MWC Preview - Week 4 PDF Print E-mail
Written by Erik Lord   
Wednesday, 23 September 2009 00:58

Erik Lord

Jerry Hughes
DE Jerry Hughes; AP Donna McWilliam

Game of the Week


TCU at Clemson
Saturday, September 26th (3:30 PM EST)

When TCU has the ball: While the calling card of the Horned Frogs is their defense, the nation should take note of their offense – last season they scored a school record 437 points. They're led by talented junior QB Andy Dalton who has an accurate arm and the ability to scramble out of the pocket. TCU relies on establishing the run game to open up passing lanes. When Dalton has time, he has talented receivers like Bart Johnson and Jimmy Young (988 yards in 2008). Unfortunately for TCU, Dalton could be under pressure on Saturday when they face one of the most talented front seven in the nation. Defensive tackles Jarvis Jenkins and Brandon Thompson provide 620 pounds of interior muscle that has helped the Tigers to a top 20 ranking in total defense. And SS DeAndre McDaniel has shown tremendous ability to read quarterbacks. His 4 interceptions through three games rank 3rd in the nation. 

When Clemson has the ball: The Tigers offense has not been flashy, but they have consistently put points on the board. The running game, behind talented RB C.J. Spiller, has been solid. But freshman QB Kyle Parker hasn't yet delivered on the preseason hype with just 5 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. The strength of the TCU defense is their ability to stop the run. With Spiller questionable for Saturday's game, Clemson will need to find a go-to guy in their backfield in order to take pressure off their young quarterback. Senior DE Jerry Hughes is an absolute game-breaker, and TCU currently leads the nation with 5.5 sacks per game. If the offense becomes one-dimensional, it could be a painful night for Parker and the Clemson offense.

Intangibles: With Utah and BYU both falling to non-conference opponents last week the door is wide open for TCU to take over as the Mountain West's best BCS hopeful. But Clemson will not take this meeting lightly and has a tremendous home field advantage.

Prediction: It's a defensive battle throughout the game, and the better defense takes the prize. TCU walks away with a close win.

My pick: TCU

Keep an eye on: TCU senior RB Joseph Turner is a talented runner, and will need to find some running lanes against a big and tough Clemson defense. If he can have success, it will really open things up for the Frogs' offense.

Upset Alert

UNLV at Wyoming
UNLV is a dark horse favorite to compete for a bowl game this year in the Mountain West. And QB Omar Clayton gives fans a reason to be excited about their chances. But it's dangerous to discount the tremendous home field advantage in Laramie, where 7215 feet of elevation eventually levels the playing field. Wyoming hasn't been terrific this year, but they always play well at home. This could be a big win for a rebuilding Cowboys team looking for some hope on which to cling.

About to go Nuclear

Matt Asiata
RB Matt Asiata; AP

Utah RB Matt Asiata

Asiata wasn't completely healthy last week in the Utes' loss to Oregon, but he should be closer to 100% this week. That's good news for Utes fans, as they will face a Louisville defense that has been porous against the run. They allowed 178 ground yards against Kentucky last week, and could be overmatched by the athletic Utah offensive line.

Numerical analysis

0-3

Combined record for the three FCS teams from the state of Utah last Saturday. Utah, Utah State, and BYU all lost games to non-conference opponents. Oh, and I called all three games (two of them upsets) correctly. I'm just sayin...


 
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