2008 Mountain West Predictions: Will BYU Crash the BCS Party?

The Mountain West has had its share of big teams in recent years, and they have proven that many times the best of the Mountain West deserve to be in the BCS (remember Utah's 35-7 thumping of Pitt a few years back?). This season there are several strong teams in the Mountain West, and while BYU is the early favorite, they're not the only ones with a shot at busting the BCS this season.

#1: Utah: Utah always has a strong team with an excellent spread option offense and usually sports one of the best (and most athletic) defenses in the MWC. Utah's offense will be heads and shoulders above every other one except BYU, and the defense loses far less than BYU. Most likely, this well coached team will have the 2^nd best offense and 2^nd best defense in the MWC, and that will be enough to stave off heavy competition and to reclaim the Mountain West title. And yes, the mighty Utes will beat Michigan. Predicted record: 11-1

#2: BYU: This was difficult, as many experts see BYU as the favorite to bust into the BCS bowl, and for good reason. Max Hall returns at QB and may turn out to be one of the best in the school's history. Anyone who knows college football knows how impressive that is. The offense will be one of the best in the country, possibly even putting up Texas Tech like numbers. There is one glaring weakness, which is the return of only three starters on the defense, which might open the door for Utah or TCU. Honestly, I think it's a coin toss between these three, but the games against TCU and Utah are both on the road, and Washington is primed to upset them early in the season. Predicted record: 10-2

#3: TCU: TCU has hit some rough times. The program that was constantly near the top of the Mountain West has had distractions and scandals, but this is a strong program that is back on track and returns an impressive 15 starters. Like the best TCU teams of the past, the horned frogs look to have one of the best defenses in the country, and can't be counted out in competing for the MWC crown. Predicted record: 10-2

#4: Air Force: So here's the thing, New Mexico suffers heavy losses, no one at the bottom of the MWC seems to be stepping up, and every year everyone says Air Force loses too much, and every Air Force wins 7+ games. This is a great system team that is going to fight tooth and nail in every game, and although they return only 8 starters, a lot of young players got playing time last year, meaning normal improvement could keep the Falcons in the mix for another bowl game. Predicted record: 7-5

#5: New Mexico: After a fantastic nine win season that included a stunning shut out victory over Nevada in a bowl game (and without several of their best players), the Lobos have lost a lot. They won't come close to 9 wins again, and in fact will struggle to hit .500. Only 5 starters come back on each side of the ball, which means there will be holes, but there is enough talent here to keep above the dregs of the conference. Predicted record: 6-6

#6: Colorado State: This has not been a good team over the past several years, and last year's 3-9 was especially painful since several games were lost by less than a touchdown. Coach Steve Fairchild was an excellent hire, and the coaching staff he brought along is one of the best seen here in years. There are 14 returning starters, including 8 on offense, but most of the losses were the best players at key positions, and it is simply going to take some time to rebuild this program. Predicted record: 4-8

#7: Wyoming: Both Wyoming and San Diego State return 14 starters, but in all honesty neither is going to be very good. Wyoming was expected to be a "surprise" bowl team last year, but that didn't work out well. This is a fairly balanced team, but they don't have the talent to move much higher than this. Coin flip with UNLV to stay out of the basement. Projected record: 4-8

#8: UNLV: For two years everyone has waited for the Rebels to explode under "offensive genius" Coach Mike Sanford. It still hasn't happened. If there is ever a season it might, this will have to be it as an impressive 9 starters return on offense. There is some talent on defense, but this team needs to come together and play their A game every week to hit 6-6. I'm predicting less, though if there is a basement Mountain West team that could jump into a bowl, this is it. Projected record: 3-9

#9: San Diego State: The Aztecs were only good enough to win four games last year, and now they only return three starters on offense. They return eight starters to a defense that was the absolute worst in the Mountain West. The Aztecs will be competing for the dubious title as one of the worst teams in the country. Projected record: 2-10

The top of the Mountain West is extremely strong this year, and it will definitely be interesting to see who comes out on top this season.