| 2011 Mountain West Conference football season | |
| League: | Division I FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) |
| Sport: | Football |
| Pixels: | 150px |
| Duration: | September 1, 2011–January 2012 |
| No Of Teams: | 8 |
| Tv: | The Mtn., CBS Sports Network, Versus |
| Draft: | 2012 NFL Draft |
| Draft Link: | 2012 NFL Draft |
| Top Pick: | LB Shea McClellin, Boise State |
| Picked By: | Chicago Bears, 19th overall |
| Season: | Regular season |
| Seasonslistnames: | Football |
| Prevseason Year: | 2010 |
| Nextseason Year: | 2012 |
The 2011 Mountain West Conference football season was the 13th season of college football for the Mountain West Conference (MW). Eight teams participated in that season: Air Force, Colorado State, New Mexico, San Diego State, TCU, UNLV, Wyoming and new member Boise State.
This was the first year the MW was without founding members Utah and BYU, which respectively left for the Pac-12 Conference and FBS independent status, with BYU's other sports joining the West Coast Conference. In response to their departure, the conference added Boise State for this season, and would eventually add Fresno State, Hawaiʻi (football only; other sports joined the Big West Conference), and Nevada for the 2012 season.
This was also the last year for TCU as an MW member. The Horned Frogs were originally set to become a member of the Big East Conference in the 2012 season. However, on October 10, they accepted a bid to join the Big 12 Conference.[1]
TCU repeated as conference champions going undefeated (12–0) during the regular season for the second consecutive year. They finished the year as the highest ranked non-automatic qualifying school in the BCS rankings to receive an automatic bid to a BCS game. Since Oregon was ranked in the top two and selected to play in the BCS National Championship Game, the Rose Bowl was contractually obligated to take the highest ranked non-AQ to fill the Pac-10's spot. The Horned Frogs defeated Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl 21–19 to finish the season 13–0 and finished ranked #2 in both the AP and Coaches Polls.
Air Force, BYU, San Diego State, and Utah also went to bowl games. Everyone but Utah won their bowl game to give the conference a 4–1 bowl record to win the Bowl Challenge Cup for the second consecutive year.
At one point during the season, both TCU and Utah were both ranked in the top 5 of the BCS rankings.
The following Mountain West players were named to preseason award watch lists.Maxwell Award
During the Mountain West media days on July 26–27 in Las Vegas, Boise State was picked as the overwhelming favorite to win the conference, garnering 28 of a possible 31 first place votes. Defending champion TCU received the other 3 first place votes and were picked second.
The media also selected their preseason all–conference team. Boise State's Sr. QB Kellen Moore was selected as the offensive player of the year. TCU's Sr. LB Tank Carder was selected as the defensive player of the year. Air Force's Sr. KR Jonathan Warzeka was selected as the special teams player of the year.[16]
Offense
QB Kellen Moore–Boise State
RB Doug Martin–Boise State
RB Ronnie Hillman–San Diego State
WR Phillip Payne–UNLV
WR Josh Boyce–TCU
TE Lucas Reed–New Mexico
OL Thomas Byrd–Boise State
OL Nate Potter–Boise State
OL A.J. Wallerstein–Air Force
OL Kyle Dooley–TCU
OL Paul Madsen–Colorado State
Defense
DL Billy Winn–Boise State
DL Shea McClellin–Boise State
DL Stansly Maponga–TCU
DL Josh Biezuns–Wyoming
LB Tank Carder–TCU
LB Mychal Sisson–Colorado State
LB Miles Burris–San Diego State
DB George Iloka–Boise State
DB Leon McFadden–San Diego State
DB Anthony Wright–Air Force
DB Jon Davis–Air Force
Specialists
PK James Aho–New Mexico
P Brian Stahovich–San Diego State
KR Jonathan Warzeka–Air Force
New conference member Boise State was banned by the Mountain West Conference from wearing their traditional all blue uniforms during conference home games. Mountain West commissioner Craig Thompson's reason for the rule was that coaches had stated that the Broncos received a "competitive advantage" when wearing all blue on the blue turf of Bronco Stadium. Boise State head coach Chris Petersen was quoted that he thought the ban was, "ridiculous".[17]
NOTE: Stats shown are before the beginning of the season
| Team | Head coach | Years at school | Overall record | Record at school | MW record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air Force | Troy Calhoun | 5 | 34–18 | 34–18 | 21–11 |
| Boise State | Chris Petersen | 6 | 61–5 | 61–5 | 0–0* |
| Colorado State | Steve Fairchild | 4 | 13–24 | 13–24 | 6–18 |
| New Mexico | Mike Locksley (fired on 9/25/11) George Barlow (interim) | 3 1 | 2–22 0–0 | 2–22 0–0 | 2–14 0–0 |
| San Diego State | Rocky Long | 1 | 65–69 | 0–0 | 40–34^ |
| TCU | Gary Patterson | 11 | 98–28 | 98–28 | 41–7 |
| UNLV | Bobby Hauck | 2 | 82–28 | 2–11 | 2–6 |
| Wyoming | Dave Christensen | 3 | 10–15 | 10–15 | 5–11 |
The following Mountain West teams have been either ranked or received votes in the major polls during the 2011 season:
See also: 2011 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings.
| Pre | Wk 1 | Wk 2 | Wk 3 | Wk 4 | Wk 5 | Wk 6 | Wk 7 | Wk 8 | Wk 9 | Wk 10 | Wk 11 | Wk 12 | Wk 13 | Wk 14 | Final | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air Force | AP | RV | RV | ||||||||||||||
| C | RV | RV | RV | RV | |||||||||||||
| Harris | Not released | ||||||||||||||||
| BCS | Not released | ||||||||||||||||
| Boise State | AP | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 10 | ||||
| C | 7 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 11 | |||||
| Harris | Not released | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 11 | ||||||||||
| BCS | Not released | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 10 | |||||||||||
| San Diego State | AP | RV | |||||||||||||||
| C | RV | RV | |||||||||||||||
| Harris | Not released | ||||||||||||||||
| BCS | Not released | ||||||||||||||||
| TCU | AP | 14 | 25 | 23 | 20 | 20 | RV | RV | RV | 19 | |||||||
| C | 15 | 25 | 23 | 20 | 20 | RV | RV | RV | RV | 24 | 19 | ||||||
| Harris | Not released | RV | RV | RV | RV | 25 | 21 | ||||||||||
| BCS | Not released | 19 |
| Date | Visitor | Home | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 1 | UNLV 17 |
| ||
| September 2 |
| Baylor 50 | TCU loss snapped a 25-game regular season winning streak | |
| September 3^ |
|
| Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta Boise State's first ever win against an SEC team | |
| September 10 | New Mexico 3 |
| Played at Arkansas' secondary home in Little Rock | |
| September 10 | UNLV 7 | Washington State 59 | ||
| September 17^ | Colorado State 14 | Colorado 28 | Rocky Mountain Showdown at Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver | |
| September 17 | Texas Tech 59 | New Mexico 13 | Second straight year the Lobos have hosted Texas Tech | |
| September 17 | Washington State 24 | San Diego State 42 | ||
| September 24 | San Diego State 7 |
| Michigan head coach Brady Hoke coached San Diego State the last two seasons | |
| September 24 |
| Wyoming 14 | ||
| October 8 | Air Force 33 | Notre Dame 59 | ||
| ^Denotes neutral site game | ||||
| Index to colors and formatting | |
|---|---|
| Mountain West member won | |
| Mountain West member lost | |
| Mountain West teams in bold |
All dates, times, and TV are tentative and subject to change.
The Mountain West has teams in 3 different time zones. Times reflect start time in respective time zone of each team (Central–TCU, Mountain–Air Force, Boise State, Colorado State, New Mexico, Wyoming, Pacific–San Diego State, UNLV). Conference games start times are that of the home team.
Rankings reflect that of the USA Today Coaches poll for that week until week eight when the BCS poll will be used.
| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 1 | 5:00 PM | UNLV | L 17–51 | 77,085 | ||||
| September 2 | 7:00 PM |
| ESPN | L 48–50 | 43,753 | |||
| September 3 | 12:00 PM | Air Force | W 37–20 | 39,105 | ||||
| September 3 | 4:00 PM | Colorado State | New Mexico | The Mtn. | CSU 14–10 | 21,454 | ||
| September 3 ^ | 6:00 PM |
| Georgia Dome • Atlanta (Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game) | ESPN | W 35–21 | 73,614 | ||
| September 3 | 7:00 PM | San Diego State | The Mtn. | W 49–21 | 34,384 | |||
| September 3 | 7:00 PM | Wyoming | W 35–32 | 21,492 |
Players of the week:[18]
| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 10 | 9:00 AM | San Diego State | W 23–20 | 26,778 | ||||
| September 10 | 12:00 PM | Colorado State | The Mtn. | W 33–14 | 25,367 | |||
| September 10 | 1:30 PM |
| Air Force | Flacon Stadium • Colorado Springs, Colorado | TCU 35–19 | 42,107 | ||
| September 10 | 2:00 PM | UNLV | L 7–59 | 27,018 | ||||
| September 10 | 4:00 PM | Wyoming | War Memorial Stadium • Laramie, Wyoming | The Mtn. | W 45–10 | 23,248 | ||
| September 10 | 5:00 PM | New Mexico | L 3–52 | 52,606 |
Players of the week:[19]
| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 16 | 6:00 PM |
| ESPN | W 40–15 | 28,905 | |||
| September 17 | 10:00 AM | Wyoming | W 28–27 | 14,813 | ||||
| September 17 ^ | 11:30 AM | Colorado State | Sports Authority Field at Mile High • Fort Collins, Colorado (Rocky Mountain Showdown) | L 14–28 | 57,186 | |||
| September 17 | 1:00 PM |
| The Mtn. | W 38–17 | 32,719 | |||
| September 17 | 1:30 PM | New Mexico | University Stadium • Albuquerque, New Mexico | Versus | L 13–59 | 20,674 | ||
| September 17 | 3:00 PM | Washington State | San Diego State | Qualcomm Stadium • San Diego | The Mtn. | W 42–24 | 57,286 | |
| September 17 | 7:00 PM | UNLV | The Mtn. | W 40–20 | 21,248 |
Kellen Moore was also named the Davy O'Brien Quarterback of the Week. Greg McCoy was also named the National Kickoff Returner of the Week by College Football Performance Awards.
| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 24 | 9:00 AM | San Diego State | L 7–28 | 110,707 | ||||
| September 24 | 1:00 PM | Air Force | Falcon Stadium • Colorado Springs, Colorado | The Mtn. | W 63–24 | 33,487 | ||
| September 24 | 4:00 PM | New Mexico | University Stadium • Albuquerque, New Mexico | L 45–48 OT | 16,313 | |||
| September 24 | 5:30 PM | Wyoming | War Memorial Stadium • Laramie, Wyoming | Versus | L 14–38 | 32,617 | ||
| September 24 | 6:00 PM |
| CBS Sports Network | W 41–21 | 34,019 | |||
| September 24 | 6:00 PM | Colorado State | W 35–34 2OT | 22,599 | ||||
| September 24 | 6:00 PM |
| Amon G. Cater Stadium • Fort Worth, Texas | W 55–13 | 33,825 | |||
| September 24 | 6:00 PM | UNLV | Sam Boyd Stadium • Whitney, Nevada | The Mtn. | L 16–41 | 18,102 |
Players of the week:[21]
Coaching change
On September 25, 2011 following a 0–4 start which included a loss to Sam Houston State of the FCS, New Mexico relieved Mike Locksley of his duties as head coach. Associate head coach and defensive coordinator George Barlow assumed the job on an interim basis for the remainder of the season.
| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 1 | 10:00 AM | Air Force | W 35–34 OT | 37,506 | ||||
| October 1 | 12:30 PM |
| Bronco Stadium • Boise, Idaho (Rivalry) | Versus | W 30–10 | 34,098 | ||
| October 1 | 2:00 PM | Colorado State | Hughes Stadium • Fort Collins, Colorado | The Mtn. | L 31–38 | 27,683 | ||
| October 1 | 2:30 PM |
| Amon G. Cater Stadium • Fort Worth, Texas (Battle for the Iron Skillet) | CBS Sports Network | L 33–40 OT | 35,632 | ||
| October 1 | 6:00 PM | New Mexico | University Stadium • Albuquerque, New Mexico (Rio Grande Rivalry) | The Mtn. | L 28–42 | 30,091 |
Players of the week:[22]
| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 7 | 7:00 PM |
| Bulldog Stadium • Fresno, California (Battle for the Milk Can) | ESPN | W 57–7 | 33,871 | ||
| October 8 | 1:30 PM | Air Force | L 33–59 | 80,795 | ||||
| October 8 | 4:00 PM | UNLV | Nevada | Mackay Stadium • Reno, Nevada (37th Battle for Nevada) | ESPN3 | L 0–37 | 25,978 | |
| October 8 | 6:00 PM | Wyoming | Utah State | Romney Stadium • Logan, Utah | ESPN3 | L 19–63 | 17,561 | |
| October 8 | 7:30 PM | TCU | San Diego State | Qualcomm Stadium • San Diego, California | CBS Sports Network | TCU 27–14 | 44,248 |
Players of the week:[23]
| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 13 | 6:00 PM | San Diego State | Air Force | Falcon Stadium • Colorado Springs, Colorado | CBS Sports Network | SDSU 41–27 | 27,490 | |
| October 15 | 12:00 PM | New Mexico | Nevada | Mackay Stadium • Reno, Nevada | L 7–49 | 15,369 | ||
| October 15 | 12:00 PM | UNLV | Wyoming | War Memorial Stadium • Laramie, Wyoming | The Mtn. | WYO 41–14 | 22,985 | |
| October 15 | 4:00 PM |
| Colorado State | Hughes Stadium • Fort Collins, Colorado | The Mtn. | BSU 63–13 | 30,027 |
| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 22 | 1:00 PM | New Mexico | TCU | Amon G. Carter Stadium • Fort Worth, Texas | The Mtn. | TCU 69–0 | 33,833 | |
| October 22 | 1:30 PM | Air Force |
| Bronco Stadium • Boise, Idaho | Versus | BSU 37–26 | 34,196 | |
| October 22 | 6:00 PM | Colorado State | L 17–31 | 31,797 |
| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 28 ^ | 7:00 PM | TCU | ESPN | W 38–28 | 50,094 | |||
| October 29 | 12:00 PM | Air Force | New Mexico | University Stadium • Albuquerque, New Mexico | The Mtn. | AFA 42–0 | 16,691 | |
| October 29 | 3:00 PM | Colorado State | UNLV | Sam Boyd Stadium • Whitney, Nevada | The Mtn. | UNLV 38–35 | 21,289 | |
| October 29 | 7:00 PM | Wyoming | San Diego State | Qualcomm Stadium • San Diego, California | The Mtn. | WYO 30–27 | 29,730 |
Players of the week:[26]
| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 5 | 12:00 PM | TCU | Wyoming | War Memorial Stadium • Laramie, Wyoming | The Mtn. | TCU 30–21 | 17,673 | |
| November 5 | 1:30 PM | Army | Air Force | Falcon Stadium • Colorado Springs, Colorado | CBS | W 24–14 | 46,709 | |
| November 5 | 5:00 PM | New Mexico | San Diego State | Qualcomm Stadium • San Diego | The Mtn. | SDSU 35–7 | 28,362 | |
| November 5 | 7:30 PM |
| UNLV | Sam Boyd Stadium • Whitney, Nevada | CBS Sports Network | BSU 48–21 | 26,281 |
| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 12 | 12:00 PM | Wyoming | Air Force | Falcon Stadium • Colorado Springs, Colorado | The Mtn. | WYO 25–17 | 33,823 | |
| November 12 | 1:30 PM | TCU |
| Bronco Stadium • Boise, Idaho | Versus | TCU 36–35 | 34,146 | |
| November 12 | 4:00 PM | San Diego State | Colorado State | Hughes Stadium • Fort Collins, Colorado | The Mtn. | SDSU 18–15 | 16,811 | |
| November 12 | 8:00 PM | UNLV | New Mexico | University Stadium • Albuquerque, New Mexico | CBS Sports Network | UNM 21–14 | 14,937 |
| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 19 | 12:00 PM | New Mexico | Wyoming | War Memorial Stadium • Laramie, Wyoming | The Mtn. | |||
| November 19 | 2:30 PM | Colorado State |
| Amon G. Carter Stadium • Fort Worth, Texas | CBS Sports Network | |||
| November 19 | 4:00 PM | UNLV | Air Force | Falcon Stadium • Colorado Springs, Colorado | The Mtn. | |||
| November 19 | 5:00 PM |
| San Diego State | Qualcomm Stadium • San Diego, California | CBS Sports Network |
| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 26 | 12:00 PM | Wyoming | Boise State | Bronco Stadium • Boise, Idaho | The Mtn. | |||
| November 26 | 4:00 PM | Air Force | Colorado State | Hughes Stadium • Fort Collins, Colorado (Ram–Falcon Trophy) | The Mtn. | |||
| November 26 | 7:00 PM | San Diego State | UNLV | Sam Boyd Stadium • Whitney, Nevada | The Mtn. |
| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 3 | 12:00 PM | Wyoming | Colorado State | Hughes Stadium • Fort Collins, Colorado (Border War) | The Mtn. | |||
| December 3 | 1:30 PM | UNLV | TCU | Amon G. Carter Stadium • Fort Worth, Texas | Versus | |||
| December 3 | 4:00 PM | New Mexico | Boise State | Bronco Stadium • Boise, Idaho | The Mtn. | |||
| December 3 | 5:00 PM | Fresno State | San Diego State | Qualcomm Stadium • San Diego | CBS Sports Network |
| Team | Stadium | Capacity | Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | Game 4 | Game 5 | Game 6 | Game 7 | Total | Average | % of Capacity | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air Force | Falcon Stadium | 52,480 | 39,105 | 42,107 | 33,487 | 27,490 | 46,709 | 33,823 | 222,721 | 37,121 | 70.7% | |||
| Boise State | Bronco Stadium | 33,500 | 34,019 | 34,098 | 34,196 | 34,146 | align=center | — | 136,519 | 34,130 | 101.9% | |||
| Colorado State | Hughes Stadium | 34,400 | 25,367 | 27,683 | 30,027 | 16,811 | align=center | — | 99,888 | 24,972 | 72.6.5% | |||
| New Mexico | University Stadium | 38,634 | 21,454 | 20,674 | 16,313 | 30,091 | 16,691 | 14,937 | align=center | — | 120,160 | 20,027 | 51.8% | |
| San Diego State | Qualcomm Stadium | 71,294 | 34,384 | 57,286 | 44,248 | 29,730 | 28,362 | 52,256 | 246,266 | 41,044 | 57.6% | |||
| TCU | Amon G. Carter Stadium | 34,000 | 32,719 | 33,825 | 35,632 | 33,833 | align=center | — | 136,009 | 34,003 | 100.0% | |||
| UNLV | Sam Boyd Stadium | 36,800 | 21,248 | 18,102 | 21,289 | 26,281 | align=center | — | align=center | — | 86,920 | 21,730 | 59.0% | |
| Wyoming | War Memorial Stadium | 34,000 | 21,492 | 23,248 | 32,617 | 22,985 | 17,673 | align=center | — | 118,015 | 23,603 | 69.4% | ||