San Diego State (4-3) closes out its regular season on Saturday in cold and snowy Provo against No. 14/16 Brigham Young.
The Aztecs and Cougars, which shared a conference affiliation – first, in the Western Athletic Conference and later the Mountain West – will meet for the 38th time.
Brigham Young holds a 28-8-1 series advantage, but San Diego State won 13-3 last season.
A caveat for the weekend: The Aztecs have never won consecutive meetings with the Cougars, who are 9-1 this season.
Head coach Brady Hoke gave the start to quarterback Jordan Brookshire Saturday, though Lucas Johnson will be available.
“The offense has confidence in him and I know the defense has confidence in him, too,” said running back Jordan Byrd.
The game airs at 7 p.m. on ESPN2.
Boise State, San Jose State and Nevada remain in the hunt for the Mountain West championship game.
The Aztecs concluded Mountain West play last week with a 4-2 record in league play after a 29-17 victory over Colorado State in Carson. Carson became their temporary home while work continues on the Mission Valley stadium project.
SDSU’s special teams stood out against the Rams, as Byrd returned a kickoff 93 yards for a touchdown and BJ Busbee followed it up with a 90-yard punt return to score.
Byrd received a MW Player of the Week honor for his efforts.
The defense shined once again, limiting Colorado State to 265 yards of total offense, while forcing two turnovers. Junior cornerback Darren Hall recorded an interception in a third consecutive game and also had six tackles.
The San Diego State defense ranks first nationally in yards allowed per play (4.05), ahead of No. 2 Marshall (4.14). They also rank third in total defense (269.1), fourth in third down conversion defense (27.3) and fifth in tackles for loss (8.7)
– Staff reports
