Fans left off The mtn.

It's hard to tell what has the most interest of Mountain West Conference football fans: the actual football games, or the lack of a deal between "The mtn." and satellite companies Dish Network and DirecTV.

The league, it seems, has been low-balled by the two satellite giants who were supposed to be in lockstep a year ago. The big orbit guys question if there is enough fan interest in conference games to even offer The mtn., a sister network to CSTV, the programming pony the league married after refusing to re-up with ESPN.

In response, school officials from Provo to Laramie and San Diego to Albuquerque have gone to fans and begged them to whine.

In short, MWC fans have been asked to get engaged in an assault on call centers for cable and satellite companies. At the end of this week, Utah and BYU athletic directors Chris Hill and Tom Holmoe released a joint letter enlisting more feedback to the companies. One frustrated BYU fan called the rare in-concert epistle a letter from "Hillmoe."

Some fans are calling for the MWC commissioner to receive a very close haircut, the kind commonly administered on the Great Plains at the time of Col. George A. Custer.

The customer service centers have been hammered by MWC fans for weeks.

But more noise is needed. The MWC is calling for an outright consumer revolt — through the phone lines.

MWC fans, it's your turn to be one of those annoying, pesky telemarketers. Thing is, complaining may not be enough for the satellite people. Actual cancellations, switching to Comcast, would speak louder than any thing.

A BYU website put out a late cry for help on Friday with this plea: "If you live in an area where your only option for getting The mtn. is through satellite distribution, we need you to contact the satellite companies. Let them know you are interested in satellite if they add The mtn. If you already subscribe to Dish or DirecTV, please contact the company and tell them you want The mtn.

"The same can be said if you live in an area where there are cable television options. Call your local distributor and tell them you want The mtn." (See phone numbers box.)

In the meantime, there are other wars to be fought.

The Cougs and Utes are home and in search of their first wins after licking their wounds from a venture into Pac-10 territory. Last week was a disaster for the MWC. Maybe the satellite guys watched it all unfold and asked board members, "Do we really want this showered down from the sky?"

Here are the picks: