2010 Mountain West Football Predictions
Below, I have made my predictions on how I see the Mountain West Conference shaping up this season. In addition, make sure you check out my 2010 college football predictions article to see how I like the rest of the conferences to play out. Want more bang for your buck with your college football betting? Bet your college football picks at Sportsbook.com where our readers can get $100 in free bonus cash!
1. TCU Horned Frogs – TCU should once again find itself in the mix for a BCS bowl. Last year, TCU rolled through the Mountain West Conference on its way to a perfect 12-0 regular season. Its only loss came to Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl. QB Andy Dalton once again leads an offense that was the best in the MWC in 2009 (38.3 PPG). The No. 1 defense in the league will miss Jerry Hughes and Daryl Washington, but there’s no reason to expect much of a drop off. College football lines makers have listed TCU at +1500 to win the BCS title.
2. Utah Utes – Utah gets TCU at home on November 6, and that game very well could decide the Mountain West. I do have to give the early edge to the Horned Frogs after they crushed the Utes 55-28 last season. Utah will make the jump to the Pac-10 following this season, but it will try end its final year in the MWC with a bang. Led by QB Jordan Wynn, the offense should be top notch. The questions are on defense after the Utes lost Koa Misi, Stevenson Sylvester and Robert Johnson. Utah is listed at +10000 to win the BCS title.
3. BYU Cougars – We can’t expect BYU to be the same team it has been after losing QB Max Hall. The Cougars then took another blow when running back Harvey Unga withdrew from school after violating an honor code. But the offensive line is solid, and coach Bronco Mendenhall seems very confident in both Riley Nelson and Jake Heaps, who are the leading candidates to replace Hall. BYU will be down, but likely not as much as one might expect. BYU is listed at +10000 to win the BCS title.
4. Air Force Falcons – The Falcons could be a sleeper to win the MWC when you consider how tough they played against TCU and Utah last season. They played TCU to a 3-point game, and they lost to Utah in overtime. The Falcons do get both BYU and Utah at home this season, but they must play TCU on the road, making it tough to think the Falcons will have quite enough to win the league. There is a lot of excitement surrounding Air Force football, and QB Tim Jefferson, who was the MWC Offensive Freshman of the Year, is responsible for a lot of it. The scary thing is that another QB, Connor Dietz, could see some action as well because of how good of a runner he is. Air Force led the MWC in rushing and finished third nationally. Sometimes the best defense is a good offense, as evidenced by the way Air Force helps out its defense by controlling the clock with its ground game. Air Force is listed as part of the field at +5000 to win the BCS title.
5. Wyoming Cowboys – The Cowboys were awful on offense last season, ranking dead last in the MWC with a 309.4 yards per game average, but they were still able to finish with a winning record thanks to a New Mexico Bowl win over Fresno State. In order for Wyoming to improve on the 4-4 conference mark it posted in 2009, it must find ways to move the football. That offense is expected to be better this season as Dave Christensen has gained enough trust in QB Austyn Carta-Samuels to really let him air it out. The key will be keeping the turnovers down as that was a big reason for Wyoming’s improvement in 2009. Wyoming is listed as part of the field at +5000 to win the BCS title.
6. San Diego State Aztecs – The key for San Diego State will be the defensive side of the football. The Aztecs allowed 30 or more points six times last season, and they lost all six of those games. The offensive is expected to improve in 2010 as QB Ryan Lindley could emerge as one of the top tier signal callers in the conference. He threw for 3,054 yards and 23 touchdowns last season. He also has the luxury of a pair of quality targets in Vincent Brown and DeMarco Sampson. Sampson caught 62 passes for 851 yards and 8 scores in 2009. Coach Brady Hoke will be trying to help SDSU engineer its first winning season since 1998. San Diego State is listed as part of the field at +5000 to win the BCS title.
7. Colorado State Rams – The Rams were shut out in conference play in 2009, but they should have a decent shot at 2 wins in 2010 with UNLV and New Mexico both having to visit. A major key to getting a couple more wins will be defending much better on third down. The Rams were the worst defensive team in the country on third down in 2009, allowing their opponents to pick up the first down 54.7 percent of the time. Colorado State is listed as part of the field at +5000 to win the BCS title.
8. UNLV Rebels – The Rebels were one of the worst defensive teams in the nation in 2009, ranking 115 out of 120 in total defense (456.7 yards per game allowed). With that in mind, it’s actually pretty surprising that they were able to win three conference games. Wins could be even harder to come by this season as the team must adjust to a new coaching staff. Plus, the Rebels have 9 teams on the schedule that played in a bowl game last season. UNLV is listed as part of the field at +5000 to win the BCS title.
9. New Mexico Lobos – New Mexico won only 1 game in conference play last season, narrowly edging out Colorado State at home. The Lobos must go to Fort Collins this year, and that means that they could get shut out in conference play. The Lobos will be young and inexperienced, and that’s usually not a good thing to be. New Mexico is listed as part of the field at +5000 to win the BCS title.
Cash in big this college football season with expert football picks from World Champion handicapper Jimmy Boyd!
