Category: Mountain West

Why Ashton Jeanty might be the most unlikely Heisman contender yet

Ashton Jeanty’s Heisman Trophy candidacy is unprecedented, but so is his elite performance for Boise State through five games.

The Boise State Broncos unloaded 62 points in a win over the Utah State Aggies on Saturday, moving to 4-1 on the year and increasing their chances of playing in the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff.

Running back Ashton Jeanty was once again the catalyst for the Broncos, carrying the ball 13 times for 186 yards and three touchdowns.

When Jeanty stayed at Boise State this offseason, rather than hitting the transfer portal – where he instantly would have become the top offensive player available – it was clear he was in line for a monster season. But to say his performance this year has turned heads would be an understatement, as the dynamic back is a legitimate candidate to win the Heisman Trophy award – which would be unprecedented in the history of college football.

Historically, the Heisman Trophy has been dominated by quarterbacks from power conference schools, making Jeanty’s candidacy as a running back from a Mountain West program all the more remarkable.

In an era where pass-happy offenses tend to garner the most attention, Jeanty carved out a place in the national spotlight with his dynamic playmaking ability, carrying the Broncos on his back and forcing his way into the conversation typically reserved for quarterbacks in one of the power conferences.

In fact, no non-quarterback from a non-Power Five school has ever won the prestigious award. Players like Ty Detmer (BYU) and Lamar Jackson (Louisville) were able to do it from outside the Power Five, but they were quarterbacks in high-flying offenses.

For Jeanty to be in the discussion – and considered the favorite by some – shows how much of an impact he’s had this season. He’s not only defying expectations for players from non-power conferences, but also elevating Boise State into the national conversation once again, showcasing that Heisman-caliber talent can come from any program if the performance is undeniable.

Matthew Sluka redshirting at UNLV over lack of NIL payment

UNLV has not honored an NIL payment to starting quarterback Matthew Sluka, who now plans to redshirt after the team’s 3-0 start.

UNLV starting quarterback Matthew Sluka took to social media on Tuesday evening to announce he is redshirting the rest of the 2024 season.

“I have decided to utilize my redshirt year and will not be playing in any additional games this season,” Sluka wrote in his post. “I committed to UNLV based on certain representations that were made to me, which were not upheld after I enrolled. Despite discussions, it became clear that these commitments would not be fulfilled in the future.”

Marcus Cromartie of Equity Sports, who represents Sluka, told ESPN Sluka was promised a minimum of $100,000 by a UNLV assistant coach to transfer, and that none of that money was paid. Cromartie says no effort was made by UNLV’s collective to formalize a contract once Sluka arrived on campus, and that all he has received to date is a $3,000 relocation stipend.

Sluka’s decision was the talk of the SEC coaches teleconference on Wednesday, with both Brian Kelly of LSU and Kirby Smart at Georgia advocating for revenue sharing to help alleviate issues like this one.

“The NIL, because it becomes a third-party piece, you lose control,” Kelly said. “And that’s why the revenue sharing piece is so important and getting that legislation passed now puts that back through the universities. And now those contracts can be written a lot differently. When you’re dealing with a third party and collectives and NILs, the universities are at arms length.”

“Unless there’s a set contract where Person A has to stay a certain amount of time or they’re going to have to pay back this contract, we’re never going to get to where we want to get to,” Smart added. “There’s probably going to be more and more of this going on, especially as the year goes on, November, December. Athletic departments are going to struggle to be able to make their commitments come to fruition and I think we’re going to see some really tough times in college football when all this is said and done.”

For UNLV, losing Sluka when the program is not only competing for a spot in the College Football Playoff, but in the midst of a tug-of-war between the Pac-12 and the Mountain West, is a disaster timing wise.

The Rebels will call on backup Hajj-Malik Williams to step into the starting role. Williams has yet to attempt a pass this year, but the five year vet from Campbell has rushed 10 times for 88 yards and has a history as a dual-threat quarterback.

Weighing the pros and cons of Utah State as Pac-12 expansion target

The Pac-12 has Utah State on its radar as a geographic fit for conference expansion.

The Pac-12’s first wave of expansion involved bringing in four Mountain West programs – Boise State, San Diego State, Colorado State, and Fresno State – to join Washington State and Oregon State starting in 2026.

The league is looking to get to at least eight programs in order to be FBS eligible for the 2026 season, with sights set on marquee brands in the American conference like Memphis and Tulane.

However, a recent report from Brett McMurphy of Action Network indicated the conference could pivot and add two more Mountain West programs to stay in the same geographical footprint, citing UNLV and Utah State as the top targets.

UNLV is perhaps the most obvious remaining Mountain West program to join the Pac-12, but Utah State is a bit less known as a brand. However, there are plenty of reasons the Aggies make sense as a future Pac-12 squad:

The Pros

Utah State’s recent performance in the two revenue generating sports – football and men’s basketball – has been on a consistent upward trend the past half decade plus.

The football program has appeared in a bowl game every season since 2011 except 2016 (3-9) and 2020 (1-5). The program was ranked in the AP Poll in 2021 and 2018, and while they are off to an ugly 1-3 start this year the sudden firing of head coach Blake Anderson just before the year began didn’t exactly set the team up for success.

Meanwhile, the men’s basketball team has appeared in four of the past five NCAA Tournaments, advancing to the second round last year after getting ranked as high as No. 16 overall in the AP Poll. The upcoming 2024-25 season will be a third straight with a new coach, losing Ryan Odom to VCU after 2023 and only getting Danny Sprinkle for one season before he departed for Washington.

The football and men’s basketball success has spread to the rest of the programs as well, with the Aggies winning four Mountain West championships across all sports last year.

Utah State is also a large institution with roughly 27,000 students and nearly 200,000 alumni, putting it in line with other recent additions to the Pac-12.

The Cons

Utah State is located in Logan, Utah, a suburb of Salt Lake City with a population of roughly 54,000. The media market for Utah State will include the Salt Lake metro area, which makes it look quite large, but that market is largely made up of Utah fans who aren’t as interested in the Aggies.

Overall, Utah State’s media footprint is not on the level of the other programs in the Pac-12 or being pursued by the Pac-12, and while getting back into the state of Utah is no doubt an appeal – Utah State is third in the state behind Utah and BYU in the pecking order.

Verdict

Utah State is pretty clearly behind the four already added Mountain West schools and UNLV on the Pac-12’s wish list. The Aggies are deservedly ahead of programs like Nevada, New Mexico, and Wyoming, but being located in a small market that borders a big city that supports another team is not ideal whatsoever.

The recent success in basketball and football is a promising sign the Aggies could sustain success with a move to the Pac-12, but there’s little doubt the conference would rather make things work with teams like Memphis, Tulane, or South Florida before continuing to poach from the Mountain West.

Mountain West could lose another program as conference realignment floodgates open

The Mountain West already lost four programs to the Pac-12, and now rumors are flying that Air Force could join Army and Navy in the American.

Anyone who was following conference realignment last summer knows that once the first domino falls, it doesn’t take long for things to start spiraling.

It appears that could be the case for the Mountain West, who already saw four huge programs depart for the new-look Pac-12 last week.

Losing Boise State, San Diego State, Fresno State, and Colorado State and going from 11 schools to seven was a devastating blow for one of the most well-known non-power conferences in college athletics, but it wasn’t a knockout punch.

However, the recent rumor that talks between the American Athletic Conference and Air Force are heating up is a frightening sign for the league, which has been around since 1999.

Air Force has been in discussion with the AAC since before the Mountain West was gutted, and certainly it’s easy to see the appeal as a service academy to join a league that already features Army and Navy.

The Falcons have been Mountain West members since its inception, posting an impressive 131-84 record since Troy Calhoun took over as head coach in 2007.

https://twitter.com/PeteThamel/status/1835757632793296985

If the Mountain West does lose Air Force to the AAC, it drops them to just six programs and creates an urgent situation for commissioner Gloria Nevarez to backfill the league as soon as possible or risk continued departures.

Teams like New Mexico State, UTEP, Texas State, or even FCS programs North Dakota State and South Dakota State are on the table for this league to sustain themselves in the ever changing college sports landscape.

UNLV strengthens case for Pac-12 membership with win on Friday

UNLV was left out of the first wave of Pac-12 additions, but could a huge win over Kansas help get them accepted?

The Pac-12 conference began the process of rebuilding earlier this week, securing membership from four Mountain West programs: Boise State, Fresno State, Colorado State, and San Diego State.

The UNLV Rebels were not among the four programs accepted into the Pac-12, although the conference will need to get to at least eight programs by July of 2026 in order to compete at the FBS level.

While a lot of attention is on schools in the American conference, like Memphis, Tulane, or Tulsa, UNLV remains a compelling target for the Pac-12 – and it doesn’t hurt the football program is off to a 3-0 start with two wins over Big 12 programs after defeating Kansas on Friday evening.

The Pros

Few media markets are more coveted right now than Las Vegas, which has aggressively rebranded as a sports hub over the past decade or so – adding an NHL team, a WNBA team, and snagging the Raiders from Oakland.

College football and basketball games are frequently played in Las Vegas, including this year’s massive matchup between LSU and USC in Week 1 and multiple conference basketball tournaments, including the Mountain West, WCC, WAC, and the Pac-12.

UNLV gives the Pac-12 a steady footprint in Vegas, and that alone is a huge selling point for the program.

It also doesn’t hurt the team looks good right now under coach Barry Odom, going 9-5 last year and 6-2 in conference play before losing to Kansas in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl – a loss they got revenge for on Friday.

Additionally, while the men’s basketball program hasn’t been great the past decade, the Rebels have a rich history of success in that realm – including a national championship back in 1991. Last year’s team went 21-13 overall and 12-6 in a very deep Mountain West conference, so there’s reason to believe they can compete at the Pac-12 level right away.

The Cons

UNLV is 12-5 in the Barry Odom era dating back to the start of the 2023 season, but the football history prior to his arrival is, to put it lightly, not good. The Rebels made just one bowl appearance between 2001 and 2023, a loss to North Texas in the Heart of Dallas bowl in 2013.

From 2014-2022 the Rebels went 29-74 overall and 19-51 in conference play, a stretch that included the final year of Bobby Hauck’s tenure and the entirety of coach Tony Sanchez and Marcus Arroyo’s time in Vegas. Odom has been great, but when (not if) he gets scooped up by another program, who’s to say the program won’t go right back to being a doormat – which is not what the Pac-12 is looking for in the early stages of rebuilding.

Plus, while the allure of Vegas as a market remains, UNLV doesn’t have its own football stadium which likely gives the Pac-12 some pause. The program currently plays at Allegiant Stadium, home of the Las Vegas Raiders, but not having a home arena curtails fan interest – especially in an area that is dominated by tourism traffic.

Lastly, it is possible the two Nevada schools, UNLV and Nevada, are expecting to be a package deal which almost certainly isn’t appealing to the Pac-12. Nevada is in a much smaller market and doesn’t have much track record for football, making them a very low priority for the conference at this time.

Verdict

Las Vegas is a huge media draw for a rebuilding conference like the Pac-12, and UNLV’s current hot start to the season and success in men’s basketball make it a bit of a surprise they were not added in the first wave of poaching via the Mountain West.

However, the poor history on the gridiron, lack of a home stadium, and potential tie to Nevada-Reno is plenty reason for the Pac-12 to look at other schools – namely Memphis, Tulane, or Tulsa – before making the Rebels a priority.

Where does Mountain West turn after losing four programs to Pac-12?

The Mountain West is down to seven schools, how might they proceed after the Pac-12 poached four major brands?

Overnight the Mountain West conference went from 11 schools to just seven, with the Pac-12 swooping in and stealing Boise State, Fresno State, San Diego State, and Colorado State starting in 2026.

The four additions give the Pac-12 six total schools, with two more required to reach the NCAA minimum. The Pac-12 has plenty of options to finalize their lineup of teams, which could include coming back to the Mountain West to try and land UNLV and Nevada.

Whether that happens or not, the Mountain West now has work to do to ensure it remains a viable – and strong – athletic conference moving forward.

Unfortunately, as long as the Pac-12 is publicly known to be hunting for new teams, convincing marquee programs to join the Mountain West will be tricky.

Still, there are quite a few teams out there that make sense for the Mountain West to pursue, and we have broken them up into three distinct categories:

American Athletic Conference

The Mountain West will no doubt look at programs in the American Athletic Conference, although those teams will almost certainly wait and see if the Pac-12 will come calling first. Memphis feels like a strong candidate to get a call from the new-look Pac-12, and even if they don’t the Tigers may opt to stay where they are and wait to see if a power conference – perhaps the Big 12 – will scoop them up in the next round of realignment.

Tulane and Tulsa are also expected to be on the Pac-12’s radar, but if neither of them gets an invite the Mountain West should make a strong push to bring them on board. Tulsa would give the conference a footprint in Oklahoma, while Tulane would give them a big media market in New Orleans.

However, Texas is arguably the most important state for any conference to have inroads, especially a football-focused league like the Mountain West, which makes UTSA, Rice, and North Texas all appealing options.

UAB is a bit of a wildcard option here, but Birmingham is a big market and the Blazers have had success recently – although they’d be on a bit of an island geographically unless they join alongside Tulsa or Memphis.

Conference USA

If the state of Texas is the priority, both UTEP and Sam Houston make a ton of sense for the Mountain West. UTEP has been in Conference USA since 2005, although the Miners have struggled to sustain success with just one season over .500 in conference play since 2006.

Sam Houston is much newer to the FCS level, having gone 3-9 in 2023 and off to a 1-1 start so far in 2024. They’d be a bit of a gamble addition, but one that could pay off handsomely if the team can grow over in Huntsville.

Additionally, despite a disastrous couple of years for New Mexico State in football and men’s basketball, the Aggies are a logical target for the Mountain West so they can pair them with New Mexico for a local in-state rivalry.

FBS Programs

FBS additions are probably a last resort for the Mountain West, but if North Dakota State and South Dakota State are interested and available this would be well worth looking into.

The likely outcome here would be bringing the two programs in as football-only members, which is a seamless transition since they are currently football-only in the Missouri Valley and in the Summit League for everything else.

A few other FBS programs that could be targeted for the Mountain West include a trio of teams in the Big Sky Conference: Eastern Washington, Montana State, and Northern Arizona.

The next round of realignment is contingent on how the Pac-12 approaches finalizing their conference, the Mountain West appears likely to be in the driver’s seat for some decent programs in desirable media markets – which will help ease the sting of losing four of the biggest brands the league has ever had.

Pac-12, Mountain West fail to extend scheduling agreement, so now what?

Oregon State and Washington State did not extend a scheduling agreement with the Mountain West into 2025.

The Washington State Cougars and Oregon State Beavers each began the unprecedented 2024 college football season with a win on Saturday, but it wasn’t the big headline surrounding the two programs this weekend.

Rather, it was the lack of news.

Sunday, September 1 was the deadline to extend the football scheduling partnership with the Mountain West into the 2025 season, a deadline that passed without an agreement – although neither side felt any urgency to formalize plans.

“If there’s no agreement, that doesn’t mean we can’t still do something,” a source told Jon Wilner of the San Diego Union Tribune. “This is not a standoff situation.”

The current deal provides both Oregon State and Washington State with six games against Mountain West schools, three at home and three on the road, for the 2024 season.

The two schools plan to compete as a two-team conference for 2024 and 2025, and while the deadline has passed it does sound like the two sides could still agree to a similar, albeit restructured, scheduling agreement for 2025.

As of now, both Oregon State and Washington State already have six games scheduled for 2025. WSU will play North Texas, San Diego State, Idaho, Washington, Virginia, and Oregon State, while OSU will play Cal, Fresno State, Houston, Texas Tech, Oregon, and of course Washington State.

Close game expected between Houston and UNLV on Saturday

Take a look at our score prediction for the game between UNLV and Houston.

The UNLV Runnin’ Rebels are on the road at the Houston Cougars on Saturday, with kickoff slated for 7:00 PM ET. The game will be aired on FS1.

This is the first game for both teams in the 2024 season.  The last time these two teams played was back in 2014 when the Cougars beat the Runnin’ Rebels by 33 points.

A season ago, UNLV went 9-5 and played in a bowl game, which they ultimately lost by 13 to Kansas. Still, they finished the season strong with a third place finish in the Mountain West Conference.

For Houston, last season was a big-time struggle. The Cougars went 4-8 and finished 12th in the Big 12. The Cougars lost their season finale on the road at Central Florida.

Rebels Seeking Another Strong Season

The signal caller for UNLV will be transfer Matthew Sluka. He and receiver Casey Cain are joining the Rebels offense. Returning is Jai’Den Thomas. Last season he rushed for 503 yards on 108 carries and led the team with 12 touchdowns.

Ricky White is also returning. He was the top receiver a season ago with 1,483 yards and 8 touchdowns.

UNLV will head home and host Utah Tech next, and then head out on the road to take on Kansas. The first Mountain West Conference game of the season will be on September 28th against Fresno State.

Cougars Looking to Rebound Season

Donovan Smith is back behind center for the Cougars. He threw for 22 touchdowns a season ago. His downfall was in his 13 interceptions, and 26 sacks. Smith will need to stay upright more often this season for the Cougars to be better.

The run game will once again be led by Parker Jenkins. He rushed 99 times for 464 yards and 3 touchdowns. Smith led the team with six touchdown runs. The receiving game will be anchored by Joseph Manjack IV. He finished with 577 yards and 6 touchdowns last season.

Houston will go on the road at Oklahoma next Saturday. Following that, they will host the Rice Owls. Then, the Big 12 season starts. The first conference game is on the road at Cincinnati on September 21st.

UNLV vs. Houston Score Prediction

This is set to be one of the best games the entire weekend. The two teams looking to be competitive and want to get off to a quick start to their season. The Cougars are looking to get back to competitive ways, and out of the Big 12 will face some major tests. This is a great game for them to get started with a big-time win.

Look for Houston and UNLV to go back and forth, but when push comes to shove, the Cougars win at home. The College Sports Wire final score prediction is Houston Cougars 31-28 over UNLV.

Ranking the four Week 0 matchups in 2024 college football season

A look at Week 0, college football’s first four matchups of the 2024 season featuring Florida State and Georgia Tech in Dublin.

The 2024 College Football season is officially here. Four games are set to kick off this Saturday, August 24, as part of ‘Week 0’ ahead of a full slate of games the following week.

Week 0 opens with a conference matchup between ACC programs Florida State and Georgia Tech. The game kicks off at 12:00 PT ET and will take place at Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Ireland. The ‘Noles are 11.5 point favorites after running through the ACC last season, but especially in an overseas game anything can happen.

Next on the schedule is New Mexico hosting Montana State on campus, with a 4:00 PM start on FS1. The Lobos are projected at or near the bottom in the Mountain West, and the Bobcats are favored by more than a touchdown here despite being an FCS program from the Big Sky.

What follows is another matchup involving a Mountain West school, with Nevada hosting new ACC foe SMU at Mackay Stadium in Reno starting at 8:00 PM ET. The Mustangs will be favored big in this one, and have a chance to set the tone regarding their status as a legit player in the ACC.

Finally, the night closes out in beautiful Hawaii, where the Rainbow Warriors host Delaware State out of the MEAC right at midnight ET. It could be an ugly day for the Mountain West, with both Nevada and New Mexico projected to lose, although Hawaii should hold the fort down at home and give the conference their first win of the season.

Fans will wet their beak with four games this Saturday, and five days later things fully get underway with 21 games slated for Thursday, August 29.

Maddux Madsen wins starting quarterback job at Boise State

Maddux Madsen won the Boise State Broncos starting quarterback job over USC transfer Malachi Nelson.

The Boise State Broncos held a quarterback battle throughout the spring and summer, but a report from ESPN’s Pete Thamel indicated the program tabbed redshirt sophomore Maddux Madsen the starter under center in Week 1.

Madsen has appeared in 10 games in his two seasons in Boise, and he beat out highly regarded USC transfer Malachi Nelson for the starting spot.

Nelson battled injury in his one season at USC, only appearing in four snaps for the Trojans – all in one game against San Jose State. He had an extremely decorated high school career, however, throwing for nearly 8,000 yards and 105 touchdowns at Los Alamitos High School in California.

Now he’ll continue to work on his game in a backup capacity, while Madsen seeks an opportunity to thrive in coach Spencer Danielson’s offense. Madsen appeared in nine games for the Broncos last year, finally stealing the starting job for good in the New Mexico game – before he suffered a season-ending injury in that contest after throwing for 202 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Madsen’s familiarity with the offense and dual-threat ability as a runner gave him the edge in a competition that was close all summer according to the coaching staff.

The Broncos have a real chance to win 10 or more games and secure a spot in the College Football Playoff, which has a guaranteed slot for the best Group of Five conference champion.

Boise State opens at Georgia Southern before taking on the No. 3 Oregon Ducks in Week 2 at Autzen Stadium.