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SAN DIEGO — After a less-than-standout 3-3 start to the season, San Diego State has itself back in a familiar position: contending for a Mountain West title.
Donnel Pumphrey ran for 131 yards and a touchdown, and the Aztecs ran past Air Force 30-14 on Saturday to sit in a two-way tie with Fresno State for first place in the West Division with one game to play.
San Diego State (6-5, 4-3 MWC) can clinch the division title and a spot in the Mountain West championship game with a win over San Jose State in the regular-season finale and a Hawaii win over Fresno State.
Quinn Kaehler completed 17 of 30 passes for 326 yards, a touchdown and an interception against the Falcons (8-3, 4-3 MWC), who were eliminated from a Mountain Division title with the loss.
Ezell Ruffin caught seven passes for 126 yards for San Diego State, which forced three fumbles.
Kale Pearson completed 10 of 22 passes for 171 yards, a touchdown and an interception and also ran for 59 yards on 14 carries to lead Air Force.
Here’s how the rest of the Mountain West fared in the penultimate weekend of the regular season.
Fresno State 40, Nevada 20
At Reno, Nevada, Brian Burrell threw for 313 yards, four touchdowns and an interception Saturday night to boost the Bulldogs’ division title hopes with a win at Nevada (6-5, 3-4 MWC).
Burrell also ran for 56 yards and a score for Fresno State (5-6, 4-3), which will win the division with a win over Hawaii on Saturday.
BYU transfer Josh Quezada ran for 119 yards on 24 carries for Fresno State.
Cody Fajardo had 126 yards and a touchdown through the air and 165 yards and two scores on the ground for Nevada, which was eliminated from the Mountain West championship race with the loss.
Utah State 41, San Jose State 7
At Logan, freshman quarterback Kent Myers ran for 92 yards and three touchdowns on four carries and also threw for 108 yards and a score to help the Aggies (9-3, 6-1 MWC) rout the Spartans (3-8, 2-5 MWC) on Friday night.
JoJo Natson ran for a career-high 124 yards and a touchdown on seven carries for the Aggies, which piled up 313 rushing yards on offense.
Tyler Ervin ran for 104 yards for San Jose State, and third-string quarterback Mitch Ravizza added 64 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries.
Utah State will face Boise State on Saturday night in a showdown for Mountain Division supremacy.
Colorado State 58, New Mexico 20
At Fort Collins, Colorado, Dee Hart matched a school record with six touchdowns as Colorado State (10-1, 6-1 MWC) easily dispatched New Mexico (3-8, 1-6) to extend its winning streak to nine straight Saturday.
Hart ran for 230 yards and five touchdowns on 20 carries and also caught another score to tie the school record.
Garrett Grayson threw for 389 yards and three touchdowns on 23 of 29 completions for the Rams, which will win the Mountain Division with a win over Air Force on Friday and a Utah State win at Boise on Saturday.
Boise State 63, Wyoming 14
At Laramie, Wyoming, Jay Ajayi ran for 110 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries, and Grant Hedrick threw for 246 yards and three scores as the Broncos (9-2, 6-1 MWC) routed the Cowboys (4-7, 2-5) on Saturday night.
Ajayi also caught two passes for 92 yards and a touchdown for Boise State.
Brian Hill led Wyoming with 65 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries.
Hawaii 37, UNLV 35
At Honolulu, Marcus Kemp’s 20-yard touchdown grab from quarterback Ikaika Woolsey on the final play of the game lifted the Warriors (4-8, 3-4 MWC) by the Rebels (2-10, 1-6) in a controversial ending Saturday.
UNLV took a 35-31 lead with just 15 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter before Hawaii’s unlikely drive.
Woolsey completed 13 of 21 passes for 229 yards and a touchdown, and Joey Iosefa ran for 219 yards and two scores for the Warriors.
Devante Davis led UNLV with 163 yards on five catches, and Devonte Boyd added 91 yards on four grabs for the Rebels.
Hawaii can win the West Division with a win over Fresno State on Saturday and a loss by both Nevada and Fresno State.
