Bleacher Report - Mountain West Football

College Football's Unlucky Week 13?: Anything Goes in a Rivarly

David Hedlind — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 22:20:59 -0500

It’s week 13. Will 13 prove to be unlucky for some teams?

It’s Thanksgiving week. What will these teams have to be thankful for?

It’s rivalry week. Everything goes out the window when you are playing a rival.

Tuesday Nov. 24

Ball State at Western Michigan: It is already the second half. By the time this is published the game will likely be over. WMU is just trying not to have a losing season. Ball State just wants a W.

Thursday Nov. 26

Texas at Texas A&M: Texas is still undefeated and is trying to make the BCS National Championship game. A win here is the first step followed by the Big XII title game.

Friday Nov. 27

Temple at Ohio: The winner of this game goes to the MAC title game to represent the East. Temple has been the hot team and is undefeated in MAC play. Ohio only has one conference loss.

Illinois at Cincinnati: The Bearcats are undefeated and could lose here but still make a BCS bowl since it is out of conference. Winning against a Big Ten conference team will help the reputation and staying undefeated will keep the hopes of more than just any BCS bowl alive.

Alabama at Auburn: Alabama is undefeated and already playing in the SEC championship game, the winner of which people expect will play for the National Championship. Auburn would love to kill its rival's dreams by pulling the upset in the Iron Bowl.

Nebraska at Colorado: Nebraska is set to play for the Big XII title in another week and will use this as a momentum builder.

Pitt at West Virginia: Pitt still has a chance at the Big East title but first must battle through the Back Yard Brawl. Pitt will meet Cincinnati next week for no less than a share of the Big East.

Nevada at Boise State: Boise State still has a game after this one but this is basically for the WAC title. Both teams are undefeated in league play. Boise is still hoping to make the BCS.

Saturday Nov. 28

Wake Forest at Duke: Only real thing to say here is that if Duke wins it will be bowl eligible.

Clemson at South Carolina: Clemson is already headed for the ACC title game. South Carolina would love to take some of the wind out of Clemson’s sails.

Oklahoma State at Oklahoma: Oklahoma State could still make a BCS bowl but the Cowboys would definitely need a win here. Oklahoma simply wants to have a better season than just 6-6.

Southern Miss at East Carolina: The winner will play in the Conference USA championship game. The representative from the West is yet to be determined.

Arizona at Arizona State: Arizona is playing for bowl position and to show it can rebound from back to back losses with the last one being a draining emotional overtime loss.

Florida State at Florida: This rivalry has been pretty one sided in recent years with Florida winning and winning and winning. Florida still has National Championship hopes which, like in any rivalry, FSU would love to dash.

Miami at South Florida: USF already beat Florida State this season and would love to notch a win over Miami. The state’s big three is inching toward a big four.

Middle Tennessee at ULM: Did you know that if a conference is unable to fill all of its bowls then those bowls must take a 7-5 team before a 6-6 team no matter what? What does that mean? It means that if ULM wins it will be 7-5 and a bowl must take the Warhawks at large before teams like Arizona, UCLA, Tennessee, or South Carolina.

Utah at BYU: The Holy War doesn’t have the same luster as it has in the last few years when the conference and more were on the line. It will still be a big game for both teams, though, as it is for second place in the conference. The only game with two ranked teams this week.

Washington State at Washington: Another Sour Apple Cup game. Washington isn’t as bad as it was last season but the Huskies are still low in the Pac 10. Washington State is just as bad, maybe worse, as last season.

Troy at ULL: Same story as the ULM game. ULL is eligible and could steal a spot from a more prestigious name team if they can get another win.

Georgia at Georgia Tech: I don’t know what to say here since Georgia is having its worst year in, well, let's just say a long time. Georgia Tech on the other hand is rolling right along with a great year.

Notre Dame at Stanford: Notre Dame is not having the year the Irish expected and even with a win change is likely going to happen. Stanford is exceeding the expectations of most and change may happen due to the success.

UCLA at USC: I don’t even really know what they call this rivalry. The battle for LA? Simply for bragging rights and bowl position with no impact on the conference title.

Read more Mountain West Football news on BleacherReport.com

Are BCS Fans Really This Naive?

Brian Nelson — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 03:16:58 -0500

We’ve all heard them over and over again. It’s the same stuff year after year.

Blanket assumptions opined by ignorant fans from BCS teams questioning the worthiness of non-BCS teams and their quest to bust the BCS.

While the naiveté comes in different shapes and sizes, from various parts of the country, from analysts, coaches, and fans alike, what they all share in common is their blatant lack of validity, rationale, and factual support.

We all get that the BCS is rooted in tradition, fanbases, recruiting, and revenues, while those factors may be a source for a delusional sense of superiority, they don't usually correlate to performance on the field.

Remember the tune Barry Switzer sang before kickoff at last year’s Sugar Bowl? “There isn’t one player, not one player, on Utah’s team that Nick Saban would’ve recruited.”

That alone was the basis Barry used to predict that Alabama would be too much for Utah to handle. He wasn't alone.

The blogosphere along with "analysts" throughout the country were rampant with the expectation that Alabama was going to dismantle Utah, based on worthless, delusional assumptions.

So how do they explain Utah's bitch-slapping of Alabama?

They can't. They can only minimize Alabama's motivation or point to the loss of OT Andre Smith. Never mind that USC was still motivated to beat Penn State, Texas to beat Ohio State, Georgia to beat Hawaii, etc.

So goes the logic and the rationale in the attempts to discredit the non-BCS elite.

We all welcome a healthy argument, but please do so with a) logic, b) substantive reasoning, c) empirical data, or d) items that can be found on a scoreboard.

No assumptions. We already know that you think TCU couldn’t withstand the "brutal week in, week out" schedule in the SEC or the Big 12.

Or how teams like Colorado or Virginia would probably run the table in the MWC.

We’ve heard it all. What we haven’t heard is evidence to support it. Though we’ve seen plenty to the contrary. If the MWC is so weak how does:

Colorado State clobber Colorado in Boulder, but then go 0-7 in the MWC?

Last year’s Wyoming (1-7 in the MWC) travel to Knoxville and beat the Volunteers?

Last year’s UNLV team (2-6 in the MWC) go 2-0 against BCS teams (Arizona State, Iowa State)?

These are teams that have a combined 3-20 record in MWC play that somehow have managed to go 4-0 against BCS competition.

While the MWC has proven it’s on par at the bottom, it’s beating the other conferences at the top as well. In the last two seasons alone, the MWC has beaten Alabama, Boise State, Clemson, Oregon State, and Oklahoma.

Can your conference lay claim to five stronger out-of-conference victories in the last two years?

While the MWC can talk up scoreboard, the BCS will continue to throw out useless platitudes to justify their illusion of superiority.

As a result, we all have to suffer from the existence of pathetic articles such as, “Three Reasons TCU Doesn’t Belong in the BCS," which came out Monday from Tim Nash.

(Mr. Nash also focuses the article on Boise State, which I'll ignore. The BCS conferences love to denigrate the MWC by blurring it with the WAC.)

Let's break down Mr. Nash's typical, uninventive arguments for why TCU doesn't belong in the BCS.

Reason No. 1: The MWC Has Inferior Depth and Talent

Mr. Nash says, “There are currently only four schools from BCS automatic qualifiers that are currently undefeated. That's because the BCS schools play conference schedules against teams that test them for the most part, week in and week out.

"When you get an unranked Tennessee team that almost knocks off No. 2 Alabama at home, or an unranked Oklahoma almost upsetting No. 3 Texas, it tends to weed out the contenders from the pretenders.”

So let me get this straight, there are six undefeated teams left. Four come from the six BCS conferences and two from the other non-BCS conferences. This illustrates how truly weak the non-AQ conferences are?

Confused?

You should be. It makes no sense. The basis of this poorly articulated argument is that BCS teams fall and suffer from close calls more frequently because they play tougher schedules.

Never mind TCU is ranked higher than Texas in four out of the six computer polls or that TCU has more wins over ranked opponents than Texas and Florida. Or that both of Texas’s marquee wins have lost to non-BCS teams.

To support his assumption, Mr. Nash uses the Longhorns' close call with Oklahoma as proof that TCU doesn't belong.

Does he not know that Oklahoma lost to BYU, an MWC team that TCU slaughtered 38-7?

Then there’s Tennessee-Alabama. I get it. He’s trying to say that because Alabama plays talented teams like Tennessee week in and week out, they're more vulnerable to loss.

Let’s reverse his logic. Over the last two seasons, Alabama is 15-1 in the vaunted SEC. Yet somehow, they are 0-1 against the MWC in the same time frame. Alabama could play 14 games against MWC opponents and still have a worse winning percentage in the MWC than they do against SEC competition.

Go figure. Yet somehow all this strange reasoning was used to support how the MWC has inferior depth and talent. Again, a blanket assumption with worthless data to support it.

Maybe he’s asserting that over a broader sample of BCS teams, non-BCS teams would be more likely to lose.

That's a fair argument, except that 2004/2008 Utah and 2009 TCU are a combined 9-0 against BCS teams, beating:

Arizona, North Carolina, Texas A&M, Pittsburgh, Michigan, Oregon State, Alabama, Virginia, and Clemson.

Nine BCS opponents, nine victories. Only two games played at home. Is that a strong enough sampling?

I know the new BCS party line centers on the constant brutality of BCS conference play, but that's only a myth.

On very rare occasion, like Texas in 2008 or Miami at the beginning of this season, do you see a brutal "week in, week out" schedule. Most schedules consist of a trip to Kentucky, followed by Tennessee at home, Mississippi State on the road, and then Florida International.

That's nothing TCU couldn't handle. Trust me.

Reason No. 2: TCU Hasn’t Played a Tough Out-of-Conference Schedule

Mr Nash claims: "Supposedly, TCU beat a terrible Virginia team and then a mediocre Clemson squad. The rest of their out of conference slate, with wins over Texas State and SMU, were underwhelming."

If Clemson is mediocre, then how come they get to play in a conference championship game that could earn them an automatic BCS berth, but TCU doesn’t belong? Doesn’t that contradict the whole point?

Tell me one team, or one BCS conference, that has an out-of-conference win that is substantially more impressive than TCU at Clemson.

If Virginia is so terrible how come the Cavs alone have beaten more BCS teams than all four of Texas’s out-of-conference opponents combined?

It’s not like Florida and Alabama's OOC schedules are worth writing home about.

Reason No. 3: TCU’s Victories Against Ranked Opponents Are Suspect

Mr Nash: "TCU has beaten two ranked teams from its own conference that will play each other, leaving TCU with only one victory over a ranked opponent."

First, let’s all completely ignore the fact that Clemson is currently ranked 18th in the BCS. I know it's a lot more convenient to disregard facts that do not support BCS supremacy, but that doesn't alter the reality of the outcome.

BYU and Utah play each other this week, which is the third time this season that two ranked MWC teams play each other.

BYU is ranked No. 19 in the BCS. Utah is No. 21. Barring a complete blowout, it seems highly unlikely that the loser will fall out of the top 25, but more than likely, the winner will head towards the top 15 in the BCS.

Even if TCU's wins over these ranked teams are somehow "suspect," they have still beaten three of them. That is the same number as Alabama, one more than Florida, and two more than Texas, who has only beaten one.

That's elite company. Tell me again how TCU doesn't belong?

Mr. Nash can't. And neither can the throng of BCS fans singing the same tune. All they can do is point to baseless assumptions that bear little resemblance to on-the-field results.

The MWC is 2-0 in the BCS, with both being blowout victories. No other conference has a higher winning percentage or better average margin of victory.

By contrast, the ACC is 2-9. The Big 10 is 2-5 since 2005-05. The MWC can go 0-8 in BCS Bowls and still claim a better record than the ACC.

Amazing, perhaps Tim Nash can right articles questioning their worthiness. At least this time he'll have empirical evidence to draw from.

If TCU isn't worthy, then who is? Who deserves to get in more than the Frogs?

Oklahoma State hasn't beaten a single ranked team. Neither has Penn State. Iowa beat Penn State, but needed help from above to beat Indiana (a team that Virginia killed) and lost to Northwestern.

The truth of the matter is that the Utah's and the TCU's can be every bit as good, if not better, than the elite powerhouses.

The BCS, its fans, pundits, and coaches will do everything they can to try and cover this fact, but it's finally time to drop the baseless assumptions and stop living in denial.

Instead of trying to mold hard facts to fit a myopic view of how we think college football should be, let's just sit back, enjoy, and praise good football when we see it.

Read more Mountain West Football news on BleacherReport.com

BYU Football Podcast—What Makes The Holy War a Top National Rivalry?

Mark Welling — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 14:59:06 -0500

To listen to the BYU Football Podcast, click here .

(Or download the podcast by right-clicking and selecting "Save link as...")

It is rivalry week, and nothing in the state of Utah is bigger than "The Holy War." BYU fan Matt Stowell and Utah fan Cody Titmus join the podcast to help prepare fans for the BYU versus Utah game.

Here is an outline of what hosts Jake Stowell and Mark Welling talked about in this week's podcast.

Excitement over "The Holy War."
Welcome Matt Stowell to the podcast, and talk about high and low moments in BYU versus Utah history.
How does BYU versus Utah compare to other major college football rivalries?
Why is the BYU versus Utah rivalry more than simply two schools being located in a close proximity?
Welcome Cody Discuss with Cody keys for Utah to beat BYU.
Give keys for BYU to get the victory over Utah.
Predict the winner and the final score to the game this weekend.

Thanks for listening to another edition of the BYU podcast. We continue to welcome e-mails and comments and encourage questions or suggestions for upcoming podcasts.

The BYU Football Podcast is Episode 32 of "The Big Podcast." Recorded Nov. 22, 2009.

For more sports podcasts, news, articles and insights, visit The Big Podcast.

Read more Mountain West Football news on BleacherReport.com

Air Force Close but Still Far Away from MWC's Elite

Jake Schaller — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 10:33:45 -0500

For the second season in a row, Air Force showed signs that it’s close to breaking into the Mountain West Conference’s elite.

The Falcons took defending league champ Utah to overtime before falling, and they stuck closer to fourth-ranked TCU than any of the Horned Frogs' other 10 victims.

And for the second season in a row, the final game of the regular season showed how far the Falcons still have to go.

In 2008, it was a humbling 44-10 drubbing at TCU.

This season, it was Saturday’s 38-21 drubbing at BYU.

Don’t let the final score fool you. The Cougars were up 24-0 in the first half and 31-7 early in the third quarter. This one wasn’t close—and that was surprising.

Yes, BYU has owned Air Force historically (the Cougars have a 24-6 all-time record against Air Force) and especially lately (Saturday’s loss was the Falcons’ sixth in a row to BYU—and all have come by at least two touchdowns).

But Air Force seemed to match up better with the Cougars this season because of its standout defense and secondary (the Falcons led the nation in pass defense heading into the game).

Not only that, players seemed to be ready to beat the Cougars, and it didn’t seem like bluster. I could be wrong, but I usually can tell when players are just saying they can compete with a heavily favored team and when they actually believe they can compete with a heavily favored team. I really think the Falcons believed.

That’s what made it surprising—again, not that Air Force lost, but the manner in which the Falcons were dominated.

“I was very surprised,” junior fullback Jared Tew said. “I thought we were going to come out strong and right off the bat it seemed like they had our number and we pretty much weren’t playing our game.”

“We’re a lot better than we played (Saturday),” junior cornerback Reggie Rembert said. “So, yeah, I’m definitely kind of shocked.”

The one upside of a loss like this is the Falcons still are a relatively young team. Players can learn from mistakes, and they should remember the sting of this blowout. Maybe in the future they can find a way to compete with the Cougars.

“It’s not going to be easy, it’s going to be hard,” Air Force coach Troy Calhoun said of catching up to the top teams in the conference. “But it’s doable, and it should be doable. That is to be a program that gets up and (will) go play in a game like this and be able to take a game like this right down to the wire and find a way to win it.”

Read more Mountain West Football news on BleacherReport.com

Should the Mountain West Conference Expand to 10 or 12 Teams?

Jeff Jenson — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 17:11:59 -0500

Religion, Politics, and the BCS...

Many of the topics that you normally avoid at the dinner table are religion, politics, and, more recently, the BCS. Many who follow the Mountain West Conference understand the importance of getting conference expansion correct.

Having added only one team in 10 years shows just how serious the conference feels about not rocking the boat.

There have been several good arguments towards expansion, but which is the correct one? The major assumption here is that the Mountain West Conference will get an AQ (automatic qualifier) bid whether it includes 10 or 12 teams—just as long as Boise St. is part of that equation.

Here are some of the arguments and counter-arguments that have been discussed in conference expansion forums:

Expand to 10 by Adding Boise St.

Pros

Expand slowly. Provides the opportunity to wait for other football teams to get to a Boise St.-like level before expanding to 11 and/or 12.

Cons

Non-conference schedules will get messy (e.g., Air Force plays Navy, Army, plus one other), or one-time games like Utah vs. Notre Dame may become less attractive for Utah if there is no return game guarantee.

Others propose a 12-team conference expansion. The biggest debate among forum participants isn't about whether Boise St. should get in, but who the last two teams should be.

I would say the general vibe from most forums is that—besides definitely adding Boise St.—there needs to be another California team and another Texas team. A move would 1) help expand recruiting areas; and 2) ensure that Texas/California recruits get a chance to go back to their home state when conference divisions are formed.

If your team (e.g., UNLV, SDSU) is in another division, but has Texas recruits, having two Texas schools will hopefully ensure that a trip to the Lone Star State will still occur every other year.

There is a common misunderstanding about inviting other teams into the conference that I keep reading about: If we invite a team with a bowl game connection, we will automatically inherit that bowl game into our conference.

But I would ask, "Do we honestly need more than five or six bowl games if we can't win the ones that we are playing in now?"

The team that would truly lose out by these expansion statements would be the University of Nevada-Reno. Others mentioned are Tulsa, SMU, UTEP, San Jose St., and Utah St.

Expand to 12 by Adding Boise St., Fresno St., and Houston

Pros

There is potential for undefeated teams playing in a conference championship versus what would occur with only a 10-team conference.

It still gives the team that wasn't playing well at the beginning of the season an opportunity to finish strong in their division and play in the championship game with a BCS game at stake (like Colorado or Kansas St. have done in the Big 12).

Cons

Varied success in traveling to a championship game (ACC hasn't been successful, the Big 12 and SEC have had success). Taking a chance on potential and not on a proven track record in BCS rankings (outside of Boise St.).

There is a significant drop in level of play between Boise St. and the remaining teams wanting to get into the conference.

How To Divide the Conference?

There have been several recommendations as to how to divide the conference if expansion occurs. The two main suggestions are to either divide the conference—in the mold of the ACC—by splitting up designated "permanent rivals," or geographically like the Big 12.

The graphic depicts an example of what a geographic division may look like. My personal bias is toward an East and West geographical division using the Continental Divide, which seems fitting for a conference that is called the Mountain West (though I don't know how splitting Utah and BYU from Colorado St., Wyoming, and Air Force will go over).

People may also say that this makes the West division lopsided because it would contain Boise St., Utah, and BYU.

There is some truth to this, but on the other hand, you will never hear anyone in the Big 12 South complain that their division is more difficult than the North. The pollsters recognize this and it shows in their rankings. So hopefully this eventually becomes a minimal point of contention.

Travel Partners

There is also a lot of discourse in forums regarding the importance of selecting teams based on proximity—mostly for sports other than football. The divisions I mentioned earlier are examples of keeping travel partners in the same division.

WEST: Boise St.-Fresno St., UNLV-SDSU, BYU-Utah

EAST: Air Force-New Mexico, Colorado St.-Wyoming, and TCU-Houston

Form a New Conference and Kick Out Teams?

I did read a couple of articles about kicking teams out of the conference that are performing poorly. The major drawback to this thought is that 1) You have to form a new conference to probably do it; and 2) You will have to undergo another evaluation period like the Mountain West did when it was first created.

This might further delay the opportunity of being included as the seventh AQ for BCS bowl games.

An Automatic Qualifying Bid=Money= Conference Competitiveness Increase

Too many current AQ followers criticize the MWC because of the lack of top-to-bottom competitiveness. My biggest challenge to this line of thinking is, "Let's go start putting millions of dollars into a football program and see if a 'bottom dweller' won't improve it's level of play."

What is the difference between a MWC "bottom dweller" and a SEC "bottom dweller?" The records may be the same, but it is the level of play of the "bottom dwellers" that is separating the power conferences from the MWC. Let's now look at an example of what this additional BCS money can do to a former "bottom dweller."

The most current example that comes to mind is what has happened when Conference USA members South Florida, Cincinnati, and Louisville defected to the Big East. Did the increase in revenue significantly improve these universities? You bet.

Do you think that Cincinnati would be as good as they are right now if it hadn't been for the additional revenue afforded to BCS schools? It is definitely debatable.

Keep the Status Quo

The last thought is whether expansion will happen without any invites. The answer is, we'll have to see how this 2009-2010 season finishes out. If there are only two MWC teams in the final BCS poll, then the MWC may have more incentive to make one or more invites.

The biggest unanswered questions that University presidents and Craig Thompson have to answer when considering expansion are 1) What is the price of admission into the Mountain West Conference?; 2) Do you have to be as good as a TCU or Boise St.?

In other words, should the Mountain West Conference settle for anything less, or should it wait and expand as others prove themselves?

Read more Mountain West Football news on BleacherReport.com

TCU-Wyoming: Can the Cowboys Lasso the Horned Frogs?

Pete Misthaufen — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:49:22 -0500

Wyoming is a huge (31.5) home underdog to TCU on Saturday for a very good reason.

TCU is the only team in the country in the top 15 in both offense and defense.

Wyoming, under first-year head coach Dave Christensen, has an underachieving offense and an average defense, as evidenced by BYU's 52-0 thumping of the Cowboys in Laramie two weeks ago.

Wyoming has little outside of history on its side for any chance to upset the world of hurt that is TCU football this season.

Wyoming defeated TCU two years ago in Laramie.

Last season, the Cowboys, although winless unless in conference play, went to Tennessee and stopped the Vols from reaching bowl eligibility.

Wyoming defeated a nine-win Virginia squad in 2007. In 2005, Wyoming went to Oxford and defeated the Mississippi Rebels.

Once upon a time, Wyoming was actually a major program. Wyoming went to a Sugar Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, three Sun Bowls, and a Gator Bowl, all before Jimmy Carter took the oath of office.

Wyoming has experienced a revival once in a while.

In 1988, Wyoming reached No. 10 in the AP poll before losing to the high-flying Houston Cougars.

In 1996, Wyoming lost in the WAC championship game to the Cotton Bowl-bound BYU Cougars, only to be left out of a bowl, even with a 10-2 record.

Wyoming last went to a bowl game in 2004, when the Cowboys defeated UCLA in the Las Vegas Bowl.

Not much was expected from Wyoming this year under their new head coach. After all, Wyoming had not won a conference game since 2007 and had not won one on the road since 2006. The Cowboys have done both this season.

So, the very fact that Wyoming is 5-5 with a shot at bowl eligibility is shocking to say the least.

Wyoming held Texas in check for a half, letting folks know that something was in the works.

The first real shocker came when Wyoming upset UNLV in Laramie. Most MWC observers had UNLV moving up to the middle of the conference this year.

Wyoming did go on a three-game losing streak while facing three of the conference's top four teams.

But it was last week's amazing comeback at San Diego State that really gives the Cowboys hope for the future. The Aztecs are another program attempting to return to respectability and were fighting for a bowl game. Wyoming, down 27-6 to start the fourth quarter, came back with 24 unanswered points to get the win.

After a near certain loss to TCU, Wyoming looks to reach bowl eligibility with a win over Colorado State in the rivalry known as the Border War. The Rams, after starting the season 3-0, have lost seven in a row, falling back after last year's relatively successful season.

TCU faces a few difficulties on the way to the win over the Cowboys.

The game is played at 7,200 feet, the highest altitude stadium in all of major college football.

The weather looks to be cold and nasty, with a wind chill factor near zero degrees.

The Wyoming fans are well-known in the Mountain West Conference for being the rudest and crudest folks around, not unexpected from a bunch of rough-and-tumble cowboys and roughnecks.

Unlike this other hostile factors, the Wyoming football team will not be able to mount a serious challenge to the Frogs, though.

52-3

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BYU Better Be Ready for Air Force...or Be Grounded In Another Home Upset

Mark Welling — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 18:00:12 -0500

BYU better not be thinking about the Holy War this weekend, because Air Force has the talent to beat the Cougars at home.

The Falcons are playing their final regular season game this weekend, and they would like to end their season on a high note.

BYU has traditionally dominated Air Force. The Cougars hold a 22-6 edge in the all-time series against the Falcons. The last time Air Force beat BYU was in 2003 at LaVell Edwards stadium.

Yet, this Air Force team appears to be breaking the mold of a traditional Air Force team. Usually, the academy schools tend to fizzle as the season wears on. The training required in addition to football takes a lot out of the Air Force players, and the Falcons struggle to finish the football season strong.

This season the Falcons have won four of their last five games, with their only loss coming on the road in overtime against Utah.

Air Force has struggled in the past against better football programs. This season, the Falcons have competed in every game they have played. Their four losses are each by one touchdown or less. Two of their losses came in overtime. Plus, the Falcons played TCU better than any other conference team this season—losing by three points at home.

Another difference in this year’s Air Force team is their defense. Air Force has one of the better defenses not only in the conference but in the nation. The Falcons are ranked first in passing defense, seventh in total defense, ninth in scoring defense, and first in turnover margin.

Their defense causes and takes advantage of the other team’s mistakes, and converts turnovers into points. Air Force’s defense also benefits from the Falcon triple option attack. The triple option offense allows the defense to rest, and also forces the other team to press in order to get the football back.

Air Force, much like BYU, bases their offensive and defensive schemes on out-executing the other team on the field.

If the Cougars play in the Air Force game like they did in the New Mexico or TCU game, then it could be a very disappointing afternoon for BYU. Air Force has something left to prove this season, and they will be pulling out all the stops to get a win over a ranked BYU.

A healthy Harvey Unga will really help BYU to avoid an upset this weekend. BYU needs to give their defense a rest, and cannot afford too many three-and-outs during the game. Air Force’s defensive weakness is against the run; they are ranked 56th, giving up 137.45 yards per game. The Cougars should try to win this game on the ground. Outmuscle the smaller defensive front of Air Force, and run between the tackles.

This also means BYU cannot panic if they go down early in the game and abandon the running game. Robert Anae’s offensive playing calling continues to slow down Harvey Unga’s production. The Cougars have the best back in the Mountain West Conference, but continue to struggle to find ways of giving him the football.

It is important for BYU to score first against Air Force. The Falcons don’t play well from behind. The triple option isn’t designed to mount comebacks, but it is designed to keep games close. When Air Force is forced to go away from the triple option attack that is when teams can really open up a lead against them.

BYU cannot afford any turnovers against Air Force. The Cougars need to clean up the interceptions, fumbles, and mental mistakes (such as dropping first down passes). Giving up easy points to Air Force, due to good field position, is a sure way of setting themselves up for an upset.

Another key is BYU needs to play hungry. Air Force is going to try and punch BYU right in the mouth, and then take away the victory. The Cougars have struggled this season when teams have challenged them. BYU seems to be softer this season, and hasn’t been as quick to be the aggressor in the football games.

If BYU struggles with the challenge of Air Force this weekend, things could be much worse the following weekend against the Utes in the Holy War.

BYU needs to defend their home field, and be the more aggressive team this Saturday. BYU needs to play with some kind of passion.

For more sports news, podcasts, articles, and insights visit The Big Podcast.

Read more Mountain West Football news on BleacherReport.com

Long Live the Rooster!: Andy Dalton's QB Play Putting TCU Over the Top

Pete Misthaufen — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:26:15 -0500

Everyone has known about TCU's tough defense for years. TCU coach Gary Patterson has made fast, strong defense his signature.

But this year, TCU is being recognized for something else: unstoppable offense.

Yes, it is hard to believe. Yet for most TCU fans, the plays being run on offense are mostly familiar.

Small changes have been made here and there, but the offense has remained to true its core.

TCU has long been a run-first team. This fits into Patterson's overall philosophy. The offense can do two good things for Patterson's defense: Eat clock and score points.

Coach Patterson has long held to the win-by-one-point idea, which has largely held true for the Frogs. Under Coach Patterson, TCU has lost only one game ever when the opponent scored fewer than 17 points, at Utah last year.

TCU has been a regular leader in time of possession, holding true to the idea that your opponent cannot score if they do not have the ball.

Last year, TCU averaged just over 420 yards per game on offense, good enough for No. 24 in the nation, with over 200 each rushing and passing.

But changes are evident this year, and the offense has shown an improved ability to dominate even top defenses.

This year, TCU is averaging over 250 yards per game rushing and over 215 yards per game passing, good enough for No. 4 in the nation in both total offense.

Where the team seemed to have trouble scoring points in big games last year (Oklahoma, Utah, and Boise State), the offense is on fire this year, as demonstrated by the rout of Utah.

Long Live the Rooster

If there is one factor more than anything else leading to the success of the Frog offense, it is the improved play of junior quarterback Andy Dalton.

A three-year starter, Dalton's improvement at quarterback has been the key factor for the incredible success of the TCU offense.

A happy warrior, Dalton seems to be taking all the success in stride, even when he was carried off the field by his fellow students last Saturday.

In TCU's toughest non-conference matchup, Dalton won the game for TCU with his running ability. Clemson coach Dabo Swinney credited Dalton's running ability for the Frog win, something Clemson had no answer for.

Dalton ran for 85 yards on 19 carries, mostly faking the handoff while cutting back into the line. Dalton also threw for two touchdowns and 226 yards.

Dalton is currently ranked No. 6 in the nation in passing efficiency, with a rating of 157.84. He is No. 32 in total offense.

TCU is ranked No. 8 in sacks allowed, largely based upon Dalton's ability to evade pursuit.

Dalton learned early on to avoid making costly mistakes. His freshman year saw him throw 11 interceptions, only to be benched. He quickly learned that mistakes had consequences.

This year he has only four interceptions on the season, almost all of which were tipped passes.

Dalton also has no 300-yard passing games this season (although he has had four over his TCU career), in large part because the team does not need him to do so.

Instead it is Andy's expert leadership over the running game that has helped TCU dominate its opponents.

Dalton has stated this season that the game has been starting to "slow down" for him this season, helping him to see openings and opportunities much quicker than in previous seasons.

Dalton is the leader of the offense, even if he is not forced to try to win the game all by himself like some other quarterbacks.

The Rooster guides and directs his team with passion and control—and he is obviously enjoying himself.

For some odd reason, Dalton was not included in the watch lists for the Davey O'Brien Award, even though the award is named after a TCU great. This mistake should not be repeated next year.

Dalton can lead his team to victory with his feet or his arm, but it is his brain that he most often uses this season, utilizing his ability to understand the opposing defenses and execute with precision and exactness.

His ability to defeat an opponent so many different ways makes it very hard to stop the Frogs on offense.

With Andy Dalton at the helm, TCU will continue to punish opponents with the offense, a welcome addition to the dominating defense.

Unfortunately for next year's opponents, Dalton will return for his senior season, hoping to lead TCU to another undefeated regular season. Look for the Frogs to continue with their high-powered offense.

Maybe Andy will be considered for a few awards as well.

Read more Mountain West Football news on BleacherReport.com

Pac-10 Race for the Roses Highlights Week 12 in College Football

David Hedlind — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:07:07 -0500

I can’t believe we are here already. It seems like it was just the other day when the season started.

Yet here we are at week 12, and some of the schools will be done for the season after this week. Most won't, but some will.

Sorry if things get redundant about bowl eligibility or conference rankings and bowl positioning.

Wednesday, Nov. 18

Buffalo at Miami OH and Central Michigan at Ball State

The MAC is the only thing on, but neither game is really all that exciting or important unless Ball State can manage an upset.

Thursday, Nov. 19

Colorado at Oklahoma State

Oklahoma State is hoping to keep its chances alive for a BCS at-large bid. Colorado may be playing for coach Dan Hawkins' job, or at least to cool his hot seat.

Friday, Nov. 20

Boise State at Utah State

Boise State has to go on the road a week before meeting Nevada in what will likely be for the conference. They better not overlook Utah State and look ahead...sorry, I can’t even type it with a straight face.

Saturday, Nov. 21

North Carolina at Boston College

BC still has a shot at the division but probably a slim one. Mostly playing for bowl positioning.

Minnesota at Iowa

Iowa is trying to not let down after back-to-back losses and the emotional finish of last week's overtime game. Minnesota is trying to push for appeal for a bowl.

Duke at Miami

Duke is 5-5 but needs two more wins to become bowl eligible.

Ohio State at Michigan

Not even close to what it used to be, unless you are a fan of either. But the rest of the nation probably didn’t even realize this game is on—I didn’t.

Oklahoma at Texas Tech

By name it sounds good, but it is really only for bowl position.

Kent State at Temple

Temple is still at the top of the MAC East. The Owls' great run so far is unlikely to end this week. Kent State would like to win though as it would give them six wins.

Iowa State at Missouri

Iowa State has been one of the surprise teams of the season. Already bowl eligible and looking for more.

Northern Illinois at Ohio

These two sit at second in each of their divisions. Both meet the leaders in their divisions at the end of the regular season. This game may change the ramifications of those games.

TCU at Wyoming

TCU of course is riding high atop the Mountain West and is the leader to earn a BCS bowl from a non-automatic qualifying conference. They take to the road to play a Wyoming team looking to pick up win number six and earn any bowl.

Connecticut at Notre Dame

Notre Dame is not having the season they thought they would. Many chalked this game up as a win, and from what I have seen many still are. I am not—not from what I have seen.

Oregon at Arizona

The most important game in the Pac-10 this week. Each week for the winner will go towards the Rose Bowl. Both teams need to win out to earn their spot, so the winner takes the lead.

Air Force at BYU

Air Force has been that next team in the standings of the Mountain West after the big three of TCU, BYU, and Utah. Of course, they don’t want to always sit in the back seat to those teams and look to make a statement.

Penn State at Michigan State

Penn State would like to keep a BCS at-large chance alive. Michigan State wants to move up in bowl standing.

LSU at Mississippi

Alabama already has the SEC West locked up, so these two are playing for, you guessed it, bowl position.

Wisconsin at Northwestern

Did you know that Wisconsin is actually in a three-way tie for second with Iowa and Penn State in the Big Ten?

Army at North Texas

I haven’t mentioned it in a while, but Army is still alive in their hunt for a bowl. Their record is 4-6 with two games to go.

Arizona State at UCLA

The Pac-10 already has six teams that are bowl eligible, and UCLA and Arizona State are the next two down. UCLA has two tries to get one more win. Arizona State needs two more wins with two tries. In theory both could get there, but 6-6 still might not get them a bowl.

Oregon State at Washington State

Oregon State needs to win out and have Arizona lose a game, and they can go to the Rose Bowl. Washington State probably won't be a problem. The Civil War with Oregon on Dec. 3 may very well be for the conference and the Roses.

Cal at Stanford

The Big Game. I still always see the Stanford band on the field. Stanford can still make the Rose Bowl but needs lots of help around the rest of the top teams in the conference.

Kansas State at Nebraska

Fighting for the right to face Texas in the Big XII title game. The winner will likely do so as the Big XII North champion.

Kansas at Texas

Texas is still trying to stay undefeated and on track to the national championship game.

Nevada at New Mexico State

Nevada has been on a roll and is charging to the matchup with Boise State for the conference title.

Read more Mountain West Football news on BleacherReport.com