The Mountain West has been home to some of the most exciting Group of 5 teams and has housed plenty of NFL talent. This year, while the MWC didn’t add or lose any members, it has a scheduling agreement with the two former Pac-12 programs left behind. Each MWC team plays at least one of Oregon State and Washington State with three facing both. It’s odd. The games against OSU and WSU won’t count toward the MWC record, so 11 of the 12 programs play five non-conference games, by far the most of any conference.
Disclaimer: “Easiest” or “Hardest” is not to mean “these teams will beat those on their schedule.” It could be a fact that the worst team in a conference could have the easiest non-conference schedule and also not be able to win any. These rankings will be based on the average preseason ranking between five major outlets: Phil Steele, Athlon Sports, ESPN FPI, College Football News, and Kelley Ford. There will at least be a little factual standing behind these rather than ranking based on bias and vibes.
Ranking the 6 Easiest 2024 Mountain West Non-Conference Schedules
6. Nevada: vs. SMU, at Troy, vs. Georgia Southern, at Minnesota, Eastern Washington (FCS), vs. Oregon State
The most difficult of the “easiest” MWC non-conference slates belongs to Nevada. The Wolf Pack is the only team that travels to Hawai’i to take advantage of “the Hawai’i Exemption.” So, once it’s all said and done, Nevada plays 13 regular season games. Last year, Nevada went 2-10 and did not win a single non-conference game. Given, three of the non-conference foes were pretty good. This year, Jeff Choate takes over in his first head coaching gig after three years as co-defensive coordinator at Texas and turning the Longhorns around. Nevada will likely struggle this year but will get a bit better this year.
The Wolf Pack has a rough first two weeks on the schedule. To start, new ACC program SMU comes to town. On paper, the Mustangs moving from the American to the ACC was odd but when you remember how good these teams have been, it makes sense. Last year, SMU had the eighth-best scoring offense, 16th-best total offense, and was top-13 in scoring, pass, and total defense. Preston Stone is a star at quarterback and the Mustangs added an infusion of transfer talent on defense. They’re gonna be fun to watch.
Then, a trip to Troy is not going to be the easiest. The back-to-back Sun Belt champions are being overlooked because Jon Sumerall jumped ship. With a coaching change like Troy’s, there was a mass exodus to the transfer portal. As it stands, three starters return on offense, and three return on defense. They did get former Notre Dame offensive coordinator Gerad Parker to lead the way and led an offense that was eighth-best in total offense and scored 39.1 points per game. Damien Taylor might be in for a big year as Parker’s lead back ran for 1,341 yards and 18 touchdowns.
Third up, Georgia Southern comes to Nevada. The Wolf Pack secondary is going to be tested in this one. If they struggled against SMU, they’re going to struggle here. Georgia Southern slings it. the Eagles led the nation with 44.4 passing attempts per game. Clay Helton is on year three and this may be the year they figure it out. Seven defensive starters return. Last year, they were in the lower half in every category, so the returning experience should help.
The Golden Gophers of Minnesota are next up and they managed to end up 6-7 last year after a bowl win. New quarterback Max Brosmer comes in from New Hampshire after leading the FCS with 3,464 yards. At running back, the Gophers are more than set. Darius Taylor, Jordan Nubin, Sieh Bangura, and Marcus Major each have what it takes to carry the offense. They do return seven defensive starters, so that’s a plus. Year eight of the P.J. Fleck regime needs to show serious improvement.
Finally, after a bout with Eastern Washington (FCS), Nevada gets its shot at Oregon State. With the death of the Pac-12, the Beavers were left behind. As a result, head coach Jonathan Smith and a ridiculous handful of players jumped ship. Two years ago, Oregon State was a surprising success. Last year, it won eight games. Nationally, Oregon State likely won’t be much of a threat. In terms of facing seven MWC teams, the Beavers should be bowl-eligible.
5. San Jose State: vs. Sacramento State (FCS), vs. Kennesaw State, at Washington State, at Oregon State, vs Stanford
It’s a new era at San Jose State. Ken Niumatalolo takes over after a long career with Navy. Now, he won’t be bringing the triple-option attack with him as Craig Stutzman, former Texas State passing game coordinator, will lead the offense. Aptly named the “spread and shred,” the Spartans are still looking good to compete. Chevan Cordeiro made a name for himself slinging it around, so Jay Butterfield is next up. It will be interesting to see if last year’s top-16 secondary repeats yet again.
After a bout with one of the better teams at the FCS level in Sacramento State (FCS), brand-new FBS squad Kennesaw State comes to town. San Jose State has a great opportunity to start 2-0 because Kennesaw State is expected to be the actual worst team in football. Maybe they make a James Madison or Jacksonville State-esque jump to the FBS level. Better odds that they will not.
Just like Oregon State, when the Pac-12 died, Washington State was left behind. They lost all kinds of talent to the transfer portal including star quarterback, Cam Ward. Sophomore dual-threat quarterback John Mateer is set to take over with an expected solid receiving corps. The strength may be the offensive line with four pieces returning. They will have plenty of transfer talent to get them through. As with Oregon State, they likely won’t be much of a national factor but should be able to go bowling.
We’re not going to rehash WSU or OSU every time they come up, so after a trip to Corvallis, San Jose State wraps up the non-conference slate with new ACC program, Stanford. The Cardinal struggled last year and ended up 3-9 in Troy Taylor’s first season. This year, they should look a bit better. In total, they have 15 starters returning with nine (!) on offense. While Stanford is expected to end up at the bottom of the ACC, it’s talented enough to surprise in 2024.
4. Wyoming: at Arizona State, vs Idaho (FCS), vs. BYU, at North Texas, at Washington State
The Wyoming Cowboys had a solid season last year, finishing at 9-4 after a bowl win over Toledo. Out of conference, they went 3-1 with wins over Appalachian State and Texas Tech. This year, Wyoming gets to start the Jay Sawvel era after long-time coach Craig Bohl retired. He’s not Josh Allen but Evan Svoboda wears 17, is built like him, and actually led the offense on the game-winning drive in that bowl game. He will be helped out by six returning starters on offense. The defense may be a strength again with seven starters and plenty of experience returning.
To start, Wyoming travels to one of the new Big 12 programs, Arizona State. The Sun Devils are in a state, to put it lightly. The Herm Edwards era was a mess and left an even bigger mess. Kenny Dillingham seemingly has what it takes to turn the program around but it’ll take another year or so. Redshirt freshman Sam Leavitt looks to take over for the embattled Jayden Rashada at quarterback. ASU was able to utilize the portal and has kicked its recruiting up a notch. Wyoming has a solid shot at upsetting the Power 4 program.
After hosting Idaho (FCS), the Cowboys play host to another new Big 12 program, BYU. The Cougars turned out a 5-7 record in their first season with a major conference. BYU started off strong with five wins in the first seven games. Then, it dropped five in a row. There’s supposed to be a battle at quarterback but whoever wins will have three returning linemen and three returning receivers to help out. Overall, BYU should be better in 2024 but this might actually be a solid G5 vs. P4 matchup. Could Wyoming go 2-0 vs. the Big 12?
A trip to North Texas awaits Wyoming in Week 4. In its first season in the American, North Texas managed just five wins. Despite that, the Mean Green were exciting. They averaged nearly 500 yards per game on offense. The issue was that the other side of the ball allowed almost just as many yards. This year, North Texas has to break in a new quarterback with just two returning starters on offense. The defense returns five so hopefully they’re able to put up more of a fight.
The Cowboys then close out the non-conference slate with Oregon State.
3. San Diego State: vs. Texas A&M-Commerce (FCS), vs. Oregon State, at Cal, at Central Michigan, vs. Washington State
The Sean Lewis era begins at San Diego State after a less-than-one-year stint with Colorado. The “AztecFast” offense is set to take over, bringing back memories of his time at Kent State. Now that he has a bit of an upgrade in terms of talent and resources, Lewis should succeed.
After hosting Texas A&M-Commerce (FCS) and Oregon State, the Aztecs travel up I-5 (well, probably not…that’s a nearly eight-hour drive) to face off with Cal. This Golden Bears team will go as far as Jaydn Ott takes them. He’s another stud in this year’s loaded running back class for the NFL Draft and will carry the offense. SDSU will be able to move the ball, however. Cal’s secondary allowed 280.7 yards per game last year and almost 33 points per game.
Before playing host to Washington State, the Aztecs travel to MAC foe, Central Michigan. The Chippewas should be a step or two better than they were last year with Bert Emanuel taking full control of the offense. His entire arsenal of weapons return and dynamic running back Marion Lukes will be a headache. This game will be a good litmus test to see where the Aztecs are before MWC play.
2. Air Force: vs. Merrimack (FCS), at Baylor, vs. Navy, at Army, vs Oregon State
A dark horse candidate to crash the CFP as the Group of 5 champion of the Mountain West, Air Force started off last year on fire by winning each of its first eight games. Then, the Falcons dropped five in a row. While Air Force did go 3-1 out of conference, it did split with Navy and Army, thus leaving the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy with Army. The Falcons have to replace the entire offensive line but if there is an offense that can overcome, it’s a service academy’s.
After hosting Merrimack (FCS), a trip to Baylor awaits. Dave Aranda’s squad stumbled last year, finishing 3-9. This will be the fifth time these two teams face off with Baylor winning the first three and Air Force taking the last one in 2022. The Bears went out and got MAC MVP Dequan Finn to lead the offense. With Toledo, Finn was a three-year starter and threw for 7,083 yards and 63 touchdowns and added 1,841 yards and 45 touchdowns on the ground. Baylor will need to improve the defense as it finished in the bottom quarter of all programs last year in most categories.
Navy is next up and Air Force owns a 34-22 mark over the Midshipmen. It’s a new age at Navy as the program won’t be 100% triple option in 2024. There were some growing pains last year in a 5-7 season but Brian Newberry brought in Mercer head coach Drew Cronic and his “Millennial Wing-T” offense is set to take over this year. They’ll still be a primarily run-first team but expect Navy to air it out a bit more frequently than it has in recent memory.
Army will be more of the same, however. The Black Knights won the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy last year after sweeping the service academies. This will be the first year since 2004 that Army will be part of a conference. Senior quarterback Bryson Daily is set to lead the offense yet again after posting over 900 yards rushing and passing with a total of 14 touchdowns. They will have to rebuild the defense with eight losses but they’ll want to improve on their 106th-ranked rushing defense if they want to upend Air Force for the sixth time in eight years.
1. Hawai’i: vs. Delaware State (FCS), vs. UCLA, at Sam Houston State, vs. Northern Iowa (FCS), at Washington State
Perhaps the easiest non-conference slate on the field has to belong to Hawai’i. If we factor in travel distance, it may be a bit different, of course. If you want to watch an offense sling it, Hawai’i is for you. Quarterback Brayden Schager threw the ball 525 times, the third-most in the nation. That resulted in 3,542 yards and 26 touchdowns. Both of his top receivers are coming back after totaling 1,856 yards and 18 touchdowns.
Normally, we brush over the FCS foes. However, the note we will make is that Delaware State (FCS) will have to travel nearly 5,000 miles to face Hawai’i in Week 0. Unreal.
The UCLA Big Ten era begins with the Bruins taking a trip to Honolulu. DeShaun Foster gets his first crack as a head coach at his alma mater and the Bruins are expected to struggle a bit. Ethan Garbers came on late on in the year last year and showed a little promise after capping off a bowl win over Boise State. At tailback, T.J. Harden gets to take over the position after splitting the carries last year. Even then, he ran for 827 yards and eight scores. If the Bruins are going to have some success, they’ll lean on the second-best rushing defense from a year ago. Even then, it’s gonna be a challenge.
Hawai’i then gets to make the trip to Sam Houston State. The Bearkats were brand-new to the FBS level last year and it showed. They went just 3-9 on the year and had one of the worst offenses in the nation. Defensively, they were in the lower half. they brought in Central Michigan transfer quarterback Jase Bauer to compete with Gran Gunnell for the job. The Kats have a good handful of returning starters but it’ll be another long year.
Then, after facing the second FCS team (Hawai’i is the only FBS school to have two FCS teams scheduled), the Rainbow Warriors head to Washington State.