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LOGAN — Three things to watch for in the Mountain West Conference this upcoming football season.
1. How good can San Diego State be?
After a stellar, conference-championship winning year last year, San Diego State's football team is ready to roll once again. In the Mountain West Conference's preseason poll, the Aztecs swept the podium: Running back Donnel Pumphrey was named the Mountain West's preseason offensive player of the year, cornerback Damontae Kazee was picked as preseason defensive player of the year, and returner Rashaad Penny the preseason special teams player of the year.
There's even talk about going undefeated. CBSSports.com picked the Aztecs as one of five non-P5 sleepers who could qualify for the College Football Playoff if they went 12-0. After the Aztecs, the West Division of the conference is relatively weak, and their Mountain Division schedule this season is relatively easy: they'll avoid Boise State, critically, but also upstarts Air Force and New Mexico.
Their non-conference schedule includes playing Cal, at home, in what's likely to be a down year for the Bears, and two very weak opponents in South Alabama and New Hampshire.
The Aztecs have a tradition of falling asleep for a game, losing an easy contest per season they have the talent to win. If they can avoid that trap this season, there's some promise at the end of the road.
2. Can Boise State get past Air Force?
OK, so this isn't the whole season for the Broncos, who still will have a lot to play for, for the rest of the year, including during an Oct. 20 matchup against BYU on the blue turf.
But after losing against Air Force the past two seasons, the Broncos will need to figure out Air Force's triple option in Colorado Springs on Nov. 25. Last season in Boise, Roberts picked up 279 yards passing on just nine completions, and the rushing offense went for 328 points to score 37 points overall. The Broncos just can't let the Falcons fly like that this season.
Meanwhile, Air Force has eight of 11 defensive starters returning from last season, which should help cohesion on that end of the field. Even though Boise State's skill players (quarterback Brett Rypien, running back Jeremy McNichols, wide receiver Thomas Sperbeck) appear on a lot of preseason conference watch lists, Air Force won two first place ballots from voters picking them to win the Mountain Division. The Broncos, of course, won the other 25.
3. Does Big 12 expansion come calling?
As the Big 12 Conference explores expansion this summer, athletic directors from two schools in the Mountain West, Boise State and Colorado State, hope the Big 12 will come calling.
Boise State's been a perennial power, having won 198 games over the last 20 years. You do the math there, it's an exceptional average. They've also shown they can compete with Big 12 teams: the victories over Oklahoma and TCU in Fiesta Bowls past show they have a program of that caliber. They're also just so far away distance-wise from the Big 12's power hub and weak academically.
Colorado State has a new stadium opening in 2017, but only a 32-32 record over the past five seasons. They're closer to the hub of Big 12 action, and the conference could potentially regain the Colorado market after losing it when in-state rival Buffs went to the Pac 12.
Overall, both schools will be hoping the Big 12 expands to 14 teams, not just 12. If the Big 12 chooses to stay small, both the Rams and the Broncos will likely be left out in the cold.
