Mountain West Conference Football Press Release Week No. 10

Nov. 2, 2009

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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 7
	25/25 BYU (6-2, 3-1) at Wyoming (4-4, 2-2) War Memorial Stadium (30,514) - Laramie, Wyo. 12 p.m. MT Series: BYU Leads 42-30-3 Last Meeting: 2008, BYU 44-0
	Army (3-5) at Air Force (5-4, 4-2) Falcon Stadium (46,692) - USAFA, Colo. 1:30 p.m. MT Series: AFA Leads 29-13-1 Last Meeting: 2008, AFA 16-7 HD
	4/6 TCU (8-0, 4-0) at San Diego State (4-4, 2-2) Qualcomm Stadium (54,000) - San Diego, Calif. 1 p.m. PT Series: TCU Leads 4-0 Last Meeting: 2008, TCU 41-7 HD
	New Mexico (0-8, 0-4) at 16/17 Utah (7-1, 4-0) Rice-Eccles Stadium (45,017) - Salt Lake City, Utah 4 p.m. MT Series: Utah Leads 31-17-2 Last Meeting: 2008, Utah 13-10
	Colorado State (3-6, 0-5) at UNLV (3-6, 1-4) Sam Boyd Stadium (36,800) - Las Vegas, Nev. 7 p.m. PT Series: UNLV Leads 10-6-1 Last Meeting:2008, CSU 41-28

LAST WEEK'S RESULTS (OCT. 31)

Saturday, October 31
#6/8 TCU 41, UNLV 0 (Fort Worth, Texas; Attendance - 33,541)
Air Force 34, Colorado State 16 (Fort Collins, Colo.; Attendance - 22,025)
San Diego State 23, New Mexico 20 (San Diego, Calif.; Attendance - 12,647)
#19/19 Utah 22, Wyoming 10 (Salt Lake City, Utah; Attendance - 44,837)

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK (NOV. 2)

Offensive Player of the Week
EDDIE WIDE, UTAH
Junior, Running Back, Las Vegas, Nev./Cimarron Memorial HS
Eddie Wide ran for a career-high 135 yards and a touchdown in Utah's 22-10 victory over Wyoming. The junior running back averaged 5.6 yards per carry in the game, while tying a school record with his fifth consecutive 100-yard rushing effort. With the Utes clinging to a six-point lead with 1:41 left to play, the Las Vegas, Nev., product scored on a five-yard rush to make it a two-possession game.

Defensive Player of the Week
KOA MISI, UTAH
Senior, Defensive End, Santa Rosa, Calif./Santa Rosa JC
Koa Misi, a native of Santa Rose, Calif., led the Utah defense with eight tackles (seven solo) and two sacks for minus-9 yards in the 22-10 win over Utah. Six of the senior defensive end's stops and both sacks came in the second half of play, when the Utes held the Cowboys to 74 total yards and no points.

Special Teams Player of the Week
BRIAN STAHOVICH, SAN DIEGO STATE
Sophomore, Punter, Solana Beach, Calif./Cathedral Catholic HS
Brian Stahovich averaged 42.9 yards on seven punts in helping San Diego State to a 23-20 win over New Mexico. The sophomore punter had no touchbacks and dropped five of his kicks inside the 20-yard line, as the Lobos returned only two for a combined minus-1 yards. Two of the Solana Beach, Calif., native's punts went for 50 or more yards, including a 59-yarder.

MWC GAME HIGHS - WEEK 9

Passing
Donovan Porterie, Sr., QB, New Mexico - 277 yards on 27-of-52 passing, 1 Pass TD
Rushing
Eddie Wide, Jr., RB, Utah - 135 yards on 24 carries
Receiving
Daryl Jones, Sr., WR, New Mexico - 86 yards on 8 receptions, 1 TD
Tackles
Carmen Messina, So., LB, New Mexico - 11 Tackles (1 solo), 1 TFL, 1 sack

ESPN GAMEDAY RETURNS TO MWC CAMPUS
ESPN College GameDay Built by The Home Depot will broadcast live from the United States Air Force Academy on Saturday, Nov. 7 at 8 a.m. MT. ESPN will honor veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces with a week of programming called "America's Heroes: A Salute to Our Veterans" from Nov. 4-11. College GameDay host Chris Fowler will be joined by ESPN analysts Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit and Desmond Howard for the live television broadcast. This will mark the fifth time in league history, and second time this season, that ESPN College GameDay has appeared on a Mountain West campus. Below are the previous occasions.

Oct. 24, 2009 - #7 TCU at #16 BYU
November 20, 2004 - BYU at #6 Utah
October 19, 2002 - #8 Notre Dame at #21 Air Force
November 3, 2001 - Army at Air Force

WEEK 10 PREVIEW
All nine Mountain West teams will be in action in Week 10, with five nationally-televised contests on the slate for Nov. 7. ESPN College GameDay will broadcast live at Air Force from 8-10 a.m. MT prior to the Falcons' contest against service academy rival Army at 1:30 MT (CBS C HD). ESPN College Gameday's visit to Colorado Springs marks the second trip in three weeks by the road show to an MWC campus and fifth trip to a member institution in Conference history. Saturday's league schedule kicks off at Noon MT, as No. 25 BYU travels to Wyoming in the opening game of a tripleheader on The Mtn. - MountainWest Sports Network. The Mtn. will also air New Mexico at No. 16/17 Utah (4 p.m. MT) and Colorado State at UNLV (7 p.m. PT), while VERSUS will broadcast the match-up between No. 4/6 TCU and San Diego State (1 p.m. PT).

THREE MWC TEAMS IN TOP 25 POLLS
Three Mountain West teams are currently ranked in the national polls. TCU is the MWC's highest-ranked team at No. 4 in the Coaches' poll, seventh in the Harris poll and sixth in the Associated Press poll. Utah is No. 16 in the Coaches and Harris polls and No. 17 in the AP poll, while BYU is No. 25 in all three polls. TCU has appeared in the polls for 20 straight weeks.

TCU's No. 4 position in this week's USA Today Coaches' Top 25 equals the highest ranking ever by a MWC team in that poll, matching Utah's No. 4 position in the final 2008 Coaches' poll. It's also the Frogs' highest ranking since being fourth in the Oct. 15, 1956 Associated Press poll. TCU hasn't been ranked this high in the first week of November since its 1938 national championship season, when it was No. 1 in the AP poll.

TCU AND UTAH IN BCS STANDINGS
The Mountain West Conference has had two teams ranked in the BCS Standings for 11 consecutive weeks. dating back to last year. TCU is at No. 6 for the second straight week, while Utah moved up two slots to No. 14. The No. 6 ranking by the Horned Frogs equals the highest position in the BCS Standings for an MWC team. Utah was No. 6 for the final three BCS Standings of the 2008 season and for seven of the eight BCS Standings released during the 2004 season. The only week Utah wasn't ranked No. 6 that year was on Nov. 6 when it slipped to seventh.

A LOOK INSIDE THE RANKINGS
The MWC has had at least two teams ranked in both of the Coaches' and AP polls since the preseason rankings were released in August. This is the first time in league history it has accomplished that feat. The only other time the league has had two or more teams ranked in both polls for consecutive weeks was during the 2008 season when it had at least two teams in the polls for 16 straight weeks. Below is a look at how many teams each of the 11 Football Bowl Subdivision conferences has in each of the polls.

TCU REMAINS UNDEFEATED
TCU is 8-0 for the first time since 2003 when it won its first 10 games. The Horned Frogs have started a season 8-0 for only the second time since their 1938 national championship season and the sixth time in their history (2003, 1938, 1935, 1929, 1920). TCU is one of seven teams that is still undefeated this season (Alabama, Boise State, Cincinnati, Iowa, Florida, Texas).

TCU'S WIN STREAK RANKS FOURTH NATIONALLY
TCU has won 10 games in a row dating back to last season and has the fourth-longest win streak in the country (Florida 18, Iowa 13, Texas 12). The Frogs have their longest win streak since a 13-game run over the final 10 contests in 2005 and the opening three games in 2006.

HOME WIN STREAKS
Utah has won 15 consecutive home games, while TCU has won 12 straight. The Utes' 15-game streak ranks second in league history, while the Frogs' 12-game streak is third. Below is a look at how the current streaks rank in the league record book.

UTAH'S CONFERENCE WIN STREAK
Utah has won 12 straight Conference games dating back to Nov. 24, 2007. The Utes' current streak is the second-longest in the country behind Florida's 13 and one ahead of Boise State's 11.

HAVE YOU MET TCU?
TCU leads the nation in total defense (235.8 yards per game) while ranking third in scoring defense (11.1 points per game), sixth in passing defense (146.4 yards per game) and eighth in rushing defense (89.4 yards per game). The Horned Frogs are also averaging a schoolrecord 447.0 yards per game in total offense. TCU has outscored its opponents 123-13 in its last three games while allowing just one touchdown in that stretch. In fact, the Frogs have held their opponents to single digits in scoring in 10 of the last 21 contests and have not allowed an FBS opponent to score more than 17 points in a game this season. Offensively, TCU has scored at least 30 points in 14 of its last 20 games, while topping the 40-point mark in nine of those contests.

TCU plays at San Diego State this Saturday and is 4-0 over the last four seasons at Qualcomm Stadium. In addition to regular-season wins over San Diego State in 2005 and 2007, TCU posted Poinsettia Bowl victories over Northern Illinois (37-7) in 2006 and Boise State (17-16) in 2008. The 2008 Poinsettia Bowl matched #11 TCU (10-2) and #9 Boise State (12-0). The Horned Frogs and Broncos were the two remaining at-large teams in the BCS pool after the 10-team selection. TCU outgained Boise State in total yards 472-250 and collected 28 first downs to the Broncos' 15 in the 17-16 victory that propelled the Frogs to a final national ranking of No. 7 in both the Coaches' and AP polls.

CONFERENCE COMPARISONS
The Mountain West Conference currently has two teams with one or fewer losses (TCU 8-0 and Utah 7-1) and three teams with two or fewer losses (BYU 6-2). Below is a look at how the MWC compares to the other 10 FBS conferences in two or fewer loss teams.

BOWL ELIGIBILITY
Entering Week 10, eight of the nine MWC teams are still in contention for a bowl game. BYU, TCU and Utah have each earned bowl eligibility, while Air Force, Colorado State, San Diego State, UNLV and Wyoming are still mathematically alive. The Utes (7-1) are bowleligible for the seventh consecutive season, including all five seasons under head coach Kyle Whittingham. Utah currently owns the nation's longest postseason win streak (eight games), which dates back to 1999. The Cougars (6-2 overall) and the Horned Frogs (8-0 overall) have each earned bowl eligibility for the fifth straight year. BYU head coach Bronco Mendenhall is the only coach in school history to qualify the Cougars for bowl games in each of his first five seasons. TCU has earned bowl eligibility in eight of the last nine seasons under the direction of head coach Gary Patterson.

The Falcons need to win one of their final three games, while the Aztecs and Cowboys must win two of their final four contests. The Rams and Rebels must each won their final three games. Colorado State plays at UNLV this weekend.

Below is a look at the remaining schedules for Air Force, Colorado State, San Diego State, UNLV and Wyoming.

CONSECUTIVE GAMES THROWING A TOUCHDOWN PASS
San Diego State QB Ryan Lindley extended his consecutive games with a TD pass to 14 this past weekend against New Mexico. Lindley's streak is the longest current streak in the MWC and ranks tied for second all-time in league history.

SDSU'S LINDLEY AMONG NATION'S BEST SOPHOMORE QUARTERBACKS
San Diego State's Ryan Lindley ranks second in the nation among sophomore quarterbacks in total passing yards and passing touchdowns. Below is a list of the top six sophomore QB in the FBS in 2009.

NATIONAL FOOTBALL FOUNDATION 2009 SCHOLAR-ATHLETE CLASS
BYU linebacker Matt Bauman was one of 16 players named to the National Football Foundation's Scholar-Athlete class of 2009 last week. Each finalist will receive an $18,000 post-graduate scholarship, and one of the 16 will be announced as the recipient of the 20th Anniversary William V. Campbell Trophy, endowed by HealthSouth (formerly known as the Draddy Trophy), which recognizes an individual as the absolute best scholar-athlete in the nation. Renamed this fall in honor of Bill Campbell, the chairman of Intuit, former player and head coach at Columbia University and the 2004 recipient of the NFF's Gold Medal, the award comes with a 25-pound bronze trophy and a $25,000 post-graduate scholarship. A total distribution of $300,000 in scholarships will be awarded this year.

Nominated by their schools, which are limited to one nominee each, candidates must be a senior or graduate student in their final year of eligibility, have a grade point average of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale, have outstanding football ability as a first team player and have demonstrated strong leadership and citizenship. Selected by the NFF Awards Committee, the 16 National Scholar-Athlete Award recipients will be honored at the 2009 NFF Annual Awards Dinner December 8 at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City.

DEFENSE PROVIDING POINTS FOR AIR FORCE
Air Force forced one turnover (1 interception) at Colorado State this past Saturday and currently has 24 takeaways (11 interceptions, 13 fumbles) on the year. The Falcons are a +18 in turnover margin this season and are ranks second in the nation with a +2.00 turnover margin average. Air Force has forced two or more turnovers in six of nine games this season and in 19 of the last 25 overall. The Falcons have scored five defensive touchdowns this season. The five touchdowns are the most in a single season in Academy history. Air Force has scored on three interception returns (Anthony 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).

SAN DIEGO STATE POSTS CONSECUTIVE COMEBACK WINS
Despite trailing 10-0 early in the contest, and 20-16 heading into the fourth quarter, San Diego State defeated New Mexico this past Saturday, 23-20. The Aztecs also overcame a 21-7 halftime defict on Oct. 24 at Colorado State and prevailed with a 42-28 win. SDSU has now overcome double-digit deficits and won in consecutive games for the first time since 1993. In that year, SDSU trailed by 17 at Air Force on Sept. 18, before winning 38-31. The following week on Sept. 25, the Aztecs erased a 10-point deficit to defeat Minnesota, 48-17, at home.

San Diego State has also overcome a fourth-quarter deficit in consecutive games for the first time since 1987, when the team rallied to defeat Long Beach State, 52-42, on Oct. 24, followed by a 29- 21 win vs. Hawai'i the next week. SDSU trailed by nine points against Long Beach State and was down by seven vs. the Warriors in the fourth quarter.

THIRD-DOWN OFFENSE
BYU is making the most of its third-down opportunities this season and currently leads the country with a 59.81 conversion rate. The Cougars have been successful on 64-of-107 third-down conversions. UNLV is eighth nationally, converting 49.61 percent (64-of-129) third-down chances.

THIRD-DOWN DEFENSE
The TCU, Utah and Air Force defenses have been solid on third-down conversions this season. The Horned Frogs rank fourth nationally, limiting opponents to 32-of- 118 conversions (27.12 percent). The Utes are fifth, holding opponents to a 27.83 conversion rate (32-of-115), while the Falcons have held opponents to 38-of-127 third-down conversions to rank eighth, limiting foes to a 29.92 percent success rate.

The MWC is one of only two conferences (SEC) with three teams ranked in the top 10 for third-down conversion defense.

THE MWC IN WEEK 9

• TCU and Air Force each ran for over 200 yards this past Saturday. The Falcons' running attack gained 271 total yards at Colorado State, and Air Force has outgained all nine opponents on the ground in 2009. The Horned Frogs rushed for 390 yards vs. UNLV. The 390 rushing yards are the most by a TCU squad since joining the MWC and the second-highest ground total for an MWC team this season (AFA had 472 yards vs. Nicholls State on Sept. 5). The last time TCU gained 390 rushing yards or more was on Oct. 25, 2003, when the Horned Frogs totaled 407 yards on the ground in a 62-55 win over Houston.
• TCU and Air Force both held their Conference foes to fewer than 100 passing yards. The Horned Frogs limited UNLV to 42 yards through the air, while Colorado State threw for just 87 yards vs. the Falcons.
• The Horned Frogs totaled 578 offensive yards vs. UNLV to mark the highest offensive output by TCU since gaining 694 total yards at San Diego State on No. 24, 2007.
• New Mexico and Utah both held their opponents to 51 rushing yards or less. San Diego State ran for 50 yards vs. the Lobos, while Utah's defense kept Wyoming's run game to 51 yards on the ground.
• Five of the eight MWC teams in action last week made at least one sack last weekend to total 13 sacks overall. Utah recorded five quarterback sacks against Wyoming, while UNLV collected three vs. TCU. San Diego State and Wyoming each tallied two sacks apiece, while Colorado State earned one sack.
• TCU limited UNLV to seven first downs on Saturday, which marks the fourth game this season in which the Horned Frogs have limited their opponents to 10 first downs or less. TCU only allowed 10 first downs to Colorado State and held SMU to nine first downs. The Frogs also limited Virginia to seven first downs in the 2009 season opener.
• In their last three games, the Horned Frogs have only allowed one touchdown. TCU's previous three opponents have totaled a combined 13 points, and the Frogs have held their opponents to single digits in scoring in 10 of the last 21 contests. This season, TCU has not allowed an FBS opponent to score more than 17 points in a game.
• The 20-13 victory vs. New Mexico snapped San Diego State's eight-game losing streak against the Lobos. Before Saturday's win, the Aztecs last defeated UNM on Nov. 4, 2000 with a final score of 17-16. SDSU's last home victory over the Lobos was on Nov. 4, 1995 (38-29).
• San Diego State logged its third safety of the season last Saturday, when sophomore LB Demetrius Barksdale tackled New Mexico P Adam Miller in the end zone. The Aztecs also tallied a safety vs. Southern Utah and Air Force this season. Prior to 2009, SDSU's last safety in a game was in 2004 at New Mexico.
• San Diego State scored its third safety of the season last Saturday against New Mexico, setting a new MWC record for most safeties in a season. The previous mark of two safeties was shared by several teams and most recently accomplished by Air Force in 2008. SDSU also became the first MWC team to record two safeties against two Conference opponents in a single season, matching a record shared by several teams and most recently attained by New Mexico in 2004.
• Wyoming sophomore LB Gabe Knapton was credited with 12 tackles against Utah this past Saturday to record his seventh consecutive double-figure tackle game of the season. Teammates Brian Hendricks and Chris Prosinski were also credited with 12 tackles each against the Utes to record their fifth double-figure tackle games of the season, respectively.
• With 75 rushing yards at Colorado State, Air Force sophomore RB Asher Clark became the 35th player in Falcon history to rush for 1,000 career yards. Clark has 1,047 career rushing yards, which ranks 34th in Academy history.
• Air Force's Erik Soderberg kicked a career-long 50-yard field goal in the second quarter at Colorado State. His previous best was 48 yards, accomplished twice earlier this season. The sophomore kicked a 48-yarder last week against Utah and he converted on a 48-yard field goal attempt against San Diego State on Sept. 26. Soderberg has kicked at least one field goal in every game this season and has 19 in t he 2009 campaign to tie for the second most in school history.
• Colorado State heads to Las Vegas this week in an attempt to end a sixgame slide. The last time the Rams visited UNLV, on Oct. 20, 2007, CSU snapped a six-game losing streak.
• As a whole, the MWC teams scored on 20-of-24 (.833) chances in the red zone.
• BYU's crowd of 64,601 against TCU on Oct. 24 was the third-highest for LaVell Edwards Stadium since its modification in 2003. In 2004, 65,251 fans witnessed BYU's 20-17 win over Notre Dame, and in 2007, 64,749 people were present for the Cougars' 17-10 defeat of Utah. BYU's attendance vs. the Frogs marked the 16th consecutive sellout at LaVell Edwards Stadium, which matches the school's all-time record that was previously set from 1990- 92.
• Utah's attendance of 44,837 last Saturday against Wyoming marks the 10th straight sellout at Rice-Eccles Stadium, dating back to 2008.