Colorado State University Athletics
Memorable Moments: The 1999 MW Champions
10/19/2023 2:00:00 PM | Football
The 1999 UNLV Game Helped the Rams Secure their first Mountain West Championship
The stage was set on Nov. 27, 1999, in Las Vegas when the Rams, on a four-game win streak, came into Sam Boyd Stadium to take a share of the first ever Mountain West championship. With Utah and BYU closely on the heels of the Rams, a win over UNLV would give CSU a piece of a three-way tie for the championship.
The game started off in favor of the Rebels, as they jumped out to a 17-14 lead in the first half. Sonny Lubick said after the game, "After the first possession, I knew we'd be in for a fight."
Thanks to the strong arm and legs of Matt Newton, the Rams fought back with a 77-yard touchdown pass to Dallas Davis, with Newton rushing into the end zone himself. CSU Hall of Fame running back Kevin McDougal took to the ground in the second half as well, rushing in for one touchdown and 113 yards on 24 carries.
The Rams scored 21 unanswered points in the second half as they beat UNLV 35-17 to capture a piece of the championship. CSU football had not shared a conference championship with two other teams in the same season since 1933 and 1934 – coincidently, Utah was part of the 1933 conference championship split as well.
After the game, plenty of speculation on the rules of the tied conference championship was printed. Since it was the first year of the conference, Sonny Lubick was well aware of the rules behind how the tie occurred and should be broken. He stated, "From our standpoint, we are the champions. The conference or the bowl committee might argue, but the tiebreakers we all set up a year ago and by those guidelines, we win." Coach Lubick's tiebreaker was meant to be how CSU had an advantage over the other two teams. Nonetheless, three conference championship trophies were made and handed out to CSU, BYU and Utah.
The next argument went to who would go to the Liberty Bow on New Year's Eve. The MWC had made an agreement with the Liberty Bowl to send it's champion to that game, but the Liberty Bowl committee had final say in the instance of a tied title. Perhaps Lubick's proclamation of being the champions reigned heavily on the decision by the Liberty Bow committee as the Rams were chosen as the MW representatives to play Southern Mississippi.
CSU had won four conference titles in six seasons of WAC and Mountain West football, and they were certainly the top team among all schools in the new conference. Although the Liberty Bowl was a loss, CSU came back in 2000 even stronger to win the MW without tying with any other school for their fifth championship of the Lubick era.
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The game started off in favor of the Rebels, as they jumped out to a 17-14 lead in the first half. Sonny Lubick said after the game, "After the first possession, I knew we'd be in for a fight."
Thanks to the strong arm and legs of Matt Newton, the Rams fought back with a 77-yard touchdown pass to Dallas Davis, with Newton rushing into the end zone himself. CSU Hall of Fame running back Kevin McDougal took to the ground in the second half as well, rushing in for one touchdown and 113 yards on 24 carries.
The Rams scored 21 unanswered points in the second half as they beat UNLV 35-17 to capture a piece of the championship. CSU football had not shared a conference championship with two other teams in the same season since 1933 and 1934 – coincidently, Utah was part of the 1933 conference championship split as well.
After the game, plenty of speculation on the rules of the tied conference championship was printed. Since it was the first year of the conference, Sonny Lubick was well aware of the rules behind how the tie occurred and should be broken. He stated, "From our standpoint, we are the champions. The conference or the bowl committee might argue, but the tiebreakers we all set up a year ago and by those guidelines, we win." Coach Lubick's tiebreaker was meant to be how CSU had an advantage over the other two teams. Nonetheless, three conference championship trophies were made and handed out to CSU, BYU and Utah.
The next argument went to who would go to the Liberty Bow on New Year's Eve. The MWC had made an agreement with the Liberty Bowl to send it's champion to that game, but the Liberty Bowl committee had final say in the instance of a tied title. Perhaps Lubick's proclamation of being the champions reigned heavily on the decision by the Liberty Bow committee as the Rams were chosen as the MW representatives to play Southern Mississippi.
CSU had won four conference titles in six seasons of WAC and Mountain West football, and they were certainly the top team among all schools in the new conference. Although the Liberty Bowl was a loss, CSU came back in 2000 even stronger to win the MW without tying with any other school for their fifth championship of the Lubick era.
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