Wyoming Cowboys @ San Diego State Aztecs Football Recap

Wyoming 30, San Diego State 27

Before the 2011 college football season began, the Wyoming Cowboys weren’t expected to do much of anything in the Mountain West Conference. The San Diego State Aztecs were supposed to be a top-three team in the conference, fresh off one of the best seasons in school history. On the final Saturday of October, however, it became increasingly clear that these two programs have switched masks and are staging an act of role reversal.

One year after San Diego State came out of nowhere to do big things on the gridiron, Wyoming is mimicking the Aztecs, while San Diego State looks more like the Wyoming teams who have stumbled just short of the finish line in seasons past.

Brett Smith led Wyoming to a monster second quarter, who then clung to its lead for a 30-27 victory after San Diego State missed two field goals in the fourth quarter on Saturday night.

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Ronnie Hillman, the nation’s leading rusher, turned in another strong performance, carrying the ball 25 times for 224 yards and two touchdowns, including a 99-yard scamper to start the second half to get San Diego State back into the game. Before that, however, Smith was lighting up the Aztecs in the air and on the ground as Wyoming sprinted out to a big lead. Despite the Cowboys’ defense surrendering touchdown passes of 44 and 71 yards in the first quarter, Smith led Wyoming to a 14-13 lead at the end of the first quarter. Smith capped off Wyoming’s first drive of the second quarter with a 20-yard touchdown run, then ended a 60-yard drive with an 11-yard touchdown pass to Chris McNeill. When Daniel Sullivan added a 33-yard field goal as time expired in the half, Wyoming held a 30-13 lead and Smith was already approaching 300 yards of offense.

San Diego State would fight back with a combination of defensive adjustments and conservative play-calling by Wyoming—and that 99-yard Hillman score. Late in the third quarter, the Aztecs moved back into the game when Ryan Lindley hit tight end Gavin Escobar on two-straight 20-yard completions. Hillman punched in a three-yard score to cut the score to 30-27. The Aztecs would dominate the fourth quarter, but kicker Abel Perez would pull a 39-yard field goal left, then push a 27-yarder right during the frame, and Wyoming escaped with the win.

Smith finished 25-36 for 341 yards and two touchdowns in the win, which moved Wyoming to 5-2 on the year and 2-0 in Mountain West play—an important win, since Wyoming needs seven wins to become bowl eligible. The Cowboys host TCU (6-2) next week. San Diego State fell to 4-3 and 1-2 in conference, and gets New Mexico (0-8) at home next week.

By: Matt Zemek
DFN Sports Senior Staff Writer