Now over halfway through the season, conference races are starting to become clearer and the Western 20 is becoming more and more entertaining.
Let’s check out what the Western 20 was able to put out onto the field last weekend.
New Mexico State vs. Sam Houston
Final | New Mexico State 30, Sam Houston 24
Despite the adversity the New Mexico State Aggies have faced this season, they now stand tied for second in Conference USA with their win over Sam Houston Wednesday night.
The Aggies had a career night from running back James Jones in their victory over the Bearkats. Jones rushed for a career-high 178 yards and a touchdown; he now stands 14th in the nation in rushing yards with 777.
Nine different Aggies caught a pass from quarterback Adam Damante, who finished the night with 160 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception on 19-of-26 passing. AJ Williams led all receivers in yards with 52 and in touchdown catches with two. The two touchdowns were Williams’ first since Week 1.
After Sam Houston opened the second half with an 81-yard touchdown pass to take a 17-14 lead, New Mexico State rallied with 16 straight points to take a lead it wouldn’t relinquish the rest of the night. It was a night of short possessions: of the 31 total drives, only four had eight or more plays.
The Aggies are now 3-4 on the season with a 2-1 CUSA record. The Bearkats fall to 1-6 and 0-3 in conference play. The win was New Mexico State’s first ever at Sam Houston.
New Mexico State will finish a stretch of three straight Wednesday night games this week in a home matchup against CUSA-leading Jacksonville State.
Air Force vs. Wyoming
Final | Air Force 14, Wyoming 28
A week after rushing for four scores in a win against Northern Illinois, Wyoming quarterback Tyler Hughes accounted for three touchdowns, one rushing, in an upset win over Air Force.
Hughes and the Cowboys were touchdown underdogs at home against a Falcon team that had been playing well as of late, but the Cowboys never trailed after Hughes’ 68-yard touchdown run on the second play of the game.
Hughes finished with 146 yards on the ground, his second straight game with 140+ rushing yards.
Air Force still put up gaudy rushing numbers, with 304 yards on the night to bring its season average to 337.4 per game, but Wyoming held the Falcons without a rushing touchdown, a first for Air Force this season.
After a touchdown to open the second half, Air Force fumbled on two consecutive drives before Wyoming scored to go up 28-14 with 2:59 left in the game. Air Force lost three fumbles on the night, its first lost fumbles of the season.
The win puts Wyoming at 4-1 in the Mountain West, alone in second place, while Air Force drops to 3-2, tied for fourth with North Dakota State.
The Falcons head back home to face UConn in a nonconference matchup on Halloween afternoon, while Wyoming goes on bye before traveling to UNLV.
Hawai’i vs. Northern Illinois
Final | Hawai’i 56, Northern Illinois 21
Hawai’i scored a season-high 56 points for its first Mountain West win against a hapless Northern Illinois team.
The Rainbow Warriors got hat tricks from Micah Alejado, who threw three touchdown passes, and DeVon Rice, who ran for three scores. The 56 points were the most Northern Illinois has given up this season.
Hawai’i traveled 4,255 miles to DeKalb, Illinois, to take on the Huskies, the farthest any FBS team has ever traveled for a conference game.
DeAree Rogers caught eight passes for 115 yards and two touchdowns for Northern Illinois, season highs in yards and touchdowns for the Huskies’ No. 1 receiver.
Hawai’i now stands at 2-6 on the year with a 1-4 conference record. Northern Illinois drops to 0-7 overall and 0-3 in its first year in the Mountain West.
Hawai’i goes on bye, while Northern Illinois travels to Sin City to take on UNLV on Halloween night.
Sacramento State vs. Ball State
Final | Sacramento State 17, Ball State 34
In the first-ever Ball-Sac Bowl, the Ball State Cardinals came out on top against the Sacramento State Hornets 34-17.
The Hornets, now 0-5 in their first season in the MAC, took a 10-7 lead after a 65-yard house call by Jace Wilson, their first lead since going up 3-0 against Bowling Green on Oct. 10. Ball State struck back with touchdowns on back-to-back drives to take a lead it would never relinquish.
Wilson led the team in catches, receiving yards, and touchdowns with a 3/89/1 stat line. The 89 receiving yards are more than he had in any single season of his four-year career at UTSA and Sacramento State.
Sacramento State falls to 1-7 on the year, dead last in the MAC. The Hornets are still looking for their first win against an FBS team this year.
Sacramento State is back in action Friday night at home against Kent State.
San Jose State vs. Nevada
Final | San Jose State 13, Nevada 28
The Nevada Wolf Pack won for only the second time since a season-opening win against Western Kentucky, beating a battered San Jose State squad at home.
The Wolf Pack were led by Luke Duncan, who finished with 178 passing yards and two touchdowns, and Marshaun Brown, who had five catches for 52 yards and a touchdown while also throwing a 32-yard touchdown pass. The two total touchdowns, five catches, and 52 receiving yards were all career highs for Brown, a Reno native.
Through three quarters, Nevada held San Jose State to only 70 total yards, three first downs, and 0-for-10 on third downs. The Wolf Pack defense racked up four sacks and seven tackles for loss, with edge Dylan Labarbera leading the way in both with two sacks and three TFLs.
The Spartans trailed just 7-3 at halftime but couldn’t keep it together as the game progressed. True freshman Daniel Rolovich started at quarterback before being injured and replaced by Robert McDaniel. The previously injured Luke Weaver stepped in during the fourth quarter and led the Spartans’ only touchdown drive of the game.
San Jose State finished with 199 total yards on offense, its lowest in a single game this season.
With the loss, the Spartans fall to 2-2 in conference and 4-4 overall. The Wolf Pack, also 2-2 in Mountain West play, now hold the tiebreaker.
San Jose State returns home to face Mountain West-leading New Mexico on Saturday, while Nevada faces an extremely difficult matchup at AP No. 7 and undefeated UCLA, also on Saturday.
Boise State vs. Washington State
Final | Boise State 31, Washington State 10
Boise State extended its win streak since a season-opening loss to then-No. 2 Oregon with a 31-10 win at Washington State, a game that was tied 10-all going into the fourth quarter.
The Broncos have had a relatively easy time in their first Pac-12 season, but the Cougars put up more of a fight than expected.
Washington State forced four punts on seven Boise State drives through the first three quarters. The Cougars, now 1-7 and 0-4 in Pac-12 play, never led, but they kept the game much closer than anticipated against the now-AP No. 21 Broncos.
Bronco running back Dylan Riley took over in the fourth quarter, scoring on runs of 33 and 72 yards to seal the game. Riley finished with 128 yards, maintaining his nation-leading rushing total that now stands at 963 yards through seven games. Since being held to 50 yards against Oregon, Riley has been held under 125 yards only once.
Washington State started freshman quarterback Owen Eshelman for the second straight game after incumbent starter Caden Pinnick was benched. Eshelman finished with 191 yards and an interception. He also took four sacks, two of them from Bronco defensive lineman Lopez Sanusi, who now has three in his last two games.
The Broncos return to the blue turf to take on Texas State in a Halloween night showdown. The Cougars travel to San Diego State, also on Saturday.
San Diego State vs. Colorado State
Final | San Diego State 49, Colorado State 56
Hauss Hejny made a triumphant return for Colorado State as the Rams took down San Diego State in a 56-49 shootout in Fort Collins.
Hejny, who hadn’t played since injuring his hamstring on Sept. 19, threw for 333 yards and three touchdowns while adding 85 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. The talented sophomore quarterback helped the Rams snap a four-game losing streak.
The 56 points are the most the Rams have scored against an FBS opponent this season. The Aztecs have given up more only once this season, in a 66-14 loss at Oregon State.
San Diego State edged Colorado State in yardage 565-549 but couldn’t capitalize against the worst defense in college football.
The Aztecs were led by true freshman quarterback Stone Saunders, making his second career start, with 369 yards and two touchdowns. Saunders also threw two crucial interceptions, one of which was returned 38 yards for a pick-six.
The Aztecs trailed by 14 midway through the fourth quarter, but a 99-yard touchdown drive after a Hejny fumble at the 1 brought them within one score. San Diego State couldn’t recover the ensuing onside kick, sealing the game for the Rams.
San Diego State falls to 3-5 overall and 2-2 in Pac-12 play. Colorado State improves to 3-4 with a 1-2 conference record.
The Aztecs return home to take on Washington State on Saturday, while the Rams travel to Logan to face Utah State on Halloween afternoon.
Utah State vs. Texas State
Final | Utah State 17, Texas State 20
In a back-and-forth affair, the Texas State Bobcats came out on top against the visiting Utah State Aggies.
It was a messy game for both teams, and it came down to four long drives in the fourth quarter. The Aggies held the Bobcats to two field goals on drives of 11 and 13 plays while scoring a trick-play touchdown on a 10-play drive of their own. But after a 13-play drive that came down to the final five seconds, kicker Kian Afrookhteh missed a potential game-tying 48-yarder to seal the win for the Bobcats.
Texas State got on the board early with a 100-yard kickoff return touchdown after a Utah State field goal to open the game, but the Bobcats could muster only one more touchdown the rest of the way, a Brad Jackson run early in the third quarter.
Utah State falls to 2-5 overall and 1-2 in the Pac-12 after picking up its first conference win last week against Washington State. Texas State improves to 2-1 in conference play and 4-3 overall.
The Aggies return to Logan to face Colorado State on Halloween, while the Bobcats travel to Boise State for a Saturday night matchup.
North Dakota State vs. New Mexico
Final | North Dakota State 16, New Mexico 21
In the Elevation Change Game of the Week, the New Mexico Lobos took down the North Dakota State Bison 21-16 in a relatively comfortable win.
New Mexico never trailed, despite a first-half stretch in which the teams traded punts on eight straight drives. The Lobos gashed the Bison for 187 yards and two touchdowns on the ground while holding the visitors’ rushing attack to only 53 yards and no touchdowns. Lobo running back Kiefer Sibley led the way with 91 yards and a touchdown.
Bison quarterback Nathan Hayes had his second-highest passing total of the year with 198 yards, but a costly pick-six early in the fourth quarter sealed the game for New Mexico.
Both teams came into this week’s matchup allowing fewer than 12 points a game, but the Lobos’ offense was too much for the Bison to handle, giving New Mexico a commanding lead in the Mountain West.
Following the loss, the Bison are 3-2 in conference play after starting 2-0 and sit at 6-2 on the year in their first season at the FBS level. The Lobos are unbeaten in Mountain West play at 3-0 and stand at 6-1 overall, with their only loss coming at then-No. 24 Oklahoma, 14-6.
North Dakota State returns home to take on the lowly UTEP Miners on Halloween. New Mexico travels west to take on San Jose State, also on Halloween.