Mountain West football notes: Conference teams have lost 21 straight nonconference games in FBS

The Mountain West is off to a horrible start to the 2015 football season.

The conference has lost 21 consecutive nonconference games against Football Bowl Subdivision teams, a streak that started after Boise State beat Washington on Sept. 4. Hawaii also beat Colorado on Sept. 3.

The past two weekends have been dreadful – 0-10 and 0-10. The only wins were a pair against FCS teams and Air Force’s conference victory against San Jose State.

The Mountain West was 17-24 in FBS nonconference games during the regular season last year. The league is 2-21 this year.

Here’s the losing streak:

• Northern Illinois 38, UNLV 30
• Utah 24, Utah State 14
• Minnesota 23, Colorado State 20 (OT)
• Eastern Michigan 48, Wyoming 29
• Cal 35, San Diego State 7
• Ole Miss 73, Fresno State 21
• Ohio State 38, Hawaii 0
• Arizona 44, Nevada 20
• Tulsa 40, New Mexico 21
• UCLA 37, UNLV 3
• BYU 35, Boise State 24
• Arizona State 34, New Mexico 10
• Texas A&M 44, Nevada 27
• Michigan State 35, Air Force 21
• Michigan 28, UNLV 7
• Washington 31, Utah State 17
• Colorado 27, Colorado State 24 (OT)
• South Alabama 34, San Diego State 27 (OT)
• Oregon State 35, San Jose State 21
• Washington State 31, Wyoming 14
• Utah 45, Fresno State 24

Western Division

Fresno State – With freshman quarterback Chason Virgil out for the season with a broken clavicle and the status of quarterback Zack Greenlee in question following an arrest for public drunkenness, the Bulldogs had three quarterbacks take reps with the No. 1 offense during a brief practice Monday.

Installing the game plan for the Mountain West opener against San Jose State, Greenlee, junior transfer Ford Childress and redshirt freshman Kilton Anderson took those reps.

Childress, who would be in line to start if Greenlee is suspended, played at the end of the Bulldogs’ loss at Ole Miss. He threw two passes, one of which was intercepted and returned for a touchdown, but he said he is comfortable with the Bulldogs’ offense.

The play sheet would not have to be reduced to the size of a 3-by-5 index card.

“No, I don’t run as much, but it shouldn’t shrink at all,” Childress said. “I’m feeling very comfortable about it. Every rep I take, every practice I get better. It’s all about studying the film, getting in my playbook, just make it second nature.”

Childress in the past two weeks has been given a few more reps during practice, but he has had to try to move forward getting most of his work done off the football field.

“Most of his work has been done on film, but I will say this about the guy, he comes up and he watches film. He studies the game,” offensive coordinator Dave Schramm said. “He can tell you what to do, but it’s a big difference when you’re actually doing it and it’s for a guy that really hasn’t taken very many reps. He didn’t take any in the spring. He didn’t take any in the summer, and he took a little bit in fall camp. We’ll see.”

Next game: at San Jose State, 7:30 p.m. Saturday (CBS Sports Network)

Notable: Fresno State hired Jimmy Morimoto away from UNLV for a newly created director of player personnel position. “Recruiting is such a vital part of a Division I football program and to have a guy whose sole purpose is to everyday think about recruiting, not have to worry necessarily about Xs and Os, is going to be huge,” Coach Tim DeRuyter said. “He has a network of contacts on the entire West Coast, in Hawaii and in Samoa, that I think is going to enhance our recruiting profile and expand our footprint. Having those contacts gives you access to some players that maybe we didn’t have that access to before.” Morimoto has been the Rebels’ director of player personnel for the past six years. … Wideout Delvon Hardaway, who has been rehabbing a knee injury suffered in the spring, has been cleared for contact and could play some this week at San Jose State.

Robert Kuwada, The Fresno Bee

Hawaii – As one of two FBS teams to play 13 regular-season games without a bye, the Rainbow Warriors figured good health would be a concern. Running back Diocemy Saint Juste has missed the first three games, and wideouts Quinton Pedroza and Vasquez Haynes were not available in Saturday’s 47-27 victory over UC Davis.

Two late-summer additions — Paul Harris and Melvin Davis — combined for three touchdowns. Harris scored on a 95-yard run, the longest in school history. Davis, now 233 pounds after losing 18 pounds in five weeks, powered his way on TD runs of 1 and 5 yards.

Wide out Devan Stubblefield and inside linebacker Jerrol Garcia-Williams completed comebacks from identical ACL/meniscus injuries that sidelined them in 2014. Against UC Davis, Stubblefield had six catches for 108 yards and a touchdown. Garcia-Williams, who moved from outside linebacker to the inside during training camp, had a career-high 15 tackles, including 12 solo. Pedroza is expected back for this week’s game against Wisconsin.

Next game: at Wisconsin, 5 p.m. Saturday (Big Ten Network)

Notable: This will be the Warriors’ second trip to the Midwest in two weeks. They earned $1.2 million for the Ohio State game. The Wisconsin check will be $1.1 million.

Stephen Tsai, Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Nevada – The Wolf Pack will likely learn more about themselves Saturday at Buffalo than in the first three games combined.

Nevada opened the season against UC Davis before playing two top-20 teams, Arizona and Texas A&M. Each of the games were decided by at least two touchdowns.

Coach Brian Polian said it’d be “difficult to gauge” his team this far, but that will be solved shortly. “The litmus test will start here over the next four or five weeks,” he said.

“The Mountain West doesn’t look like the Pac-12 and doesn’t look like the SEC,” Polian added. “We’re going to move forward on the schedule and we will look like the people that we’re playing.”

Next game: at Buffalo, 12:30 p.m. Saturday (ESPN3)

Notable: Nevada’s trip to Buffalo checks in at 2,125 miles, which is the sixth-longest trip any FBS team will make this season within the continental United States.

Chris Murray/Reno Gazette-Journal

San Diego State – At 1-2, the Aztecs’ record after three games is the same as it was at this juncture last year. Similar, too, are many of the statistics.

San Diego State has scored 71 points; the Aztecs scored 72 last year. They’ve allowed 72 points this year; they gave up 66 a year ago. They had 59 first downs last year; they have 60 this year.

They’ve allowed fewer passing yards this season (700 to 726) while yielding more on the ground (484 to 352).

The difference is that there are higher expectations for this current group – and the quality of South Alabama might have come as a surprise to casual observers – and that’s making Aztecs fans more restless than ever during head coach Rocky Long’s time here. They took to the message boards after Saturday’s 34-27 overtime loss to South Alabama to vent their frustration.

Another difficult test looms on Saturday when San Diego State travels to Penn State before Mountain West play opens in two weeks at home against Fresno State.

“I thought we’d be better at this time than we are,” Long said. “So we don’t have much more time left before the conference schedule starts. I anticipate that we’re going to make big-time improvements in the next week or two and play better in conference games than we have to this point.”

The Aztecs have thus far been burned by the big play. Of the eight touchdowns they’ve allowed in regulation, four have gone for 46 yards or longer.

Next game: at Penn State, 12:30 p.m. Saturday (Big Ten Network)

Notable: After having only 23 catches in 13 games last year, Donnel Pumphrey is San Diego State’s leading receiver through Week 3 with nine catches for 92 yards.

Tod Leonard, San Diego Union-Tribune

San Jose State – Even after coach Ron Caragher settled on his permanent starting quarterback going forward, that important position remains a question mark.

Kenny Potter was named the team’s starter entering last week’s game against Oregon State and he was on his way to backing up his coach’s decision when he suffered an ankle sprain on the first play of the second quarter and was sidelined the rest of the night.

That loss should have been mitigated considering how close the competition had been between Potter and senior Joe Gray. But Gray struggled in probably his toughest outing as a Spartan and San Jose State finished the game with No. 3 Malik Watson behind center.

Potter’s status for this week’s crucial matchup with rival Fresno State is uncertain. Both he and his coach have expressed optimism that he can suit up against the Bulldogs. But one of Potter’s key attributes is his ability to scramble and make things happen with his legs.

If Potter can’t go, it doesn’t seem to be an automatic that Caragher will go right back to Gray. Caragher has consistently emphasized the need for Gray to cut down on the mistakes that stalled the team often in 2014 and benched him against Oregon State after he threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown to put the Spartans down by two scores.

Next game: vs. Fresno State, 7:30 p.m. Saturday (CBS Sports Network)

Notable: Since 2013, the winner of this game has been awarded the Valley Trophy. San Jose State took the hardware in the inaugural game when it upset then-No. 16 Fresno State 62-52. The Bulldogs got their hands on the trophy last year with a 38-24 home win.

Jimmy Durkin, San Jose Mercury News

UNLV – Now the Rebels get to show whether hope truly exists for this season after opening with a bruising three-game stretch.

The Rebels (0-3) lost at Northern Illinois, to UCLA and at Michigan, and though they showed some promising signs in those games, they still haven’t proven what they could accomplish against comparable competition.

With Idaho State (1-2), a Football Championship Subdivision team, visiting Sam Boyd Stadium this Saturday, the Rebels have an excellent chance to get in the victory column. UNLV will need to find a way to win to have any chance to make something of this season.

Coach Tony Sanchez is trying to establish a higher standard for a program that has struggled for many years, and neither he nor his players were happy after Saturday’s 28-7 loss at Michigan despite a fairly promising effort

“We didn’t come here for moral victories,” first-year coach Tony Sanchez said. “We didn’t come here to look good. I’m proud of the idea that we fought, and we forced people into the fourth quarter and that people had to keep playing against us. I’m disappointed in the result, but I know if everybody stays the course and continues to improve, we’re going to win football games.”

Next game: vs. Idaho State, 6 p.m. Saturday (Mountain West Digital Network)

Notable: UNLV is on a nine-game losing streak, which is the second longest nationally. New Mexico State has lost 13 in a row. This also is UNLV’s longest skid since losing 10 in a row in 2006.

Mark Anderson, Las Vegas Review-Journal

Mountain Division

Air Force – Connor Cook looked very much like the future NFL gunslinger he’s touted to be, but the Falcons also did much of the shooting Saturday in East Lansing, Michigan.

And the Falcons’ shots were directed directly at their own feet.

Cook tied a school record with four touchdown passes for No. 4 Michigan State, but the Falcons walked away from a 35-21 defeat lamenting the many self-inflicted mistakes that crippled their chances in front of 74,211 fans at Spartan Stadium and a national ABC television audience.

“This loss hurts,” wide receiver Jalen Robinette said. “We didn’t come in here expecting just to compete. We expected to win.”

Next game: Oct. 3 at Navy

Notable: Air Force's first downfield pass of the game came 6 minutes, 22 seconds into the second half, a 38-yard touchdown pass from Karson Roberts to Robinette.

Brent Briggeman, The (Colorado Spring) Gazette

Boise State – The Broncos plan to employ a two-quarterback system Friday at Virginia to replace injured starter Ryan Finley, who sustained a broken bone in his right ankle last week against Idaho State. He’ll be out for about eight weeks.

Sophomore Tommy Stuart and true freshman Brett Rypien replaced Finley against Idaho State, leading the team to 45 of its 52 points. Stuart entered first, as previously planned, until coaches were convinced Finley’s injury was significant enough to justify playing Rypien.

Neither had played in a major college football game before. Stuart was 9 of 13 for 69 yards and a touchdown with three sacks and 46 rushing yards. Rypien was 8 of 9 for 126 yards while leading four scoring drives in four tries.

Both will play against Virginia, coach Bryan Harsin said.

“I did like the combination of Tommy and Ryp,” Harsin said. “What type of packages we put together this week and how much each one is going to have an opportunity to go in there and run it, that’s still a work in progress.”

Next game: at Virginia, 5 p.m. Friday (ESPN)

Notable: The Broncos have allowed 137 rushing yards this season at 1.7 yards per carry.

Chadd Cripe, (Boise) Idaho Statesman

Colorado State – Running backs, receivers and quarterbacks spend time at the start of every practice focusing on ball security. Defensive backs and linebackers work on intercepting passes and every defensive player is drilled over and over again on ways to strip the ball and force fumbles.

Yet, through three games this season, Colorado State has turned over the ball 11 times and taken it away just four. The Rams’ minus-7 turnover margin is tied for next-to-last among the nation’s 128 Football Bowl Subdivision programs, just one turnover ahead of Cincinnati.

The Rams have first-year starters at quarterback, running back and at three positions along the offensive line, not to mention a new offensive system under first-year coach Mike Bobo. So some turnovers, the coach said Monday, are inevitable.

But the Rams have made far too many, turning it over five times (three fumbles and two interceptions) against Savannah State, four times (two fumbles and two interceptions) against Minnesota and twice (two interceptions) against Colorado.

“It comes down to your fundamentals of holding the football,” Bobo said. “We’re not going to take a knee every down and say, ‘if we just don’t turn it over.’ We’ve got to play football. We’ve just got to do a better job protecting the ball.”

Next game: at UTSA, 4 p.m. Saturday (CBS Sports Network)

Notable: Colorado State’s live sheep mascot, CAM the Ram, died of old age the morning of the Colorado game. His successor, CAM No. 25, was on the Rams sideline during the game in Denver. ... Senior running back Treyous Jarrells has left the program, Bobo said Tuesday. He was the Rams’ second-leading rusher in 2014, running for 450 yards and six touchdowns.

Kelly Lyell, Fort Collins Coloradoan

New Mexico – The Lobos lost 34-10 Friday at Arizona State – a loss no worse, perhaps a little better, than expected.

It’s their 40-21 loss to Tulsa the week before that has an echo.

That week, coach Bob Davie talked at length about the importance of the Tulsa outcome to the 2015 season at large. “Pivotal” was a word he used.

Clearly, the folks who make bowl projections online saw it that way.

Several preseason projections had New Mexico playing in the postseason for the first time since 2007, but after the loss to Tulsa? The projectionists dropped the Lobos like a crazily bouncing football. In last week’s projections, and this week’s, New Mexico is nowhere to be found.

Next game: at Wyoming, noon Saturday (Root Sports)

Notable: Sophomore Lamar Jordan and junior Austin Apodaca both played at quarterback at Arizona State. It was the third straight game in which both have played. Davie, saying he hasn’t been satisfied with either, said both probably will play at Wyoming.

Rick Wright, Albuquerque Journal

Utah State – Senior quarterback Chuckie Keeton will miss four to six weeks because of a sprained knee, coach Matt Wells said Tuesday.

Sophomore Kent Myers will replace Keeton as Utah State’s starter against Colorado State on Oct. 3. The Aggies have a bye this week. They visit Fresno State on Oct. 10.

Keeton has played only 12 games since the 2012 season because of injuries. He started all three this year, including a 12-9 win over Southern Utah and losses to Utah (24-14) and Washington (31-17).

Asked if this week’s bye comes at a good time, Utah State coach Matt Wells smiled and said, “It’s great timing. … (But) I don’t know any coach who ever says it’s not a great time for a bye.”

Next game: vs. Colorado State, Oct. 3

Notable: Centers intercepted a pass from freshman quarterback Jake Browning on the first play of the second half against Washington. It was the first takeaway by Utah State’s defense this season.

Steve Luhm, Salt Lake Tribune

Wyoming – There was some improvement for the Cowboys in their 31-14 loss at Washington State last week.

Sophomore running back Brian Hill ran for 139 yards, and the return of redshirt senior starting quarterback Cameron Coffman from a knee injury saw him go 25 of 36 for 296 yards with two touchdowns. Wyoming’s defense generated its first turnover of the season with an interception by redshirt freshman walk-on strong safety Marcus Epps. It also had three quarterback sacks after only one in the first two games combined.

However, the offense squandered chances to tie or possibly take the lead in the second half when it had the ball in Washington State territory, and the defense gave up two scoring plays of 35 and 36 yards.

“As a team we’ve taken each week as a new slate,” coach Craig Bohl said. “While there’s great optimism because we’re in conference play, our main goal is to take another step forward to improve as a football team.”

Next game: vs. New Mexico, noon Saturday (Root Sports)

Notable: Sophomore starting cornerback Robert Priester must sit out the first half this week after being ejected in the second half at Washington State for targeting.

Robert Gagliardi, Wyoming Tribune Eagle

This story was originally published September 22, 2015 at 7:25 PM with the headline "Mountain West football notes: Conference teams have lost 21 straight nonconference games in FBS."