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Six games on tap for the WAC today, only one of which starts before 7 PM Eastern. NFL games may kick off before the WAC is done playing.
2:00 PM, WAC Sports Network- Idaho at Western Michigan: This is an interesting game, with Idaho coming in off a disappointing loss to Colorado State, and Western having been beaten soundly by Toledo last week. While there doesn’t seem to be much at stake in this one, victories aren’t easy to come by down the stretch on either schedule, and getting this one could be key in quest for bowl eligibility. Interestingly, Idaho was 2-0 against the MAC last year. Line: Idaho by 3.5. That seems generous, but I have a hard time picking this to be really close- I think either team could win, but it’ll be by a touchdown in a shootout kind of game. Let’s say Idaho 45-38.
8:00 PM- UC Davis at San Jose State: San Jose State filled in their 13th game (Hawaii Rule) with a second FCS opponent. UC Davis is 1-3 on the year including a 52-3 loss to Cal. No line.
8:00 PM, WAC Sports Net- Boise State at New Mexico State: Any team could be vulnerable if they overlook conference opponents, but there gap is too wide in this one. Read Post
The weekend did not quite go as planned for the WAC, going 1-3 against the Mountain West, just 3-6 on the day, and losing one of their unbeaten teams in the process. On the flipside, Boise State won on national television and Nevada has reached #25 in the polls.
Colorado State 36, Idaho 34- 51 weeks after Idaho beat the Rams for the second of what would be 12 straight losses, CSU manages a 4th quarter comeback and wins on a last second field goal to break the skid.
Nevada 27, BYU 13- Nevada used a devastating rushing attack to defeat the Cougars, handing BYU their third consecutive loss. As noted, 4-0 Nevada is ranked for the first time since 1948.
Kansas 42, New Mexico State 16- The Aggies may have hoped for a repeat of North Dakota State’s performance against the Jayhawks, but it was not to be.
Southern Miss 13, Louisiana Tech 12- Southern Miss intercepted a La Tech pass at their own 20 late in the game to shut down the Bulldog comeback and escape with the narrow win in Ruston.
Mississippi 55, Fresno State 38- Read Post
Nevada netted a big win Friday night to kick off the weekend, which saw the league go 3-0 against other non-BCS conferences while coming up short in a bid for another BCS win. But nobody lost to a FCS team, which is always a nice touch.
Colorado 31, Hawaii 13- Hawaii failed on two trips inside the 10 in the first half, but still led at halftime 10-0. Colorado figured something out at halftime, outscoring the Warriors 31-3 in the final two periods. Next Week: Charleston Southern at Hawaii
Navy 37, Louisiana Tech 23- Navy found its scoring offense as Louisiana Tech blew a 23-16 halftime lead when the Midshipmen scored three unanswered touchdowns to close out the game. Next Week: Southern Mississippi at Louisiana Tech, Navy at Air Force
San Jose State 16, Southern Utah 11- SJSU trailed 11-10 until a touchdown with 70 seconds to go put them ahead and saved the Spartans from an embarrassing defeat. Next Week: San Jose State at Utah
Fresno State 41, Utah State 24- Read Post
The WAC got their week off to a nice start last night, and are poised to have a big day today.
3:30 PM, Fox Regional- Hawaii at Colorado: Hawaii’s offense has put up good numbers so far, although their defense remains suspect. Colorado has been less than impressive, beating lowly Colorado State before getting curbstomped by Cal last week, 52-7. Still, beating the Buffs in their home opener is no easy task. Line: Colorado by 13. I don’t see how CU is going to score enough points to escape Hawaii by that much. I’m not sure Hawaii wins this one, but I don’t think Colorado will run and hide either. I’ll say CU 35-28.
7:00 PM- Navy at Louisiana Tech: Three weeks ago, I would have said this is an easy one for Navy. It still might be, but not if the Midshipmen can’t generate more points than they have so far. The Bulldogs haven’t shown much in the way of offense either, so either way I expect this one to be low scoring. Line: Navy by 3. I think it will be just a little more, Navy 21-17.
8:00 PM- Southern Utah at San Jose State: SJSU can’t sleep on Southern Utah- they pushed Wyoming to 28-20 and then beat FCS San Diego 32-3 last week. Upset Watch is on, but there is no line.
8:00 PM, WAC Network- Fresno State at Utah State: Read Post
Without two of their best teams playing, things were somewhat quiet out west, but Virginia Tech’s loss to James Madison puts the WAC in the pile with those eastern leagues wishing week 2 would just go away. Boise State needs VT to be flawless, not lose to FCS teams, to keep Boise alive in the national title hunt. On the field, things went better, with a pole-axing of a MWC team, a surprising win over an independent squad, and no actual losses to FCS competition. If not for Virginia Tech…
Wisconsin 27, San Jose State 14- San Jose made a ton of mistakes early, and Wisconsin did enough with them to put the game out of reach. The Spartans refused to give up, posting their 14 in the second half, but it wasn’t to be. Next Week: Southern Utah (1-1) at San Jose State
Hawaii 31, Army 28- Hawaii jumped out to a 21-0 lead before Army surged back and took command 28-21. Hawaii leveled things, but Army was in field goal position before fumbling it back to the Warriors with 24 seconds to go. That was all they needed, as Hawaii moved into field goal position and finished off the Black Knights. Next Week: Hawaii at Colorado (1-1), North Texas (0-2) at Army
Nebraska 38, Idaho 17- Read Post
We’re flipping things around this week, since Conference USA has two games tomorrow night, we’ll get them tomorrow and give you the WAC preview in this space, since all their games are conveniently set for Saturday.
12:00 PM, CBS College- Hawaii at Army: Hawaii’s offense showed a lot against USC- they can rack up the yards and score points. But their defense looked pretty bad- was that a good offense, or are they in trouble? Army won a tough game over an Eastern Michigan team they probably should have handled with a bit less difficulty. Line: Army by 3. Hawaii is taking the longest trip of any team this season, for a game that kicks off at 6 AM Honolulu time. I’m sure they’re taking steps to alter their schedule ahead of time, but that still makes things difficult. I think Army’s defense is good enough to slow down the Warriors, but it will be close. Army 32-28.
12:00 PM, ESPN- San Jose State at #11 Wisconsin: San Jose comes off a tough game against the #1 team in the country and gets rewarded with a trip to see the #11 team. The goal at this point is to improve if you can, and keep guys healthy before WAC play starts in October.
12:30 PM, Idaho at #7 Nebraska: Read Post
The WAC had an outstanding weekend, which is good considering they’ve had a few rough weeks leading up to kickoff. Capped off by Boise State’s win last night, all but one team was competitive against good competition, and nobody was threatened by a FCS team. To recap the Saturday games:
Oklahoma 31, Utah State 24- Utah State rallied back from a 21-0 second quarter deficit to keep the Sooners on their toes. They arrived at the final score with 2:31 to go, but weren’t able to add on from there. Still, the Utah State passing attack looks like the real deal (Prediction: Oklahoma by a ton. 0-1). Next Week: Idaho State at Utah State
Alabama 48, San Jose State 3- This was never going to be anything else. We knew SJSU was in a tough spot, new coach and all, so this is nothing to be surprised or concerned with (Prediction: Alabama would cover 38. 1-1). Next Week: San Jose State at Wisconsin
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The weekend is light for the WAC, with three teams playing last night, one off, and the last playing on Monday. Pity our friends in New Mexico who have to sit this week out.
7:00 PM- Utah State at #8 Oklahoma: Fitting, perhaps, that we move from Sun Belt blowouts on to this game. I think Utah State should be an improved team this year, but kicking it off at Oklahoma is not a great way to get the ball rolling. Line: Oklahoma by 33. Last year Oklahoma posted wins of 64, 45, and 55 points when the opportunities presented themselves, so 33 is certainly within range. Let’s say 48-7.
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For all we know, this could be the last Western Athletic Conference preview ever. Probably not, but they’re on very shaky ground right now. As it stands, they plan to keep Fresno State and Nevada around through the 2011 season, meaning that next year they should operate as an 8 team conference with Boise’s departure to the Mountain West happening next summer.
Once Fresno & Nevada are gone, the WAC is down to six. Louisiana Tech is supposedly investigating/evaluating/begging a spot in C-USA or the Sun Belt, which would put them a lot closer to their competition, Utah State apparently wants into the MWC, and Hawaii has rumbled about going independent. The transition time from FCS up to FBS is at least two years, so even if they protect the six they have and add two or three from below, 2012 could be a limbo year. The NCAA may grant a waiver and allow them to compete with just six during this process, but there’s a lot still up in the air.
BYU’s decision on their independence is due tomorrow, which could have a lot to do with the WAC’s future stability.
But enough about all that, we have 2010 to think about. Obviously storyline 1A is Boise State. #5 in the Coaches Poll (the one that matters for the BCS), one of the dominant national preseason stories has been whether they can, or should, get a spot in the title game if they run the table. While the question of ‘should’ can be endlessly debated, our coverage at the site will mostly focus on the ‘can,’ assuming they beat Virginia Tech. But not now, this is a conference preview.
If we acknowledge that Boise State should be favored to win the WAC comfortably, the real race is for second in the league. Nevada lines up as the favorite for that role, as well as the WAC team with the best chance to disrupt Boise’s unbeaten streak. Fresno State and Idaho should figure into the race for second as well.
Football on the Fringe Season Previews were ranked, then delivered in random order.
2009 looked like a year when the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs were poised to make some noise, but it was not to be- back-to-back losses of one and two points put the postseason out of reach, and the season ended with only four wins.
Even so, an impressive track record of performing well in a tough environment was enough to get head coach Derek Dooley the job at Tennessee after Lane Kiffin’s well documented departure. Sonny Dykes comes over from Arizona to take the head coaching role, and he’ll get 8 offensive starters to get things going. He inherits a quarterback battle and must replace Daniel Porter, the #28 rusher in America in 2009. Six players return on the defensive side.
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