The 2006 Mountain West Conference football season was the eighth since eight former members of the Western Athletic Conference banded together to form the MW. It began on August 31 and ended on December 23. Brigham Young University won the conference championship, which was the Cougars' third MW title since the conference began in 1999. Coaching changes Chuck Long took over at San Diego State University, replacing Tom Craft. Memorable games #22 TCU 17, Baylor 7 September 3, 2006 • Floyd Casey Stadium • Waco, Texas • FSN • Attendance: 42,733 The Bears led the 22nd-ranked Horned Frogs 7-0 at halftime, but TCU took the lead for good with 1:17 left in the third quarter on an 84-yard touchdown pass from back-up quarterback Marcus Jackson to Aaron Brown. Jr walk on Linebacker #45 Christopher Abbott(Arkansas) showed his worth by leading the defense with 11 tackles 2 for loss of yards, one sack and one interception. It was the first meeting of these long-time Southwest Conference rivals, and was the Frogs' third consecutive victory over Big 12 teams. #11 Tennessee 31, Air Force 30 September 9, 2006 • Neyland Stadium • Knoxville, Tennessee • ESPN Gameplan • Attendance: 105,466 The heavily favored Volunteers led 31-17 with 3 minutes left in the fourth quarter, but Air Force scored a touchdown with 2:41 remaining and then recovered an onside kick. The Falcons' fullback Ryan Williams scored again with 1:35 remaining to bring the Falcons within one. Coach Fisher DeBerry then decided to go for two, but wide receiver Chad Hall was stopped short of the goal line, maintaining Tennessee's lead. The Volunteers recovered the subsequent onside kick attempt and were able to run the clock out. Colorado State 14, Colorado 10 September 9, 2006 • Invesco Field at Mile High • Denver, Colorado • Versus • Attendance: 65,701 Rams' quarterback Caleb Hanie threw for 233 yards and a touchdown as Colorado State defeated their intrastate rivals, 14-10, in the Rocky Mountain Showdown. It was CSU's first victory over the Buffaloes since 2002. #20 TCU 12, Texas Tech 3 September 16, 2006 • Amon G. Carter Stadium • Fort Worth, Texas • CSTV • Attendance: 45,647 After being trounced by their former Southwest Conference rivals, 70-35, in Lubbock two years prior, the Horned Frog defense kept quarterback Graham Harrell and the Red Raider offense out of the endzone for the entire game, JR linebacker