By Gio Gaxiola — Reporter
The 2021 College football season is coming to an end. With only two more weeks left in the season teams all across the country are finding ways to finish strong and get into a bowl game. Here are the results from Week 10 in the Mountain West Conference:
No. 22 San Diego State (9-1, 5-1 MW) 23 Nevada (7-3, 4-2 MW) 21
The Aztecs were able to deny the Wolf Pack a come-from-behind victory thanks to the leg of junior kicker Matt Arazia, whose two field goals in the fourth quarter was the difference maker. The senior running back duo of Greg Bell and Chance Bell was a nice one-two punch for the Aztecs. G. Bell had 16 rushes for 106 yards, while C. Bell had 12 rushes for 55 yards and one touchdown. Nevada quarterback Carson Strong had a solid game in the loss, completing 34 of his 48 pass attempts for 349 yards and three touchdowns. Two of those touchdowns went to senior wide receiver Romeo Doubs to go along with his nine catches and 127 receiving yards. The Aztecs will hit the road to play UNLV on Friday night. The Wolf Pack will also play on Friday at home against Air Force.
UNLV (2-8, 2-4 MW) 27 Hawaii (4-7, 1-5 MW) 13
Senior running back Charles Williams put the Rebels on his back and carried them to victory over the Rainbow Warriors. Williams had 40 rushes for 274 yards and three touchdowns; he outrushed the whole Hawai’i team in yards 274-77. UNLV had 471 total yards in the win. Hawaii’s junior wide receiver Nick Mardner was the lone bright spot in the loss, having four receptions for 119 yards and one touchdown. Hawaii will look to turn the ship on Saturday at home against Colorado State. UNLV plays at home on Friday against No. 22 SDSU.
Air Force (7-3, 4-2 MW) 35 Colorado State (3-7, 2-4 MW) 21
It was a battle on the ground in this match up. The Falcons offense had 507 total yards against the Rams on Saturday. A big chunk of those yards came from junior running back Brad Roberts who had 32 rushes for 151 yards and two touchdowns. Junior wide receiver DeAndre Hughes had seven rushes for 107 yards. Rams senior running back David Bailey had 18 rushes for 49 yards and two touchdowns. Senior quarterback Todd Centeio had 12 rushes for 55 yards and one touchdown. Air Force will go on the road to play Nevada on Friday. Colorado State will also go on the road to play Hawaii on Saturday.
Boise State (6-4, 4-2 MW) 23 Wyoming (5-5, 1-5 MW) 13
Boise State was able to extend its winning streak to three games thanks to a win against Wyoming last Saturday. Broncos senior quarterback Hank Bachmeier was the star in the game, completing 22 of his 31 pass attempts for 224 yards and one touchdown. Sophomore running back George Holani had 20 rushes for 102 yards for the Broncos in the win. Wyoming sophomore wide receiver Isaiah Neyor had six catches for 126 yards and one touchdown. Boise State’s next game will be at home on Saturday against New Mexico. Wyoming will play host to Hawaii on Saturday.
Fresno State (8-3, 5-2 MW) 34 New Mexico (3-7, 1-5 MW) 7
The Bulldogs trounced the Lobos on Saturday. Senior quarterback Jake Haener continues to play like a top 10 pick. He completed 24 of his 31 pass attempts for 300 yards and three touchdowns. His favorite target on Saturday was senior running back Jordan Mims, who had four catches for 103 yards and one touchdown. Look for Haener’s name to be called early in the 2022 NFL draft. Lobos freshman quarterback Isaiah Chavez had a tough game against a stout Bulldog’s defense, completing just two of his seven passing attempts for 34 yards and one interception. However, New Mexico freshman running back Aaron Dumas managed to shine bright in the blowout loss. Dumas was selected as the MW Freshman Of The Week thanks to his 23 rushes for 143 yards and one touchdown effort in the loss. Fresno State will have a bye week before hitting the road to take on rival San Jose State on Thanksgiving. New Mexico will be on the road to face Boise State on Saturday.
Utah State (8-2, 5-1 MW) 48 San Jose State (5-6, 3-4 MW) 17
SJSU’s bowl hopes came to a screeching halt on Saturday night. After going down 14-0 in the second quarter, the Aggies were able to outscore the Spartans 48-3 to get the road win. The win puts the Aggies in prime position for a spot in the Mountain West Championship game. Utah State junior quarterback managed to light up the stats sheet, completing 21 of his 35 pass attempts for 263 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. His go-to target for not only this game but all season was senior wide receiver Deven Thompkins, who had six receptions for 127 yards. Thompkins not only leads the MW, but also the NCAA in receiving yards with 1441 and counting. The Spartans played flat after going up early. Senior running back Tyler Nevens has 10 rushes for only 12 yards and one touchdown. Graduate quarterback Nick Starkel completed 19 of his 29 pass attempts for one interception. One of the only bright spots for the Spartans on Saturday was graduate punter Will Hart, who had eight punts for 325 yards. Hart continues to fly under the radar as one of the best players on the SJSU football team. SJSU will have a bye week before taking on rival Fresno State on Thanksgiving. USU has one more game left in the regular season on Friday on the road against New Mexico.
Follow Gio on Twitter @GaxiolaGio
