In just 12 months, the landscape of college football has transformed so dramatically that it’s nearly unrecognizable. How would you like to be the average fan these days?
The College Football Playoff expanded from four to twelve teams, and the once-mighty power conferences have now condensed from five to four.
The 12 teams will be the five conference champions ranked by the CFP selection committee, plus the following seven highest-ranked teams.
The Big Ten could more accurately be called the Big Eighteen, the Big 12, the Big 16. Meanwhile, the SEC welcomed Texas and Oklahoma.
Even the ACC, amidst adding three new schools, is tangled in lawsuits from members looking to leave.
Yet, as the dust settles on this seismic shift, one conference remains a steadfast beacon of tradition: the Mountain West Conference.
While the rest of college football is caught up in a whirlwind of change, the Mountain West stands firm, its 12 teams and rivalries intact.
From a fan’s perspective, it’s excellent, as you can count on long-standing rivalries continuing, knowing your teams are the same in the conference.
In a sport where stability has become a rare commodity, the Mountain West offers a refreshing glimpse of continuity and tradition.
It may not attract the same level of media frenzy as the newly rebranded Power Four. Still, for those craving some consistency in college football, the Mountain West promises to be a compelling watch in 2024—not just for its quality football but also for its comforting familiarity.
In any sport steeped in over a century and a half of history, the Mountain West has quietly become a sanctuary of football heritage, unchanged since its last realignment in 2013.
There is no denying that this conference does not get the credit it deserves for its stability and the quality of teams, athletes, and coaches it has.
With the new leadership under Gloria Nevarez who took over as commissioner of the MW on January 1, 2023, following the retirement of founding commissioner Craig Thompson, the future looks bright.
The Mountain West introduces seven first-year head coaches this season, bringing fresh perspectives and energy to the conference. Here are our MW football coach rankings for 2024.
- Nate Dreiling, Utah State: At 33, Dreiling is the youngest FBS head coach, stepping in as Utah State’s interim coach.
Previously, he was a defensive coordinator at New Mexico State. Still, he faced a challenging situation and needed a solid season to secure his position. Dreiling, at 33, is the youngest head coach in FBS this fall, taking over for Blake Anderson.
Despite lacking head coaching experience, he’s ready to tackle the challenges ahead.
Having personally seen former defensive coordinators at New Mexico step into head coaching roles, I know that following in the footsteps of successful coaches like Blake Anderson comes with a steep learning curve.
I saw his defense firsthand during the annual Rio Grande Rivalry between the Lobos from New Mexico and the Aggies from New Mexico State. I was very impressed with scheme, shutting down the Lobos offense in Las Cruces.
It was easy to see why former head coach Blake Anderson saw in his defense when he hired him in early January.
The fact is that not all successful offensive & defensive coordinators equate to being a head coach. So, time will tell the story of his hire.
- Tim Skipper, Fresno State: Skipper, Fresno State’s interim coach, has extensive experience, including stints as associate head coach and coordinator roles.
Jeff Tedford stepped down as head coach due to ongoing health problems, which prevented him from coaching the Bulldogs in their bowl game at the end of the 2023 season, hence this hire.
Skipper worked at Colorado State from 2012-14 as a linebackers coach under former coach Jim McElwain. With Fresno State’s robust Roster, an MW title game appearance might be necessary for him to secure the job.
Talk about the right place and time for the right team situations. Just hand me the keys and change only a little to an already successful program under Tedford.
It is hard not to like coaching at Fresno State; the Bulldogs in a great sports town in Fresno, California, have a rabid fan base and great athletes.
- Jay Sawvel, Wyoming: Sawvel steps up as Wyoming’s head coach after serving as defensive coordinator under Craig Bohl.
With a solid defensive background, he faces the challenge of maintaining Wyoming’s recent success in Cowboy Nation in Laramie.
The Cowboys are coming off their first nine-win season since 1996, including a win over Toledo in last year’s Arizona Bowl.
The Cowboys face a demanding schedule this fall, beginning with a road game against Big 12 newcomer Arizona State.
Two weeks later, they’ll host Brigham Young, possibly marking the Cougars’ final visit to War Memorial Stadium.
The regular season wraps up for UW on the road against Washington State in Pullman.
The Pokes are always a formidable opponent at home. I expect much to stay the same regarding Craig Bohl’s method of bringing physicality to teams in Laramie. Of course, there are many challenges ahead this season.
- Timmy Chang, Hawaii: Chang, a former record-breaking quarterback at Hawaii, is in his third year as head coach. Despite a challenging start, there’s been improvement.
This season will show if Hawaii can rise in the MW under his leadership. For the offense, they look to continue making strides in the run-and-shoot system, led by returning starters Brayden Schager and Pofele Ashlock.
“Every year you have the run and shoot, it becomes better; it’s just seeing little things that I see Pofele do that I can know what he’s doing before he does it; that’s when it starts to get good,” Brayden Schager said. “that’s when you can already see I’m anticipating what he’s doing, getting the ball out earlier.
Hawaii has been good at its offensive schemes; the key to their success will be stopping teams from scoring.
So, new defensive coordinator Dennis Thurman, with a ton of experience, will have his hands full developing his scheme to blend with a potentially excellent offensive lead by Quarterback Brayden Schager.
The Rainbows were blessed to get back Dan Morrison, his second stint with Hawaii. Keep in mind that he was the positions coach for Timmy Change and Colt Brennan (a legend on the Island in college passing game)
Watching this offense with Shager under his coaching tutelage should pay big dividends for Hawaii this year. Talk about a one-two punch on the offensive side of the ball
- Spencer Danielson, Boise State: In 2023, Danielson led Boise State to the MW title as interim coach. With limited experience outside Boise State, he faces elevated expectations this season.
Under Danielson’s direction, Boise State’s defense ranked sixth in the nation last season, while the scoring defense ranked 15th.
In his first season as defensive coordinator, the team’s scoring defense ranked 12th in the country, while its total defense ranked 45th.
Talk about a dream job at the Mountain West Conference, but with that comes big expectations this year. It should be an entertaining team to watch compete with so much talent on both sides of the ball.
- Sean Lewis, San Diego State: Lewis, formerly the head coach at Kent State and offensive coordinator at Colorado, brings a dynamic offense to San Diego State.
He’s well-positioned to make an impact with the Aztecs. His offense worked wonders for Deion Sanders at Colorado while he was the offensive coordinator, so look for the Aztecs to lean heavily on the offensive side of the ball.
Brady Hoke resigned after a disappointing 4–8 season, announcing the move after the team fell to 3–7 with a Week 11 loss to Colorado State.
The Aztecs have had a strong football program in recent years, making a bowl game in 12 of the past 14 seasons, but last year was their worst since 2010.
- Jeff Choate, Nevada: Choate, with a varied coaching background, including a successful stint at Montana State, takes on the challenging role at Nevada.
He’s known for building vital programs and will aim to do the same with the Wolf Pack. Nevada football rarely hires head coaches with prior experience, with only one of the last nine full-time head coaches, Chris Tormey, coming in with previous college head-coaching experience.
Tormey, hired from Idaho, posted a 16-31 record with the Wolf Pack from 2000-03. Choate, who left Washington to lead Montana State in 2016, had a successful tenure, going 4-7, 5-6, 8-5, and 11-4 over four seasons.
His time with the Bobcats included back-to-back FCS playoff appearances in 2018 and 2019, with a semifinal berth and a No. 4 ranking in his final season. He also went 4-0 against rival Montana in the annual “Brawl of the Wild,” marking Montana State’s first semifinal appearance since 1984.
This is, without a doubt, one of the most challenging jobs in the MWC, and this was a good hire on so many levels when one looks at Choate’s resume. It should be fun for the fans to watch how they compete this year.
- Ken Niumatalolo, San Jose State: Niumatalolo, the Navy’s former head coach, is proven but untested outside his unique system.
How he adapts at San Jose State will be closely watched. Ken Niumatalolo, the all-time winningest coach at the Naval Academy, Niumatalolo, who won a record 109 games at Navy, led the team to 10 bowl games.
Of course, he was hired after Arizona hired former head coach Brent Brennan to coach the Wildcats, hence the new hire.
This was a particularly good hire by San Jose State, with his proven winning record, his schemes he runs and head coaching experience.
- Jay Norvell, Colorado State: An offensive-minded coach with a strong recruiting record, Norvell is rebuilding Colorado State.
His talent for developing players is undeniable, but a championship push is still needed. Norvell, who led the Nevada Wolf Pack to four bowl games in five seasons (2017-21), brought his offensive expertise to Fort Collins.
While he turned Nevada into a conference title contender, Ram fans are eager for a breakout year in their new $220 million stadium built in 2017.
There is no denying that there is now pressure to win games in Ram nation and frankly it comes with this head coaching job there in Fort Collins.
- Barry Odom, UNLV: Odom led UNLV to its best season in program history in 2023. His success at UNLV and previous experience in the SEC make him a strong contender in the MW.
UNLV Head Football Coach Barry Odom discussed how his team is using their second-place preseason ranking as motivation during Mountain West Football Media Days
“Every week is crucial,” Odom said. “We’re in the spotlight with five Friday night games, and 11 of our 12 regular season games are on national television—something that’s never happened before at UNLV. We’re also focused on the fact that UNLV has never made back-to-back bowl games.”
“I didn’t finish strong as a head coach—we lost the championship game and the bowl game, so lessons were learned,” Odom said. “We’re a much better football team than we were at any point last year. We have meaningful competition in many areas, and we’ll see how that unfolds throughout the year.”
You mention a program that is poised for a breakout after a great year: the Running Rebels of UNLV. Yes, they didn’t finish well last year but you saw what this staff can do with the right talent, scheme and support from the local fan base.
- Bronco Mendenhall, New Mexico: Mendenhall comes into the MWC as one of the most accomplished coaches in the MW, having successfully coached at BYU and Virginia.
His 135 wins make him the winningest head coach in the current MWC of active head coaches. He faces a challenging task in New Mexico but has a strong track record of improving programs.
There is no denying that he has 17 years as a head coach at both BYU & Virginia and 16 bowl appearances, Bronco is proven winner, bottom line.
Before coaching at Virginia, Mendenhall had a 99-43 record at BYU, with no losing seasons in 11 years. He also served as an assistant at New Mexico from 1998-2002. Known for maximizing talent in challenging situations, Mendenhall is expected to be a strong fit in Albuquerque.
AD Eddie Nunez’s decision to hire Mendenhall after Danny Gonzales’s departure is poised to pay off in the long run.
Gonzales was immensely popular with the local fanbase of Lobo supporters but equally popular because his affiliation with former head coach Rocky Long is Bronco Mendenhall.
So here you have Danny Gonzales, who was Urlacher’s roommate in college while at UNM, but it was Mendenhall who coached him as the then DC for the Lobos.
Coming from the Rocky Long coaching tree, Mendenhall’s old-school philosophy of “Earned, not Given” stands in contrast to today’s more immediate, results-driven culture among players.
The conference is undergoing significant rebuilding, and the Lobos are no exception. Despite over 60 roster changes, Mendenhall is confident he can lead the Lobos to a bowl game, as he has done in 16 of his 17 coaching years.
“The longest it’s taken to reach the postseason in my previous jobs is year two,” Mendenhall said. “I like our team’s grit and resolve.”
Known as a great motivator, Mendenhall acknowledges the landscape has changed since his time in Virginia.
He notes after a three-year coaching break, “Roster and financial management now consume more of my time than ever before. It’s a different game.”
- Troy Calhoun, Air Force: Calhoun is the longest-tenured MW coach with a consistent record of success at Air Force.
With 13 bowl appearances and five 10-win seasons, the only thing missing is a MW title. Without question the best coach at the Mountain West Conference.
The Falcons are heading into the new season with just five returning starters from last year’s squad, which went 9-4 and 5-3 in Mountain West Play and capped off the season with a win over James Madison in the Armed Forces Bowl.
Head coach Troy Calhoun admits he has never faced such a significant roster turnover in his career, but he and his team stay focused and optimistic.
This is what every NCAA college football team is now dealing with with NILS and the current transfer portal situation in college sports.
“It’s a process,” Calhoun said. “It’s going to take some time, but we got the guys with a lot of heart. Some say we are rebuilding, but really, it’s a reload; we have young players with great talent.”
Air Force is solid every year and I do not expect that to change, even with this year’s rosters of new talent and new cadets.
All the Air Force Falcons do, is win every year no matter who is playing, its the Falcons mantra, prove how good they are year in and year out.
