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The Mountain West Conference is prepping for another season where the top teams will duke it out for the league title. The conference hasn’t had one of its members claim the Group of Five’s New Year’s Six bid since 2014 and would love for one of its premier teams to be performing on a large stage this winter.
We’ll go over a few conference games in the MWC you should have circled on your calendar.
Boise State vs. Air Force, October 15, 7 p.m. ET, CBS Sports Network
Air Force and Boise State have two of the highest preseason win total odds in the conference and this midseason showdown could very well determine the Mountain division champion. With quarterback Hank Bachmeier back for his senior year, Boise State and head coach Andy Avalos will be looking to have a strong year that elevates the Broncos back to national prominence.
Standing in their way will be an Air Force team that beat them 24-17 a season ago. The Falcons finished as the division runner up last season and if longtime head coach Troy Calhoun wants to achieve his first conference championship in Colorado Springs, CO, they must once again clear the Boise State hurdle.
San Diego State vs. Fresno State, October 29, TIME TBA, Fox Network
The premier game in the West division will take place during Halloween weekend as San Diego State travels north to face Fresno State. The Aztecs are the defending division champs but suffered its only conference loss during the regular season when falling to the Bulldogs a year ago. SDSU brought in a bunch of interesting transfers in the offseason, including former Virginia Tech quarterback Braxton Burmeister.
Meanwhile, Fresno State will hopefully humming by late October with head coach Jeff Tedford back for a second stint in the Valley. Also back is quarterback Jake Haener, who flirted with transferring back to Washington before ultimately deciding to return to the Bulldog program. With Haener airing it out to up his NFL Draft stock throughout the season, this game should present a fun clash of styles.
Utah State vs. Boise State, November 25, Noon ET, CBS
The regular season will close with reigning MWC champion Utah State heading north to face Boise State on Black Friday. This game will be held at 10 a.m. local time in Boise so there will no doubt be major body clock issues for both teams. It’s curious as to why the Mountain West would put this game on so early considering that it could potentially decided the Mountain division. Nevertheless, it should be a fun game during the holiday weekend.
Once we have the final two teams, the Mountain West Championship Game will be on December 3 at 4 p.m. from the campus site of the team with the higher winning percentage.