[jwplayer fb1swk9j-Esf0Ippc]

Ranking The Best Game Each Week In Mountain West Football

Here are the must-watch games each week in 2018.

Contact/Follow @JeremyMauss & @MWCwire

What is the best game each week

Week 0

Best game: Hawaii at Colorado State (7:30 p.m. ET, CBSSN)

This one is easy as it’s one of two games and it is a Mountain West game. Both teams will have a new starting quarterback and the Warriors will have a new, and hopefully exciting run-n-shoot offense.

Honorable Mention: Wyoming at New Mexico State (8:30 p.m. ET)

This one is here by default but there are some storylines in this game such as who will be taking over for Josh Allen at quarterback. The Aggies are in its first year of independence and will have a wild schedule in 2018, yet they are coming off of their first bowl win since 1960.

Week 1

Best Game: San Diego State at Stanford (Friday, Aug. 31, 9 p.m. ET, FS1) – First Look

Last year, the Aztecs slugged its way to a victory behind the San Diego State running game, defense and a nice game-winning drive by quarterback Christian Chapman who found tight end David Wells for the winning score. Let’s hope there is no power outage this year, oh and Stanford has a Heisman favorite in running back Bryce Love.

Honorable Mention: Washington State at Wyoming (3:30 p.m. ET, CBSSN)

This game will test the Wyoming defense which should be one of the best in the country and will be tested with Mike Leach’s always scary Air Raid attack. This Cowboys defense could legitimately be the toughest one Washington State faces all year, but the difference in this game is how the Cowboys offense does.

Week 2

Best Game: Air Force at Florida Atlantic (2 p.m. ET, CBSSN) – First Look

This game will be overlooked by a lot of folks but Lane Kiffin and his FAU offense will put up some points, but so will the Air Force run-option attack. The Owls will not have seen this type of ground attack and will face an uphill battle at home against the Falcons.

Honorable Mention: Arkansas at Colorado State (7:30 p.m. ET, CBSSN) – First Look

This is a rare treat that an SEC team travels to the Mountain time zone, and that is what makes this game notable. Both teams will be battling for a bowl bid in 2018 and a win over Arkansas will give Colorado State some street cred by beating a barely average SEC team.

Week 3

Best Game: Boise State at Oklahoma State (3:30 p.m. ET, TBD)

This could possibly be the game of the year for the conference — the other in contention is SDSU vs. Stanford — Oklahoma State has talent, sans quarterback, to put up a lot of points in Mike Gundy’s offense. The QB is the big question and it could be a familiar face in former Hawaii quarterback Dru Brown who is eligible. Also, going for the Broncos is that the Cowboys defense is losing a lot of talent.

Honorable Mention: Fresno State at UCLA (10:30 p.m. ET, FS1) – First Look

This is similar to the Arkansas vs. Colorado State game. The Bruins are starting over with no Josh Rosen at quarterback and a new head coach on the sidelines in Chip Kelly who is back in the college ranks after a stint in the NFL.

Week 4

Best Game: Air Force at Utah State (TBD)

If anyone is wondering why this game is here, I refer you to last year’s contest where it went down to the wire with the Falcons using a backup quarterback to get a 38-35 win. The Aggies should be better this year and the Falcons will have starting quarterback Arion Worthman back under center.

Honorable Mention: UNLV at Arkansas State (TBD)

This game will be overlooked but it is a key one if UNLV is going to take the next step forward, but even if they lose to the Red Wolves it does not mean Tony Sanchez is doing a bad job. Arkansas State is far and away the Sun Belt leader this year and if the Rebels want to win they will need to stop or outscore, this Arkansas State offense that brings back nearly every key player.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1363]