The 2008 Season was a difficult one to top for the Mountain West, but they are poised to do so as the bowl season arrives. TCU has climbed to never-before-seen heights for a non-BCS school in the modern era, while Utah and BYU have once again put together very good seasons. Wyoming and UNLV made modest turnarounds, and even teams that struggled can find a highlight or two from the season to try and build on.
So here, in reverse order of my final regular season power ranking, is a look at the 2009 Mountain West season.
9. Colorado State
Record: 3-9 (0-8)
Fringe Preseason Power Rank: 5
Biggest Win: At Colorado, 23-17. Colorado turned out to be terrible through the first half of the season, but a rare road win against the Buffalos is worth celebrating, and celebrate they did, when the visiting Rams fans stormed the field. A 35-20 win over Nevada gets honorable mention.
Season Story: After a 3-0 start, CSU had the gauntlet of BYU, Idaho, Utah, and TCU in four weeks. They never recovered and wound up losing the rest of their games.
Turning Point: Losing to San Diego State when the Rams had a chance to get back to 4-4 and finish strong.
Something to Build On: Well, their rushing attack actually fared well, right in the middle both in the league and nationally, and both of their go-to backs are set to return for their senior seasons in 2010. It may still be a rebuilding year, with their QB and top receiver graduating, but at least they aren’t losing all of their skill players.
8. New Mexico
Record: 1-11 (1-7)
Fringe Preseason Power Rank: 8
Biggest Win: Colorado State, 29-27. A last minute field goal kept the Lobos from a winless season, because a win certainly wasn’t coming against TCU the next week (they lost 51-10).
Season Story: Brand new coach punches assistant, doesn’t get fired, team loses a lot of games. I think that about covers it.
Turning Point: After getting blown out by three good but not great teams to start the year, they lost 20-17 to New Mexico State. It was downhill from there, with only a couple more close losses and the win over CSU to make the end of the year bearable.
Something to Build On: These guys have a long way to go, but if coach Mike Locksley is retained, hopefully the drama of this summer is faded before 2010 rolls around. They held BYU to a 5 point win, then beat Colorado State, so they do have some positive results, despite the pounding they took by a motivated TCU team.
7. San Diego State
Record: 4-8 (2-6)
Fringe Preseason Power Rank: 9
Biggest Win: New Mexico, 23-20. SDSU didn’t really notch any wins over powerhouse schools, but the win over New Mexico got the Aztecs up to 4-4 and cleared a path to a bowl game. Unfortunately, it was their last win of the season, and postseason play never materialized.
Turning Point: After reaching that 4-4 mark, a loss to TCU was expected, but the season hinged on a game against also 4-5 Wyoming, with the loser having almost no chance to get bowl eligible. San Diego State gave away a 27-6 4th quarter lead and lost the game 30-27. It happened again in the final game, too, watching a 24-7 lead evaporate in another loss.
Something to Build On: Sophomore QB Ryan Lindley is a rising star- he guided the Aztecs to the second best passing offense numbers in the MWC and 31st nationally. If he keeps improving, there’s a lot to look forward to in his career.
6. UNLV
Record: 5-7 (3-5)
Fringe Preseason Power Rank: 6
Biggest Win: Hawaii, 34-33. Hawaii had just manhandled Washington State and looked to be one of the premier teams in the WAC, while UNLV was 1-1 after playing Oregon State close in week 2. After beating Hawaii, UNLV looked to be living up to the pre-season buzz.
Turning Point: Probably the 63-28 beating at the hands of Nevada. The Rebels had just lost a 3 point game to Wyoming and then had BYU, Utah, and TCU as 3 of the next 4- they needed this win, and they got blown out instead. They came through the worst of their schedule at 3-6, and didn’t have what they needed to win their way through to a bowl game.
Something to Build On: The whole season. UNLV had notched four consecutive two-win seasons, so while they had hoped to finish a couple spots higher in the league, this still stands as a noteworthy turnaround. They did dismiss coach Mike Sanford, and have not named a replacement yet, so it will be up to the new hire to build on the momentum of 2009.
5. Wyoming
Record: 6-6 (4-4)
Fringe Preseason Power Rank: 7
Biggest Win: Colorado State, 17-16. Yes, CSU collapsed down the stretch, but Wyoming needed to win this big rivalry game, on the road, to advance to bowl eligibility. It took a 3-lead-change fourth quarter to pull it off. A 30-28 cross country win at Florida Atlantic is an honorable mention.
Turning Point: Beating UNLV at home in week 4 tipped off a 3 game win streak that put the Cowboys at 4-2 before the worst of their schedule kicked in, allowing them to survive a string of losses to the better conference teams and still push on to bowl eligibility.
Bowl Preview: New Mexico Bowl vs. Fresno State, December 19. Fresno is coming in off a 9-4 season, capped by a wild win over Illinois in the last week. Fresno is rightfully set as pretty big favorites, but Wyoming has proven that they can stay in games with more loaded teams. If they play a near-perfect game, they’ll have a chance (full preview of the game coming this week).
4. Air Force
Record: 7-5 (5-3)
Fringe Preseason Power Rank: 4
Biggest Win: Wyoming, 10-0. In a way, this was the Falcons’ least impressive game through the middle portion of the year- filled with mistakes and penalties, and scoreless at halftime, but they pushed through to pick up an important win. They pushed Utah to overtime the next week, then rattled off three straight wins to total their seven for the year.
Turning Point: The turning point for Air Force may have actually been a loss. In a 20-17 defeat, AFA was the only team all year to give TCU a legitimate scare, and it set the Falcons up for a 4 out of 5 win run, including that game against Wyoming.
Bowl Preview: Air Force is returning to the Armed Forces Bowl (December 31) yet again, and will face off with Houston this year. Houston brings in the top rated offense in the country, and will present a big challenge for the Air Force defense. The good news is that the Cougar defense is terrible, so if the Falcons can keep the ball moving, they’ll be in the game almost no matter what.
3. Utah
Record: 9-3 (6-2), #23 in Coaches & AP Polls
Fringe Preseason Power Rank: 3
Biggest Win: Louisville, 30-14. Utah did lose to the three top-25 teams it played this year, but did beat their second BCS conference opponent when the Cardinals came to town.
Turning Point: Utah, BYU, and TCU certainly measure their seasons differently than the other teams in the league do- any of the others would be ecstatic with a 6-2 league record, but finishing third among the big three is a disappointment for Utah. With that in mind, Utah’s turning point would have to be the blowout at the hands of TCU. Utah came in on a six game win streak of their own and expected to compete, but TCU controlled the game from the word go.
Bowl Preview: Utah is back in the Poinsettia bowl this year, facing off against Cal (December 23). As of this writing, no word yet on whether Cal’s star tailback, Jahvid Best, will be in the game- still recovering from a frightening injury earlier in the season. Either way, the game will be a chance at redemption for Utah, who hasn’t beaten a powerhouse team yet in 2009.
2. BYU
Record: 10-2 (7-1), 14/15 in Polls.
Fringe Preseason Power Rank: 2
Biggest Win: Oklahoma, 14-13. The Sooners had a down year, but it can be easily argued that BYU had a hand in that, and they did push Texas to the limit when most of their team was healthy. BYU had to go into hostile territory and came away with a big win, setting up the MWC for an outstanding season.
Turning Point: The turning point for BYU’s season was the still-head-scratching FSU loss. If BYU hadn’t fallen apart there, their game against TCU would have been an October clash of undefeateds and BYU could have wound up potentially 11-1 and in the top ten again, even if the TCU game played out the same.
Bowl Preview: It’s yet another trip to the Las Vegas Bowl for the Cougars, where they’ll take on #18 Oregon State. It’s only the fourth bowl game of the season (December 22), but features two well-balanced teams in a nice primetime matchup.
1. TCU
Record: 12-0 (8-0), #3 in both polls.
Fringe Preseason Power Rank: 1
Biggest Win: Both Utah and BYU were big wins, but I’m going to say that the Clemson win was just as important in taking their place on the national stage. With that win, TCU can point out that they knocked off the eventual ACC runner-up, on the road and in foul weather.
Turning Point: The BYU blowout established TCU as an elite team regardless of conference, setting the table for a frantic run to the finish where 55-28 was the closest game the Horned Frogs saw again from that point.
Bowl Preview: I’m not thrilled that TCU got paired with Boise State, for reasons that are well documented by lots of great writers, but it should at least be a good game. TCU will have to rein in Boise’s Kellen Moore, who will be looking to prove that Boise can play with anyone, despite having a softer schedule than the rest of the undefeateds.
The template you might be be using to show off your content material is fantastic! Where can I find it?