Mountain West Players
Blog
News
ACC |
Big East
| Big Ten
| Big 12
| C-USA
MAC
|
M-West
| Pac 10
| SEC
|
Sun Belt
| WAC
Players
ACC |
Big East
| Big Ten
| Big 12
| C-USA
MAC
|
M-West
| Pac 10
| SEC
|
Sun Belt
| WAC
Storylines
ACC |
Big East
| Big Ten
| Big 12
| C-USA
MAC
|
M-West
| Pac 10
| SEC
| Sun Belt
| WAC
By Matt Willens
Players To Watch in
Week Two ...
Air Force- DT Ben Garland @ Wyoming
The junior nose tackle is one of the
Mountain West Conferences’ most talented and physically imposing
defensive lineman standing 6-5 275-pounds. Ben Garland is the
biggest player on an undersized Falcon defense, and will need to play up
to his size on Saturday to compete with an experienced Wyoming offensive
line which triggers their solid run game.
BYU- TE Dennis Pitta @ Washington
Dennis Pitta
led all MWC pass catchers in receiving yards in BYU’s week one victory
over Northern Iowa with 213 yards on 11 receptions. The preseason All
MWC TE was too much to handle for the N. Iowa secondary. The 6-5
250-pound junior will look to repeat his week one performance in a week
two non-conference showdown in Seattle versus Washington.
Colorado St.- TE Kory Sperry Vs Sacramento
St.
The CSU 2007 season might have been more
successful if not for the torn ACL in the knee of big TE Kory Sperry.
Sperry was a two time all state basketball star in high school, but
chose football and now is considered a top tight end NFL prospect.
Stopping the athletic senior TE should be handful for division two
Sacramento St. come Saturday.
New Mexico- DB Ian Clark Vs Texas A&M
Clark plays the Lobo position (defensive
back/linebacker hybrid spot) on the New Mexico defense. The New Mexico
defense ranked 13th nationally in 2007 in large part of the
play of the hometown boy Ian Clark. In the week one loss to TCU,
the 6-0 210-pound junior had 11 total tackles and an interception to
lead the Lobo defense.
San Diego St.- WR Darren Mougey @ Notre Dame
Being upset on your home field against a
division two school to open your season is not what any head coach hopes
for his team. This all became reality for Chuck Long in week one versus
Cal Poly. 6-6 senior receiver Darren Mougey can utilize his
height and athleticism for the Aztec passing game to be successful
against Notre Dame in their season opener in South Bend on Saturday.
TCU- DE Jerry Hughes Vs Stephen F. Austin
A major question mark for the Horned Frogs
in 2008 was finding a replacement for three time first team all MWC DE
Chase Ortiz. If the performance by Jerry Hughes in the week one
win over New Mexico is an indication of the future, then TCU is in good
hands. The 6-2 248-pound junior was named MWC Defensive Player of the
Week in week one finishing with 6 tackles, a sack, an interception as
well as a forced fumble and a recovered fumble.
UNLV- WR Casey Flair @ Utah
The former walk on from Alaska has the
second longest active streak for receptions in a game in the nation (36
consecutive games with a catch). Casey Flair had four catches for
53 yards in last week’s victory over Utah St. The senior is one of the
MWC top WR, and is in the top ten in most all UNLV receiving record
books. The Rebels will need a major contribution from Flair on Saturday
against Utah in Salt Lake City.
Utah- RB Matt Asiata Vs UNLV
It appears after Utah’s week one win in
Michigan that there will be a two headed monster coming out of the
backfield for the Ute’s in 2008. Matt Asiata along with Darrell
Mack will be the monster that MWC defenses will have to face all year.
The junior ran for 77 yards on 13 attempts against the Wolverine D last
week. Asiata broke his leg in the first game in 2007, but is looking to
bounce back with a big year for Utah in 2008.
Wyoming- DT John Fletcher Vs Air Force
The preseason All MWC defensive lineman
selection was also added to the Lombardi Award (top interior lineman)
watch list this past week. The 6-6 280-pound junior was a second team
All MWC selection in his 2007 sophomore season where he tallied 11.5
sacks which ranked 11th in the country. John Fletcher
and the Cowboys squeaked by Ohio last week and look to contain the
always strong Air Force running attack on Saturday.