Mountain West Football: Key Newcomers Atop Each Week 1 Depth Chart

All but one Mountain West team will play in Week 1. These new names atop the depth charts could be most crucial.

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Mountain West Football: Key Newcomers Atop Each Week 1 Depth Chart


All but one Mountain West team will play in Week 1. These new names atop the depth charts could be most crucial.


Contact/Follow @MattK_FS & @MWCwire

Which unfamiliar names are worth following?

Fresno State — Morice Norris Jr., NB

After it came out last week that Justin Houston would be ineligible to play for the first six games of the season, the Bulldogs’ veteran depth at a key position looked like it had taken a hit. Instead, Norris Jr. beat out sophomore Emari Pait to claim the starting job for himself and looks to provide all the depth they’ll need.

Norris Jr. spent two seasons at Orange Coast College before the COVID pandemic erased a potential 2020 campaign, after which he walked on to the Fresno State roster and took a redshirt in 2021. He isn’t the only person in the Mountain West set to log a lot of snaps after a long layoff, UNLV’s Jerrae Williams snapped a similar game-action drought last Saturday, but considering the team’s lofty expectations in 2022, Norris Jr. won’t have much of a learning curve

San Jose State — Fernando Carmona Jr., OT

The Spartans will feature four new starters on the offensive line, but Carmona Jr. is the one tasked with protecting Chevan Cordeiro on his blind side, replacing Jack Snyder at left tackle. Relative to just about every other projected starter at the position in the Mountain West, he’s a little smaller physically (6-foot-5, 265 pounds), so it’ll be interesting to see if he holds up against defenders who may be roughly as bigger but perhaps a step quicker.

Nevada — Maurice Wilmer, LB

The Wolf Pack had plenty of mysteries headed into fall camp, but the biggest one of all concerned who would step up in a linebacker unit that would be nearly new from top to bottom. Wilmer, who made his first career tackle in last December’s Quick Lane Bowl, has answered the bell and did his part in the dominant defensive performance over New Mexico State with two total tackles and a tackle for loss.

Colorado State — Brian Crespo-Jaquez, OT

The Rams restocked their roster through the transfer portal, but Crespo-Jaquez winning the left tackle job is perhaps the most under-the-radar ascension anywhere on the two-deep. Like Carmona Jr., the Fort Collins native will be responsible for protecting Clay Millen’s blindside and has a very tough task ahead against what should be a very good Michigan Wolverines defensive front. If he can help the redshirt freshman quarterback survive that, Fort Air Raid should find much smoother sailing in future weeks.

Air Force — Wyatt Wilson, WR

Assuming that there haven’t been many changes since last month’s media days, Wilson is one of the few new names we’re likely to see often in the Falcons’ opener against Northern Iowa. What kind of role will he play, though?

For one, he’s a much different player physically than Micah Davis, the explosive pass catcher who left the program during the off-season, standing at 6-foot-3 and 195 pounds. If you’re inclined to think he’ll be counted upon to stretch the field vertically rather than by attacking the edges on the ground as Davis did, there’s plenty of reason to believe it.

San Diego State — Josh Simmons, OT

The Aztecs’ projected lineup doesn’t contain too many surprises, but Simmons’s ascension is one that’s been hotly anticipated by many on the Mesa. The lone four-star recruit in San Diego State’s 2021 class, Simmons is listed at 6-foot-6 and 305 pounds, exactly the kind of athlete that the Aztecs have come to expect to have along their grinding offensive line.

Mountain West Football: Examining Each Opponent’s Week 1 Depth Chart

What stands out in the depth charts released by each of the Mountain West’s 11 Week 1 opponents?

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Mountain West Football: Examining Each Opponent’s Week 1 Depth Chart


What stands out in the depth charts released by each of the Mountain West’s 11 Week 1 opponents?


Contact/Follow @MattK_FS & @MWCwire

What to keep in mind before kickoff.

Cal Poly (link to game notes, depth chart on page 11)

What stands out: The Mustangs have a couple of solid defensive pieces, most notably defensive end Eljiah Ponder, and they’ll hope that sophomore Robbie Greer can bookend Ponder’s production at the other edge spot.

Why that could be important: Cal Poly’s pass rush wasn’t a particularly strong one in 2021, as the team had just 22 sacks, tied for tenth among teams in the Big Sky. Ponder had eight by himself, so the 6-foot-6, 250 pound Greer, who got his first taste of action as a true freshman in the spring season last year but redshirted during the fall, will be expected to do his part in taking down Jake Haener.

Portland State (link to game notes, depth chart on page 13)

What stands out: Dante Chachere is tasked with replacing Davis Alexander, one of the best quarterbacks in Portland State football history.

Why that could be important: Alexander had a lot of moxie and, more importantly, knew how to produce, doing so to the tune of 294.5 yards of total offense per game last year. The sophomore Chachere, after winning the competition over Jaden Casey, is a Fresno native who has earned a lot of praise throughout the offense for his growth as a potential dual-threat quarterback. His homecoming will be a test of how true that is.

Texas State (link to depth chart)

What stands out: As the Bobcats already return more than half of last year’s starters on both sides of the ball, there weren’t a ton of roles for players to step up and claim but nickelback Jarron Morris, who’s actually reclaiming a spot, could be the rare exception.

Why that could be important: Texas State’s secondary got picked on quite a bit last year, allowing a completion rate of 65.4% while interceptions just three passes all season. It could be in part because they missed Morris, a second-team all-Sun Belt defender who played in only one full game before a hip injury cost him the entire season. If he’s back in form, the Bobcats will be that much better for it.

Michigan (link to discussion of depth chart)

What stands out: The Wolverines will have work to do in replacing Aidan Hutchinson and David Ojabo, but one surprising entry that will be part of the cohort to do so is true freshman Mason Graham.

Why that could be important: A two-way player who also wrestled at California’s Servite High School, Graham won’t have to do everything by himself with veterans like Mazi Smith and Kris Jenkins back, as well. At 6-foot-3 and 317 pounds, though, Graham could disrupt Colorado State’s best laid plans from the point of attack if the Rams aren’t ready.

Northern Iowa (link to overview of team depth)

What stands out: The Panthers found themselves having to replace a first-round NFL Draft pick this summer, but Matthew Vanderslice emerged as Trevor Penning’s successor throughout the off-season.

Why that could be important: Vanderslice isn’t completely new to the starting lineup, having made two starts in 2019, three in spring 2020 and three last fall, but you could make a reasonable case that no one else mentioned in this article has bigger shoes to fill.

The upside? Vanderslice is a pretty big dude himself, listed at 6-foot-8 and 318 pounds on the UNI roster. If he can protect Theo Day’s blind side half as well as Penning did, Air Force could be in for a much tougher fight than expected.

Arizona (link to depth chart)

What stands out: The Wildcats aren’t wasting any time throwing true freshman Tetairoa McMillan into the mix, starting opposite UTEP transfer Jacob Cowing and sophomore Dorian Singer.

Why that could be important: McMillan is the highest-ranked recruit that Arizona has ever landed, a five-star prospect according to some sites, and at 6-foot-5 and 205 pounds, it’s not hard to see why. We know that Cowing is one of the nation’s premier deep threats, but it’ll be interesting to see what kind of role Jedd Fisch carves out for his off-season’s biggest prize.

Portland State vs. San Jose State: Game Preview, How To Watch, Odds, Prediction

The San Jose State Spartans will open 2022 at home against the Big Sky’s Vikings. Here’s how to watch and what to watch for.


Portland State vs. San Jose State: Game Preview, How To Watch, Odds, Prediction


The Spartans will open 2022 at home against the Big Sky’s Vikings. Here’s how to tune in and what to watch for.


Contact/Follow @MattK_FS and @MWCwire

SJSU looks to come out strong.

WEEK 1: Portland State Vikings vs. San Jose State Spartans

WHEN: Thursday, September 1 — 7:30 PM PT/8:30 PM MT

WHERE: CEFCU Stadium; San Jose, CA

WEATHER: Sunny, high of 90 degrees

TV: NBC Sports Bay Area

STREAMING: Mountain West Network

The Mountain West Network should also be available for streaming on a handful of smart TV platforms, as well as through the mobile app available on Apple and Android. You can learn more about how to access all of those at this link.

RADIO: The San Jose State broadcast can be found in the South Bay on 860 AM The Answer (KTRB).

SERIES RECORD: San Jose State leads the all-time series, 1-0. In the lone previous meeting on September 10, 2016, the Spartans defeated the Vikings, 66-35, in San Jose.

WEBSITES: GoViks.com, the official Portland State athletics website | SJSUSpartans.com, the official San Jose State athletics website

GAME NOTES (PDF): Portland State | San Jose State

ODDS: no line

SP+ PROJECTION: to be determined

FEI PROJECTION: N/A

PARKER FLEMING PROJECTION: N/A

After a disappointing 2021 season, the San Jose State Spartans are ready to prove their championship run the previous year was no fluke and that journey will begin at home against the Portland State Vikings.

Bruce Barnum’s Viks might not be the favorites in a very top-heavy Big Sky Conference, but they have talent on both sides of the ball that could keep the game much closer than expected should the Spartans get off to a slow start. Here’s how San Jose State can keep that from happening and come away with a Week 1 win.

Three Keys to a San Jose State Victory

1. Get Chevan Cordeiro into an early groove.

The Spartans invested heavily in revamping a passing game that fell off last season, so it stands to reason that Cordeiro will be a focal point of the new-look offense and shoulder a big workload. One potential problem with that? The new San Jose State quarterback has never been particularly sharp early in games.

In his career, Cordeiro has 179 first-quarter pass attempts, but he’s only managed a completion rate of 58.1%, 6.7 yards per attempt, and has nine touchdowns and five interceptions. Greater efficiency at the onset, like the kind the Spartans got from Nick Starkel back in 2020, could go a long way toward helping the home team keep the upset-minded Viks at arm’s length.

2. Find a strong performance within the defensive line.

Another thing that regressed some from the Spartans’ championship run was their ability to get to the quarterback. Despite the presence of both Viliami Fehoko and Cade Hall, San Jose State’s overall sack rate fell from 8.2% to 6.3%, fine but not great. If they can be great again, it’ll start against a Portland State offensive line that allowed 22 sacks in 2021 and will now feature two new starters, Sebastian Sias and Richard Estrella, at both tackle positions. Should the two all-conference defenders play as well as we know they can, the Spartans could put the Viks away emphatically.

San Jose State Football: First Look At The Portland State Vikings

3. Take care of the football.

Perhaps this is an obvious point of emphasis, but only Hawaii had more than San Jose State’s 24 giveaways last year among Mountain West offenses. They only had one game in 2021 with zero turnovers, compared to nine with two or more, which was another far cry from their championship season: Until their personnel was depleted in the Arizona Bowl that year, they had five turnovers in seven games.

Prediction

The Spartans tumbled down the standings last year, but they have done just about as much as they can to re-establish themselves as potential contenders this off-season. Beating a Portland State that figures to be solid, if not spectacular, like they should will be the first strike that puts the rest of the conference back on notice.

San Jose State 35, Portland State 21

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Colorado State, Hawaii To Face Different Michigan Quarterbacks In Weeks 1 And 2

Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan Wolverines will use the Mountain West to determine their quarterback competition.


Colorado State, Hawaii To Face Different Michigan Quarterbacks In Weeks 1 And 2


Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan Wolverines will use the Mountain West to determine their quarterback competition.


Contact/Follow @MattK_FS & @MWCwire

Well, that’s one way to do it.

Plenty of college football teams go into a season still trying to resolve a quarterback competition, but few have gone to the lengths that Michigan Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh intends to address his own.

In a statement put out by Michigan football’s official Twitter, Harbaugh said that his Wolverines are “not ready to say who [their] starting quarterback is”. It goes on to clarify that Cade McNamara, who started 14 games in the team’s run to the College Football Playoff last season, will be under center when they host Colorado State in Week 1. The following week, challenger J.J. McCarthy will get his turn to start against Hawaii.

Where such competitions are often considered on a drive-by-drive or quarter-by-quarter basis, both McNamara and McCarthy will get a sixty-minute audition against a pair of Mountain West defenses that, from Harbaugh’s implied perspective, will be roughly as productive as each other in 2022.

McNamara completed 210 of his 327 pass attempts for 2,576 yards, 15 touchdowns and six interceptions last year, leading the Wolverines to their first outright Big Ten championship since 2003. McCarthy, by contrast, didn’t start but saw action in 11 different games throughout 2021, completing 34-of-59 passes for 516 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions.

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College Football Odds: Opening Early Lines, Values Week 1

Week 1 college football lines and odds – where are the values? Where to the lines appear to be – possibly – a little off?

The early college football lines and odds for Week 1 of the 2022 season. Where are the potential values?


 Pete Fiutak @PeteFiutak

Here’s the drill I do every week throughout the season. Before looking and without peeking, I guess what the initial college football lines might be. The real lines are added after – where might things be a little bit off?

Here we go for Week 1.

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Contact/Follow @ColFootballNews & @PeteFiutak

College Football Week 1 Lines: Thursday, September 1

Central Michigan at Oklahoma State
Fiu Early Guess: Oklahoma State -19
Actual Line: Oklahoma State -21

Ball State at Tennessee
Fiu Early Guess: Tennessee -29
Actual Line: Tennessee -32.5

West Virginia at Pitt
Fiu Early Guess: Pitt -6
Actual Line: Pitt -6.5

Louisiana Tech at Missouri
Fiu Early Guess: Missouri 18.5
Actual Line: Missouri -19

Penn State at Purdue
Fiu Early Guess: Penn State -4
Actual Line: Penn State -3.5


CFN Preview 2021: All 131 Teams
CFN Predictions of Every Game
ACC | Big Ten | Big 12 | Pac-12 | SEC
AAC | C-USA | Ind | MAC | M-West | Sun Belt
2022 Bowl Projections | Preseason Rankings 1-131


College Football Week 1 Lines: Friday, September 2

Western Michigan at Michigan State
Fiu Early Guess: Michigan State -17
Actual Line: Michigan State -18.5

Virginia Tech at Old Dominion
Fiu Early Guess: Virginia Tech -13
Actual Line: Virginia Tech -7.5

Temple at Duke
Fiu Early Guess: Duke -9.5
Actual Line: Duke -7

TCU at Colorado
Fiu Early Guess: TCU -6
Actual Line: TCU -10.5

NEXT: College Football Early Week 1 Line Predictions, Saturday, September 3

New Mexico Football: First Look At Maine Black Bears

New Mexico Football: First Look At Maine Black Bears Lobos open season up vs. an FCS fo Contact/Follow @MWCwire Who is Maine? The New Mexico Lobos will host the Main Black Bears in its home opener in Albuquerque on September 3 at University Stadium. …

New Mexico Football: First Look At Maine Black Bears


Lobos open season up vs. an FCS fo


Contact/Follow @MWCwire

Who is Maine?

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The New Mexico Lobos will host the Main Black Bears in its home opener in Albuquerque on September 3 at University Stadium.

Danny Gonzales enters his 3rd year as the Lobos head coach and has a record of 4-14 and believes this Lobo ship is headed in the right direction. 

This will be the first matchup between the two programs as the Black Bears head to Albuquerque to take on the UNM Lobos in the high-altitude Albuquerque.   

This will be the first of three straight home games to open the season for the Lobos, who FBSchedules.com lists as having the 42nd most challenging schedule. 

Head Coach Danny Gonzales has named Kansas transfer Miles Kendrick as the starting quarterback for the 2022 season and ahead of the season opener against the Maine Black Bears. Kendrick is the lone senior among UNM’s five quarterbacks on the roster.

Location:  Orono, Maine

Conference: Colonial Athletic Association

Series History: First time these two teams meet 

2021 Record: 6-5 (4-4 Conference) 

NCAA Division:  Division 1 FCS

Head Coach: Jordan Stevens was named the head football coach for the Black Bears by AD Ken Ralph on December 7, 2021. So this will be his first year as the head coach for the Black Bears. 

PODCAST: 2022 New Mexico Football Preview

Stevens, a native of Temple, Maine, mentored nine All-Ivy League players and a pair of All-Colonial Athletic Association honorees during his 11-year assistant coaching career with Yale and UMaine. 

Coach Stevens was a former Black Bear player who was also the defensive line coach once his playing days were over. 

The 2021 Maine Black Bears had an up and down season. Despite the challenges they had, they managed to beat their rival, New Hampshire, for just the second time in over a decade. 

They also managed to pick up a win against FBS Umass on November 13 for just the fourth time in its history. 

Because of a rash of injuries, especially at the Quarterback position, they would finish just fifth place in the Colonial Athletic Association. 

Key Players

Freddie Brock, RB. 5-10 190

Named to Phil Steele’s CAA All-Conference Fourth Team … Two-time CAA Rookie of the Week … Appeared in 10 games, and led all Black Bears with ten touchdowns … On the ground, ran for team-high 720 yards and seven touchdowns on 132 carries, averaging 4.4 per rush and 65.5 per game

Rutgers University transfer fifth-year running back Elijah Barnwell should also help the Black Bears. Neither Brock nor Barnwell played during the spring game, as both are recovering from offseason surgeries.

Michael Gerace, OL   6-4 317

One of two Maine players to be named a first-team all-CAA selection last season, Gerace is one of the longest-tenured Black Bears on the roster. He’s appeared in 39 games since 2018, including 35 starts, and set a new personal best in 2021 with a 73.1 overall grade from Pro Football Focus, the eighth-best mark among FCS centers.

Khairi Manns, DL. 6-3 230

He appeared in all 11 games with 42 (17 unassisted) total tackles, six of which were for loss (30 total yards), and also had a fumble return for 20 yards which came at Northern Illinois (9/25) 

His performances came against Rhode Island (10/30) with six tackles (three unassisted), a half-sack for a loss of seven yards, and one QB hurry, and against Stony Brook (11/6) with a career-high ten tackles. 

Shawn Bowman, TE 6-5 255

Without the Black Bears’ star wideouts, Andre Miller and Devin Young look for the Black Bears to throw to tight end Shawn Bowman. 

He is a weapon for the Black Bears, especially in the Red Zone at his large frame. 

He was named to Phil Steele’s CAA All-Conference Fourth Team, and he Appeared in all 11 games and finished tied for second most touchdowns on the team with four. 

Those touchdowns came from 282 receiving yards on 24 receptions, the longest being 27 yards and third on the team in receptions and receiving yards.

Fifth on the team in all-purpose yards with 282 yards and averaged 25.6 per game, and his best performance came against Elon (10/09) with six receptions, 59 yards, and a touchdown.

New Mexico Names Kansas Transfer Miles Kendrick As Starting Quarterback

 

Joe Fagnano, QB. 6-3 225

Fagnano only got to play in four games last fall because he suffered a high ankle sprain that knocked him out for most of the year, but there’s no doubt he’s a difference maker when healthy.

 In sixteen career games, he owns a 62% completion rate and has thrown for 3,424 yards and 31 touchdowns, with an interception rate of just 1.5%.

In his last two starts of 2021, Fagnano led Maine to a 25-point win over UMass and then rallied the team from an early 13-point deficit to defeat rival New Hampshire.

Fagnano was named to the All-CAA Second Team and  Two-time CAA Player of the Week.

He finished the abbreviated season 67-of-116 for 795 yards and eight touchdowns while tossing just one interception and also added 31 carries for 59 rush yards and two touchdowns.

 He was second in the CAA at 198.8 passing yards per game while posting a 57.8 completion percentage and checking in third in the CAA at 213.5 yards of offense per game and second in total offensive touchdowns (10) with eight passing and a pair of rushing scores.

Hawaii Football: First Look At The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers

After a record-setting offense helped them light up Conference USA, what comes next for the ‘Toppers in 2022?


Hawaii Football: First Look At The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers


After a record-setting offense helped them light up Conference USA, what comes next for WKU in 2022?


Contact/Follow @MattK_FS and @MWCwire

Talk about a tough act to follow.

After hosting Vanderbilt in Week 0, the Hawaii Warriors will close out a two-game homestand to open 2022 against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers.

Will this be a potential points bonanza? Timmy Chang’s return to the islands as head coach signals a possible return to the high-flying Warriors offenses of old, while WKU will have to prove last year’s unique transfer portal gambit won’t make them into a one-hit wonder.

Location: Bowling Green, Kentucky

Conference: Conference USA

Series History: This will be the first meeting between Hawaii and Western Kentucky.

2021 Record: 9-5 (7-2 CUSA)

Head Coach: Tyson Helton (fourth year at Western Kentucky, 25-16 overall). Sometimes, when you swing for the fences, you hit a moonshot. That was certainly the case for WKU last year, when the ‘Toppers imported offensive coordinator Zack Kittley, his quarterback Bailey Zappe, and a trio of wide receivers from FCS Houston Baptist and then proceeded to light up the scoreboard, averaging 44.2 points and 433.7 passing yards per game en route to a berth in the Conference USA title game.

Now comes the hard part: What do you do for an encore? Kittley jumped to Texas Tech while Zappe and top receiver Jerreth Stearns left for the NFL, leaving Helton to reload for another run at a conference crown.

Key Players

Jarret Doege, QB

Doege may be the guy asked to fill some of the biggest shoes anywhere in the country this season, but chances are he won’t be overwhelmed by the opportunity. In five years at Bowling Green and West Virginia, he threw for 10,494 yards and 79 touchdowns, both of which are the most among active FBS quarterbacks, with a 2.2% interception rate.

Daewood Davis, WR

Davis was one of several major contributors to last year’s offensive blitzkrieg, but this year he’s likely to be the offense’s number one target. He set career highs in 2021 with 43 receptions, 773 yards, and eight touchdowns, proving he can be very dangerous with the ball down the field.

Juwuan Jones, DE

The offense got the spotlight, but the Western Kentucky defense had impact players like Jones, too. The former freshman All-American tallied 45 total tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, and 3.5 sacks and will be counted on for more in his fourth season as a starter.

Quantavious Leslie, OL

The Hilltoppers were often a pass first, second, and third offense, but that wouldn’t have been as effective as it was without quality offensive line play. That’s where Leslie, a second-team all-Conference USA pick who posted a 82.6 pass-blocking grade according to Pro Football Focus that was second-best among guards in C-USA, figures to shine once again as a sophomore.

Rome Weber, S

If you recognize the name, that’s because Weber played in 29 games for Wyoming in 2018, 2019, and 2021. He made eight starts last year and picked up 41 tackles, two tackles for loss, and three pass breakups before departing via the transfer portal, so while other Cowboys ended up in flashier destinations, few could be as important to their new unit as Weber.

Overview:

Offense

If you don’t know, the Hilltoppers offense was pretty good in 2021, finishing behind Ohio State and Coastal Carolina by points per drive and trailing only the Buckeyes in available yards percentage earned. Can they keep that up with so much turnover, though?

Much will depend on who actually replaces Bailey Zappe, with Doege and West Florida transfer Austin Reed (54.8% completion rate, 3,418 yards, 38 touchdowns) as the leading candidates. That QB1 will have plenty of weapons at his disposal, though, not just Davis but also Malachi Corley (73 catches, 691 yards, seven touchdowns), tight end Josh Simon, who missed nearly all of 2021 with injury but had 33 catches for 370 yards and three scores the previous season; and a pair of MAC transfers in Jaylen Hall (46-752-3 at Western Michigan) and Michael Mathison (56-706-3 at Akron).

By contrast, the offensive line is going through a good deal more transition despite the returns of both Leslie and center Rusty Staats. More will be asked of players like Michael Goode and Gunner Britton, who were role players during WKU’s run to the championship game last fall.

Defense

While the offense was busy lighting up scoreboards every week, the Hilltoppers defense was often more preoccupied with hanging on, finishing 88th and 81st by available yards percentage allowed and points per drive allowed, respectively. They also weren’t terribly disruptive on the whole, posting a team stuff rate of just 12.8% that ranked 122nd nationally, and now they have find answers without the help of star DeAngelo Malone, a third-round NFL Draft pick this past spring.

Having Jones back will help, but he can’t do it all himself. Defensive tackle Darius Shipp (41 tackles, seven tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks) and sophomore linebacker Jaques Evans should lead the way in that regard, which could make life easier for veterans Will Ignont (54 tackles, 5.5 TFLs, 3.5 sacks) and Jaden Hunter (67 tackles, five TFLs, three sacks) in the front seven.

The secondary is also undergoing some reshuffling, too, with transfers like Weber and Upton Stout (North Texas) joining returnees like Kahlef Hailassie (57 tackles, three TFLs, two interceptions) and Kaleb Oliver. It was a unit that got attacked early and often last year, facing 519 pass attempts in all, but they gave as good as they got with 21 interceptions, trailing only Iowa among all FBS teams, and hope to do more of the same in 2022.

Early Predictions

With so much turnover on paper, it seems unfair to hold this year’s Hilltoppers to last year’s high standards. However, the offense should remain potent enough to outlast a good number of opponents on their schedule. Even if Hawaii looks like they’ll be able to land some body blows against the WKU defense, they may not have enough to outlast the visitors here.

Western Kentucky 42, Hawaii 34

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Nevada Football: First Look At The Texas State Bobcats

Texas State football has scuffled while others in the Sun Belt have thrived. Will 2022 be any different for the Bobcats?


Nevada Football: First Look At The Texas State Bobcats


Texas State football has scuffled while others in the Sun Belt have thrived. Will 2022 be any different for the Bobcats?


Contact/Follow @MattK_FS and @MWCwire

A test for the rebuilding Wolf Pack.

After opening 2022 on the road against New Mexico State, the Nevada Wolf Pack will welcome the Texas State Bobcats to Mackay Stadium to open up its six-game slate.

While Nevada prepares to write a new chapter in the wake of the successful Jay Norvell era, the Bobcats are still chasing down that first sustained success. Since jumping to the FBS ranks in 2012, Texas State has just one winning season and haven’t made much headway under the current regime toward a second. The pressure is on, then, for both teams to prove something in their early season clash.

Location: San Marcos, Texas

Conference: Sun Belt

Series History: Nevada leads the all-time series, 1-0.

2021 Record: 4-8 (3-5 Sun Belt)

Head Coach: Jake Spavital (fourth year at Texas State, 9-27 overall). Since taking over for Everett Withers after the 2018 season, progress in San Marcos has been painfully slow and Spavital’s transfer portal gambits haven’t paid off quite as hoped. However, the team’s four wins were the most since 2014 and, interestingly enough, they beat the three teams who finished below them in the Sun Belt West division.

Key Players

Layne Hatcher, QB

If Hatcher’s name sounds passingly familiar, that’s because he split time at quarterback with Utah State’s Logan Bonner at Arkansas State in 2019 and 2020. When he had the job more to himself in 2021, the results were a little more inconsistent: A 58.9% completion rate, 2,423 yards, and 19 touchdowns with a 3.8% interception rate. With a fresh start elsewhere in the Sun Belt ahead of him and 32 career starts already behind him, however, he could bounce back and give the Bobcats exactly what they’ve lacked at the position in recent years.

Dalton Cooper, OT

One of two Bobcats recently named a preseason first-team all-Sun Belt selection, Cooper will be expected to anchor the Texas State offensive line for a third straight year at the left tackle position where, among other things, he was named a freshman All-American by The Athletic in 2020 and paced the conference’s players at the position in terms of overall PFF grading in 2021.

Jordan Revels, DE

2022 will mark Revels’s fourth year as a contributor for the Bobcats and his third as a starter, with 17 starts over the past two seasons. In that time, he’s steadily grown more disruptive, leading the Bobcats in 2021 with 7.5 tackles for loss while posting career bests with 59 total tackles and three sacks.

Javen Banks, WR

2022 will mark Banks’ fifth year with the Bobcats and he’s been a contributor to some extent the whole time. Last season marked the first time he was the team’s number one pass catcher, however, as he led Texas State with 553 receiving yards and five touchdowns on 36 receptions, so chances are he’ll continue on as a focal point of the offense.

Seth Keller, K

Keller, like Cooper, was named a first-team preseason all-Sun Belt pick after connecting on 15-of-18 field goal tries and nailing all 32 extra point attempts in 2021. At the moment, he also happens to hold the school record for career field goal percentage, so the junior may get plenty more chances to prove he reliable he can be.

Overview:

Offense

Texas State’s offense wasn’t great, no matter how you slice. In terms of plain yards per play, the Bobcats finished next-to-last in the Sun Belt; by points per drive and available yards percentage earned, they were 92nd and 102nd. It wasn’t the worst attack in the country, but being “forgettable” isn’t much better.

Hatcher might be the frontrunner to start at quarterback, but that isn’t a given. Ty Evans, formerly of North Carolina State, could play his way into the role. Whoever wins the job will benefit from a running game that could be pretty good, spearheded by Calvin Hill (128 carries, 696 yards, three touchdowns) and Jahmyl Jeter (91 carries, 384 yards, eight touchdowns), and a group of pass catchers that, beyond Banks, returns all but one player who had at least ten receptions last season. Marcell Barbee paced the Bobcats with 40 catches and five scores while Ashtyn Hawkins had 30.

Defense

Perhaps coincidentally, the Bobcats defense underperformed to almost the exact same level as the offense in 2021, with just one spot of improvement in terms of points per drive allowed (2.55, 91st) and none by available yards percentage allowed (54.1%, 102nd).

Whether that’ll change is a bit murky. Revels and sophomore linebacker Issiah Nixon are the only two returning Bobcats who had more than five tackles for loss, though a return to health from players like defensive tackle Samuel Obiang (3.5 TFLs, 1.5 sacks in six games) and contributions from transfer portal arrivals like Myron Warren (Texas) and Levi Bell (Louisiana Tech) could go a long way.

Further from the line of scrimmage, linebacker Sione Tupou (75 tackles, three tackles for loss) and cornerback Kordell Rodgers (seven pass breakups) provide some much-needed veteran leadership but more will be needed at other positions. The defense, for instance, only had three interceptions as a unit last year despite 37 pass breakups. Improvements in their ability to be disruptive could have an outsized impact, but that’s not a given.

Early Predictions

Nevada may be working with a nearly new offense in 2022, but they should have enough talent on that side of the ball to exploit what looks like, on paper, a leaky Texas State defense. It may not be the prettiest game to watch, though the Wolf Pack should get it done.

Nevada 31, Texas State 27

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Utah State Football: First Look At The Alabama Crimson Tide

The Aggies have the single toughest assignment in Mountain West non-conference play this fall: Keep the Crimson Tide from rolling.


Utah State Football: First Look At The Alabama Crimson Tide


The Aggies have the single toughest assignment in Mountain West non-conference play this fall: Keep the Crimson Tide from rolling.


Contact/Follow @MattK_FS and @MWCwire

The elephant on the field will be hard to stop.

After opening the season at home against UConn, the Utah State Aggies better be prepared for a hard case of whiplash when they hit the road to face the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Since coming up short in last year’s national title game against Georgia, you can almost guarantee the Tide have stewed on their shortcomings ever since, have put in the work to overcome them, and will give the defending Mountain West champions every bit of their attention. The players and the fans at Bryant-Denny Stadium will be ready to unleash hell, but will Utah State be ready for it?

Location: Tuscaloosa, Alabama

Conference: SEC

Series History: Alabama leads the all-time series, 2-0.

2021 Record: 13-2 (8-1 SEC)

Head Coach: Nick Saban (16th year at Alabama; 178-25 with Crimson Tide, 269-67-1 overall). What needs to be said, really, about a coach who is going to finish his career, whenever that may be, with an argument as the best to ever do it?

Last year wasn’t without its challenges, but after stumbling in a three-point road loss to Texas A&M, Saban’s Tide steamrolled opponents for the rest of the season before finally being stymied by SEC rival Georgia in the national championship game. Then he had seven players selected in the NFL Draft this past spring, but Alabama is still the odds-on favorite in many places to claim another national title. Put simply, they are the gold standard for college football in America.

Key Players

Will Anderson Jr., LB

Anderson has a very convincing case as the best defensive player in college football (if not the best player, full stop). Last season, the 6-foot-4, 243-pound terror was a unanimous All-American pick and the SEC Defensive Player of the Year, won the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, and led the country with 17.5 sacks and 33.5 tackles for loss. That goes a long way toward explaining why he’s already being talked about as the potential number-one selection in next year’s NFL Draft, so he might be the single-best player any Mountain West team faces this season.

Bryce Young, QB

If Anderson isn’t the best player in the country, it might be Young instead. Not just anyone wins a Heisman Trophy, after all, and he earned that honor after having to replace a first-round NFL Draft pick, Mac Jones, and then completing 366-of-547 pass attempts for 4,872 yards and 47 touchdowns with a 1.3% interception rate. While he’ll have to navigate his junior year with new playmakers around him, his cool under pressure will keep the Tide in the Playoff picture until further notice.

Henry To’oTo’o, LB

Anderson is so good that it’s easy to forget Alabama actually has two really good linebackers in its projected starting lineup for this year. The Sacramento native paced the Crimson Tide defense with 112 total tackles last year and also chipped in four sacks and eight tackles for loss, building off of a strong two-year stint at Tennessee and cementing his own standing as a future pro prospect.

Jahmyr Gibbs, RB

Quarterbacks get the glory, but running backs are typically just as important to Alabama’s successes and Gibbs could be no different from predecessors like Mark Ingram and Derrick Henry in that regard. Unlike those two, however, the Georgia Tech transfer earned his three all-ACC honors in 2021 by doing a little bit of everything: He racked up 1,805 all-purpose yards, which tied for ninth among all FBS players, and scored seven total touchdowns as a runner, pass catcher, and kick returner. If you don’t know the name, get familiar with him.

Jordan Battle, S

Not to be outdone by his peers in the Alabama front seven, Battle might be in the conversation as the nation’s top safety if he can build off of his 2021 campaign. Last year, he had 87 total tackles and three interceptions, including two he took to the end zone, meaning the pass rush isn’t the only thing Logan Bonner will need to mind.

Overview:

Offense

Despite losing major stars like Jameson Williams and John Metchie to the NFL this spring, Saban and offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien will still have one of the nation’s most powerful attacks at their disposal in 2022. With Young and Gibbs in the backfield and a wealth of young talents like JoJo Earle and Louisville transfer Tyler Harrell ready to step in to larger roles alongside junior tight end Cameron Latu (26 catches, 410 yards, eight touchdowns), it seems crazy to suggest the Tide could beat a SP+ projection that pins them as… second-best overall.

If there’s one potential hindrance, it’s an offensive line that, despite returning three starters, was merely okay by a lot of measures in 2021. Alabama allowed a sack rate of 6.4%, which ranked 68th nationally, and just barely finished in the top 50 with a 50.7% opportunity rate (43rd) and 72.7% power success rate (46th). The interior could be a punishing one, however, with center Darrian Dalcourt and guards Emil Ekiyor and Javion Cohen flanked by a legion of highly-touted recruits and transfers like Tyler Steen, who started 32 games at Vanderbilt.

Defense

This is a unit that, front to back, is why you tune into the game on Saturdays. Anderson, To’oTo’o, and Battle are the headliners, but they have plenty of support across the board from the likes of safety DeMarcco Hellams (88 tackles, three INTs), linebacker Dallas Turner (30 tackles, ten TFLs, 8.5 sacks), and defensive end Byron Young (40 tackles, 9.5 TFLs).

Oh, and there’s sophomore cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry and nose guard DJ Dale and many others, too. Long story short, this unit is absolutely stacked and will be no fun for anyone to face.

Early Predictions

It’s going to be a long day for the Aggies at Bryant-Denny Stadium, but that won’t mean too much in the grand scheme of things because non-conference opponents often have long days in Tuscaloosa.

Alabama 48, Utah State 14

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Air Force Football: First Look At The Northern Iowa Panthers

The Air Force Falcons start 2022 against a very dangerous FCS opponent in Northern Iowa.


Air Force Football: First Look At The Northern Iowa Panthers


The Air Force Falcons start 2022 against a very dangerous FCS opponent in Northern Iowa.


Contact/Follow @MattK_FS and @MWCwire

Don’t look past this team.

In Troy Calhoun’s tenure as head coach, the Air Force Falcons have typically coasted against an FCS opponent to open their football season. Lafayette, Colgate, Stony Brook, the list of victims goes on, but this year’s opener is a much different animal.

That’s because the Northern Iowa Panthers have long been one of the nation’s top FCS programs, earning six playoff appearances in the last eight years while competing in what might be the toughest overall FCS conference. In other words, the elevation might not be the only danger present in this game.

Location: Cedar Falls, Iowa

Conference: Missouri Valley

2021 Record: 6-6 (4-4 MVC)

Head Coach: Mark Farley (22nd year at Northern Iowa, 167-92 overall). UNI has been a beacon of stability in the FCS for a good long time now, as Farley is now has the fifth-longest tenure of any head coach at that level. Last year didn’t end the way that he or anyone else hoped, but his Panthers made opponents work for every win they got.

Not content with a first-round exit from the playoffs, Farley went to work this off-season retooling the team with a new quarterbacks coach, Bodie Reeder, who was previously the offensive coordinator at Utah State in 2020. Will it be enough to spur the team’s first run to the semifinals since 2008? We’ll have to wait and see.

Key Players

Jared Penning, G

His brother Trevor was just selected as a first-round NFL Draft pick back in April, but Jared’s first full season as a Panthers starter seemed to hint he could find himself on that same stage in a few years. That’s because Phil Steele tabbed him as a first-team All-American after he accrued an overall PFF grade of 63.7, so while it remains to be seen whether he’s kicked outside to tackle or remains on the interior, expectations are high.

Dom Williams, RB

Ever since he stepped on the field as a freshman at Kansas in 2017, Williams has steadily improved year after year and 2021 was no exception. He led the Panthers with 723 rushing yards last fall, which included a school-record scamper, and scored four touchdowns, and could very well be the focal point of the offense in his final year.

Theo Day, QB

After transferring to UNI from Michigan State, Day made the QB1 job his own. He was named to the Missouri Valley Conference’s all-newcomer team after completing 56.2% of his passes for 2,316 yards and 16 touchdowns. If he can cut down on last year’s 4% interception rate, it’ll only make the Panthers offense that much more potent.

Spencer Cuvelier, LB

Jared Brinkman might have received some serious accolades last year, but Cuvelier has been pretty good himself over the last three seasons. He finished third on the team in tackles back in 2019, then led the MVC in tackles per game during the spring 2021 season and earned a first-team all-conference nod after collecting 75 tackles and 4.5 TFLs in eight games. If he’s back to 100% from the injury that shortened his fall campaign, Cuvelier could be one of the best FCS defenders in the country.

Matthew Cook, K

Is Cook the best FCS kicker in the country? Phil Steele has already tabbed him as a preseason All-American ahead of 2022 after he connected on 19-of-22 field goal attempts last fall, which included successes on 11-of-13 tries from 40 yards and beyond. In three years at UNI, he’s made 80.3% of his field goals and he has the range to be as surefire as any specialist out there.

Overview:

Offense

By a lot of measures, the UNI offense was adequate but not great in 2021. They put up 5.6 yards per play, which ranked in the top 50, but only mustered 24.9 points per game, which was tied for 63rd in the FCS, and had 22 giveaways. There are reasons to think they’ll be better in 2022, but they’ll have to do it while replacing Trevor Penning and Isaiah Weston, who made the all-MVC team as a wide receiver and an all-purpose player.

Much will depend on improvements from Day, but head coach Mark Farley has already noted that he’ll get pushed by others like sophomore Matt Morrissey. The good news for whoever ends up under center is that there is a wealth of talent in the backfield behind them, not just Williams but also redshirt senior Vance McShane (61 carries, 344 yards, five touchdowns).

Weston’s production might be harder to replace, but Quan Hampton (39 catches, 430 yards, two touchdowns) and Deion McShane (35 catches, 408 yards, two touchdowns) are both back to shoulder most of that load.

Defense

It’s difficult to blame the defense for last year’s win-loss record because this unit was one of the best in the FCS ranks. The Panthers finished in a tie for tenth by allowing 4.44 yards per play and also gave up just 18 points per game, which ranked 13th nationally. They made life miserable for everyone from Iowa State and Eastern Washington, but must now deal with inevitable turnover.

MVC defensive player of the year Jared Brinkman is gone, but the good news is that Cuvelier and cornerback Benny Sapp III (52 tackles, four interceptions) were both first-team all-conference defenders, too, and are back for another round. Defensive lineman Caden Houghtelling also had a breakout year (51 tackles, ten TFLs, 5.5 sacks) and should be a major player in run defense.

He won’t have to do it alone, though, since the Panthers’ havoc was by and large a team effort. Junior Devin Rice and senior Bryce Flater also had 6.5 and six TFLs, respectively, so they have a collective nose for finding the football in the backfield.

Early Prediction

Air Force doesn’t typically have too much trouble with its FCS opponents, but Northern Iowa has the toughness to potentially turn this game into a defensive slog if the Falcons aren’t careful. The biggest problem at present for the Panthers is that they may not be able to generate enough explosive plays to keep up if the cadets are able to assert their will.

Air Force 31, Northern Iowa 20

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