Week 11 Preview
Four conference games are on tap in Week 11. BYU hosts New Mexico in Provo, with the winner becoming bowl eligible. The Cougars and Lobos are both 5-4 overall. BYU is currently in second place in the league standings with a 4-1 record, while New Mexico is tied with Wyoming for third at 3-2. Seventh-ranked Utah takes its 9-0 record to Laramie to face 6-3 Wyoming in a game to be televised by ABC. The Utes are 5-0 in MWC play, while the Cowboys are 3-2. Air Force is 4-5 overall and 2-3 in the conference and hosts San Diego State, whom is currently 2-7 overall and 0-5 in the MWC. Colorado State welcomes UNLV to Fort Collins. The Rams are 3-6 overall and 2-3 in league play, while the Rebels are 2-7 overall and 1-4 in the MWC.
Week 10 Wrap
Utah scored over 50 points for the third straight game, and improved to 9-0 with a 63-31 over Colorado State. The Rams fell to 3-6 on the year and will finish the season under .500 for the first time since 1993. BYU totaled 526 yards of offense, including 339 passing in a 49-16 victory over San Diego State. The Cougars recorded 36 second-half points, marking the second straight game they have posted over 35 points in the second half. Wyoming became bowl eligible for the first time since 1999 after a 53-45 three-overtime victory at UNLV. The win also snapped the Cowboys' 17-game conference road losing streak. Air Force ended its two-game skid with a 31-22 win at Army. In his first start of the season, QB Adam Fitch ran for 115 yards on 22 carries and a touchdown.
ESPN+Plus Game of the Week
The ESPN+Plus Game of the Week will feature San Diego State at Air Force Saturday at Falcon Stadium in Colorado Springs, Colo. Gary Bender (play-by-play), Kelly Stouffer (color) and Anne-Marie Anderson (sidelines) will call the action beginning at 1 p.m. MT.
Let's Talk About Rankings
Utah remained #7 in the AP Poll and #8 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll this week. The Utes' No. 7 ranking is the highest for a Mountain West team since Nov. 25, 2001 when BYU was 7th in the Coaches Poll.
Bowl Scenario
Utah and Wyoming are both bowl eligible with 9-0 and 6-4 records, respectively. BYU and New Mexico are both 5-4 on the year. The Cougars and Lobos meet this weekend in Provo, with the winner becoming bowl eligible. Air Force kept its bowl hopes alive with a win at Army last week. The Falcons must win their final two games at home against San Diego State and Colorado State to qualify for a bowl game.
Making Their Points
UNLV and Wyoming played the first overtime game in the Mountain West this season last Saturday. The triple-overtime thriller won by the Cowboys, 53-45, ties for the longest game in MWC history (Utah over Air Force, 48-45 - 3 ot, Nov. 1, 2003). The 98 combined points ranks as the highest-scoring conference game in MWC annals, and third-most points all time. The Rebels point total of 45 is the most scored in a loss for an MWC contest, and matches the all-time MWC record for most points scored in a loss (BYU 45-72 defeat vs. Hawai`i in 2001).
Utah and Colorado State joined the points party after netting a total of 94 in their contest, which currently sits sixth all-time. The Utes' compilation of 63 points against the Rams ties for the most points scored in a conference game (BYU over Air Force, 63-33 in 2001), and third-most all-time.
First Time for Overtime
The Mountain West saw its first overtime game of the year this past weekend with Wyoming defeating UNLV, 53-45, in triple overtime. There have been 26 overtime games played this season in NCAA Division I-A football, with only three of those contests going beyond two overtimes. The UNLV/Wyoming game matches the Michigan/Michigan State three overtime contest, won by the Wolverines, 45-37, on Oct. 30. The Eastern Michigan vs. Central Michigan game is the longest this season, with EMU winning in four overtime periods, 61-58, this past Saturday. The ACC and MAC lead the nation with four overtime games apiece in 2004.
BYU's Payne Sets NCAA Record
BYU senior Matt Payne set an NCAA record last Saturday, connecting on his 13th straight field goal attempt from 40-49 yards -- a streak that dates back to the 2002 season. Payne's 43-yard field goal with 3:51 left in the second quarter gave the Cougars a 10-3 advantage and started a streak of 33 straight unanswered points that eventually led to a 49-16 victory over San Diego State. Payne's field goal broke John Carney's (Notre Dame) 19-year-old record of 12 straight field goals from 40-49 yards, set in 1984-85. Payne extended the record to 14 with a 42-yard field goal with 2:47 remaining in the third quarter.
Utah's Alex Smith a Heisman Award Candidate
Utah junior QB Alex Smith received official notification last week from the Heisman Trophy Trust that he is a candidate for the 2004 Heisman Trophy. Smith is among approximately 15 players who received notification. The Heisman ballots will be mailed out on November 17 to 923 Heisman electors, who are comprised of 870 media representatives, the previous 52 Heisman winners and one fan vote. The votes will be tabulated on December 8 by the independent accounting firm of Deloitte. The Heisman finalists will be invited to New York for the 70th anniversary of the Heisman Presentation. On December 11, the winner will be announced live from the presentation on ESPN. The Heisman dinner will be held at the Hilton N.Y. on December 13.
Utah's Smith and Meyer Semifinalists for 2004 Maxwell Awards
Utah quarterback Alex Smith and head coach Urban Meyer have been named semifinalists for the 2004 Maxwell Football Club awards, honoring the nation's best collegiate football player and coach.
Smith is one of 12 semifinalists for the 68th-annual Maxwell Award, which goes to the Collegiate Player of the Year. The other semifinalists include; Cedric Benson (Texas), Reggie Bush (USC), Braylon Edwards (Michigan), David Greene (Georgia), Matt Leinart (USC), Kyle Orton (Purdue), Adrian Peterson (Oklahoma), Aaron Rodgers (California), Jason White (Oklahoma), Carnell Williams (Auburn), DeAngelo Williams (Memphis).
Meyer is one of nine semifinalists for the 12th-annual George Munger Coach of the Year award along with, Barry Alvarez (Wisconsin), Bobby Bowden (Florida State), Pete Carroll (USC), Larry Coker (Miami), Mark Richt (Georgia), Bob Stoops (Oklahoma), Jeff Tedford (California) and Tommy Tuberville (Auburn).
BYU's Payne and UNLV's Cook Among Ray Guy Award Semifinalists
BYU's Matt Payne and UNLV's Gary Cook were named to the list of 10 semifinalists for the fifth-annual Ray Guy Award last week. The award is presented annually to the nation's top collegiate punter. Payne and Cook were selected from a list of 41 initial candidates. The 2004 Ray Guy Award recipient will be announced on Thursday, December 9, 2004 on the Home Depot College Football Awards Show, televised live on ESPN. The winner will again be honored at the Greater Augusta Sports Awards Gala in Augusta, Ga., in early 2005. The other semifinalists include; Dustin Colquitt (Tennessee), Brandon Fields (Michigan State), Bo Freelend (Alabama), Chris Kluwe (UCLA) and Tom Malone (Southern California), Adam Podlesh (Maryland), Daniel Sepulveda (Baylor) and Steve Weatherford (Illinois).
SDSU's Morrison Named Butkus Award Semifinalist
San Diego State senior linebacker Kirk Morrison is one of 12 semifinalists for the 2004 Butkus Award, presented annually to the best linebacker in college football. The field will be trimmed to three on Nov. 11th with the winner announced Dec. 10. The semifinalists were chosen from a preseason watch list of 68 players. Morrison was a first-team All-America linebacker last year, according to College Football News. He is a two-time all-conference player and the reigning Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year. Morrison is also on the watch list for the Bronko Nagurski Trophy (outstanding defensive player), the Chuck Bednarik Award (outstanding defensive player), the Lombardi Award (outstanding offensive or defensive lineman) and the Lott Trophy (defensive impact player of the year). The other semifinalists include; Michael Boley (Southern Mississippi), Ahmad Brooks (Virginia), Kevin Burnett (Tennessee), Channing Crowder (Florida), Matt Grootegoed (USC), Spencer Havner (UCLA), A. J. Hawk (Ohio State), Derrick Johnson (Texas), Lance Mitchell (Oklahoma), Odell Thurman (Georgia), Leon Williams (Miami, Fla.).
Two MWC Athletes Among Biletnikoff Award Semifinalists
The 2004 Biletnikoff semifinalists were announced last week with two of the 11 honorees being MWC players. David Anderson of Colorado State and Earvin Johnson of UNLV join Mark Clayton (Oklahoma), Braylon Edwards (Michigan), Derek Hagan (Arizona State), Chris Henry (West Virginia), Santonio Holmes (Ohio State), Chad Owens (Hawaii), Dante Ridgeway (Ball State), Taylor Stubblefield (Purdue) and Troy Williamson (South Carolina). Three finalists will be named Nov. 15, and the winner will be announced Dec. 9 on the ESPN College Football Awards Show from Orlando, Fla.
Inside the Numbers
100 - Freshman QB Kevin O'Connell became the first player in Aztec history to run for 100 yards and pass for at least 100 yards in the same game. Against BYU, O'Connell ran for 101 yards on 15 carries, despite being sacked three times. He passed for 229 yards and a touchdown. O'Connell also became just the second Aztec quarterback ever to reach triple digits in rushing. Matt Kofler ran for 102 yards in a 1980 victory over New Mexico (24-22).
91% - Utah head coach Urban Meyer's winning percentage against automatic qualifying BCS opponents. In 11 career games, Meyer is 10-1 against BCS teams. The win over Texas A&M in the season opener avenged his only loss to a BCS school. Meyer is 5-1 against the BCS as Utah's head coach.
17 - Wyoming snapped its MWC road losing streak with a 53-45 triple-overtime victory at UNLV. The Cowboys' last conference road win was Nov. 6, 1999 when they defeated Utah 43-29 in Salt Lake City.
17 - The number of 100 yard rushing games for New Mexico running back DonTrell Moore, surpassing Winslow Oliver's (1992-95) school record of 16. Moore, the MWC's all-time leading rusher, also passed Oliver for second place on the school's career rushing list with 3,415 yards.
15 - The total number of pass breakups by New Mexico CB Brandon Payne. He leads both the Mountain West and NCAA in pass breakups this season. He broke Eric Jack's single-season school record of 14 set in 1993 after posting one pass deflection in his last outing at Colorado State.
13 - Utah's current win streak that ranks third nationally (Boise State-19, Southern California-18). The Utes won their final four games in 2003 and are 9-0 this season. The 13-game streak is the second-longest in school history behind the 16 straight wins from 1928-30. The Utes' last loss was Oct. 25, 2003 against New Mexico, 47-35.
9 - The Utes' consecutive road or neutral site win streak that started on Sept. 27, 2003 at Colorado State.
7 - Utah fell to seventh in the latest BCS Poll released Monday, Nov. 8, despite defeating Colorado State, 63-31. The Utes had the highest debut by a non-automatic qualifying BCS team ever in the initial poll of a season at number seven on Oct. 18. The previous high was Northern Illinois at No. 10 in 2003. Only one non-automatic qualifying BCS school to be ranked in the initial Top 15 has ever completed the regular season undefeated (Marshall in 1999).
6 - The current number of undefeated teams remaining in the NCAA in 2004, including Utah at 9-0 (Auburn, Boise State, Oklahoma, Southern California and Wisconsin).
5 - The number of 100-yard receiving games for BYU junior WR Todd Watkins. Watkins needs one more 100-yard game to equal the BYU single-season record, which is currently held by three players (Chris Smith, Andy Boyce and Margin Hooks).
4 - The number of touchdowns BYU wide receiver Todd Watkins has caught in excess of 69 yards this season. This past week at Air Force, Watkins had a 70-yard touchdown reception, and finished the day with six catches for 153 yards. It was his fourth 100-yard receiving game of the year and his fourth touchdown of the season.
4 - BYU sophomore RB Curtis Brown's number of consecutive 100-yard rushing games after a 17 carry, 106-yard performance against San Diego State Saturday. Brown is the first BYU back to have four straight 100-yard games since Luke Staley had seven straight in 2001. Brown is only the third running back in BYU history to run for 100 yards in four straight games. The others include Staley and Pete Van Valkenburg.
3 - The total number of points Wyoming's defense has allowed in the third quarter this season (3-Colorado State).
2 -Utah ranks second in the nation in scoring offense and total offense. The Utes are currently averaging 45.78 points per game, which trails only Boise State (47.25) nationally, and are on pace to break their school record of 42.5 ppg. Utah's 500.44 yards per game of total offense is second behind only Louisville (519.71 ypg) this season.
Wins Against Automatic Qualifying BCS Conferences
With six wins vs. automatic qualifying BCS conference teams, the MWC is tied for third among the 11 Division I-A leagues in non-conference wins against BCS opponents.
Big Ten7
Conference USA7 MWC6
ACC6
Big XII6
Big East6
Pac-104
MAC3
WAC3
SEC2
Sun Belt1
TEAM NOTES
AIR FORCE
What You Should Know:
* Air Force defeated Army for the eighth consecutive time, and 15th time in the last 16 games, with its 33-21 victory Saturday. The win also snapped the Falcons' two-game losing streak.
* Head coach Fisher DeBerry won his 160th career game Saturday at Army. He also improved to 34-8 in his 21-year career in service academy games.
* Air Force improved to 45-21 all-time in Commander-in-Chief's Trophy games. The Falcons' 45 wins are 17 more than second-place Navy (28).
* Junior QB Adam Fitch made his first career start at quarterback at Army. He rushed for a career-high 115 yards on 22 carries and a touchdown. Fitch's rushing yards were a season high for an Air Force quarterback, surpassing Shaun Carney's 95-yard effort at Utah earlier this season.
* Sophomore DB Chris Sutton recorded his second-career interception Saturday at Army. He returned it a career-long 44 yards. It was also the longest interception return by a Falcon this season.
* Sophomore NG Grant Thomas recorded his first-career blocked kick on Army's first PAT attempt.
* Senior Anthony Butler went over the 1,400-yard mark for his career at Army (1,464). Butler is only the fifth halfback in Air Force history in the option era (1980-present) to rush for 1,400-plus yards for his career. Teammate Darnell Stephens is also in that group.
* Air Force's first-quarter blocked PAT is the team's second blocked kick this season. The Falcons also blocked a PAT (Nelson Mitchell) against Eastern Washington on Sept. 11. The block is the 89th by Air Force since 1990, which ranks second nationally behind Virginia Tech.
BYU
What You Should Know:
* BYU posted 49 points against San Diego State Saturday, marking the Cougars' most points scored since racking up 56 points against Colorado State on Nov. 1, 2001.
* For the first time since posting 41 points at Mississippi State and 45 points at Hawaii during the 2001 season, the Cougars have recorded at least 40-points in back-to-back games. BYU defeated Air Force 41-24 on Oct. 23 and San Diego State 49-16 Saturday. The 33-point win over SDSU marks the largest margin of victory for the Cougars since defeating the Aztecs by 38 points on Oct. 27, 2001 (59-21).
* The win over San Diego State marked the first time since the 2001 season BYU has won three consecutive games.
* Kicker Matt Payne's streak of 67 straight PAT conversions came to an end Saturday. SDSU blocked Payne's second point-after attempt in the third quarter to end the school-record streak.
* The first-quarter shutout against San Diego State, marked the fifth straight opponent BYU has held scoreless in the opening quarter of play, dating back Oct. 2 at Colorado State. On the season, the Cougars have posted a first-quarter shutout against seven of their nine opponents. Boise State and Stanford are the only two teams that have scored in the first quarter.
* Freshman WR Austin Collie had three receptions for 95 yards and two touchdowns, including an 82-yard touchdown and a six-yard touchdown reception, against SDSU. Collie set a MWC record with his 82-yard reception, marking the longest reception by a freshman in MWC history. Collie leads the Cougars with seven touchdowns. On the season he has 46 receptions for 614 yards.
COLORADO STATE
What You Should Know:
* Colorado State is 25-8 in games played during the month of November during Sonny Lubick's tenure.
* S Adam Lancisero leads Colorado State with 81 tackles on the year. He made a career-most 20 tackles in the game at Utah, tying for the 10th-best tackle performance in CSU history. Nine of Lancisero's tackles were solo. It was the first time since 1996 that a Rams' player has had as many as 20 tackles in a game. That season, Kevin McDougal - who later switched to RB - had 22 tackles while playing safety for the Rams in a game at Nebraska.
* Freshman QB Caleb Hanie scampered 48 yards for a touchdown at Utah, the longest rush of the season by a Ram.
* Colorado State is 0-3 in 2004 when the Rams have scored fewer than 20 points in a game, and 0-6 when allowing 20 or more points in a game.
* Colorado State is 8-3 in the final home game of the season during Sonny Lubick's tenure. The last loss in the final game came at the hands of UNLV, 36-33, to end the 2002 home slate.
* Anderson caught a school-record 72 passes for a record-setting 1,282 yards in 2003. To date in 2004, he has 51 receptions for 854 yards, 146 yards shy from becoming only the second player in school history to record two seasons of more than 1,000 receiving yards. Greg Primus had 1,081 yards in 1991, and a season later had 1,002 receiving yards.
* Colorado State has used six true freshmen in the lineup thus far in 2004 (WR Damon Morton, RB Gartrell Johnson, DE Matt Rupp, H-back Kory Sperry, QB Caleb Hanie, and RB Kyle Bell). The Rams are one of the most youthful teams in the nation with only six seniors (excluding kicking specialists) on the depth chart. The list of fewest seniors listed on a depth chart nationally includes: East Carolina-5; Purdue-5; Buffalo-5; Central Florida-5; SMU-5; Colorado State-6; Florida-6.
* Colorado State entered 2004 with a streak of five consecutive bowl game appearances, the longest active streak in the MWC.
NEW MEXICO
What You Should Know:
* New Mexico is 7-0 following scheduled open weeks under Rocky Long. Dating back to 1996, the Lobos have won 10 straight. The last loss after a bye was 48-42 to San Diego State in Albuquerque on Oct. 19, 1996.
* New Mexico's 26-17 victory at Colorado State Oct. 30, marked its third straight win. The Lobos are over .500 (5-4) for the first time this year.
* New Mexico overcame a halftime deficit for the second straight time on the road (trailed 17-7 at UNLV) and came away with a win. The Lobos were down 7-3 at CSU before prevailing 26-17.
* New Mexico scored 13 points in the third quarter at CSU and has outscored opponents 80-19 in the third quarter this year, including 69-9 over the past seven games. The Rams' TD was the first allowed by the Lobos in the third quarter since Washington State in the season-opener.
* In the past two games, BYU has scored 44 points in the third quarter and it has been their most productive period of 2004 with 89 points overall. Conversely, UNM has yielded just 19 points in the third quarter this season, and only nine points over the past seven games. The Lobos have allowed just 46 points in the second half of their last seven contests.
* In the past six games, New Mexico has forced 16 turnovers while committing just four. During its current three-game win streak, UNM has an 11-to-1 turnover advantage.
* During its respective three-game win streaks, the BYU has averaged 38 points a game, while New Mexico has allowed 15.3 ppg. BYU has given up just 19.6 ppg in five league games, tops in the MWC.
* The Lobos rank among the best in the nation with a +11 turnover ratio (24-13) this season, including a 14-3 advantage in five MWC games.
* New Mexico has collected 11 interceptions in nine games this year. In 2003, UNM had 13 picks in 13 games.
* Junior RB DonTrell Moore scored his 40th career TD at Colorado State, surpassing Terance Mathis' (1985-89) school record of 39. Moore had 154 yards rushing in the game, giving him 3,415 career yards in 34 games.
* The Lobos are 5-1 in their last six MWC road games and have captured seven of their past nine away from Albuquerque.
* New Mexico is tied with Southern Cal and Ohio U., for second nationally with 21 turnovers gained (11 fumble recoveries and 10 interceptions). Michigan in the leader with 25. The 11 fumble recoveries rank in an eight-way tie for second in the NCAA. Rutgers leads with 12.
* UNM is 19-3 when scoring first under Rocky Long, including 2-0 this fall.
* New Mexico was 8-5 last year, increasing its win total for the fifth straight season, a feat no other team in the country can claim. UNM was 3-9 in 1998, 4-7 in 1999, 5-7 in 2000, 6-5 in 2001, 7-7 in 2002 and 8-5 in 2003.
* Only six players have rushed for over 100 yards against New Mexico since the 2000 season, a span of 42 games.
* Playing in the Las Vegas Bowl in 2002 and `03, New Mexico has made consecutive bowl appearances for only the second time in school history, the first occurrence being after the 1945 and `46 seasons.
SAN DIEGO STATE
What You Should Know:
* San Diego State lost at BYU Saturday, 16-49. SDSU has lost six straight games for the first time since the 1988 season. The Aztecs have lost five straight conference games for the first time since 2001 when they won the league opener over Colorado State and then lost five straight league tilts before closing the season with a victory over Wyoming.
* Freshman kicker Garrett Palmer's 47-yard field goal in the second quarter was his fourth conversion of the year longer than 45 yards. His longest is a 50-yarder against Nevada.
* For the first time as a Division I program, San Diego State has opened league play with five straight losses. In 1960, while still in the small-college ranks, SDSU went 0-5 in California Collegiate Athletic Association play.
* WR Jeff Webb has caught at least one pass in 19 consecutive games, and has at least three catches in each of his last 13 outings.
* San Diego State is averaging 403 yards of total offense, 22 points, 22 first downs, 162.5 rushing yards and 240.5 passing yards in the last two games.
* Senior linebacker Kirk Morrison has 367 career tackles, ranking second all-time at San Diego State behind Whip Walton (407).
* LB Matt McCoy's 11-tackle effort at BYU marked the 14th time in the last 16 games (dating back to last season) that an Aztec linebacker reached double figures in tackles. Morrison has accomplished the feat 18 times in his career and Matt McCoy has reached double figures eight times.
* In 2004, SDSU opponents have started with the ball in Aztec territory 21 times, but have managed to score on only eight occasions, recording four touchdowns and four field goals.
UNLV
What You Should Know:
* UNLV fell to 1-6 in overtime games after its 45-53 triple-overtime loss to Wyoming Saturday.
* Sophomore QB Shane Steichen set career highs for attempts (34), completions (20), yards (223) and touchdowns (4) against Wyoming. He also became the first Rebel to throw for at least four scores in a game since Jon Denton tossed five vs. San Jose State in 1997.
* A victory over Colorado State would give head coach John Robinson the most away-game wins in UNLV history with 16.
* UNLV's defense has forced 10 turnovers in its two victories and just five in its seven losses.
* RB Dominique Dorsey has rushed for a conference-leading 1,126 yards this season to give him 2,699 yards in his career. He began the season 12th on the UNLV all-time rushing chart, and has climbed all the way to second. Dorsey has more yards than any Rebel since the school moved to Division I in 1978, trailing only Mike Thomas (3,149 in 1973-74).
* Dominique Dorsey recorded his sixth 100-yard rushing game of the season, and the 11th of his career, with 180 yards against Wyoming.
* WR Earvin Johnson passed Len Ware (1996-99) for second place on UNLV's career catch list and currently has 176 receptions. He needs 13 more catches in his final two games to pass the Rebels all-time leader Damon Williams (187 from 1995-98). Johnson also needs only 58 yards to pass Williams in that department (2,558) and only one catch in the game at CSU to break Williams' UNLV consecutive games catching a pass (39).
* After starting the year 8-14 in red-zone chances, the Rebels have scored on 19 of 22 trips inside opponent 20-yard lines (13 TDs/six FGs).
UTAH
What You Should Know:
* Utah's 9-0 start breaks the school record set in both 1930 and 1994. The 1930 team finished at 8-0, while the 1994 started 8-0 before finishing 10-2.
* The 2004 Utes own the second-longest win streak in school history (13). The school record is 16 straight wins from 1928-30. The 2004 Utes hold the school record for consecutive road/neutral site wins with nine.
* The Utes have been ranked in the Top-25 for 11 straight weeks in the A.P. and 12 straight weeks in the coaches poll, which ties the school record from 1994 for both consecutive weeks and most total weeks in the two polls. The 2004 Utes are ranked in the top 10 in both polls for a fourth-straight week, which is also an outright school record.
* Urban Meyer's next victory will be his 20th as Utah's head coach. Meyer, currently 19-2 at Utah, has more wins than any previous second-year Ute coach. None of his predecessors on the hill accumulated 19 wins until his fourth season.
* The Utes, currently second in the nation in scoring average at 45.8 points per game, are on pace to break their school record of 42.5 ppg set back in 1930. That was the only other Utah team to average more than 40 points per game. Official national statistical rankings did not begin until 1937. In 1939, Utah led the nation in scoring, averaging 28.4 ppg.
* Utah has scored 50 or more points in back-to-back games for the first time in school history (63 vs. UNLV and 51 at SDSU).
* Utah has dominated the scoreboard in the first half this season, out-scoring opponents 275-89.
* Utah has scored on 40-of-45 red zone attempts this season (89%), with 83 percent of those drives resulting in TDs. If you don't count three "kneel downs" at the end of games, the Utes have scored on 40-of-42 red zone opportunities. Opponents have scored on 13-of-21 (62%) trips inside Utah's 20 yard line --10 of those touchdowns.
* Head coach Urban Meyer has been named to the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year "Watch List." Other Division IA coaches on the Dodd Foundation Watch List include: Pete Carroll, USC; Mark Richt, Georgia; Joe Tiller, Purdue; Larry Coker, Miami; Dan Hawkins, Boise State and Paul Johnson, Navy. This year's recipient will be announced during halftime of the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl, Dec. 31, 2004.
* Utah has won its last 10 games, tying for the third-longest win streak in school history. The Utes won 11 straight from 1904-1905. The school record is 16 straight wins from 1928-30. The 2004 Utes own the school record for consecutive road or neutral site wins with eight.
* Utah has been red hot in the red zone all season. The Utes have scored on 29-32 red zone attempts (91%), with 27 of those scores touchdowns. Opponents have scored on 12-20 (60%) trips inside Utah's red zone--nine of those touchdowns.
* In addition to sitting atop the standings, Utah leads the Mountain West Conference in total offense (498.2 ypg), total defense (315.5 ppg), scoring offense (39.2 ppg), scoring defense (15.2 ppg), pass efficiency offense (167.3) and pass defense (190.0).
WYOMING
What You Should Know:
* Wyoming won at UNLV Saturday, 53-45, in three overtimes. The win assured the Cowboys of a winning season for the first time since 1999, when UW went 7-4.
* Wyoming's 53 points against UNLV tied a season high of 53 scored in the season opener against Appalachian State.
* The Cowboys entered the UNLV game with an 0-5 record against the Rebels in MWC play. The last time Wyoming defeated UNLV was in the 1998 season in Las Vegas in the last year the two teams were in the Western Athletic Conference. Wyoming won that game 28-25 in overtime on Oct. 17, 1998. Three of the last five meetings between the two teams in Las Vegas have gone to overtime.
* Wyoming is 5-0 at home in 2004, marking the Cowboys' first 5-0 start at home since 1998. Wyoming went on to post a 5-1 home record that season.
* Wyoming has scored 30 or more points three of five home games this season. Only San Diego State held the Pokes to under 30 points in War Memorial Stadium, but the Cowboys still defeated the Aztecs 20-10.
* Wyoming forced at least one opponent turnover for the fourth consecutive game at UNLV, and the sixth game out of nine games this season. Wyoming has forced at least three opponent turnovers in five out of nine games this season.
* Junior WR Jovon Bouknight set a career high in receiving yards with 121 yards versus UNLV. It was his first 100-yard game of the season and third of his career. His previous high was 115 yards at Oklahoma State in 2003. Bouknight has caught at least two passes in 32 consecutive games - every game of his college career.
