I don't know who it is."

Making the Grade

Colorado State junior linebacker Mychal Sisson, the team's second-leading tackler, put his name in the record books last week against San Diego State when he returned a fumble 88 yards for a touchdown, the longest in school history.

Sisson also collected his first career interception.

"Every time you look up he's making a play," said Rams coach Steve Fairchild. "He has the athletic ability to cover a lot of ground."

Postseason Parade

For the fourth time in as many seasons under coach Troy Calhoun, Air Force has qualified for a bowl game. Calhoun is the only head coach in the history of the program to lead teams to three consecutive seasons that included at least eight wins and a bowl game.

"It's pretty awesome for these kids to do that, especially at a service academy and playing in one of the best conferences in college football," said Calhoun, whose team captured its first Commander-In-Chief's Trophy since 2002 with last week's win at Army. "But we aren't done one bit. We've got to play better football this week (at New Mexico). We better not have bruises from patting ourselves on the back. We need to realize how lucky we are to have a chance to have a winning season."

Old Before Their Time

While San Diego State ranks No. 1 in pass offense (270.7 ypg), No. 2 in total offense (434.6 ypg) and No. 3 in scoring offense (33.7 ppg) in the MWC, the Aztecs (7-2), who are off to their best start in 33 seasons, face a monumental hurdle this week at TCU.

The Horned Frogs, attempting to finish No. 1 in the nation in total defense for the third straight year, are tops in the country in total defense (215.5 ypg), passing defense (121.9 ypg) and scoring defense (8.5 ppg).

"(Offensive coordinator) Al Borges and the rest of our offensive staff come out of our meeting room and look like they're aging by the day," said SDSU coach Brady Hoke.

Been There, Done That

TCU coach Gary Patterson sees no need to locate a soapbox to champion the accomplishments of the Mountain West Conference in football.

The MWC is one of four conferences with at least one team ranked in the Top-10 of the BCS Standings for at least 17 consecutive weeks (Big 12, Big Ten, SEC) and is one of five conferences (ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, SEC) to have at least two teams ranked in the BCS Standings for at least 19 consecutive weeks dating back to the first BCS rankings in 2008.

"Until this season is over, I think the Mountain West Conference has already spoken for itself," Patterson said. "That was the one thing we said we wanted to do five years ago and I think we've accomplished that. Whether some people want to admit it or not, they understand who Utah is; they understand who TCU is.

"Sometimes you achieve things without recognition, but sometimes that's the best way to accomplish them."

Fight to the Finish

While Wyoming's opportunity to secure a bowl bid for the second straight season was lost when it fell to San Diego State in Week 8, the Cowboys press on this week when they travel to UNLV.

"Our kids have not quit, which is very encouraging," said coach Dave Christensen. "It's a young team. They know this is not the end of the road for them. We've got 12 seniors who are going to soon be playing in their last game, but the majority of this football team is going to be here for a couple more years, and they know what you have to do to win games.

"A number of people have said, 'Last year, you had great success,' but five plays changed our season last year. One drive on offense or defense in four games this year could have made a different season this year. It's a game of inches and doing all the little things right. The difference between winning and losing changes dramatically if you don't make plays in crucial situations."

The Thin Line

BYU remains in the hunt for a bowl bid, but the Cougars (4-5) must win two of their last three to ensure a sixth straight appearance in the postseason. After facing Colorado State and New Mexico the next two weeks, BYU concludes the regular season at rival Utah.

While Colorado State has not beaten BYU in Fort Collins since 2002, coach Bronco Mendenhall said he's not looking at the remainder of the season being a "must-win" situation each week.

"I see three more opportunities to improve our football team and help them reach their potential," Mendenhall said. "I'd like to take each (game) separately and milk it for everything we can possibly to do to learn and grow as a team. If we do that, I think it gives us our best chance to reach any postseason objectives we might have."

A Stump Grows in Albuquerque

While New Mexico true freshman quarterback Stump Godfrey was expected to redshirt this season, injuries at the position forced coach Mike Locksley to abandon the idea.

In his first career start last week, Godfrey completed 16-of-20 passes for 211 yards and two touchdowns to beat Wyoming and give the Lobos their first win of the season. Godfrey also rushed 23 times for 69 yards.

"The big thing about watching Stump in that game is that he progressed with every play, and with every quarter he seemed to get better and better," Locksley said. "Hopefully, we'll be able to build on that (against Air Force) this week."

Who's on First?

UNLV coach Bobby Hauck's team has suffered so many injuries this season that finding available backups isn't necessarily a given. No fewer than 23 true and redshirt freshmen have seen action for the Rebels in 2010.

"It's just where we are, and you have to deal with those things," Hauck said. "There's no use whining about it. We've got to move forward and put the best 11 guys we have on the field. We're having a hard time because you want to be able to be physical with longer practices, but we just flat can't do it. Our young guys need the work and our older guys need the rest. We're just finding it really hard to get better."

For the second consecutive day and the eighth time this season, BYU junior goalkeeper McKinzie Olson pitched a shutout as the No. 2-seeded Cougars beat top-seeded New Mexico 1-0 Saturday in the title game of the 2010 MWC women's soccer championship at San Diego State.

Olson, who came into the game ranked second in the in the league in goals-against average (0.54) and save percentage (.859), faced 12 shots and recorded four saves against the Lobos as BYU (16-3-2) won its seventh title in the event's 12-year history.

"Everybody thinks when your team gets a shutout that it's all because of the goalkeeper," Olson said. "But our defense was just outstanding. As a goalkeeper, I couldn't have asked for more."

All-Tournament Team

BYU placed four players on the all-tournament team, including sophomore forward Jessica Ringwood, who delivered the game-winning goal in the 62nd minute on Saturday. It was Ringwood's third game-winning goal of the season.

"For whatever reason, we just seemed to come out a little flat (in a 1-0 double-overtime loss to New Mexico during the regular season)," said Ringwood, who was named the tournament MVP. "We know they're a good team. We had to come out with more energy."

Joining Ringwood on the all-tournament were Olson and BYU's Lindsi Lisonbee and Carlee Payne; UNLV's Caitlin Allen and Ashleigh Shoughro; San Diego State's Michele De Jesus and Aubree Southwick; and New Mexico's Kelli Cornell, Amanda Collins and Zanetta Wine.

The Next Step

BYU, which received an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament as a result of winning the conference title, has made 11 NCAA appearances since 1997.

The Cougars have advanced to the second round each of the past two seasons. BYU's deepest run in the tournament came in 2003, when it advanced to the Elite Eight before falling to Connecticut.

"There are so many great teams out there," said Cougars coach Jennifer Rockwood. "But any team can win on any given day if the bounces go your way."

Awaiting Word

New Mexico (12-2-5), which suffered its first loss since dropping a 1-0 decision at SMU on Sept. 12, will learn of its fate when the NCAA stages its Selection Show on ESPNU on Monday at 4:30 p.m. MT.

The Lobos, who won the MWC regular-season title, have not allowed more than one goal in a game this season and have surrendered only seven goals overall.

The MWC has qualified multiple teams for the NCAA Tournament seven times since the league's inception in 1999.

For some, however, this is apparently more complicated than it might seem. Even though my 7-year-old niece can find anything on DirecTV from the hair-raising tales of "Chia Pets: The Untold Story," to a documentary on the history of Formica, others seemingly can't locate the 6 o'clock news without an owner's manual and a phone call to their local cable operator.

And so it was that when BCS analyst/guru Jerry Palm said this week that he wondered "if anyone knows TCU is playing football because they're not on TV enough to see them," that I decided to do some investigating. I mean, deep-down, thorough, no-stones-unturned investigating, the kind that not only requires the guile of a super sleuth, but demands an exhausting two clicks of a computer mouse.

I'm not at all certain who or what made Jerry Palm (CollegeBCS.com) the unparalleled expert on all matters BCS, but I'm pretty sure it had nothing to do with a background in television. Putting together BCS computer numbers and polls to create your own projected BCS doesn't have much of a tie-in to as a career as TV critic.

In the event Mr. Palm missed it, as would seem abundantly clear, here's just how impossible it has been this season to find a TCU football game on television:

Week 1: Oregon State (ESPN)
Week 2: Tennessee Tech (no TV)
Week 3: Baylor (VERSUS)
Week 4: SMU (ESPN)
Week 5: Colorado State (The Mtn.)
Week 6: Wyoming (CBS College Sports Network)
Week 7: BYU (VERSUS)
Week 8: Air Force (CBS College Sports Network)
Week 9: UNLV (CBS College Sports Network)

Just so he doesn't feel left out, I'd like to let Mr. Palm know that Saturday's matchup between No. 3 TCU and No. 5 Utah --- a game featuring the two highest-ranked teams to face each other this season --- is available on CBS College Sports Network. Free of charge to many. To 57 million homes. This is the same network that is normally in 40 million households and available to more than 89 million.

Before the conclusion of the regular season, TCU also will have played four games (one-third of its schedule) on VERSUS, a network that is in 79 million homes. As the preceding TV schedule attests, the Horned Frogs also have been on ESPN twice. If it's the responsibility of a voter to watch games, obviously it's not terribly difficult to locate VERSUS or CBS College Sports Network.

Now, unless Mr. Palm does not subscribe to DirecTV (17 million viewers), I can understand his disillusionment in being unable to catch TCU's game against Colorado State, but 10 out of 11 ain't bad (TCU's final two games vs. San Diego State and New Mexico are both on VERSUS). Call me leery, Mr. Palm, but I suspect there are a whole lot more folks than you might think who can verify that TCU does, indeed, have a football team. Perhaps you've heard of it. You know, the one ranked No. 3 in the BCS Standings and No. 4 in the Associated Press poll, the USA Today Coaches' poll and ESPN.com's power rankings?

It's the same team that you suggested last week would not hurdle Boise State in the all-important BCS Standings. Oops.

Now, if only I could remember having seen that on VERSUS or CBS College Sports Network --- like millions of others did.

New Mexico senior forward Kate Wyrick hesitated, took a deep breath and stared at the wonder at her feet.

After 106 minutes of soccer against No. 5-seeded UNLV in Thursday's semifinals of the MWC women's championships, it took but a flash for Wyrick and the Lobos to conclude matters.

A flash that, where Wyrick was concerned, seemed like an eternity.

"It was like a dream," Wyrick said of tapping in the winning goal off a cross that was mishandled by Rebels goalkeeper Kylie Wassell. "I hesitated for a minute, because to find the ball just sitting there was so perfect. I had to calm myself down."

The 2-1 double-overtime win advanced the regular-season champion Lobos (12-1-5) into Saturday's title game, where they will meet No. 2-seeded BYU. Top-seeded New Mexico, ranked No. 24 this week in the Soccer America poll, has twice appeared in the championship game but never won.

"We'll take a deep breath and re-evaluate (on Friday)," said coach Kit Vela. "We've met a lot of goals this year, but now we've got to come together again and get ready for the championship game."

UNLV Comes Out Firing

While UNLV (11-8-1) may have fallen short in its bid to claim its second title since 2005, no one could accuse the Rebels of failing to make the most of their opportunities.

When sophomore defenseman Caitlin Allen scored to give the Rebels a 1-0 lead in the 10th minute of the first period (the first goal of Allen's career), it marked UNLV's fifth goal on as many shots in the tournament.

Motivation Factor

BYU didn't require an overabundance of inspiration entering its semifinal match on Thursday in the MWC women's soccer championships.

The Cougars, who have captured the title six times in the event's 12-year history, were shut out 1-0 by San Diego State in last year's championship game in Provo.

Thursday's draw? San Diego State.

"We definitely wanted revenge," said goalkeeper McKinzie Olson, who posted her eighth shutout of the season in the Cougars' 2-0 win. "Our focus all season has been to get back to the championship game."

The No. 2-seeded Cougars (15-3-2) will face top-seeded New Mexico in Saturday's title game. The Lobos beat BYU 1-0 in overtime during the regular season.

Limited Opportunities

Saturday's championship game will pit the two top goalkeepers in the MWC in New Mexico's Kelli Cornell and BYU's McKinzie Olson.

Cornell, a sophomore, has posted a league-high 10 shutouts this season. She is the conference leader in goals-against average (0.33) and save percentage (.924).

Olson has eight shutouts and ranks second to Cornell in goals-against average (0.57) and save percentage (.851).

"There isn't going to be much room for error," said BYU coach Jennifer Rockwood. "New Mexico has had a great season and has found ways to win over and over again. They don't give up goals easily. Both teams are going to have their chances, but it's going to be the team that takes advantage of its opportunities and puts the ball in the back of the net."

All or Nothing

Of defending champion San Diego State's 10 losses this season, seven came by shutout, including Thursday's 2-0 semifinal loss to BYU.

In Wednesday's 4-0 quarterfinal win over Wyoming, the Aztecs scored more than two goals in a game for the first time this season. SDSU hadn't scored four goals in a game since Oct. 30, 2009.

Click HERE to read more about the MWC Fans' Football Game of the Week.

AIR FORCE (5-4, 3-3) at ARMY (5-3), Noon ET
TV: CBS College Sports Network HD

The lowdown: Air Force, which has won four in a row and 12 of its last 13 against Army, can win its first Commander-in-Chief's Trophy title since 2002 with a victory. The Falcons have won the last four meetings against the Black Knights by an average of 23.3 points. Air Force has not lost a game at West Point since 1996.

Air Force: The Falcons provided a stern test for No. 6 Utah last week, but were ultimately undone by five turnovers in a 28-23 loss. Quarterback Tim Jefferson completed 8-of-13 passes for a career-high 201 yards and a touchdown and also scored on a career-long 59-yard run. Linebacker Brady Amack recorded a career-high 15 tackles against the Utes. Air Force continues to lead the MWC and ranks second in the nation in rush offense at 313.56 yards per game. The Falcons, whose four losses have come against teams with a combined mark of 30-3, are trying to put the brakes on a three-game losing streak. "We have had a little rough stretch going in," said junior safety Jon Davis. "But what team in the nation doesn't? We just have to keep our heads up and keep working. It just makes us want to work harder to get back to where we were."

Army: As with Air Force, the Black Knights thrive on running the ball. Army's average of 281.38 yards per game ranks seventh-best in the nation. In last week's 29-7 win over VMI, fullback Jared Hassin rushed 14 times for a career-high 159 yards and a touchdown. Hassin has exceeded the 100-yard mark in three straight games. Defensively, the Black Knights have held six of their eight opponents to 125 or fewer rushing yards. A win would qualify Army for its first bowl game in 14 years. "Obviously, Navy and Air Force have been consistently good and occasionally great for years, especially Air Force," coach Rich Ellerson told the (Middletown, N.Y.) Times Herald-Record. "We're trying to get to that. We've made some great progress, but there is an awful lot of football to be played, especially this week, before we can say that we belong."

UNLV (1-7, 1-3) at BYU (3-5, 2-2), Noon MT
TV: The Mtn. HD

The lowdown: BYU, which posted its highest point total of the season (59) in this game a year ago, has won five straight against UNLV by an average margin of 30.2 points. The Rebels are looking for their first win in Provo since 2004.

UNLV: The Rebels, who are coming off a 48-6 loss to TCU, have endured one of the toughest schedules in college football, having faced four teams that are ranked this week. UNLV is one of only four teams in the nation to have already played at least three teams that are in the current top 10 of either poll. The seven teams that have defeated UNLV currently boast a record of 44-15. Not helping matters is that the injury-ravaged Rebels have been forced to play 23 true and redshirt freshmen this season. "I don't know if I've ever been around anything like it," coach Bobby Hauck told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. "For instance, if we had more than one corner go down (last week), we didn't have a fourth corner." Senior QB Omar Clayton has moved into third place on the school's career list with 5,811 passing yards and is now 386 yards behind Jon Denton (1996-97).

BYU: The Cougars, who defeated Wyoming 25-20 on Oct. 23, are coming off a bye week. Having participated in a bowl game five consecutive seasons, BYU finds itself on unfamiliar turf and must be wary of a UNLV team that has won three times in its last seven trips to Provo. "I think there has been urgency for quite some time," coach Bronco Mendenhall told the Salt Lake Tribune. "Whether it is in relation to a bowl game or not, I can't say that's the motive. I hope it is just [because] we are working really hard to improve, and reach our potential, which I don't think we have done yet." BYU has made significant strides defensively since Mendenhall assumed the defensive coordinator duties last month. In their last outing, the Cougars held Wyoming to a minus-31 yards on six rushes in the first quarter, minus-4 yards rushing on four rushes in the second quarter, one yard on nine rushes in the third quarter and 19 yards on seven rushes (plus one Wyoming rush for 47 yards) in the fourth quarter. In all, Wyoming was held to negative or no yardage on 34-of-56 plays.

WYOMING (2-7, 0-5) at NEW MEXICO (0-8, 0-4), 4 P.M. MT
TV: The Mtn. HD

The lowdown: Wyoming snapped a four-game losing streak in this series last season, scoring its first touchdown against the Lobos since 2006. Since 1993, the Lobos are 5-1 against the Cowboys in games played in Albuquerque, winning by an average of 24.0 points per game.

Wyoming: The Cowboys are coming off a 48-38 home loss to San Diego State in which they posted their highest point total since Oct. 1, 2005. Sophomore quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels completed 20-of-40 passes for 186 yards and three touchdowns, while senior wide receiver David Leonard caught had seven receptions for a season-high 75 yards and two TDs. The Wyoming defense, which has produced six interceptions in its last three games, limited San Diego State to just 76 yards on the ground. With last week's loss, the Cowboys were officially eliminated from the 2010 bowl picture. "Hopefully everybody has a sense of pride within them," Carta-Samuels told the Laramie Boomerang. "Hopefully we all bleed Wyoming colors. For that, these last three games are extremely important. I want to win for everybody here, regardless. I think all my teammates do. In terms of pride, that's probably the biggest thing to play for and that's still there."

New Mexico: The Lobos, who have won eight of their last 10 against Wyoming, are coming off a 38-14 loss at Colorado State. True freshman quarterback Stump Godfrey, one of four signal-callers utilized by New Mexico this season, threw his first career touchdown pass, while receiver Ty Kirk posted season highs with five catches for 91 yards. The Lobos have scored first in four of their last five games, but have been plagued by injuries at quarterback. Starter B.R. Holbrook suffered a shoulder injury last week. Backup Brad Gruner had to have surgery on his throwing hand after cutting his pinkie finger while carving a Halloween pumpkin and Tarean Austin, another true freshman, has an injured ankle. "The tough part is just the consistency," said coach Mike Locksley. "We've got one quarterback who I think is a little different and maybe a little bit above the other three in terms of being able to operate the full spectrum of our offensive system and at the speed at which we like to operate it at. And then we've got two young guys that are developing with each practice and each day. They're limited somewhat in what they can go out and get executed. It's kind of maybe forced us to pare down what we want to get accomplished."

COLORADO STATE (3-6, 2-3) at SAN DIEGO STATE (6-2, 3-1), 7 P.M. PT
TV: The Mtn. HD

The lowdown: San Diego State trailed 21-7 at the half in this game last season, only to stage its biggest comeback since 2000 with a 35-point outburst in the second half. Aztecs quarterback Ryan Lindley threw a conference-record six touchdown passes. SDSU has won three of its last four against the Rams.

Colorado State: The Rams have won two of their last three games, but have dropped 10 straight in contests played away from Hughes Stadium. Nonetheless, CSU has won six of its last seven against SDSU in games played at Qualcomm Stadium. The game marks a homecoming for true freshman quarterback Pete Thomas, who prepped at Valhalla High in nearby El Cajon. The only true freshman to start all of his team's games at quarterback this season, Thomas completed 17-of-25 passes for 256 yards in a 38-14 win over New Mexico last week. The Rams also found success on the ground, with running backs Leonard Mason (124) and Chris Nwoke (98) combining for 222 yards rushing. The Aztecs rank third in total defense in the MWC. "I have a lot of respect for (SDSU defensive coordinator) Rocky Long," said Rams coach Steve Fairchild, who grew up in San Diego and served as an assistant at SDSU in 1986. "I thought he was a tremendous head coach (at New Mexico) and defensive coach every time that we have had to go against him. It is a unique defense in structure and the way that it plays. They tackle and play extremely hard; they are sound in what they do. It's tough to get ready for in one week; we will have our hands full preparing this week as an offensive staff. But we have been up to the challenge before."

San Diego State: The Aztecs have matched their best start to a campaign in the last 14 seasons (since SDSU opened 6-2 in 1996). This is also the first time an Aztec team has been four games above .500 at any point during the season since SDSU owned an 8‐3 record after the 1996 campaign. San Diego State's six wins makes it bowl-eligible for the first time since 1998. That season, the Aztecs advanced to the Las Vegas Bowl and finished the year with a 7-5 record after falling to North Carolina, 20-13. Senior wide receiver DeMarco Sampson, who amassed 257 receiving yards against the Rams last season, has posted three straight 100-yard games. In SDSU's 48-38 win at Wyoming last week, Sampson caught seven passes for 175 yards and two touchdowns. In the team's last three meetings against Colorado State, quarterback Ryan Lindley has completed 29-of-43 passes for 459 yards and six TDs. The Rams are allowing an average of 225.67 yards passing per game, second-most in the MWC. "It's a lot of fun; you have more kids around campus saying, `Hey good game on Saturday,' " junior offensive tackle Tommie Draheim said of the team's success thus far. "I'm glad that we've been able to represent them in a good way. To have them meet us (after last week's win at Wyoming) with the band and fight song, it was just a lot of fun. People have really been lifting their support for us. You can tell they're proud of us."

• Week 10 Review ... No. 14 Colorado State (9-0) stayed atop the league standings with a 3-0 win at San Diego State on Saturdaynight ... New Mexico (7-3) earned wins over UNLV and Air Force to move just ahead of Utah (6-3) for second place ... San Diego State (5-5) holds on to fourth place with a win over Wyoming and the loss to CSU, while Wyoming and BYU are tied for fifth at 4-5 after tough road losses at San Diego State and Utah ... TCU, UNLV and Air Force round out the bottom of the standings.

• The Mountain West Conference is on track to set new volleyball attendance records. Close to 3,800 fans went through the MWC turnstiles last week. MWC volleyball fans are coming through the turnstiles at an average of 990 per home match with a total of 103,994 watching 105 home matches across the league. It is the second year in a row that the league has recorded an attendance over 100,000. The first season over 100,000 fans watched MWC volleyball was in 2009 (114,357) with a final average of 953. The last time the league had averaged over 900 fans per match previous to the 2009 season was in the 2001 season (925). With 31 home matches remaining on the schedule, the opportunity is there to greatly surpass last year's total.

• And ... if you can't make it out to your favorite MWC volleyball arena for a match or want to see how other teams are doing, you can be one of the many fans watching along at home on The Mtn., CBS College Sports or BYU-TV. There is just one televised match this week - Saturday's match between San Diego State and BYU in Provo ... If you have DirecTV, that's channel 374 for BYU-TV. Other MWC networks are channel 616 for The Mtn. and channel 613 for CBS C or check with your local cable operator for the channel listing in your area ... The MWC ranks second in the nation with 19 nationally-televised matches this season.

• Other ways to follow the action ... several MWC programs webcast matches throughout the season. Wyoming, Colorado State, Utah and New Mexico will webcast matches this week from their respective institutional home pages. Fans can watch from afar through All Access accounts set up for a reasonable fee through the CBSSports.com College Network. And don't forget to sign up on Facebook and Twitter to follow the Mountain West Conference and its member schools. Several teams have their own Facebook and Twitter sites as well. See what the league's coaches have to say about their teams.

• Three MWC student-athletes were among the 30 candidates for the inaugural Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. New Mexico's Jade Michaelsen, TCU's Christy Hudson and Wyoming's JennaRae Jester are on the list for their excellence on and off the court, and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - classroom, character, community and competition. Congratulations, Jade, Christy and JennaRae!

• 1,000-Kill Club ... Utah senior Karolina Bartkowiak became the 35th Mountain West volleyball player to join the 1,000-kill club and the third this season along with Colorado State senior Danielle Minch (Oct. 14) and New Mexico senior Lisa Meeter (Oct. 14). Bartkowiak recorded 19 kills in a 3-2 win over BYU on Oct. 29 to join the elite group ... Three more Mountain West Conference volleyball players are on track to join the 1,000-Kill Club this season - Christy Hudson (TCU, 992), Irene Hester (TCU, 975) and Lauren Whitney (Wyoming, 969) ... Injured San Diego State senior Lauren Salisbury is sitting at 967 career kills.

• Air Force travels to Wyoming (Thursday) and No. 14 Colorado State (Saturday) this week ... This season the Falcons, under the direction of new head coach Matt McShane, are playing in the intimate confines of Falcon Court at East Gym after five seasons in Clune Arena ... Senior Caroline Kurtz is second in the MWC with 3.58 kills per set and fifth in points at 3.84 ... Senior Kelly Spencer ranks in the MWC top 10 in digs per set with 3.42.

• BYU has just one match this week, hosting San Diego State Saturday night on BYU-TV ... Sophomore Nicole Warner ranks 27th in the nation with 1.27 blocks per set this season ... Senior setter Kiana Rogers ranks among the top 10 in the league with 9.51 assists and 0.30 service aces per set ... Jennifer Hamson ranks second among league freshmen in points per set with 3.53.

• No. 14 Colorado State sits atop the leaderboard with the only unblemished conference record at 9-0 ... CSU hosts UNLV (Thursday) and Air Force (Saturday) at Moby Arena ... The Rams have been ranked in the AVCA Top 25 poll all season ... Sophomore Megan Plourde is fifth in the nation with 1.53 blocks per set and is second in the MWC in hitting percentage at a .374 clip ... Junior setter Evan Sanders is second in the league in assists with 10.38 per set ... Danielle Minch became the 34th MWC player to reach 1,000 career kills on Oct. 14 against TCU.

• New Mexico begins a three-match homestand with TCU at the Johnson Center on Friday night, the Lobos only match of the week ... Senior Taylor Hadfield is among the league's top hitters. In fact, she is the only MWC player in the top 10 in hitting percentage (7th; .300) and kills per set (8th; 3.12 kps) ... Senior Lisa Meeter earned her 1,000th career kill and 1,000th career dig on Oct. 14 at Wyoming, becoming the 33rd player to reach the 1,000 kills mark and 17th in digs in MWC history ... Senior setter Jade Michaelsen became the Lobos all-time career assist leader on Oct. 23 against Utah with 3,838.

• San Diego State heads out on the road to face Utah (Thursday) and BYU (Saturday) ... Freshman setter Johnna Fouch leads the league in assists with 10.56 per set ... Sophomore Andrea Hannasch ranks 34th in the nation in blocks with 1.25 per set.

• TCU and Prairie View A&M postponed Tuesday's non-conference match due to a stomach virus. A make-up date has not been set. The Horned Frogs hope to get healthy before heading to New Mexico on Friday ... Senior Irene Hester leads the league in kills (3.66), points (4.29) and is second in aces (0.40) per set, while sister Kristen ranks third in hitting percentage at . 354.

• UNLV goes on the road to face No. 14 Colorado State (Thursday) and Wyoming (Saturday) ... Senior Sara Nehf ranks third in kills per set at 3.26 ... Senior libero Kela Lau Hee is among the top 10 in the league in digs with 3.60 per set.

• Utah hosts San Diego State on Thursday before a weekend break ... Freshman Erin Redd leads the league in attack percentage at .375 ... Freshman Morgan Odale is fifth in kills per set with 3.25 and third in points at 3.93 ... Senior Keisha Fisher continues to climb the MWC career digs chart. Fisher is currently sixth with 1,477 since the start of the 2007 season and ranks second in the league this season with a 4.22 average per set.

• Wyoming continues to add to its best season in program history at 19-6. The Cowgirls started the season with an 11-0 run ... Wyoming hosts Air Force (Thursday) and UNLV (Saturday) this week ... Sophomore Jodi Purdy leads the MWC in service aces with 0.40 per set, is second in points per set (4.04) and fifth in kills per set (3.25) ... JennaRae Jester is eighth in the nation and second in the league in blocks per set at 1.43 ... Sophomore Jadranka Tramosljanin leads the league in digs per set with 4.26.

Follow Mountain West Conference Olympic Sports on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/TheMWCOlySports!

Defending champion and host San Diego State hadn't scored more than two goals in a game this season prior to Wednesday's 4-0 quarterfinal win over Wyoming in the 2010 MWC women's soccer championships.

The No. 3-seeded Aztecs got goals from four different players, including senior midfielder Michaela DeJesus, who got put SDSU on the board with just 1:40 gone in the game.

"We like to start fast and we like to play fast," said DeJesus, a first-team all-conference selection. "You always want to keep the pressure on."

SDSU, which is hosting the tournament for the first time since the event was staged at the Olympic Training Center in nearby Chula Vista, Calif., in 1999, will face No. 2-seeded BYU in Thursday's semifinals at 3 p.m. PT. The Aztecs beat the Cougars 1-0 to capture last year's title.

"I think it's an even matchup," said SDSU coach Mike Friesen. "I really feel like every time we've played them, at least in my time here, it's been an even game, it's been close. One thing here or there could lead to a victory for either team."

Aztecs goalkeeper Aubree Southwick, a second-team all-conference selection, faced only seven shots and was not required to make a save.

"When your defense plays like that, that's all you can ask for," Southwick said.

UNLV Gets Offensive

The four goals scored by No. 5-seeded UNLV in Wednesday's 4-1 win over Utah in the quarterfinals of the MWC women's soccer championships at San Diego State matched the highest total scored by any team in league play this season.

New Mexico scored four against UNLV on Oct. 1, a total matched a day later in BYU's win over Wyoming.

UNLV senior forward Ashleigh Shoughro, the league's overall leading scorer, notched her 14th goal of the season against Utah as the Rebels (11-7-1) won their first MWC tournament game since 2008.

Utah senior forward Lauren Hair, a three-time first-team all-MWC pick, scored the lone goal for the Utes (5-15-1), who blanked UNLV 3-0 during the regular season.