Two-Time Champion Wyoming Will Have to Prove Itself to WAC Again

Ask him a week ago, ask him a month ago, ask him almost daily since he was named San Diego State football coach last November, and Al Luginbill will tell you without hesitation his favorite to win the Western Athletic Conference title.

“Wyoming,” he says. “I can’t see how you can pick against them.”

But that is what many polls have been doing for the past three years. It happened in 1987 and was repeated in 1988.

After the Cowboys responded with two undefeated conference seasons and consecutive Holiday Bowl appearances, one would think it would not happen again. But it did. When it came time for the annual media preseason poll, the Cowboys were picked to finish second behind Brigham Young.

“I don’t know how they could have done that,” Luginbill said.

One reason might be that Wyoming lost to graduation six all-conference selections, including quarterback Randy Welniak and half of the defensive line. But dwelling on the losses ignores such returning talent as all-conference tailback Dabby Dawson and defensive lineman Mitch Donahue. They are two of the players the Cowboys are counting on in their drive to extend their 16-game conference and 19-game regular-season winning streaks.

Luginbill and the Aztecs are just one of eight conference teams looking to end the two-year Wyoming reign. Some have better chances than others.

BYU, Hawaii and Utah are given the best shot. Air Force and Texas El Paso are dark horses. As for the Aztecs, they are picked to finish closer to perennial doormats Colorado State and New Mexico than they are to the defending champion Cowboys.

This prognosticating will get its first test Saturday when the WAC opens its 28th season with two conference games--BYU at New Mexico and SDSU at Air Force.

AIR FORCE

1988 records: 5-7, 3-5 conference.

1988 conference finish: Sixth (tie).

The Falcons are looking to bounce back from their first losing season in seven years and their first under sixth-year Coach Fisher DeBerry. The question this season, as it was a year ago, is defense.

Air Force allowed an average of 32.7 points, which even in the offense-happy WAC placed the Falcons ahead of only SDSU (34.9) and New Mexico (43.2). An injury- and illness-riddled line was the problem. DeBerry said he hopes the Falcons have improved their line and looks to his linebackers--Terry Walker, 1988 leading tackler Brian Hill and sack leader Randle Gladney--to provide experience.

The offense has fewer worries. DeBerry describes senior Dee Dowis as the best option quarterback he has coached. Dowis needs 401 yards to pass John Kershner (2,726) as the academy’s all-time leading rusher, but DeBerry wants him to improve his passing. Dowis completed only 41 of 96 attempts last season. His favorite target is wide receiver Steve Senn, who has only 15 career catches but averages 20.5 yards.

Senior halfback Greg Johnson is back and healthy after rushing for 834 yards in an injury-plagued season. But the offensive line is a concern--there are no returning starters.

BRIGHAM YOUNG

1988 records: 9-4, 5-3 conference.

1988 conference finish: Third (tie).

Success is relative, and no where in the WAC is that standard higher than at BYU. The Cougars won eight consecutive conference titles from 1978-84 but have not won one since, and their third-place tie with Hawaii last year was their worst conference finish since they were fourth in 1975.

To end the uncharacteristic dry spell, the Cougars need a more consistent effort at quarterback. Once the hallmark of Cougar teams, the position has been a source of disappointment lately.

Sean Covey, a senior and last year’s starter, missed all of spring practice after undergoing knee surgery and has yielded the job to sophomore Ty Detmer. Detmer came on strong at the end of last season, taking over for Covey in the second half of the Freedom Bowl and earning most valuable player honors in a 20-17 victory over Colorado.

But Detmer he will have to play behind an inexperienced line--not a single starter returns, although there is something to build around in Mohammed Elewonbibi, a 6-foot-5, 290-pound senior born in Nigeria. The backfield returns intact, Matt Bellini at halfback and Fred Whittingham at fullback. But Bellini has been slowed, having undergone arthroscopic knee surgery after injuring himself in a basketball game in July.

Bob Davis, a hard-hitting senior middle linebacker, leads a defense that traditionally has been the strongest in the WAC.

COLORADO STATE

1988 records: 1-10, 1-7 conference.

1988 conference finish: Eighth (tie).

This marks the return of former Ohio State Coach Earle Bruce to major-college football. Well, sort of. The Rams have won only two games in the past two years and have only one winning season in the past eight. Bruce, who coached at Division I-AA Northern Iowa last season, takes over from Leon Fuller, who was fired after compiling a 25-55 record in seven seasons.

Bruce has brought several changes. He scrapped the Rams’ three-four defense in favor of a five-two modeled after the Chicago Bears’ and has emphasized the running game on offense.

While the program has been down, at least Fuller left Bruce with experienced hands. The Rams return nine starters on both offense and defense, including the entire offensive and defensive lines. The biggest losses were All-WAC cornerback Ron Cortell, a former Sweetwater High School player, and quarterback Scooter Molander.

After a spirited quarterback competition that began in the spring, Bruce this week named his starter for Saturday’s opener at Tennessee--Kevin Verdugo, a sophomore who transferred after starting five games as a freshman at Kansas in 1987.

HAWAII

1988 records: 9-3, 5-3 conference.

1988 conference finish: Third (tie).

For those who argue schedule, schedule, schedule when it comes to what makes for a winning season, look no farther than the Warrior Rainbows. Ten of their 12 games are at home.

They venture to the mainland only to play at Wyoming and Colorado State. All four of their non-league games--Tulane, Cal State Long Beach, Pacific and Oregon State are at home, and none are against ranked teams. That, combined with the momentum of last year’s 9-3 finish, is why hopes in Hawaii are high for a run at a first WAC title.

In a league known for offense, defense figures to be the Rainbows’ strength. With no member of the Noga family on the team, they may lack the dominant lineman they have featured in the past, but nine starters return, including the entire secondary. The defensive line is anchored by the oldest, if not the most experienced, player in the conference, nose tackle Dana Directo, a 28-year-old graduate student.

In their option offense, the Rainbows look to replace quarterback Warren Jones with Garrett Gabriel. Richard Stevenson is the successor to all-conference halfback Heikoti Fakava.

NEW MEXICO

1988 records: 2-10, 1-7 conference.

1988 conference finish: Eighth (tie).

The rebuilding continues at New Mexico, where Coach Mike Sheppard is his third season of trying to make something of a program that has not won a conference title since 1964. Since then, the Lobos have finished higher than fourth three times.

Their hopes for a revival are built around sophomore quarterback Jeremy Leach and senior wide receiver Terance Mathis, back after a year’s absence because of academic reasons. Leach threw for 1,986 yards last year. Mathis already is the all-time conference leader in receiving yards with 2,939 and needs 10 catches to break the conference record of 184 set by Jeff Champine of Colorado State.

But the rest of the team is mostly young and unproven. The Lobos plan to start five newcomers on defense, including linebacker Nate Morris, a junior transfer from UCLA. And the backfield has been weakened by injuries and academic difficulties, leaving Myron Ashley, who rushed for 30 yards last year, as the likely starter at halfback.

The Lobos had hoped to improve their offensive line with an infusion of community college transfer, but only center Kurt Jensen has cracked a lineup that allowed 43 sacks last season.

TEXAS EL PASO

1988 records: 10-3 overall, 6-2 conference.

1988 conference finish: Second.

The question is whether new Coach David Lee can keep the momentum built by his predecessor, Bob Stull. The Miners had their best season ever last year, finishing 10-3 and playing in the Independence Bowl. But most of the people behind that success are gone.

Stull and most of his coaching staff left for jobs at Missouri. And only two starters return on offense. The Miners lost 28 players from last year’s team, which finished second to Wyoming.

The lastest loss came when wide receiver Reggie Barrett, who had 50 catches for 781 yards and six touchdowns last season, announced his intention to join Stull at Missouri. The transfer is being contested by UTEP, but they are not planning on having Barrett back. Also gone are quarterback Pat Hegarty, running back John Harvey and kicker Chris Jacke.

The rebuilt offense will center around quarterback Howard Gasser, who sat out last season after transfering from Saddleback College. The defense will be built around senior linebackers Doug Morgan and Ken Sale.

UTAH

1988 records: 6-5, 4-4 conference.

1988 conference finish: Fifth.

If one player can carry a team, then the Utes will go as far as quarterback Scott Mitchell can take them. Mitchell is coming off the most productive season ever by a sophomore quarterback, having thrown for 4,322 yards, including 631 in a 56-49 loss to Air Force.

Mitchell’s biggest challenge will be working with a new group of targets. The only returning receiver with a reception is Mike Connaughton, who caught three passes last year.

The Utes are counting on an improved defense that returns eight starters from a group that showed progress at the end of last season. Utah finished as strongly as any team in the conference, winning its final four games by a combined 186-76. The Utes concluded with a 57-28 victory over BYU, its first over its intrastate rival in 10 years.

The schedule could be the Utes’ biggest enemy. They play seven of their 12 games on the road, including six of their first eight, highlighted by a Sept. 16 game at Nebraska.

But prospects for success have been dampened by the team’s continuing drug problem. Three players are facing federal drug charges, one of them projected starting wide receiver Cedric Riles of Riverside. The latest arrests follow a similar sweep last year that resulted in the conviction of fullback Martel Black on federal drug charges.

WYOMING

1988 records: 11-2 overall, 8-0 conference.

1988 conference finish: First

The Cowboys are out to do what no Wyoming football team has done in 20 years--win three consecutive WAC titles. Their chances likely will rest on hopes for a strong defense, a big season from senior tailback Dabby Dawson and the development of sophomore quarterback Tom Corontzos.

The defense returns six starters from one that allowed a league-low 18.2 points per game. It is led by Mitch Donahue, an all-conference end a year ago with 10 sacks. He has been switched to tackle.

Dawson is coming off an All-WAC season in which he rushed for 1,125 yards and nine touchdowns while averaging 7.6 yards per carry. But he broke a finger in practice and has had trouble catching passes since he returned to practice this week.

Corontzos was named the starter this week, beating out two other players during a competition that began in the spring. He is in his third season in the program but has played only sparingly in late relief.

The Cowboys should learn early if they are contenders. Their first four conference games are against Air Force, Hawaii, BYU and Utah. Their schedule also features a rematch at Oklahoma State, the team that humbled them, 62-14, in the Holiday Bowl.

FRIDAY: San Diego State preview.