Going into the 2019 season, how do the Mountain West coaches stack up? Here’s the preseason ranking of all the head men.
– Contact/Follow @ColFootballNews & @PeteFiutak
– CFN Preview 2019: All 130 Team Previews
Who do you want as your head coach for right now, and how good are the all the current Mountain West coaches?
Record and resumés aren’t necessarily everything, but of course they matter. Where are each of the teams going, which guys have the buzz, and which ones need to prove themselves a bit more?
These aren’t Hot Seat Rankings – those are coming later. These are the rankings based loosely on what the head coaches have done, and mostly about what they’re about to do.
Think of it this way. If you were to hold a head coaching draft …
12. Brent Brennan, San Jose State
San Jose State is a hard, hard, hard place to turn into a consistent success, but first, a few wins would be nice. The 3-22 record in two years and blowout loss after blowout loss – 19 of the 22 defeats have been by double digits – has been rough, but there has to be hope in Year Three. There has to be some sign of progress.
Last Season Preseason Ranking: 11
– 2019 San Jose State Preview
11. Bob Davie, New Mexico
Ever since winning the 2016 New Mexico Bowl, things have gone downhill with two straight 3-9 seasons to make it five losing campaigns in seven runs, and a 33-54 record overall. Injuries were the big issue last season, but after a suspension in 2018 and the problems on the field, this is when he has to come up with something special.
Last Season Preseason Ranking: 12
– 2019 New Mexico Preview
10. Tony Sanchez, UNLV
It’s Las Vegas, so let’s go with it … the slot machine has to payoff. The local high school coaching legend has been so close to making UNLV a factor, but with four straight losing seasons and a 16-32 record, everything needs to work. It’s an interesting team with a fun collection of talent – Sanchez has to start winning with what he put together.
Last Season Preseason Ranking: 8
– 2019 UNLV Preview
9. Mike Bobo, Colorado State
Everything went wrong last season in a whole slew of ways off the field and on it, but it might have been an aberration. After three straight 7-6 seasons and a 3-9 clunker, does Bobo have the team in place to make his fifth year the breakthrough campaign? Going 7-6 again would be good enough.
Last Season Preseason Ranking: 7
– 2019 Colorado State Preview
8. Gary Andersen, Utah State
It went really, really well the first time around, taking a nothing of a Utah State program and turning it into a killer in 2012 with an 11-2 campaign thanks to one of the nation’s nastiest defenses. It’s been a while – and the 7-23 run at Oregon State was brutal – but he inherits a heater of a team from Matt Wells, and all the pieces are there to be successful right away.
Last Season Preseason Ranking: Not Ranked
– 2019 Utah State Preview
7. Craig Bohl, Wyoming
The North Dakota State magic hasn’t quite rubbed off on Wyoming, but all the program needs a little bit of an offense to start being something fantastic. It’s been five years, and he’s been able to turn the program around and make it a factor in the bowl picture, but he’s still 28-35 so far and hasn’t been able to fix the glitches.
Last Season Preseason Ranking: 2
– 2019 Wyoming Preview
6. Nick Rolovich, Hawaii
That’s what Hawaii football is supposed to be. It’s not going to be back at the level June Jones had it at when the run-and-shoot was rocking and rolling, but Rolovich doesn’t have it too far off – at least offensively. He’s been able to get the Rainbow Warriors bowling twice in the last three seasons, and while this year might be rough – the schedule is way too nasty – he’s given the program its identity back.
Last Season Preseason Ranking: 10
– 2019 Hawaii Preview
NEXT: Preview 2019 Top 5 Mountain West Coach Rankings
5. Troy Calhoun, Air Force
Yeah, Air Force has more to deal with than most programs when it comes to bringing in the right talent to fit what the school and the program needs, but the bar is set much higher than two straight 5-7 seasons. Calhoun managed to take the Falcons bowling nine times in his first ten seasons, and this year has has the team to pull up out of the nosedive.
Last Season Preseason Ranking: 5
– 2019 Air Force Preview
4. Jay Norvell, Nevada
It might not exactly be the high-octane offensive thrill show it was expected to be when Norvell took over a few years ago and put his coaching staff together. but after a rebuilding 2017 season, he pulled off a nice 8-5 campaign with a bowl win. It’s a tough defensive-minded team that’s still rising back up on his watch.
Last Season Preseason Ranking: 9
– 2019 Nevada Preview
3. Rocky Long, San Diego State
The bowl game problems over the last two seasons stings, and Fresno State has turned into the star in the West, but Long keeps on rolling for a program that no one could seem to figure out for years and years. With eight winning seasons in his eight campaigns, three Mountain West titles, and with 71 victories, he’s been special. The team is in place to keep it all going.
Last Season Preseason Ranking: 4
– 2019 San Diego State Preview
2. Bryan Harsin, Boise State
The 42-year-old hasn’t quite been in the mix for the bigger gigs, but that’s coming. For now and the foreseeable future, he has his Boise State program rocking and rolling with four double-digit win seasons in his five years, two Mountain West titles, four appearances in the title games, and with three bowl wins in his four trips – we’ll just ignore the cancelled SERVPRO First Responders Bowl.
Last Season Preseason Ranking: 1
– 2019 Boise State Preview
1. Jeff Tedford, Fresno State
After a five-year break from head coaching world, Tedford pulled off a fantastic ten-win first season, and followed it up with a 12-2 Mountain West championship campaign. Throw in the two bowl wins, and it’s been a nearly-perfect start to his run. Maybe it’s time to take things one step further with a New Year’s Six bowl appearance, but in another bit of a rebuilding season, being a player in the Mountain West race again would be good enough.
Last Season Preseason Ranking: 3
– 2019 Fresno State Preview
