Predicted Order of Finish-
West Division-
1. Fresno State- NFL bound senior QB Jake Haener should work well alongside QB guru Jeff Tedford who is back in his second stint as HC with the Bulldogs after stepping down following the 2019 season due to health reasons, the defense, however, lost All-MWC linemen Arron Mosby and Kevin Atkins
2. San Diego State- the defense, which ranked in top 20 in both rush yards and points allowed per game last year should once again be dominant with key contributors back at every position, senior QB Braxton Burmeister, who transferred from Virginia Tech, will be working with a retooled offensive line and RB Greg Bell who rushed for over 1,000 in 2021 is gone
3. San Jose State- with 9 returning starters on defense including a formidable line led by Senior DT Cade Hall the Spartans have their sights set on a return to the postseason following last year’s disappointing 5-7 finish, offensively the line is in flux and last year’s leading rusher Tyler Nevens has departed
4. UNLV- the Rebels has three capable QB’s battling for the starting job including sophomore incumbent Cameron Friel who earned Mountain West Freshman of the Year honors last year, the defense didn’t put up much of a fight in 2021 and lost LB Jacoby Windmon who led the team in tackles and sacks
5. Nevada- the Wolf Pack backfield features 2 quality senior RB’s in Toa Taua and Devonte Lee who combined for over 1,600 rush yards and 11 TD’s last season, first year HC Ken Wilson will be working with an almost completely overhauled roster with just 6 starters back from 2021
6. Hawaii- Timmy Chang takes over as HC and having played QB for the Warriors under June Junes understands the program and the challenges that come with it (travel, recruiting), the defense lost almost every significant from last year and on paper appear to be among college football’s worst in 2022
Mountain Division-
1. Boise State- Senior QB Hank Bachmeier (3,079 yards, 20 TD’s in 2021) returns to lead the Broncos offense while defensively 9 starters are back from a unit the finished 12th nationally in points allowed, Bachmeier was at his worst in some of the biggest games and this year will be without WR Khalil Shakir who caught 77 passes for 1,117 yards
2. Air Force- the Falcons return nearly all the pieces from last year’s offense which finished first in rush yards per game for the second consecutive season, the path to a Mountain West title won’t be easy with facing last year’s division winners Utah State and San Diego State on the road
3. Utah State- Senior QB Logan Bonner who passed for 3,622 yards and 36 TD’s is back after helping guide the Aggies to an 11-win season and a Mountain West title, the passing game lost a ton of talent including top target Devon Thompkins and the defense must replace DE Nick Heninger who led the team in sacks with 9
4. Wyoming- the Cowboys backfield is loaded with talent in the backfield led by junior Titus Swen and Utah State junior transfer QB Andrew Peasley hopes to ignite a woeful passing attack from a year ago, the offensive line lost 3 experienced starters and there isn’t much depth at the receiver position
5. Colorado State- after a successful 5 year run at Nevada new HC Jay Norvell bring his “Air Raid” offense to Fort Collins along with a handful of transfers and members of his staff, projected starting QB Clay Millen is a redshirt freshman and the entire offensive line is made up of offseason pickups via the transfer portal
6. New Mexico- the Lobos return 7 starters from a respectable defense that finished 44th yards allowed per game last year, the offense was arguably the worst in the country finishing dead last in points per game and the QB competition between Kansas senior transfer Miles Kendrick and sophomore incumbent Isaiah Chavez likely won’t be settled until the season opener
Buy- Colorado State, San Jose State
Sell- Utah State
Best Bet- San Jose State OVER total wins
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