By Brian Murphy
bmurphy@idahostatesman.com
The Mountain West released its football conference schedules for the next four seasons on Tuesday afternoon. The 2013 season is the league’s first with 12 teams and two divisions — Mountain and West.
Boise State is in the Mountain Division along with Air Force, Colorado State, New Mexico, Utah State and Wyoming. The West Division includes Fresno State, Hawaii, Nevada, San Diego State, San Jose State and UNLV.
Each team will play all five opponents in its division and three teams from the other division each season.
Complete Mountain West schedules
A look at Boise State’s future schedules:
2013
Home: Air Force, Nevada, New Mexico, Wyoming
Away: Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State, Utah State
Missed: Hawaii, San Jose State, UNLV
Non-conference: at Washington (Aug. 31), vs. Tennessee-Martin (Sept. 7), vs. Southern Miss (Sept. 28), at BYU (Oct. 26)
2014
Home: Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State, Utah State
Away: Air Force, Nevada, New Mexico, Wyoming
Missed: Hawaii, San Jose State, UNLV
Non-conference: vs. Ole Miss in Atlanta (Aug. 28), vs. BYU (Oct. 25)
2015
Home: Air Force, Hawaii, New Mexico, Wyoming
Away: Colorado State, San Jose State, UNLV, Utah State
Missed: Fresno State, Nevada, San Diego State
Non-conference: at BYU (Sept. 12), vs. Washington (Sept. 19)
2016
Home: Colorado State, San Jose State, UNLV, Utah State
Away: Air Force, Hawaii, New Mexico, Wyoming
Missed: Fresno State, Nevada, San Diego State
Non-conference: vs. Washington State (Sept. 10), at Oregon State (Sept. 24), vs. BYU (Oct. 15).
Two quick thoughts:
• Utah State — likely Boise State’s top rival in the Mountain Division — drew a more favorable cross-division schedule in 2013 (and 2014). In 2013, the Aggies play Hawaii (home), San Jose State (away) and UNLV (away) from the West Division. The Broncos, however, play Fresno State (away), Nevada (home) and San Diego State (away) from the West. Advantage, Aggies.
• I wonder if the release of these schedules will speed television negotiations for Boise State’s home football games. I was told this week that those negotiations are ongoing. Boise State football coach Chris Petersen alluded to those games being on ESPN last week.
Is there anything in the rule books forbidding Boise State and Nevada from scheduling each other OOC in 2015 and 2016?
2015/2016 is terrible … missing the likely other top 3 contenders in the MWC.
Good point, but the 2016 non-conference schedule just answered part of my concern.
Like the eight conference games and the opportunity to increase SOS that four non-conference games gives us, and no more Tennessee-Martins for crying out loud. Let’s pursue a home-and-home with Oregon State again, or another PAC 12 school.
sos=weak. hopefully our stay in the mountain west will be brief.
I agree 81
It looks to me like they will try and milk BSU for as much TV money as possible early, probably realizing a long stay in the MWC is not in the cards (hopefully).
Soft schedule?? 2013 is no cakewalk. BSU plays AT Washington, SD, BYU, Fresno and UT ST.
Those guys play….
WA vs PAC 12
SD vs OH St, OR St
BYU vs TX, WI, Notre Dame
UT St vs USC
Fresno vs Rutgers
These contests will reveal the true strenth of schedule and the quality of MTW league. BSU faces TOUGHEST road in a long time and can’t be cruising into ANY of those stadiums thinking they will dominate.
Our biggest rivals are Nevada, Fresno St, and San Diego St (who are incidently the best teams in the West). In 2015 and 2016, we play none of these rivals. That’s rough, I can only hope that more realignment (new teams join MWC or we leave) avoids that fate for us.
You will play one of them in the MWC Champ.
San Jose St ended the year ranked for a reason . . . it wasn’t a fluke. They ARE good, not “was good for one year”.
And Hawaii has some great 4 & 5 star recruits. You never know just how good Nevada or Fresno St will be, & San Jose, Hawaii, & UNLV too are just as likely to be better than Nevada or Fresno.
& playing Tenn-Martin can be good (SouthernMiss too,) because it’s a different style of game in that part of the country so it gives the team good preparedness regardless . . . and as above, they are just as likely to be ranked as Ore St or Wash St.
Mac:
Love the enthusiasm, but you are putting a little too much lipstick on this pig.
* San Jose St. – Best season in school history, less than 11K in average attendance, loses their only RB, loses their head coach, out of 19 2013 recruits, 1 3-star. And they are moving up a conference. If they finish .500, it will be a good season.
* Hawaii – Like San Jose St., one really good season in the past 10 years, no 4 or 5 star recruits, in fact the entire 2013 recruiting class rated out at 2.12-stars ( scout.com)
* Nevada and Fresno St. – Are a combined 6-23 vs. BSU since 1996, have one top-25 BCS finish between them since 1998.
* UNLV – Has had one winning season in 20 years…..
Granted, the MWC pulled out all the stops the first two years (TV money is a powerful thing), but without BSU, this conference has a long way to go before it can challenge the Big East or MAC……
first couple years look nice with away games in fertile recruiting bed cali but awful after that. im hoping the two texas schools jump on and that moves us into the west division.