College preview for 9/4/10

Mountain West Conference:

Power Rankings:
1. Texas Christian
2. Utah
3. Brigham Young
4. Air Force
5. Wyoming
6. San Diego State
7. UNLV
8. Colorado State
9. New Mexico

Pittburgh at Utah (17-35)
Colorado at Colorado State (24-27)
New Mexico at Oregon (3-35)
Nichols State at San Diego State (17-45)
Oregon State vs TCU at Arlington, TX (22-35)
Wisconsin at UNLV (28-24)
Southern Utah at Wyoming (10-35)
Western State at Air Force (3-42)

Game of the Week:
Washington at BYU (35-29) Jake Locker is the real deal, but no one knows how to grab defeat from the jaws of victory like the Huskies did last year. This time, the two inexperienced BYU quarterbacks will come up just short of a big finish.

WAC

Power Rankings

1. Boise State
2. Nevada
3. Fresno State
4. Idaho
5. Utah State
6. Louisiana Tech
7. Hawaii
8. New Mexico State
9. San Jose State

Cincinnati at Fresno State (32-29)
USC at Hawaii (32-17)
North Dakota at Idaho (15-49)
Grambling at Louisiana Tech (13-28)
Eastern Washington at Nevada (14-42)
New Mexico State (Idle)
San Jose State at Alabama (3-52)
Utah State at Oklahoma (21-52)

Game of the Week:
Boise State vs Virginia Tech at Washington, DC (45-40) The hopes of Boise State and the rest of the Mid-Majors are riding on this game. It will be a chance for Kellen Moore to prove that he is a Heisman contender. No Statue of Liberty plays on this one, however. But there will be a lot of end-zone turf worn out.

Big Sky Conference

Power Rankings

1. Montana
2. Montana State
3. Weber State
4. Eastern Washington
5. Northern Arizona
6. Northern Colorado
7. Sacramento State
8. Portland State
9. Idaho State

Weber State at Boston College (14-35)
Western State at Montana (7-57)
Fort Lewis at Montana State (10-27)
Eastern Washington at Nevada (14-42)
Sacramento State at Stanford (3-50)
Adams State at Northern Colorado (10-28)
Portland State at Arizona State (15-46)
Western New Mexico at Northern Arizona (14-35)

Game of the Week:
Montana-Western at Idaho State (28-31) Because the rest of the games look pretty bloody to me. This one could be exciting, but sloppy. It will likely be a very uninteresting week full of money games for the Big Sky. If anyone else were playing Montana Western, it would be a blowout as well.

Big Sky Road Trip of the Week:
Silver City, NM to Flagstaff, Arizona for Western New Mexico at Northern Arizona
327 Miles, 5 hours and 45 minutes
It is a nice drive through the Gila National Forrest in Western New Mexico before crossing the border into Arizona. The trip takes you through the heart of Arizona's pioneer communities, including Show Low and Snowflake. You will get the chance to drive through the Petrified Forrest National Park and take another site trip to the Meteor Crater before arriving in Flagstaff. If you enjoy the Desert Southwest, this is one of the best road trips you can take.