TCU slams BYU … what does it mean for UNLV?

By Ryan Greene

Friday, Oct. 17, 2008 | 1:28 a.m.

So, it looks like BYU going from a two-point favorite at TCU to a two-point underdog in the course of less than a week wasn't that strange after all.

The ninth-ranked Cougars - and probably their BCS hopes, for that matter - were thrashed down in Fort Worth Thursday night by the (barely) unranked Horned Frogs.

The TCU defense, which entered play allowing just 20.7 rushing yards per game, only gave up 23 to BYU, while sophomore quarterback Andy Dalton threw two TD passes in his return from injury in a 32-7 win.

This obviously shakes things up in a big way in the Mountain West. No. 14 Utah, who hosts Colorado State this weekend, is now the league's lone remaining undefeated team. The Utes are still in control of their own BCS hopes.

What does it all mean for 3-3 UNLV, though, who starts the second half of its season at 7 p.m. Saturday night against Air Force at Sam Boyd Stadium?

Well ...

-The Rebels now have the misfortune of playing a BYU team on the rebound next Saturday in Provo. Of course, the Cougars could respond one of two ways to their first letdown of the year. On one hand, they could be pumped up, playing without the pressure of carrying a perfect mark. On the other, there could be a massive hangover, and the home crowd may not be that pumped full of life. Word on the street is that BCS fever has swept Provo this fall, and this loss could have quite an effect on the town's psyche. As a point of reference, last season, following their first loss (a 27-17 setback at UCLA), the Cougs lost yet again, dropping a 55-47 shootout at Tulsa. Then again, after that, they won 10 straight, including a 17-16 revenge victory over UCLA in the Las Vegas Bowl.

-Oh yeah, TCU comes to Sam Boyd a week later. The chances of Gary Patterson's club rolling into Vegas still hot are highly likely, as they host lowly Wyoming next Saturday.

-Now that BYU likely fades from the BCS picture, there are plenty of teams probably pulling for Utah to run the table and nab, say, a Fiesta Bowl bid. Seven of the nine MWC teams have a realistic shot right now at getting to the six-win benchmark, earning bowl eligibility. But remember, the league only has four guaranteed bowl tie-ins. Should Utah stumble (they still have BYU and TCU left on the schedule), that means the Utes, Cougars and Horned Frogs likely snatch up three of those. And what this does is put the pressure on the rest of the pack (i.e. Air Force, Colorado State, New Mexico and UNLV) to get to seven wins rather than six to make a bowl bid a sure thing rather than just a chance.

-Need added significance to UNLV's Saturday showdown with the Academy? Well, you've got it. The winner picks up a nice inside track to prime bowl position.