Oct. 5, 2009

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SATURDAY, OCTOBER 10
	New Mexico (0-5, 0-1) at Wyoming (3-2, 1-0) War Memorial Stadium (30,514) - Laramie, Wyo. 12 p.m. MT Series: UNM Leads 34-27 Last Meeting: 2008, UNM 24-0
	Utah (3-1, 0-0) at Colorado State (3-2 , 0-1) Hughes Stadium (34,400) - Fort Collins, Colo. 4 p.m. MT Series: Utah Leads 51-22-2 Last Meeting: 2008, Utah 49-16
	10/9 TCU (4-0, 0-0) at Air Force (3-2, 2-0) Falcon Stadium (46,692) - USAFA, Colo. 5:30 p.m. MT Series: TCU Leads 5-2-1 Last Meeting: 2008, TCU 44-10  - HD /
	18/20 BYU (4-1, 1-0) at UNLV (2-3, 0-1) Sam Boyd Stadium (36,800) - Las Vegas, Nev. 7 p.m. PT Series: BYU Leads 13-3 Last Meeting: 2008, BYU 42-35 / /
Idle This Week: San Diego State (2-3, 0-1) Next Week: vs. BYU, Oct. 17

LAST WEEK'S RESULTS (OCT. 2 & 3)

Friday, October 2
#21/20 BYU 35, Utah State 17 (Provo, Utah; Attendance - 64,103)

Saturday, October 3
#10/11 TCU 39, SMU 14 (Clemson, S.C.; Attendance - 37,130)
Wyoming 30, Florida Atlantic 28 (Boca Raton, Fla.; Attendance - 15,744)
San Diego State 34, New Mexico State 17 (San Diego, Calif.; Attendance - 21,184)
Navy 16, Air Force 13 OT (Annapolis, Md.; Attendance - 37,820)
Texas Tech 48, New Mexico 28 (Lubbock, Texas; Attendance - 52,909)
Nevada 63, UNLV 28 (Reno, Nev.; Attendance - 24,078)
Idaho 31, Colorado State 29 (Moscow, Idaho; Attendance - 16,000)

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK (OCT. 5, 2009)

Offensive Player of the Week
AUSTYN CARTA-SAMUELS, WYOMING
Freshman, Quarterback, San Jose, Calif./Bellarmine College Prep
True freshman Austyn Carta-Samuels quarterbacked the Wyoming Cowboys to a 30-28 come-frombehind road victory at Florida Atlantic, highlighted by a 12-play, 91-yard game-winning touchdown drive with 4:29 remaining in the game. During that series, the San Jose, Calif., native rushed for 28 yards and passed for 18, accounting for half of Wyoming's 91 yards on the drive. Carta-Samuels completed 29- of-38 pass attempts (.763) for 223 yards, and added 69 rushing yards to finish with 292 yards of total offense. He led Wyoming on scoring drives of 80, 47, 59, 80 and 91 yards, as the Cowboys tied a season-best with 30 points against the Owls. Carta-Samuels connected with seven different Cowboy receivers on the day, and guided Wyoming to 421 yards of total offense.

Co-Defensive Players of the Week
DEY JUAN HEMMINGS, SAN DIEGO STATE
Junior, Defensive Back, San Bernardino, Calif./Rialto HS
Junior defensive back Dey Juan Hemmings recorded six tackles (five solo), one tackle for loss (-5 yards), a six-yard interception return and a fumble recovery for a touchdown in San Diego State's 34-17 win over New Mexico State. After registering the first tackle for loss and first interception of his career in the opening stanza, the San Bernardino, Calif., product erased a 7-0 SDSU deficit in the second quarter by picking up a fumble and returning it 14 yards for the first points of his career. Hemming's return for a score is the Aztecs' first fumble recovery for a TD since 2006.

DARYL WASHINGTON, TCU
Senior, Linebacker, Irving, Texas/Irving HS
Daryl Washington collected five tackles, two sacks (-13 yards) and a 23-yard interception return in No. 10 TCU's 39-14 win over SMU. The senior linebacker from Irving, Texas, helped key a TCU defensive effort that held SMU to minus-16 yards rushing. The Mustangs were limited to nine first downs for the game, including just three in the second half.

Special Teams Player of the Week
JEREMY KERLEY, TCU
Junior, Kick Returner, Hutto, Texas/Hutto HS
Jeremy Kerley recorded 175 return yards and a touchdown in helping No. 10 TCU to a 39-14 win over SMU. The junior from Hutto, Texas, recorded 123 of those yards on four punt returns (30.8 ypr), including a 71-yard return for a touchdown. The 71-yard effort was TCU's first punt return for a touchdown since 2002, a stretch of 89 games that ranked as the seventh-longest in the nation. Kerley's 123 punt return yardage ranks as the third- and fifth-highest single-game tally in TCU and MWC history, respectively. His only kickoff return went for a season-long 52 yards.

MWC GAME HIGHS - WEEK 5

Passing
Donovan Porterie, Sr., QB, New Mexico - 316 yards on 30-of-56 passing, 2 TDs
Rushing
Harvey Unga, Jr., RB, BYU - 118 yards on 21 carries, 1 TD
Receiving
Rashaun Greer, Sr., WR, Colorado State - 125 yards on 7 receptions
Tackles
Carmen Messina, So., LB, New Mexico - 11 Tackles (11 solo, 1 assisted), 2 TFL, 1 Sack, 1 FF

WEEK 6 PREVIEW

Four Mountain West contests are on tap for Saturday, October 10, as the 2009 football campaign reaches the halfway point in Week 6. All four games will be nationally televised, with one match-up on CBS College Sports Network (HD) and a tripleheader on The Mtn. - MountainWest Sports Network. Saturday's slate kicks off with New Mexico at Wyoming (The Mtn., noon MT), followed by Utah at Colorado State (The Mtn., 4 p.m. MT), TCU at Air Force (CBS C HD, 5:30 p.m. MT), and BYU at UNLV (The Mtn., 7 p.m. PT).

TWO MWC TEAMS RANKED IN TOP 25 POLLS
Two Mountain West teams are currently ranked in all three national weekly polls. TCU is the MWC's highest-ranked team at No. 9 in the Coaches' poll and 10th in the Harris and Associated Press polls. BYU is 17th in the Harris poll, 18th in the AP poll and 20th in the Coaches' poll. BYU has appeared in the polls for 26 consecutive weeks, followed by TCU at 16 straight weeks.

TCU REMAINS UNDEFEATED
TCU has started a season 4-0 for the second straight year, and third time in the last seven seasons. On the two previous occasions (2003, 2008), the Horned Frogs went on to win 11 games.

UNLV'S WOLFE & BYU'S PITTA AMONG NCAA'S ACTIVE CAREER RECEIVING YARDS LEADERS
UNLV senior WR Ryan Wolfe is currently the nation's second-leading active career receiving yards leader with 3,155 yards. He trails Naaman Roosevelt of Buffalo by one yard (3,156) and leads Bryan Anderson of Central Michigan by 27 yards (3,128). BYU senior TE Dennis Pitta is ninth on the list, but leads all tight ends with 2,411 career receiving yards. Marshall TE Cody Slate trails Pitta by 110 yards with 2,301 career yards.

THE MWC IN WEEK 5

• Of the MWC's 32 touchdowns in Week 5, 14 were scored on the ground, while 14 were passing TDs. The MWC also earned four non-offensive touchdowns with two interceptions, one fumble recovery and one punt return.
• Four MWC teams limited their opponents to fewer than 100 rushing yards. TCU kept SMU's run game in check, as the Mustangs netted minus-16 yards on the ground. New Mexico held Texas Tech to 34 rushing yards, while Idaho only gained 70 yards vs. Colorado State. San Diego State allowed New Mexico State only 88 yards via the ground game.
• Air Force, San Diego State and TCU held their non-conference opponents to an average of 11 first downs last week.
• Air Force limited Navy to 10 first downs to mark the third time this season the Falcon defense has allowed 10 or fewer first downs. AFA also allowed 10 first downs by New Mexico on Sept. 19, and gave up just seven first downs to Nicholls State on Sept. 5.
• TCU limited SMU to nine first downs, marking the second time this season that the Horned Frog defense has held an opponent to single-digit first downs in a game this season. Virginia managed only seven first downs against TCU on Sept. 12.
• The win over SMU improved TCU's record against teams from the state of Texas to 9-1 in the last three years.
• New Mexico averaged 52.0 yards per punt at Texas Tech, the highest average for the Lobos since averaging 53.8 yards per punt on Sept. 11, 2004, when UNM defeated Texas Tech, 27-24.
• Combined, MWC teams converted 11-of-18 fourth-down attempts (.611) in Week 5. Conversely, the league allowed the opposition to convert on just 4-of-11 fourth-down attempts (.364).
• Six MWC defenses made at least one sack last week to total 21 sacks overall. New Mexico and TCU sacked their opponents' quarterbacks five times apiece, followed by BYU, Colorado State and San Diego State with three each and Wyoming with two. Conversely, Air Force had its 12-game streak with a sack come to an end at Navy.
• Five of eight MWC teams in action in Week 5 gained at least 400 total yards on offense. Colorado State led all MWC teams with 436 total yards, followed by BYU and New Mexico with 431 yards each, Wyoming with 421 yards of offense, and TCU with 418 total yards.

DEFENSE PROVIDING POINTS FOR AIR FORCE
Air Force scored its fifth defensive touchdown of the season on DB Anthony Wright's 67-yard interception return at Navy. The score marked the third straight game the Falcons have had a defensive touchdown. Air Force has scored on three interception returns (Wright - 47 yards vs. SDSU and 67 yards vs. Navy, Jon Davis - 38 yards vs. New Mexico) and a pair of fumble returns (Wale Lawal - 10 yards vs. Nicholls State, Reggie Rembert - 47 yards vs. SDSU). Air Force entered the game leading the nation in defensive touchdowns with four.

OFFENSIVE IMPROVEMENT FOR NEW MEXICO
New Mexico exceeded all of its offensive averages this past weekend at Texas Tech with 28 points, 91 plays, 115 yards rushing, 316 yards passing and 431 yards of total offense. The Lobos came into the game averaging 11.5 points, 56 plays, 103.5 yards rushing, 158.5 yards passing and 262 yards of offense.

FRESHMEN RUNNING BACKS SHINE IN WEEK 5
New Mexico redshirt freshman TB A.J. Butler recorded career-highs of 26 carries for 102 yards and a career-best nine receptions for 39 yards in the loss at Texas Tech. Butler had 35 total touches on the day for 141 all-purpose yards and one TD via the ground game. He is the first freshman to rush for 100 yards since DonTrell Moore had 176 against Wyoming in 2002. Butler came into the Texas Tech game with 13 carries for 42 rushing yards on the season.

San Diego State RB Walter Kazee became the first Aztec true freshman to run for over 100 yards in a game since Lynell Hamilton in 2003. He is the second Aztec back to log a 100- yard rushing effort this season joining Brandon Sullivan, who had 24 carries for 111 yards against Southern Utah. Kazee ended the night with a career-best 101 yards on 22 carries and his first career touchdown in the fourth quarter.

BROWN BECOMES FAVORITE TARGET AT SAN DIEGO STATE
San Diego State WR Vincent Brown currently ranks second nationally in receiving yards per game (126.2) and total yards (631). Brown saw his five-game streak of 100 yards or more receiving came to an end last week against New Mexico State after recording three catches for 84 yards, but extended his touchdown streak to five consecutive games. His five games with a touchdown reception matches the longest streak by an Aztec since Kassim Osgood also had one in five straight games in 2002. Brown has six receiving TDs in five outings in 2009, exceeding his season total from a year ago.

ASIATA OUT, WIDE STEPS IN
Utah senior RB Matt Asiata will be out for the year due to a knee injury after scoring a 24- yard touchdown in the first quarter against Louisville on Sept. 26. Asiata currently leads the MWC with 330 rushing yards on the year. Junior RB Eddie Wide replaced Asiata and ran for a career-high 129 yards on 19 carries.

OPPORTUNISTIC DEFENSES
Air Force, Colorado State and Wyoming rank in the top 16 nationally in turnovers gained. The Falcons are tied for the national lead with SMU with 17 turnovers gained, while the Rams are tied for seventh with 13 and the Cowboys are tied for 16th with 12 turnovers gained.

THIRD-DOWN DEFENSE
The Utah, Air Force and TCU defenses have been solid on third-down conversions this season. The Utes have held opponents to 10-of-52 third-down conversions to rank first in the country, limiting foes to a 19.2 percent success rate. The Falcons are third nationally, holding opponents to a 23.5 conversion rate (16-of-68), and the Horned Frogs rank 10th, limiting opponents to 17-of-60 conversions (28.3 percent).

INTERCEPTION STREAKS
Two Mountain West teams are currently riding consecutive games streaks with at least one interception. Utah has recorded at least one interception in eight straight games, while Colorado State`s streak is at six.