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Christensen: A Stellar Sports Season

By Todd Christensen
June 29, 2011

The phrase "banner year" gets bandied about too much, but in truth, it could describe the Mountain West and the inroads to credibility they made in a variety of sports.   

In men’s swimming and diving, UNLV won their seventh straight Conference title and were ranked No. 16 in the nation.   On the women's side, the Aztecs from San Diego State were ranked No. 24.  Led by Megan Plourde, the Colorado State Rams were the 17th-ranked volleyball team on the women's side while in soccer, both New Mexico and BYU cracked the Top 25.

On the men’s side, both the San Diego State golf team and the BYU track and field team were ranked No. 8 in the nation, led by JJ Spaun and Leif Arrhenius, respectively.  In basketball, both the Aztecs and BYU found themselves in the Top 10 and the Sweet Sixteen with first round picks Kawhi Leonard from San Diego State and the nation's leading scorer and Player of the Year in Jimmer Fredette helping to fill arenas and afford the Mountain West some very serious national attention.

The piece de resistance, of course, had to be the perfect season for TCU in football, where the Horned Frogs garnered a 13-0 mark culminating in a Rose Bowl victory over the powerful Wisconsin Badgers.  We will never know if they could’ve beaten the No. 1-ranked Auburn Tigers, but a No. 2 ranking is exemplary.

Congratulations to all of the schools and welcome to Boise State, who we believe will only add to this list of athletic feats in the Mountain West!
See all of Todd Christensen's blog entries HERE.