WAC Previews, Week 14
Courtesy of The WAC
November 29, 2007


Washington (4-8) at Hawai‘i (11-0)
TIME/SITE: 6:30 p.m. (HT); Honolulu, Hawaii; Aloha Stadium (50,000/FieldTurf)
TELEVISION: ESPN2; Ron Franklin, Ed Cunningham, Jack Arute
SERIES LOOK: The series is tied 1-1. Washington won the first game in 1938, 53-13, in Honolulu. Hawai‘i won at Seattle, 10-7, in 1973.
COACHES: Washington’s Tyrone Willingham is in his third year with the Huskies and is 11-24. Overall, he is 72-67-1 in 13 years as a head coach. Hawai‘i’s June Jones is in his ninth season with the Warriors and has a record of 75-40.
GAME NOTES: are the only two teams to beat Boise State this year. Washington – hosted Washington State last week and lost 42-35 ... played another WAC team earlier this year when it beat Boise State, 24-10 on Sept. 8 ... has the toughest strength of schedule in the nation according to the Congrove Computer Rankings, Sagarin and others. Hawai‘i – has won a nation-best 12 games in a row ... it’s ranking of 10th is its highest ever ... Colt Brennan needs 268 passing yards to reach 4,000 for the third season in a row ... Davone Bess has 41 career touchdown receptions, one shy of tying the WAC record ... he needs six catches to tie the school’s single-season record of 102 held by Chad Owens (2004) ...


Louisiana Tech (5-6/4-3) at Nevada (5-6/3-4)
TIME/SITE: 1:00 p.m. (PT); Reno, Nevada; Mackay Stadium (29,993/FieldTurf)
TELEVISION: None
SERIES LOOK: Louisiana Tech leads the series 4-3. Nevada won last year in Ruston, 42-0. Tech’s last win came in 2004, 38-21, also in Ruston.
COACHES: Louisiana Tech’s Derek Dooley is in his first season with the Bulldogs. Nevada’s Chris Ault is in his 23rd year with the Wolf Pack and has a record of 190-84-1. He is a member of the College Football Hall of Fame.
GAME NOTES: The winner of the game will go to a WAC bowl game if Hawai‘i receives a BCS bowl berth. Louisiana Tech – has a three-game winning streak in WAC games ... has won four of its last six games after a four-game losing streak ... leads the WAC in red zone defense ... has picked off 19 passes, the second most in the WAC ... senior DL Chris Pugh leads the WAC in sacks with 6.5. Nevada – leads the WAC in rushing offense ... has converted a WAC-best 77.8 percent of its fourth-down tries (14-18) ... TE Adam Bishop has 14 catches on the season with seven for touchdowns ... Colin Kaepernick is the WAC’s leading rusher for quarterbacks with 62.2 yards per game ... Marko Mitchell needs just seven receiving yards to reach 1,000 for the season.


Fresno State (7-4/5-2) at New Mexico State (4-8/1-6)
TIME/SITE: Friday; 6:00 p.m. (MT); Las Cruces, N.M.; Aggie Memorial Stadium (30,343/Grass)
TELEVISION: ESPN2; Eric Collins, Billy Curry, Dave Ryan
SERIES LOOK: Fresno State has never lost a game in the series and is 13-0. The Bulldogs won last year in Fresno, 23-18.
COACHES: Fresno State's Pat Hill is in his 11th season as a head coach and has a record of 83-55. New Mexico State’s Hal Mumme is in his third season with the Aggies and is 8-28. Overall, he is 105-92-1 in 17 years with stints at Iowa Wesleyan, Valdosta State, Kentucky and Southeastern Louisiana.
GAME NOTES: Fresno State – is 5-0 when rushing for more than 200 yards in a game this season ... has won five of its last seven games ... a win would give the Bulldogs at least eight wins for the sixth time in seven seasons ... A.J. Jefferson leads the nation in kick returns with a 35.8-yard average but missed last week due to an injury ... has allowed the fewest number of sacks in the WAC (17). New Mexico State – has lost four games in a row (all WAC contests) ... has lost six of its last seven games ... Chase Holbrook needs just 125 yards of total offense to tie the school’s career record of 8,207 ... he needs 457 passing yards to reach 4,000 for the
second year in a row.