Utah State wide receiver Terrell Vaughn (0) runs away from the diving tackle attempt by Boise State cornerback Tyreque Jones (21) for a 75-yard touchdown reception in the second half of an NCAA college football game, Friday, Nov. 25, 2022, in Boise, Idaho. (AP Photo/Steve Conner)
There are seven Mountain West teams that made it to bowl games this year, tied for the most by the conference in its 24-season history (other years with seven teams are 2019, 2016, 2015, 2014). It’s tied for fifth-most bowl teams for a conference this season behind the SEC (11), Big Ten (nine), ACC(nine) and Big 12 (eight), and tied with the AAC and Sun Belt.
Cache Valley Media Group will be broadcasting four of these Mountain West bowl games on 106.9 The FAN, having worked out a deal with Bowl Season Radio. This will include Utah State’s matchup with Memphis on Dec. 27 in the SERVPRO First Responder Bowl. Fans will be able to listen to the game not only 106.9 FM, but also on KVNU (102 FM, 610 AM) and each station’s mobile app. Bowl Season Radio reached out to Cache Valley Media Group offering its radio broadcasts to be sent out on CVMG’s radio network. An agreement was finalized earlier this week.
In addition to four Mountain West-involved bowls, two other games will be broadcast on 106.9 The FAN over the course of bowl season. The first will be the Quick Lane Bowl on Dec. 26 featuring New Mexico State vs Bowling Green. Second is the Reliaquest Bowl on Jan. 2 which will see Mississippi State and Illinois face off with the Bulldogs playing their first game since the passing of beloved head coach Mike Leach.
LA Bowl
Fresno State vs Washington State
Saturday, Dec. 17 at 1:30 p.m.
TV Broadcast: ABC
Stat Breakdown
| Fresno State | Stat Category | Washington State |
|---|---|---|
| 9-4 | Record | 7-5 |
| 30.7 | Points | 27.8 |
| 20.5 | Points Allowed | 22.4 |
| 269.8 | Passing Yards | 263.5 |
| 193.3 | Pass Yards Allowed | 266.7 |
| 125.4 | Rushing Yards | 112.0 |
| 157.6 | Rush Yards Allowed | 127.4 |
Fresno State earned the right to play in the second edition of the Jimmy Kimmel-sponsored bowl by virtue of winning the Mountain West Conference. The Bulldogs are undefeated since quarterback Jake Haener returned under center in late October after missing several weeks with an injury, flipping the team from 3-4 (Haener only playing in three of those five games) to the 9-4 conference champions it is now. Haener has thrown for 293.7 yards per game in his last six games with a 14-2 touchdown-to-interception ratio and a 73.2 percent completion rate.
The Bulldogs’ opponent, Washington State, may be only 7-5 but those five losses were to teams that are currently ranked in the AP Top 25. Conversely, WSU’s wins have come against lackluster opponents, a non-FBS Idaho team and five other teams that each have a losing record. The Cougars’ best win is against Wisconsin, who was ranked 19th at the time the two teams faced off; but the Badgers now sit with a 6-6 overall record.
Washington State has not yet been tested by a team that’s in between the realms of top-ranked teams and FBS bottom feeders. Fresno State will be the first and final chance the Cougars have to face that kind of team this year. The Bulldogs are closer to being classed with the Top 25 and as such are the favored team, coming in at around 3.5-point favorites in the sportsbooks.
Frisco Bowl
Boise State vs North Texas
Saturday, Dec. 17 at 7:15 p.m.
Radio Broadcast: 106.9 FM/1390 AM The FAN
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Stat Breakdown
| Boise State | Stat Category | North Texas |
|---|---|---|
| 9-4 | Record | 7-6 |
| 29.1 | Points | 33.9 |
| 18.5 | Points Allowed | 31.5 |
| 194.7 | Passing Yards | 262.2 |
| 160.7 | Pass Yards Allowed | 271.7 |
| 187.0 | Rushing Yards | 201.7 |
| 120.8 | Rush Yards Allowed | 188.4 |
Boise State’s undefeated run through Mountain West play was cut short by Fresno State, leaving the Broncos out of the conference’s champion tie-in bowl for a second year running.
The Broncos are in a weird position of having qualified for bowls in each of the last four years (and by extension every year since 2002), but have only actually played in a bowl one time since 2017. A combination of cancellations due to weather and the COVID-19 pandemic have kept Boise State from playing in bowl games three times in four seasons. Barring a stupendous level of continuing bad luck, Boise State should play in its first bowl since the 2019 Las Vegas Bowl.
Last year North Texas was in a Frisco-based postseason contest, participating in the inaugural Frisco Football Classic. This year the Mean Green will stay in Texas for another bowl, facing a Mountain West team in a bowl game for the first time since losing to Utah State in the New Mexico Bowl in 2019. North Texas is 1-2 all-time against Mountain West teams in bowl games, losing 45-20 to Colorado State in the New Orleans Bowl in 2001, beating UNLV 36-14 in the at-the-time Heart of Dallas Bowl (now called the First Responder Bowl), and as mentioned, losing to USU in the 2019 New Mexico Bowl.
A major key for this game will be whether or not North Texas is able to get its offense going. The Mean Green scored 40-plus points five times this year and were a perfect 5-0 in those games. On the other hand, they were 2-6 when not scoring at least 40 points and were 1-5 when scoring under 30. If Boise State’s 11th-ranked scoring defense is able to force its will on North Texas, this game will merely be a formality and add to the Mean Green’s five-game bowl losing streak.
Potato Bowl
San Jose State vs Eastern Michigan
Tuesday, Dec. 20 at 1:30 p.m.
Radio Broadcast: 106.9 FM/1390 AM The FAN
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Stat Breakdown
| San Jose State | Stat Category | Eastern Michigan |
|---|---|---|
| 7-4 | Record | 8-4 |
| 27.5 | Points | 28.8 |
| 20.3 | Points Allowed | 28.6 |
| 264.0 | Passing Yards | 217.8 |
| 210.4 | Pass Yards Allowed | 208.8 |
| 92.5 | Rushing Yards | 142.7 |
| 122.6 | Rush Yards Allowed | 158.1 |
San Jose State limped to the finish line after getting to a 6-2 record through early November. Back-to-back losses to San Diego State and Utah State ended the Spartans’ chances of having its first 10-win season since joining the Mountain West. Eastern Michigan ended the season on a high note with three straight victories and four wins in its last five games. That win streak to close out the regular season secured the best team record for the Eagles since 1987 when they went 10-2. Coincidently enough, 1987 was also the last time Eastern Michigan won a bowl game.
The Spartans have a significantly better defense by the numbers and the ability to put up points and move the ball through the air. There’s potential for SJSU to blow out the Eagles if the Spartan’s defense shows up to play, but it seems more likely that this could end in a shootout between two capable offenses.
Armed Forces Bowl
Air Force vs Baylor
Thursday, Dec. 22 at 5:30 p.m.
Radio Broadcast: 106.9 FM/1390 AM The FAN
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Stat Breakdown
| Air Force | Stat Category | Baylor |
|---|---|---|
| 9-3 | Record | 6-6 |
| 27.7 | Points | 33.6 |
| 13.3 | Points Allowed | 26.6 |
| 67.8 | Passing Yards | 235.1 |
| 156.7 | Pass Yards Allowed | 232.8 |
| 330.9 | Rushing Yards | 194.1 |
| 99.8 | Rush Yards Allowed | 137.6 |
Air Force is enjoying one of its best stretches in program history. The Falcons are 20-8 in its last three years, excluding the COVID-19-altered 2020 season. In its last three bowl games (2021, 2019, 2016) the Falcons are 3-0. Baylor is a team that began the year with very high hopes, ranking 10th in the preseason AP Poll and ranking as high as ninth. However, going 6-6 ended those hopes.
Baylor’s losses this year were far from bad in most cases. While the loss to then-21st ranked BYU in September looks a little worse now, three of the Bears’ other losses were to teams still ranked in the Top 25 (Kansas State, TCU, Texas). Overall, five of Baylor’s six losses were to teams that are currently in or were at some point ranked in the AP Poll.
Both of these teams are certainly capable of running the ball and stopping the other team from running it. Air Force ranks first in rushing yards (no surprise given the volume of rush attempts in the triple-option) and also ranks 13th in yards per rush. Baylor is 34th in rushing yards per game and is 46th in yards per rush. On the defensive side of the ball, Air Force is ninth in rushing yards allowed and Baylor is 45th. Something will have to break in this game to decide a winner.
It might benefit the Bears to have neither team able to run the ball as it will be the only team present with a pass offense capable of gaining yards in volume. Baylor isn’t elite in its pass offense, just 61st in the country, but the Bears are certainly capable of moving the ball through the air. Of course, the Falcons are second in the country in passing yards allowed per game so Air Force could force this game into a low-scoring slog.
Hawai’i Bowl
San Diego State vs Middle Tennessee State
Saturday, Dec. 24 at 6 p.m.
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Stat Breakdown
| San Diego State | Stat Category | Middle Tennessee State |
|---|---|---|
| 7-5 | Record | 7-5 |
| 21.3 | Points | 29.2 |
| 20.2 | Points Allowed | 28.1 |
| 170.9 | Passing Yards | 267.2 |
| 206.6 | Pass Yards Allowed | 291.3 |
| 150.8 | Rushing Yards | 123.1 |
| 128.8 | Rush Yards Allowed | 121.9 |
San Diego State will appear in its 12th bowl game since 2010 when it faces Middle Tennessee State. The only blemish in its bowl streak is the 2020 season where the Aztecs didn’t participate in a bowl with its 4-4 record. Other than that, SDSU has appeared in a bowl every year since 2010. Middle Tennessee State has a slightly more checkered – but still solid – bowl history since 2010, as this will be the Blue Raiders’ eighth appearance since that year.
This will be a clash of two types of teams that are used to two very different kinds of games. San Diego State was involved in just four games where 50-plus points were scored while 10 of Middle Tennessee State’s games saw at least 50 combined points scored. A shootout would very much behoove the Blue Raiders while a low-scoring affair likely favors the Aztecs as its defense is more likely to make big plays to win the game.
First Responder Bowl
Utah State vs Memphis
Tuesday, Dec. 27 at 1:15 p.m.
Radio Broadcast: 106.9 FM/1390 AM and simulcast KVNU 102 FM/610 AM
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Stat Breakdown
| Utah State | Stat Category | Memphis |
|---|---|---|
| 6-6 | Record | 6-6 |
| 23.2 | Points | 35.1 |
| 30.6 | Points Allowed | 27.3 |
| 200.2 | Passing Yards | 278.8 |
| 198.4 | Pass Yards Allowed | 250.2 |
| 161.9 | Rushing Yards | 141.9 |
| 198.2 | Rush Yards Allowed | 121.8 |
A longform initial breakdown of this game can be found here with further content to come on Cache Valley Daily. But for now, a big trend to keep an eye on is how Utah State and Memphis are coming into this game on completely different trajectories.
Utah State won five of its last seven games of the regular season while Memphis lost five of its last seven games. How each team handles its own momentum will be a storyline to keep an eye on. Memphis will be the big favorite, opening as a 9.5-point favorite by the sportsbooks with the line moving to 7.0 shortly after the release of that betting spread.
Arizona Bowl
Wyoming vs Ohio
Friday, Dec. 30 at 2:30 p.m.
Video Broadcast: Barstool
Stat Breakdown
| Wyoming | Stat Category | Ohio |
|---|---|---|
| 7-5 | Record | 9-4 |
| 20.8 | Points | 31.9 |
| 23.4 | Points Allowed | 28.4 |
| 127.8 | Passing Yards | 285.4 |
| 219.8 | Pass Yards Allowed | 293.7 |
| 187.8 | Rushing Yards | 138.6 |
| 149.5 | Rush Yards Allowed | 143.7 |
Wyoming will appear in the Arizona Bowl for the second time in the last four years. Last time the Cowboys went to Arizona they won 38-17 over Georgia State. Overall, Wyoming is 3-0 in its last three bowl appearances, 4-2 in bowl games since 2004. Ohio is in a bowl game for the first time since 2019. The Bobcats took a two-year hiatus from bowls, playing just three games in 2020 and then going 3-9 in 2021.
Ohio ended the regular season on an absolute tear, winning seven games in a row before being halted by Toledo in the MAC championship game. Wyoming struggled to establish momentum in the season, winning three straight games in September, then losing two in a row, followed by a four-game winning streak and then another two-game losing streak to end the regular season.
There’s a significant weakness in the Ohio defense, i.e. its almost complete inability to stop opposing teams from passing the ball, but Wyoming is not in the greatest position to capitalize on that weakness. Wyoming ranks as the seventh-worst passing offense by yards per game. The Cowboys are one of the better running teams, ranking 37th in rushing offense, but there are two potential issues there. One, Ohio is significantly better against the run (56th in run defense) than it is against the pass. And two, Wyoming will be without Titus Swen (who was dismissed from the team), who garnered 47 percent of the team’s carries this season and tallied 1,039 yards on those attempts. The next-closest rusher is QB Andrew Peasley with 330 yards.
