Western Athletic Conference News and Notes

Louisiana Tech:
One day after the Louisiana Tech football team earned its first Top 25 rankings since 1999, senior defensive back Quinn Giles seemed to be over the accomplishment.
Tech (5-0) is ranked No. 23 in the Associated Press poll and No. 24 in the USA Today/Coaches Poll, the Bulldogs' first-ever appearance in the latter ranking.
The No. 23 ranking is also the highest the Bulldogs have ever been ranked at the FBS level, topping the No. 25 ranking in 1999 before losing at Southern California in the season finale.
But Giles called the polls a "distraction" and said the team is consumed by its preparation for Texas A&M on Saturday in Shreveport.
http://www.thenewsstar.com/article/20121009/SPORTS/210090321/Tech-Dawgs-stay-focused

Texas State:
The Bobcats traveled to the University of Houston on Sept. 1, where they won against the Cougars. They will try to do the same against the University of New Mexico (2-3) in Albuquerque.
This will be only the second time these two programs have met, the first in 2003 when the Lobos defeated the Bobcats 72-8.
The Bobcats will be the enemy in the Lobos’ homecoming game. However, New Mexico has been in a drought recently, losing all of their homecoming games since 2008 when they faced the University of Wyoming.
Coach Dennis Franchione will be making a “homecoming” of his own. He was the head coach of the Lobos’ football program for six years from 1992-97, his first job at the Division-1A level, now known as the FBS.
“In regards to going to Albuquerque, it’s kind of special for me since I coached there for six years,” Franchione said at Tuesday’s media luncheon. “I still have lots of great memories and great friends there that we are still very close to. We enjoyed our time there a great deal.”
http://star.txstate.edu/node/6096

UTSA:
Although UTSA and Rice never have met on the football field, there will be no shortage of storylines when the Roadrunners and Owls clash Saturday in Houston.
For starters, Rice is coached by MacArthur High School graduate David Bailiff, who was head coach at Texas State for three seasons before taking over the Owls' program in 2007.
Then there's former Rice All-American quarterback Tommy Kramer, a Lee graduate who will be honored by his alma mater and the National Football Foundation at Saturday's game. Kramer will be inducted into the NFF College Football Hall of Fame on Dec. 4.
Another interesting storyline is that the matchup will pit longtime friends and former high school teammates against each other.
UTSA junior cornerback Erik Brown played with Rice cornerback Phillip Gaines at Judson and with safety Paul Porras at Saguaro High School in Scottsdale, Ariz.
http://www.kens5.com/community/blogs/david-flores/Undefeated-UTSA-has-no-illusions-about-matchup-with-slumping-Rice-173258211.html

Idaho:
MOSCOW — Friday, Trey Farquhar got a surprise foot rub from an Olympic gold medalist. And Saturday, after Idaho’s 26-18 win over New Mexico State, he earned something almost as rare for a place-kicker.
Praise from a quarterback.
“This is the man right here,” Vandals QB Dominique Blackman told reporters as he wrapped his arm around Farquhar in the media room.
Farquhar was perfect again on field goals in front of a season-high homecoming crowd of 14,755 at the Kibbie Dome. All four of his kicks, including two from beyond 50 yards, proved vital in Idaho’s first victory of the season.
In a game filled with mishaps — particularly from the Aggies, who had four turnovers, eight penalties and two turnovers on downs — Farquhar’s rock-solid performance stood out.
http://magicvalley.com/sports/local/idaho-football-team-picks-up-first-win-of-season/article_b25fd630-1034-11e2-a359-0019bb2963f4.html

New Mexico State:
The New Mexico State Aggies (1-5, 0-2 WAC) are not playing this weekend, and the bye could not have come at a better time for the team.
NM State is fresh off a disappointing 28-16 loss at Idaho, one that dropped the Aggies to last place in the Western Athletic Conference.
Coach DeWayne Walker said in a teleconference Monday the team took Monday off but went to practice Tuesday through Thursday in addition to having the weekend off. The team will head back to the field Sunday to “get organized for the next week.”
New Mexico State will have a lot of improvements to make, especially on the offensive side of the ball, but at this point in the season the week off should only help the team.
“We’ve got to work on our ball security,” Walker said. “I know we’ve gotten a lot of balls batted down as well, so there’s some things offensively that we really need to look at and try and shore up.”
http://roundupdaily.com/sports/article_509cf45c-124e-11e2-980b-0019bb30f31a.html

Utah State:
Utah State football now ranks eighth in the nation in scoring defense following its 6-3 loss at BYU this past weekend.
In all, Utah State’s defense ranks first in the Western Athletic Conference and eighth in the nation allowing just 12.8 points per game. USU also ranks first in the WAC and 16th in the nation in pass efficiency defense (103.9), second in the WAC and 16th in the nation in total defense (297.3 ypg), second in the WAC and 23rd in the nation in passing defense (184.5 ypg), second in the WAC and 23rd in the nation in rushing defense (112.8 ypg), and second in the WAC and 43rd in the nation in sacks per game (2.33).
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865564018/USU-football-Utah-State-football-ranks-eighth-in-the-nation-in-scoring-defense.html

San Jose State:
SAN JOSE -- San Jose State's Travis Johnson, the nation's leader in sacks, was named a quarterfinalist for the Rotary Lombardi Award.
The award, named for legendary Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi, recognizes the top lineman, tight end or linebacker in college football.
"It's awesome being able to be recognized like that," Johnson said. "You don't hear a lot of smaller D-1 schools having something like that."
Johnson, a 6-foot-3, 244-pound defensive end from The King's Academy-Sunnyvale, is the only player from a non-Bowl Championship Series conference named to the list of 25 quarterfinalists.
http://www.mercurynews.com/sjsu-spartans/ci_21733385/san-jose-states-travis-johnson-quarterfinalist-lombardi-award