Week 1 Mountain West Football Rankings

1. (1-0) The Cougars are 15th now in the coaches poll, and stay number one here in the conference rankings. They looked good against Northern Iowa with 563 yards of total offense. QB Max Hall lead the passing game with 486 yards, and then TE Deniss Pitta who had 213 yards and Northern Iowa admitted to not plan against Pitta. The only downside is that BYU fell asleep in the third quarter and let the game be more interesting then it should have been.

2. (1-0) A road win against Big 10 Michigan moved Utah to #23 in the coaches poll. QB Brian Johnson, RB Matt Asiata, and PK/P Louis Sakoda all looked very good in the 2 point win for Utah. Then there was the defense that was put in bad situations all day, and bailed out the team when it could have been worse. Penalties are another key issue that Utah must over come in the coming weeks.

3.(1-0) TCU put a beat down on a supposed Mountain West contender in New Mexico. The defense was exceptional in shutting down New Mexico's run offense with Rodney Ferguson to only 64 yards. The TCU offense was not excellent, but it did not have to with the defense giving the offense good field position all week.

4. (1-0) A win is a win for Wyoming, but the Wyoming offense was not great overall. New Quarterback Dex Crum did lead the Cowboys on important drives but the numbers were not there. The Wyoming running game should be fine with Devin Moore, as should the defense who only allowed 39 total rushing yards.

5. (0-1) The Lobos could move up shortly, but their first week was terrible. The running game which was supposed to be the bright spot for New Mexico was ineffective against TCU. Plus their throwing game, and defense were unsuccessful at all against TCU, their schedule is not much easier next week as they face Texas A&M at home.

6. (1-0) This could be their only win of the season, by defeating Utah State. The positives are that Omar Clayton was efficient in the spread offense by throwing for 192 yards and three touchdown passes. The two receivers for UNLV, Ryan Wolfe and Casey Flair, will be a handful for any team.

7. (1-0) A good beat down against a FCS team gives Air Force the confidence and playing time to help this young team. This Air Force team looks to use the rushing attack much more then last year, as they did it well with over 400 yards on the ground and over 70 rushing plays.

8. (0-1) The Rams were outmatched last week, as the new quarterback situation was good in completing passes, but Billy Farris had no down field threat. This will let teams creep in and be able to jump routes and help with the running game. The running game will be the strength but they need more from Kyle Bell who had only 20 yards on the ground.

9. (0-1) They lose to a FCS team for the second time in three years, and it was the second time in a row that Cal Poly defeated the Aztecs. This team is a mess, well the quarterback play by Ryan Lindley was the bright spot by throwing for 352 yards. Chuck Long may be looking for a new job come past Thanksgiving.