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SDSU’s trip to Wyoming even bigger headache than usual

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Mike Miller

It’s usually the altitude that gives Wyoming an added boost when it plays at home. But sometimes the relatively remote does its part to wear down an opponent. (Not to mention the occasionally nasty weather.)

It took No. 13 San Diego State about 20 hours to make the trip from San Diego to Laramie, Wyo., due to various issues, all of which stem from the headaches of traveling to the high plains.

(NOTE: It slowed the Aztecs a bit, but didn’t stop ‘em. They won 52-42.)

A team might normally fly to Denver then bus it, (about 150 miles, all via Interstate) or perhaps fly to Denver, then take another flight to Laramie. Both are time sucks (I saw this as a guy who grew up in Cheyenne, Wyo., and attended Wyoming for a few semesters) and both make for the trip teams hate to make.

So SDSU chartered a flight (the second in program history) to bypass those headaches. Yet when it landed for gas in Cedar City, Utah, a snowstorm kept the Aztecs there overnight. They didn’t get to Laramie until about 1:30 p.m. ET, seven hours before game time.

“We tried to land and refuel in St. George, but the weather was so bad we had to land in Cedar City,” San Diego State spokesman Darin Wong told CBSSports.com on Tuesday afternoon.

“Our guys seem to be taking it in stride. Their spirits are high.”

They better be. SDSU still has to deal with the altitude adjustment (Laramie’s 7,100 feet, which taxes even well-conditioned athletes) and the Cowboys defense, one of the nation’s nastiest.

Add it all up, and Wyoming (16-3) might just pull off the upset tonight.

You also can follow me on Twitter @MikeMillerNBC.