Lobos cheering for the Cougars

Rocky Long was born in Provo, but that's not the reason the New Mexico coach hopes BYU wins Saturday's rivalry game against Utah at LaVell Edwards Stadium.

Long and his Lobos can still grab a piece of the Mountain West Conference title, but they need the Cougars' help. New Mexico, with a 4-2 conference mark entering a game Saturday at Wyoming, is the only team that can tie the Utes.

"Obviously, we'll be rooting for BYU this week," said Long.

Utah is favored, but consider Long one who believes the Cougars could pull off an upset. That only stands to reason, really. Long's Lobos had a much easier time against the Utes — a 47-35 win at Rice-Eccles Stadium — than they did at home against BYU, a 10-7 loss.

Plus, Long knows that heated rivalry games can often be unpredictable.

"I've been around some rivalry games in my day — the Wyoming/Colorado State game, the TCU/SMU game, UCLA/USC game, the Oregon/Oregon State game — and, because I've have some ties in Utah, I understand the competition between BYU and Utah and I know how intense that rivalry is in football," Long said. "It's going to be a great football game and you can never tell who is going to win it."

PLAYER OF THE YEAR? The All-MWC team, including the players of the year on offense and defense, won't be announced until Dec. 3. But there is a little lobbying going on right now as the league's coaches and media get ready to cast votes.

Colorado State quarterback Bradlee Van Pelt, the defending offensive player of the year, was the obvious favorite to repeat this season. He's put up huge numbers again, but the conference favorite Rams have been a disappointment overall. Another preseason favorite was Air Force senior quarterback Chance Harridge. He had another solid season but hasn't put up numbers as good as he did as a junior.

In the meantime, a couple of sophomores — Utah QB Alex Smith and New Mexico running back DonTrell Moore — have come on strong and are now candidates for the top offensive player award.

Smith now leads Van Pelt — and everyone else in the league — in passing efficiency and is currently seventh in the country. Smith has 15 TDs passing to Van Pelt's 18 but has just one interception to Van Pelt's eight. Van Pelt leads the league in total offense (302 yards per game), while Smith is second (263 ypg).

Moore, meanwhile, has a league-leading 1,285 yards rushing and leads the nation with 20 touchdowns. He's already broken the New Mexico single-season rushing record.