College Football 2018 Conference Previews -- MWC

MOUNTAIN WEST CONFERENCE

OVERVIEW

Boise State's Bryan Harsin (Mountain West Connection)

The more things change, the more they stay the same -- at least that's the case in the Mountain West in 2018.

The league is better top to bottom than it's been in quite some time, but the usual suspects are sitting at the top of the heap this year, and that probably isn't going to change any time soon. While Boise State and San Diego State are still top dogs in their divisions, the improvement of Wyoming, Utah State and Fresno State could make for some potentially tasty matchups this season.

Boise State still rules the Mountain roost, and has enough talent and experience to make a real push to be the Group of Five rep for a New Year's Six bowl game. Quarterback Brett Rypien is back for his senior season, which means the offense is in good hands. While he didn't throw a ton of touchdowns last year (16), he also was steady with the ball and didn't turn it over much (6 INTs). With Boise's best receivers gone, look for more emphasis on the ground game -- which should suit Alexander Mattison just fine. The junior ran for over 1,000 yards and found the end zone a dozen times in 2017, and should be in line for even bigger things this year. Defense should once again be the Broncos calling card. After allowing just under 23 points per game last year, the defense could be ready to take off thanks to playmakers at every level. End Curtis Weaver, linebacker Tyson Maeva and defensive backs Tyler Horton and Kekoa Nawahine are all stars and should be the leaders of a powerful stop unit. If anyone is going to rival Boise for top defensive honors, it will be Wyoming. The Cowboys are starting to look like Craig Bohl's North Dakota State teams did. It will be tough to equal last year's stellar 17.5 ppg allowed, but it could happen, especially with star linemen Curtis Granderson and Youhanna Ghaifan, linebacker and leading tackler Logan Wilson (119 tackles, 7 TFL) and safety Andrew Wingard (114 tackles, 7 TFL, 5 INT) all returning. The offense could be potent if a quarterback is found. Utah State brings back one of the most experienced teams in the nation, including all five offensive linemen. Wideout Ron'Quavion Tarver and tight end Dax Raymond are stars and should help a passing game that was stagnant at times a year ago. The defense returns nine and could rival the 2014 group which allowed less than 20 points per contest. It might be a mistake to overlook Mike Bobo's Colorado State squad, especially if Washington transfer KJ Carta-Samuels plays up to expectation at quarterback. He has great weapons in Olabisi Johnson and Preston Williams, and an emerging backfield star in Izzy Matthews. Toughness on defense is a question after CSU allowed over 5.0 yards per carry to opponents last season, though first year DC John Jancek has gotten results at every stop.

The West has some depth, but San Diego State and Fresno State are clearly the best of the lot. The Aztecs return seven on offense, notably quarterback Christian Chapman (13-4 TD-INT) and an intact offensive line, which has a pair of stars in guard Keith Ismael and tackle Tyler Roemer. Running back Juwan Washington appears to be next in the SDSU running back line after scoring seven times and averaging 6.0 ypc a year ago in relief of all-world Rashaad Penny. The defense returns seven of its top 10 tacklers from a group that held foes to 20.2 ppg. Linebackers Ronley Lakalaka and Parker Baldwin will pace the unit. Vying with the Aztecs for divisional supremacy is Fresno State, which brings back 15 starters from a team that won double digit games for the first time since 2013. Marcus McMaryion is a confident leader at quarterback and just might have the best receiving corps in the league at his disposal. KeeSean Johnson eclipsed 1,000 yards and scored eight times last year, and he's joined by Jamire Jordan and former Oklahoma pass catcher Michiah Quick. If the Bulldogs can find more explosiveness and consistency in their run game they should be a handful. The defense was a revelation last year, allowing 17.9 points a year after giving up nearly 31 per game. The loss of DC Orlondo Steinauer to the CFL could be a blow as he devised schemes that would shift at the snap and confuse opponents. Taking over DC duties is Bert Watts, and he'll have some talent to work with, notably a linebacker group led by junior Jeffrey Allison, who emerged as a tackling machine (126) a year ago. Corner Jaron Bryant can play sticky man-to-man, and his mates in the secondary are all athletic and quick. Back to back games with Boise State and San Diego State will determine the Bulldogs' fate. Nevada is right on the fringe of breaking through but will ultimately fall short due to shortcomings on defense, though linebacker Malik Reed is a keeper. The pitch and catch combo of Ty Gangi to McLane Mannix will be one of the most lethal in the league. UNLV is also improving and could break through with a potent offense led by quarterback Armani Rodgers and running back Lexington Thomas.

RISING: Nevada
FALLING: Air Force
BOWL TEAMS (6): Boise State, Wyoming, Utah State, Colorado State, San Diego State, Fresno State

MWC PROJECTED STANDINGS
MOUNTAIN
1 Boise State (12-1, 7-1)
2 Wyoming (8-4, 6-2)
3 Utah State (7-5, 5-3)
4 Colorado State (6-6, 5-3)
5 Air Force (4-8, 3-5)
6 New Mexico (2-10, 0-8)

WEST
1 San Diego State (10-3, 7-1)
2 Fresno State (8-4, 6-2)
3 Nevada (6-6, 4-4)
4 UNLV (5-7, 3-5)
5 San Jose State (2-10, 1-7)
6 Hawaii (2-11, 1-7) 
MWC CHAMPIONSHIP
Boise State over San Diego State

ALL-MWC TEAM

FIRST TEAM OFFENSE
QB Brett Rypien/Boise State

RB Lexington Thomas/UNLV

RB Alexander Mattison/Boise State

WR KeeSean Johnson/Fresno State

WR McLane Mannix/Nevada

WR Preston Williams/Colorado State

TE  Dax Raymond/Utah State

OL Ezra Cleveland/Boise State

OL Aaron Jenkins/New Mexico

OL Keith Ismael/San Diego State

OL Quin Ficklin/Utah State

OL Micah St Andrew/Fresno State

FIRST TEAM DEFENSE
DL Carl Granderson/Wyoming

DL Curtis Weaver/Boise State

DL Youhanna Ghaifan/Wyoming

DL David Moa/Boise State

LB Malik Reed/Nevada

LB Jeffrey Allison/Fresno State

LB Logan Wilson/Wyoming

LB Jahlani Tavai/Hawaii

DB Andrew Wingard/Wyoming

DB Ron Smith/San Diego State

DB Jaron Bryant/Fresno State

DB Tariq Thompson/San Diego State

FIRST TEAM SPECIALISTS

 K  Dominik Eberle/Utah State

 P  Ryan Stonehouse/Colorado State

KR Tyler Hall/Wyoming

PR Avery Williams/Boise State

SECOND TEAM OFFENSE
QB Marcus McMaryion/Fresno State

RB Juwan Washington/San Diego State

RB Izzy Matthews/Colorado State

WR John Ursua/Hawaii

WR Olabisi Johnson/Colorado State

WR Ron'Quavion Tarver/Utah State

TE  Kahale Warring/San Diego State

OL Tyler Roemer/San Diego State

OL Nathan Jacobson/UNLV

OL Netane Muti/Fresno State

OL John Molchon/Boise State

OL Sean Krepsz/Nevada

SECOND TEAM DEFENSE
DL Noble Hall/San Diego State

DL Durrant Miles/Boise State

DL Christopher Unga/Utah State

DL Richard King/Colorado State

LB Ronley Lakalaka/San Diego State

LB Tyson Maeva/Boise State

LB George Helmuth/Fresno State

LB Josh Watson/Colorado State

DB Tyler Horton/Boise State

DB Dameon Baber/Nevada

DB Gaje Ferguson/Utah State

DB Kekoa Nawahine/Boise State

SECOND TEAM SPECIALISTS:
 K  Bryce Crawford/San Jose State

 P  Aaron Dalton/Utah State

KR Elijah Lilly/New Mexico

PR Austin Conway/Wyoming

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Brett Rypien/Boise State

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Jeffrey Allison/Fresno State

COACH OF THE YEAR: Matt Wells/Utah State

NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR: QB KJ Carta-Samuels/Colorado State