2024 MW Football Weekly Release - CFP Quarterfinals/Vrbo Fiesta Bowl

MW Bowl Notes

• Boise State earned the No. 3 seed in the inaugural 12-team CFP field as one of the five highest-ranked conference champions, ahead of the ACC and Big 12. The Broncos earned a first-round bye and will face No. 6 seed Penn State in the CFP quarterfinals at the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl on Tuesday, Dec. 31.
• Boise State is bowl eligible for the 27th consecutive season, the second-longest active streak behind Georgia (28). The Broncos are 3-0 in the Fiesta Bowl all time, with memorable wins over Oklahoma (43-42 in overtime, 2007), TCU (17-10 in 2010) and Arizona (38-30 in 2014). The Broncos are one of four teams to play in multiple Fiesta Bowls and win all of them, along with Penn State (7-0), Oklahoma State (3-0) and Clemson (2-0).
• The original CFP party-crasher, Boise State was the first team from a non-automatic-qualifying conference to participate in a CFP New Year’s bowl game when it was the highest-ranked champion from the Group of 5 conferences in 2014, the inaugural year of the College Football Playoff system, en route to the win over then No. 10 Arizona in the Fiesta Bowl.
• The MW also placed the first non-automatic-qualifying FBS team into a BCS bowl game with Utah’s appearance in the 2005 Fiesta Bowl, a 35-7 win over Pittsburgh.
• Boise State is currently on an 11-game winning streak, tied with Notre Dame for the second-longest active streak in the FBS behind Oregon (14).
• Five MW teams earned bowl bids in 2024, marking the 17th time in the last 18 years that at least five MW teams will compete in the postseason. The lone exception was the 2020 Covid-affected season.
• Including the five this season, the Mountain West has earned 133 bowl bids since 1999 and holds a 70-59 (.543) all-time record. Over the last 21 seasons (including this one), the MW has captured the Bowl Challenge Cup five times and owns the second-best winning percentage in bowl games among the FBS conferences with a 63-51 (.553) mark, trailing only the SEC (124-78, .614). In that same 21-year span, the MW has the most wins (63) of any Group of 5 conference. The American is second with 61.

MW Bowl Recaps

• UNLV topped California 24-13 in the Art of Sport LA Bowl Hosted By Gronk on Dec. 18, with WR Jacob De Jesus named the Offensive MVP and LB Jackson Woodard tabbed the Defensive MVP. UNLV won its first bowl game since 2000 and reached 11 wins for the first time as an FBS program.
• Fresno State saw its five-game bowl winning streak come to an end with a 28-20 loss to Northern Illinois in double overtime in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. After the teams traded touchdowns in the first overtime period, NIU scored on its second possession and picked up a game-sealing sack on Fresno State’s fourth-and-9 attempt.
• San José State dropped a 41-39 contest to South Florida in the Hawai‘i Bowl in five overtimes, which was a record for the most OT periods in a bowl game until Toledo beat Pitt 48-46 in 6OT in the GameAbove Sports Bowl two days later. With Biletnikoff Award finalist Nick Nash opting out of the game, sophomore wide receiver Matthew Coleman had career highs in receptions and receiving yards with 12 catches for 119 yards and a touchdown.
• Colorado State dropped a 43-17 decision to Miami (Ohio) in the Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl, presented by Gin & Juice by Dre and Snoop. The Rams, who played in a bowl for the first time since 2017, saw quarterback Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi throw for 321 yards and a TD for his third straight 300-yard outing and Avery Morrow run for 50 yards to become the Rams’ first 1,000-yard rusher since 2017.

MW Strength of Schedule

• Mountain West teams played 35 nonconference regular-season games against Autonomous 4 opponents, the most of any FBS league (counting Notre Dame, Oregon State and Washington State as A4 teams), with the next-closest totaling 27.
• MW teams have played 15 one-possession games against A4 opponents this season, with four of those games settled in overtime or on the final play of regulation.
• The MW has 12 nonconference wins against A4 opponents this season, more than the ACC (11), Big Ten (10) and Big 12 (6) and more than the combined total of its four peer conferences (eight).
• Since 2018, the MW has the best winning percentage over Autonomous 5 teams (30.6) among its peer conferences. MW teams have collected 41 wins over such teams in that span, also the most among its peer conferences.
• Mountain West squads have played 21 nonconference games this season against teams that were ranked or receiving votes in the US LBM Coaches (AFCA) and/or AP top-25 polls, including eight at home.

Notes Around the MW

MW TEAMS IN THE RANKINGS
Boise State is No. 9 and UNLV is No. 24 in the final College Football Playoff rankings, marking the second time the MW has had two teams in the final CFP rankings and the first since 2018, when Fresno State finished No. 21 and Boise State finished No. 25.

The Broncos are No. 8 in the Associated Press and US LBM Coaches (AFCA) polls, while the Rebels are No. 24 in both polls. The Broncos are 123-21 (.854) all-time while being ranked in the AP Top 25. That’s the best record of any team while ranked over the last 40 seasons (min. 50 games as ranked team).

UNLV and Boise State are two of eight teams in the FBS that are undefeated this season against teams currently ranked outside the AP Top 25. The only other conferences with multiple such teams are the Big Ten (Oregon, Indiana and Penn State) and the SEC (Georgia and Texas).

ALL-AMERICA HONORS
Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty, the Maxwell Award and Doak Walker Award winner and Heisman Trophy runner-up, and San José State wide receiver Nick Nash, a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award, both earned first-team All-America honors from the AFCA, the Associated Press, the Football Writers Association of America, The Sporting News and Walter Camp, as the duo became the sixth and seventh players in MW history to earn unanimous All-America honors. Jeanty was the lone unanimous selection on the AP team.

Boise State offensive lineman Kage Casey claimed second-team honors on the Walter Camp team, Colorado State center Jacob Gardner and UNLV safety Jalen Catalon earned third-team honors from the AP and UNLV linebacker Jackson Woodard took second-team distinction from the FWAA.

JEANTY’S DOMINANCE
Boise State junior running back Ashton Jeanty has put together one of the best seasons in FBS history and is at or near the top in the FBS in several categories:

• all-purpose yards per game (201.0, 1st)
• rushing yards (2,497, 1st)
• rushing yards per game (192.1, 1st)
• rushing touchdowns (29, 2nd)
• scoring (13.8, 2nd)
• total points scored (180, 2nd)
• total touchdowns (30, 2nd)
• rush yards per carry (7.26, 4th)

With a MW-record 2,497 rushing yards this season, Jeanty is the third MW player to rush for at least 2,000 yards in a single season, joining San Diego State’s Donnel Pumphrey (2,133 in 2016) and Rashaad Penny (2,248 in 2017). Jeanty is currently fourth in FBS history for rushing yards in a season, trailing just UCF’s Kevin Smith (2,567 in 2007), Wisconsin’s Melvin Gordon (2,587 in 2014) and Oklahoma State’s Barry Sanders (2,628 in 1988).

Jeanty has rushed for 2,497 yards this season for an average of 192.1 rushing yards per game. The only other FBS player ever to hit both of those marks in the same season was Sanders during his 1988 Heisman season. Jeanty is also chasing the MW’s single-season all-purpose yards record. He currently has 2,613, just 361 back of Penny’s mark of 2,974 from 2017.

Jeanty has two games this season with at least 250 rushing yards and four-plus rushing TDs, while no other FBS player has a single such game this season. He has three games with at least 200 rushing yards and three rushing TDs, tied for the most in a season in MW history with Colorado State’s Kapri Bibbs (2013). Since 1996, only two FBS players have done that four times in a season: Wisconsin’s Jonathan Taylor (2018) and Ron Dayne (1996).

Jeanty has five TD runs of at least 70 yards this year, eight of at least 60 yards and 10 of 50 yards or more, all of which are MW records in a season. He leads the FBS in all three of those categories this season. With 29 total TD runs this season, he is just two back of the MW single-season record set by CSU’s Bibbs in 2013. Jeanty’s next rushing touchdown will make him the sixth FBS player with at least 30 and the first since Devin Singletary had 32 for Florida Atlantic in 2017.

DANIELSON AMONG COTY FINALISTS
Boise State coach Spencer Danielson is a finalist for the George Munger College Coach of the Year Award. The winner will be announced on Jan. 9. He was also a finalist for the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award.

NASH’S TRIPLE CROWN
One of three Biletnikoff Award finalists, San José State receiver Nick Nash is just the fourth player to earn the FBS college football receiving triple crown in the regular season, as he finished leading the country in receptions (a school-record 104), receiving yards (1,382), and receiving touchdowns (16). He also finished his season leading the FBS in receptions per game (8.7) and receiving yards per game (115.2). After opting out of SJSU’s bowl game, he ranks second in the FBS in all but receiving TDs, which he still leads.

He tied for third in MW history in single-season TD catches and finished fifth in single-season receptions. Nash had a receiving TD in 10 consecutive games to open the season, the second-longest streak in MW history and the longest such streak to start a season in league annals. Nash was the first Mountain West player to have at least 10 receiving touchdowns and two passing touchdowns in a season.

MW OWNS THE RUN GAME
Four MW squads are in the top 10 in the FBS in rushing, led by New Mexico in third at 253.6. Boise State is fifth at 250.5  per contest, UNLV is No. 8 with 243.5 and Air Force is No. 10 with 224.0 per game. The MW has never had four teams finish in the top 10 but has had three teams finish in the top 10 in the category twice, in 2012 and 2016.

There have been 27 200-yard individual rushing efforts this season, and nine of them have come from MW players, including six by Jeanty.

DALMAS NEARING FBS RECORDS
Boise State kicker Jonah Dalmas has 93 career field goals to his credit, good for third in FBS history and just four back of the FBS record of 97, held by NC State’s Christopher Dunn (2018-22). He is second in FBS history in kicking points with 503, behind Alabama’s Will Reichard 547 (2019-23). He is fifth in FBS history with a field-goal percentage of 87.7.

UNLV 4-1 AGAINST A4 COMPETITION
UNLV has beaten Big 12 teams Houston (27-7) and Kansas (23-20) this season, becoming the first nonconference team ever to have multiple road wins against Big 12 competition in the same season. UNLV’s 27-7 win at Houston in Week 1 was the largest for a MW school against a Big 12 opponent since Utah’s 68-27 win at Iowa State in 2010. Those are the only two times a Mountain West team has won a road game against a Big 12 school by 20-plus points. The Rebels fell in overtime to Syracuse in Week 6 before beating Oregon State in Week 8, 33-25. The Rebels capped their 2024 campaign with a 24-13 win over the ACC’s Cal in the Art of Sport LA Bowl Hosted By Gronk.

SCORING IN BUNCHES
Boise State ranks third in the FBS in points per game this season (39.1). The Broncos have won six games this season by 20-plus points, with just seven FBS teams – Ohio State (9), Oregon (8), Army (7), Indiana (7), Miami (7), Notre Dame (7) and SMU (7) – with more this season.

SACK CENTRAL
Boise State is second in the FBS in sacks with 3.92 per game and is tied for eighth (with San José State) in sacks allowed at just 0.92. New Mexico leads the FBS at just 0.42 allowed per game and Colorado State is fourth at 0.77.

REBEL SPECIAL TEAMS
UNLV leads the FBS this season in blocked punts (5), with Rebel wide receiver Ricky White III leading the FBS with four. White, the MW Special Teams Player of the Year, became the first player in MW history to have a season with more than 10 receiving touchdowns and at least one return TD.

Placekicker Caden Chittenden, the MW Freshman of the Year, is tied for second in the nation in made field goals with a MW freshman-record 26 and is third in the FBS in field goals per game (1.86). He finished just three back of the overall MW single-season record of 29 set by New Mexico’s John Sullivan in 2007.

MAN OF THE YEAR
Boise State defensive end Ahmed Hassanein has been named one of three finalists for the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year Award. The award  recognizes exemplary leadership both on and off the field and the winner will be announced Feb. 12.

WINNING THE TURNOVER BATTLE
San José State (21) and UNLV (17) rank second and sixth, respectively, in the FBS in passes intercepted, with the Spartans fifth with 28 turnovers gained and the Rebels eighth in turnover margin at 1.00.

Boise State has lost just eight turnovers to rank second in the FBS, while UNLV and San Diego State are tied for fifth with nine each. The Rebels committed no more than one turnover in any of their 14 games this season. That is five games longer than the next-longest active such streak by any FBS team and is the longest streak in MW history.

RUSHING RAMS
Colorado State is averaging 170.7 rushing yards per game this season compared to 92.8 per game in 2023, the seventh-largest increase by any FBS team (+77.9) and largest by any MW team. The Rams also went from 10 rushing touchdowns last season to 20 in 2024.

COACHING MOVES
Fresno State hired Matt Entz as its new head coach on Dec. 4. Entz served as the assistant head coach for defense and linebackers coach at USC in 2024 after a five-year stint as the head coach at North Dakota State, where he led the Bison to a pair of FCS championships and was a two-time FCS National Coach of the Year. …

Utah State hired New Mexico’s Bronco Mendenhall on Dec. 6. Mendenhall, who led the Lobos to a 5-7 record in his lone season at the helm, returns to his home state, where he led BYU for 11 seasons and earned MW Coach of the Year honors in 2006. … On Dec. 12, UNLV announced former Florida and Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen would take the reins for the Rebels. Mullen spent the last three seasons as an ESPN college football analyst. … On Dec. 14, New Mexico announced Jason Eck as its new head coach. Eck spent the previous three seasons at Idaho, leading the Vandals to FCS national rankings and playoff berths each season.

SMITH OFFICIALLY ENSHRINED
Former Utah quarterback Alex Smith, the MW Offensive Player of the Year and a Heisman Trophy finalist in 2004, was officially inducted in the College Football Hall of Fame at the National Football Foundation Awards Dinner on Tuesday, Dec. 12.