College football 2005: This one is wide open

Steve Guiremand

Thursday, Sept. 1, 2005 | 10:21 a.m.

The 2004 Mountain West Conference race could have been summed up in one word: Utah.

The Utes averaged an amazing 50.1 points while cruising to a perfect 7-0 mark in MWC action. Only Air Force (49-35) came within two touchdowns of Urban Meyer's squad which went on to cap a 12-0 season with a 35-7 thrashing of Pitt in the Fiesta Bowl.

Utah has been picked in the MWC preseason media poll to three-peat this season. But four teams, including New Mexico, Wyoming and BYU, received first place votes in what figures to be a much more competitive race this season.

"This is one of the best-balanced leagues in the country," New Mexico coach Rocky Long said.

Even first-year Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham, who takes over for Urban Meyer who left for Florida, is realistic that the Utes won't be able to dominate the conference again this season.

"There's no question in my mind that this Mountain West Conference -- this year, especially -- is a wide-open race," Whittingham said. "Most years you can pick a team or two that really have no chance. But I don't know if you can do that this year. I think every team in the league at least has an outside shot of winning this thing."

Here's a look at how the conference, shapes up:

Air Force FALCONS

COACH: : Fisher DeBerry. At Air Force and overall: 161-94-1; 22nd year.

2004 RECORD: 5-6 overall; 3-4 MWC (Tied for 4th).

RETURNING STARTERS: 13

KEY PLAYER: QB Shaun Carney.

KEY LOSS: LB John Rudzinski.

MWC PRESEASON POLL PICK: 7th.

OUTLOOK: The Falcons had one of the conference's worst defenses last season allowing 31.1 points per game and a pathetic 4.9 yards per rush. So it wasn't exactly good news when the player Fisher DeBerry thought might be his best defender, linebacker Marcus Brown, was booted out of school this summer for a honor code violation. Still, the defense figures to be improved, especially in the secondary. And the Falcon offense, led by hard-nosed sophomore quarterback Shaun Carney and a big, veteran offensive line, should be difficult to stop. Whether Air Force can snap a rare two-year bowl drought could well be determined during the middle of the season when the Falcons must travel to Utah, Colorado State and Navy in consecutive weeks.

BYU COUGARS

COACH: : Bronco Mendenhall. At BYU and overall, 0-0; 1st year.

2004 RECORD: 5-6 overall, 4-3 MWC (Tied for 3rd).

RETURNING STARTERS: 13.

KEY PLAYER: QB John Beck.

KEY LOSS: P/PK Matt Payne.

MWC PRESEASON POLL PICK: 4th.

OUTLOOK: Defensive coordinator Bronco Mendenhall, who looks younger than most of his players, takes over a team that underachieved badly the last couple of years under Gary Crowton. The Cougs don't lack for talent, especially on offense where quarterback John Beck, wide receiver Todd Watkins and running back Curtis Brown are all all-MWC caliber. Mendenhall got a big boost for his defense when all-MWC linebacker Paul Walkenhorst, who sat out the last two seasons battling injuries and depression, decided to return for his senior year. He and junior Cameron Jensen should help form one of the conference's top linebacking corps. A big plus for the Cougars this year is the schedule. BYU opens with three straight home games against Boston College, Eastern Illinois and TCU and could be 3-0 before heading off to San Diego State on Oct. 1.

Colorado State RAMS

COACH: : Sonny Lubick. At Colorado State and overall, 95-51; 13th year.

2004 RECORD: 4-7 overall, 3-4 MWC (Tied for 4th).

RETURNING STARTERS: 18.

KEY PLAYER: QB Justin Holland.

KEY LOSS: Joel Dreessen.

MWC PRESEASON POLL PICK: 5th.

OUTLOOK: Injuries mixed with a porous defense and a tough schedule resulted in Colorado State's first losing season in 11 seasons in 2004. The Rams' 4-7 mark was the worst in Sonny Lubick's 12-year regime in Fort Collins. CSU should be much improved on offense with the return of strong-armed quarterback Justin Holland, who missed half of the season with a broken leg, and the addition of UCLA transfer Nnamdi Ohaeri at running back. Ohaeri, who played defensive back for the Bruins, was voted the conference's top newcomer at MWC media day. And the Rams have one of the conference's top wide receiver groups led by senior David Anderson. Whether CSU can go bowling again will depend on how well Lubick can patch up a defense that was positively dreadful at times in 2004, allowing 221.7 yards per game on the ground. The Rams received some bad news in that re gard last week when senior strong safety Ben Stratton, one of the league's hardest hitters, was lost for the year with a le! ft knee injury. Another key starter, linebacker Luke Adkins, has also been slow to return from knee surgery and could miss the start of the season.

New Mexico LOBOS

COACH: : Rocky Long. At New Mexico and overall, 40-45; 8th year.

2004 RECORD: 7-5 overall, 5-2 MWC (2nd).

RETURNING STARTERS: 16.

KEY PLAYER: RB DonTrell Moore.

KEY LOSS: LB Nick Speegle.

MWC PRESEASON POLL PICK: 2nd.

OUTLOOK: If you go by the old adage that defense wins championships, then look no further than Rocky Long's Lobos. New Mexico's blitz-from-all-angles defense allowed just 18.7 points per game a year ago, tops in the MWC. The Lobos also ranked 17th in the nation in run defense allowing just 108.2 yards per game and 2.8 yards per carry. Whether New Mexico can finally snap Utah's grip on the MWC title will depend on the knee of senior running back DonTrell Moore, the preseason offensive player of the year. Moore, who has broken the 1,000-yard rushing mark in each of his three previous seasons, underwent surgery to repair a torn ACL in early February but is expected to be close to 100 percent by Monday's season-opener against UNLV. The Lobos also boost one of the league's top offensive lines led by 6-foot-7 senior center Ryan Cook. The last team to beat Utah? It was New Mexico, 47-35, in 2003 in Salt Lake City.

San Diego State AZTECS

COACH: : Tom Craft. At San Diego State and overall, 14-22; 4th year.

2004 RECORD: 4-7 overall, 2-5 MWC (7th).

RETURNING STARTERS: 14.

KEY PLAYER: RB Lynell Hamilton.

KEY LOSS: LB Kirk Morrison.

MWC PRESEASON POLL PICK: 8th.

OUTLOOK: Fourth-year Aztecs COACH: Tom Craft is rumored to be on the hot seat after compiling just a 14-22 record in his first three seasons. The good news is that sophomore tailback Lynell Hamilton, who sat out the 2004 season while recuperating from a serious ankle injury, is reportedly back to his freshman form when he was named the league's top newcomer after rushing for 1,087 yards in just 10 games. The bad news is the Dark Side defense returns just three starters and must replace its entire linebacking corps including NFL picks Kirk Morrison and Matt McCoy. Even worse news is the schedule. The Aztecs open against a UCLA squad they have never beaten in 20 previous tries and follow that up with back-to-back road games at Air Force and Ohio State. An 0-3 start is a very real possibility.

TCU HORNED FROGS

COACH: : Gary Patterson. At TCU and overall, 32-17; 5th year.

2004 RECORD: 5-6 overall, 3-5 C-USA (Tied for 6th).

RETURNING STARTERS: 13.

KEY PLAYER: QB Tye Gunn.

KEY LOSS: OT Anthony Alabi.

MWC PRESEASON POLL PICK: 6th.

OUTLOOK: The Horned Frogs hop into their third conference in eight years. TCU was a combined 21-4 in 2002 and 2003 before falling to 5-6 in their final year in Conference-USA. A big reason for the decline was a defense that allowed 33.9 points per game, including 70 against Texas Tech and 55 against Louisville. TCU should be able to score points with anybody in the Mountain West especially if injury-plagued quarterback Tye Gunn can stay healthy. The Horned Frogs boost a pair of former 1,000-yard rushers in Lonta Hobbs and Robert Merrill and have one of the conference's top receivers in junior Cory Rodgers. --

UNLV REBELS

COACH: : Mike Sanford. At UNLV and overall, 0-0. 1st year.

2004 RECORD: 2-9 overall, 1-6 MWC (8th).

RETURNING STARTERS: 10.

KEY PLAYER: QB Shane Steichen.

KEY LOSS: LB Ryan Claridge.

MWC PRESEASON POLL PICK: 9th.

OUTLOOK: Mike Sanford replaces one of his mentors, John Robinson, and brings his highly successful shotgun spread option offense down from with him from Utah. Unfortunately, Alex Smith and Steve Savoy weren't part of the package. Junior Shane Steichen, erratic as a part-time starter each of the two previous seasons, seems to have made big strides in fall camp with the new offense and should benefit greatly with the return of senior tight end Greg Estandia and junior H-Back Tremayne Kirkland from injury. Both have NFL-caliber talent. For the Rebels to make a run at a winning record, however, they'll have to improve greatly on defense.

Utah UTES

COACH: : Kyle Whittingham. At Utah and overall, 0-0. 1st year.

2004 RECORD: 12-0 overall, 7-0 MWC (1st).

RETURNING STARTERS: 12.

KEY PLAYER: QB Brian Johnson.

KEY LOSS: QB Alex Smith.

MWC PRESEASON POLL PICK: 1st.

OUTLOOK: Urban Who? Despite losing head COACH: Urban Meyer to Florida, offensive cordinator Mike Sanford to UNLV and Heisman finalist Alex Smith to the NFL, the Utes were picked to three-peat as Mountain West champs in the conference preseason poll. Utah returns 12 starters from its Fiesta Bowl champion squad but suffered heavy losses on offense. Sophomore Brian Johnson will try to replace Smith, the top pick in the NFL draft, but won't have all-MWC picks Paris Warren and Steve Savoy to throw to. Look for the Utes to rely more on the run game and senior tailback Quinton Ganther. Whittingham's defense, which got overlooked thanks to Smith and company, should be strong again.

Wyoming COWBOYS

COACH: : Joe Glenn. At Wyoming: 11-13, 3rd year; overall: 169-72-1, 21st year.

2004 RECORD: 7-5 overall, 3-4 MWC (Tied for 4th).

RETURNING STARTERS: 19.

KEY PLAYER: QB Corey Bramlet.

KEY LOSS: DT Zach Morris.

MWC PRESEASON POLL PICK: 3rd.

OUTLOOK: The Cowboys have made a few preseason top 25 polls ... and for good reason. Wyoming has 19 starters back from a squad that rallied to upset UCLA, 24-21, in the Las Vegas Bowl including senior quarterback Corey Bramlet and senior wide receiver Jovon Bouknight, arguably the best all-around offensive player in the conference. The defense has eight starters back including a pair of all-conference caliber corners in junior Derrick Martin and senior Terrance Butler. And in a conference that figures to have more than its share of nailbiters, the Pokes hold a big edge in special teams with Bouknight, all-conference placekicker Deric Yaussi and punter Adam Brooks. Wyoming's biggest obstacle could be a tough September schedule that includes road games at Florida, Air Force and revenge-minded Ole Miss.

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