FACTS & STATS: Site: Qualcomm Stadium (54,000) -- San Diego, California. Television: None. Home Record: TCU 5-1, SDSU 2-2. Away Record: TCU 1-4, SDSU 2-3. Neutral Record: TCU 0-0, SDSU 0-1. Conference Record: TCU 3-4, SDSU 3-3. Series Record: TCU leads, 2-0.

GAME NOTES: One team is already eligible for the postseason and the other still has a chance to make it happen with two games remaining on the schedule. That's the situation this weekend at Qualcomm Stadium as the TCU Horned Frogs drop in on the San Diego State Aztecs for a Mountain West Conference battle. The Horned Frogs, picked to be one of the elite in the league prior to the season, made themselves bowl eligible last weekend with a 34-10 victory over UNLV at home, marking the team's second win in the last three outings while it has alternated wins and losses for the last seven games. As for the Aztecs, who still have another game on the slate the first of December versus BYU due to a postponement during the Southern California wildfires in late October, their results have pretty much followed form with the squad beating the teams it should and losing to tougher opponents. Last week, it was the case of the latter, losing to Air Force on the road by a score of 55-23. The setback snapped a two-game win streak for SDSU which is now 4-6 on the season and an even 3-3 in MWC play. TCU has won both previous meetings with the Aztecs, stealing a 23-20 decision in the first meeting and then whipping SDSU at home last year in a 52-0 final.

Aaron Brown scored on a 10-yard run in the second quarter against the Rebels last week in TCU's easy win in Fort Worth, but it appears that may have been the last hooray for the running back. It appears he will now miss the remainder of the season with an ankle injury, which means the Frogs will have to get along in the regular-season finale and a possible postseason outing without one of the most feared running backs in the MWC this season, even if his numbers don't bear that out. But rather than throw in the towel, the Horned Frogs will get Andy Dalton to shoulder more of the load, just as he did last weekend with he scored two rushing touchdowns and gained a team-best 73 yards on the ground, in addition to his 6-of-12 passing for 73 yards. As far as being a pure passer is concerned, Dalton still has some things to learn with his 173.8 ypg and just 10 touchdowns, against just as many picks thus far. However, with his outbursts into the end zone last weekend, he now leads the team with three rushing scores, despite gaining an average of only two yards per carry. Dalton will have to continues being more offensive minded now that his second-best receiver (Brown, 24 catches for 161 yards) is on the shelf with an injury.

Against one of the worst scoring offenses in not only the MWC but the nation, the Horned Frogs really didn't have that much trouble shutting down the Rebels last weekend. The boys in the trenches not only produced six sacks, they also limited UNLV to a mere 12 yards rushing on 22 attempts and just 247 yards of total offense overall. Stephen Hodge may have been the top tackler in the contest with his 11 stops, adding 1.5 sacks, but it was Chase Ortiz who earned all the glory as his four tackles for loss, two sacks, two forced fumbles and one recovery put his name on the MWC Defensive Player of the Week award. Ortiz may be far down on the list with just 39 total tackles this season, but when he's made a connection with the opposition it is usually resulting in a big play for the TCU defense. He leads the team in both TFLs (15.5 ) and sacks (eight), not to mention now having three forced fumbles. Because of his efforts, the Frogs are tops in the conference and tied for ninth in the country with 3.2 sacks per game, which also translates into the team giving up a mere 17.9 ppg to rank 13th in the country as well.

Kevin O'Connell scored the first points of the game against Air Force last weekend, but then the flood gates opened for the Falcons as they scored 21 unanswered points en route to the blowout victory at home. Still, O'Connell had one of his best passing days with 384 yards on 27-of-43 attempts, leading to one touchdown and an interception. Chaz Schilens was the recipient of eight passes for an amazing 215 yards, if for no other reason than he didn't make it into the end zone. One can only imagine how much better this offense could have been in 2007 had Schilens played in more than six games. Nevertheless, this group is based on the exploits of O'Connell, the program's leading rusher at the quarterback position. This season he's second on the unit with 289 yards and has landed in the end zone eight times, adding to his 12 passing scores and 240.9 ypg through the air. In terms of total offense, the signal-caller is second in the conference and 30th in the nation among all players with 271.6 ypg. Although, with him handling the ball as much as he does, it only stands to reason that SDSU is now eighth in the league and 100th in the country with an average of 2.7 sacks allowed this season.

Like so many other programs this season, the Aztecs found out first-hand what it means to line up against one of the most feared rushing attacks in the nation. Air Force was relentless on the ground with a stunning 569 yards and an amazing eight touchdowns on 64 attempts. All of that work on the ground meant the SDSU defense was forced to live on the field in the fourth quarter for more than 10 minutes. All of those running plays also meant it was that much easier for Ray Bass and Andrew Preston to come up with 17 and 10 tackles, respectively. Bas sis now second on the roster with his 85 tackles and Preston fourth with 65 stops in one less game. Nick Osborn continues to lead the way with 7.5 TFLs and four sacks, but he's had just one sack over the last six games. As a team the Aztecs are last in the MWC and 95th in the country with only 1.5 sacks per game and are 107th in TFLs with five per outing. All of that, combined with a run defense that has now surrendered 221.1 ypg (due mainly to the exploits of Air Force), the Aztecs are now 112th in the nation in total defense, permitting a hefty 474.6 ypg.

Just 1-4 on the road this season, the Horned Frogs are anything but a safe bet heading into Qualcomm this weekend. Given that SDSU still has a chance to make it to the postseason, expect to see O'Connell and Co. pull out all the stops to make it happen.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: San Diego State 24, TCU 17

Saturday, November 24th, 8:00 p.m. (et).