Week 4 Thoughts and Week 5 Preview

So I attended the BYU vs. Air Force game, and came away very impressed with the Cougars. They have always seemed to have a knack at shutting down the Falcons' option attack, and this game was no different. The tone was set early on with Quinn Gooch's interception, and the defensive line and linebackers dominated and gave Shaun Carney and their other backs a load of problems.

I think Air Force coach Troy Calhoun was way too obvious in his strategy. He saw Tulsa light up the BYU secondary the week before, and what does he do on the first play of the game? He has Carney attempt a deep bomb. Duh. Who would have thought? BYU was right on top of it. Carney is no Paul Smith, and BYU's secondary was not about to get lit up again. Throughout the game, I thought Calhoun's strategy was poor as he repeatedly had Carney roll out and attempt passes. He was hammered all day long, and only completed one noteworthy pass.

New Mexico is going to do the same thing, I think. Only I think Rocky Long is smarter right now than Calhoun is. Everyone is comparing the Lobos' offensive attack to Tulsa's, and everyone is warning the cougar faithful that the scoreboard will be lit up in a high-scoring duel. In my opinion, I don't think BYU's secondary is that bad. Yeah, they got burned up by Tulsa, but you must also consider that the Golden Hurricane had two weeks to prepare and install a dozen trick plays. The Lobos have had no luxury. Look for them to test BYU deep early, but come up fruitless on the scoreboard.

New Mexico will then revert to Rodney Ferguson and their running game, and I think he will spark a couple of scoring drives for the Lobos. But it won't be enough.

BYU will win this game 34-21. The Cougars will score a touchdown on their first drive of the game to take an early lead, and they will eventually lead 17-0. The lobos will score a touchdown with less than a minute to go in the half, and they will make it 17-14 early in the third. But BYU's offense will go crazy in the 4th quarter with two more touchdowns and a field goal to win it fairly comfortably.

For the first game this season, Max Hall will enjoy a sack-free day. He'll complete 34-of-42 passes for 369 yards, with 3 TD and 1 INT. Unga and Tonga will combine for 87 yards rushing, but will make their mark on the receiving end. Austin Collie will also get loose for a 100+ yard receiving game, including a long-bomb touchdown score.

As for the Utes, there is not really much to say about their win and loss. Most people have tried to put this roller coaster ride in words, but they just end up shaking their heads. I am doing the same thing right now as I type.

Utah will come out more focused and play a solid game against their old rivals from the dairy farm. It won't be as dominating as their effort over UCLA, but a part of me thinks that it would be good for the Utes to play a game in which they just win it solidly, without too much hullaballoo and excitement. They need a week where they aren't being talked about too much, where they can focus on football and their next opponent. I think this is what will happen. Utah will beat the Agriculturalists 27-10. They'll have their struggles, but they'll prove to be the obvious better team.

As for the UNLV Rebels, I can't stand them. I have always been more or less apathetic towards them, but to watch how much smack talk Mike Sanford and his players are running right now, I just kind of hope they get crushed by Nevada-Reno this week. Maybe Sanford ought to focus on winning a second conference game before he claims himself the next Urban Meyer. If Nevada or Air Force can't get them to be quiet, I have a feeling BYU will do the job on October 13 in their Biannual Home Game Against UNLV in Las Vegas.