With fairly light schedules consisting of mostly conference games, I’m going to consolidate the wrapups for a couple weeks at least.  The main reason is that starting tomorrow, I’m launching Mid-Season Report Cards for every single non-BCS conference teams, which should be fun.  We also have a very busy week of night games, so there’s a lot to look forward to all week long.

Western Athletic Conference

Idaho 29, San Jose State 25- Idaho finally played a game I could watch, and they didn’t disappoint.  Well, they probably disappointed their fans a bit, but outside observers were treated to a wild game, with the lead changing hands late in the game on the way to an exciting finish.  The problem for Idaho’s fans is that they didn’t look very good.  Their pass defense was rough, and their starting QB tossed up 2 bad picks in the 4th quarter (out of 3 total).  He got the hook, and the backup led the winning drive.  If not for the mistakes, Idaho could have won this one by a lot more.

New Mexico State 20, Utah State 17- This battle of two teams called Aggies came down to a last-second field goal, which happened to be the moment I tuned in after the Idaho game went final.  It was a very nice field goal.  Utah’s last best chance to beat a 1-A team may have just disappeared, at least for a while, with a four game run of Nevada, La Tech, Fresno, and Hawaii coming down the pike.

Fresno State 42, Hawaii 17- Fresno had lost six of the last seven out in the Pacific, and 3 in a row this season, but they kept doing the things that kept them in games against three teams that are still undefeated.  They have re-announced that they will be a contender in the WAC this year, despite the tough start.

WAC Standings

WAC Week 6 Power Ratings

1. Boise State
2. Idaho
3. Nevada
4. Fresno State
5. Louisiana Tech
6. Hawaii
7. San Jose State
8. New Mexico State
9. Utah State

Mountain West Conference

The MWC had a nice, orderly weekend, without major upsets but two games did go down to the wire.

Wyoming 37, New Mexico 13- New Mexico’s struggles continue, and they have now dropped away to 0-6.  Not the season they’d hoped for, but controversy and defeat have followed them all season.  Wyoming continues it’s run of success against non-BCS squads, with their only losses to date coming from Colorado and Texas.  Their schedule ramps up from here, with Air Force, Utah, and BYU in the next three games.

Utah 24, Colorado State 17- CSU had the game tied at 3 at halftime, then started the third with two touchdowns.  Utah rallied in the 4th, scoring the final 21 points to steal the win back from the Rams.  The Rams freefall after their 3-0 start may continue next week, as they travel down to TCU for the end of their BYU-Utah-TCU gauntlet that makes up their first three MWC games.  Utah is still four games away from facing their counterparts in the MWC’s Big 3.

TCU 20, Air Force 17- TCU led most of this game, but Air Force refused to allow the Frogs to pull away at any point.  A touchdown with a minute to go brought the Falcons within three, but they were unable to pull off the onside kick, and TCU advances to 5-0.  I don’t know how the pollsters will view the game, but the reality is that Air Force has proven to be a very difficult win this year, with their losses coming by 3, 3, and 7 on their way to their current 3-3 record.

BYU 59, UNLV 21- UNLV’s early season buzz and momentum have all but disappeared at this point.  Their hopes of reaching the top four of the league are almost completely gone, and they have an uphill climb to get to bowl eligible.  It’s tough to find four wins in a schedule that still holds Utah, TCU, Colorado State, and Air Force.  BYU gets San Diego State next week before TCU comes to town in what could be a top-15 battle in Provo.

MWC Standings

Mountain West Week 6 Power Rankings

For the first time of any conference this year, the orderly results from yesterday mean that my power rankings are exactly the same as week 5.

1. TCU
2. BYU
3. Utah
4. Wyoming
5. Air Force
6. Colorado State
7. San Diego State
8. UNLV
9. New Mexico