Oct. 13, 2002
Complete Game Notes vs. Wyoming in PDF Format
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San Diego State (1-5/1-0) at Wyoming (1-5/0-1)
Saturday, Oct. 19, 2002
1 p.m. (Mountain)
War Memorial Stadium (33,500/grass)
Laramie, Wyo.
Television: There is no television this week.
Radio: All San Diego State football games can be heard live in southern California on XTRA Sports (690 AM). Lee Hamilton calls the action with former Aztec quarterback Mark Halda returning to the broadcasts to provide analysis. John Kentera reports from the sidelines. Mike McGregor is the producer.
The Records: San Diego State enters the contest at 1-5/1-0 in league play while Wyoming is 1-5/0-1.
The Rankings: Neither team is ranked.
SDSU Coach Tom Craft: Tom Craft is 1-5 in his first season at San Diego State and overall.
Wyoming Coach Vic Koenning: The Cowboys' Vic Koenning is 4-24 in his third year as head coach of Wyoming. The Kansas State grad (class of 1983) is 0-2 against SDSU.
The Series: Wyoming leads the series, 13-10, but the Aztecs are currently riding a three-game winning streak against the Cowboys and will be trying to win two straight in Laramie for just the second time ever.
The Winner's Circle
The San Diego State Aztecs (1-5/1-0), coming off their first win of the season and their first ever under head coach Tom Craft, will travel to Laramie this weekend for a Mountain West Conference game with the Wyoming Cowboys. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. (Mountain). The Cowboys enter the game also at 1-5 after dropping their league opener vs. Colorado State, 44-36, on Saturday.
Road Streak
San Diego State will be hitting the road for the first time in Mountain West Conference play. Over the first three seasons, SDSU has been among the best road teams in the league, despite three second-division finishes. The Aztecs are 6-4 in Mountain West road games, including wins at Wyoming, UNLV, New Mexico, Brigham Young and Colorado State over the past three years.
Road Stops
Only Brigham Young (nine) and Colorado State (eight) have more Mountain West road victories than San Diego State. In fact, Colorado State has lost just two home games in league play and both are to the Aztecs. Brigham Young's lone MWC home loss over the past two seasons was against the Aztecs.
Receiver U
The streak lives on. San Diego State has had a 100-yard receiver in every game this season (and twice have had two 100-yard receivers in the same game). The amazing wideout seasons being registered by J.R. Tolver and Kassim Osgood are detailed more fully on page seven as they continue to chase NCAA history and audition for national honors.
Fred's Friends
Receivers J.R. Tolver and Kassim Osgood have both been added to the Biletnikoff Award watch list. The award is presented annually to the nation's top receiver. It is sponsored by the Tallahassee (Fla.) Quarterback Club Foundation.
Oh Yeah, One More Thing
With his 16 receptions on Saturday against Utah (the second best single-game total in SDSU history, a Mountain West Conference record and tied for the most in a college game this season), J.R. Tolver moved alongside former Aztec Will Blackwell atop the career receiving chart at SDSU. Both players have 197 career receptions. Tolver has also matched his 63 catches for all of last season and his 932 receiving yards have also passed the 2002 totals.
1,000-Yard Man (Men)
J.R. Tolver enters the Wyoming game with 932 receiving yards in 2002. He will be looking to become SDSU's first 1,000-yard receiver since Will Blackwell in 1996. Kassim Osgood is just 189 yards shy of 1,000. San Diego State has not had two 1,000-yard receivers on the same team since 1995 when Will Blackwell (1,207 yards) and Az Hakim (1,022) each reached the 1,000-yard mark.
The League Race
San Diego State is 1-0 in the Mountain West Conference after opening the league slate with an impressive 36-17 win over Utah, considered one of the league favorites entering the 2002 season. Utah had suffered narrow losses at Arizona, at Michigan and a last-second loss to top 25 foe Air Force (all by a total of 13 points). San Diego State is 1-0 for the third time in four seasons of Mountain West play. However, the Aztecs have never opened the MWC with a 2-0 start.
These Things Go Away
The victory over Utah ended several negative streaks for the Aztecs:
* - First and foremost, San Diego State ended its five-game losing streak to start the 2002 season. San Diego State ended a two-game home losing streak and picked up its first-ever Mountain West home win over an opponent other than Wyoming.
* - The win over the Utes was the first for San Diego State over Utah since the formation of the Mountain West, leaving Air Force as the only MWC foe SDSU has not defeated since the league was formed in 1999.
* - The game also ended a three-game overall losing streak to Utah, dating back to the 1998 overtime win.
The Good Streaks
San Diego State, after closing 2001 with a 38-16 win over Wyoming, has won two straight league games for the first time since ending 1999 with wins over UNLV and Wyoming. The Aztecs have also won two straight conference home games for the first time since joining the Mountain West and the 36 points represent SDSU's third highest point total in league play since joining the league.