2011 College Football Conference Previews- The Western Athletic Conference
The WAC was formed back in 1962, but it enters the 2011 college football season at a crossroads after several team defections have suddenly threatened its very existence. Boise State, its most prominent football program is now in the Mountain West and Fresno State, Nevada, and Hawaii have all announced plans to join the MWC after this season.
While the future of the conference may be in doubt, there are still eight teams that will vie for this season’s conference title. The following is a brief preview of each of the eight teams along with their current odds to win the WAC title this year as provided by BetUS.com.
Fresno State +190
The favored Bulldogs will look to make the most of their last season in the conference, but will have to shake the bad habit of losing the majority of their games to their WAC opponents. Last season Fresno State went 5-3 in conference play and was never in contention for the title with losses to all three teams that finished ahead of them in the standings. This season, the Bulldogs will look to QB Derek Carr, the brother of former stand-out David Carr to take over the reins as the starter and lead this team to its first and ironically last WAC title.
Hawaii +250
This is another team that will look to go out with a bang by building on a very successful 2010 campaign in which the Warriors won 10 games overall and went 7-1 in the WAC. QB Bryant Moniz is back to lead an offense that was ranked first in the nation in passing yards per game, but he will be working with a whole new set of targets after losing his top two receivers. Another key will be filling some holes on a defense that returns six starters for 2010. Since it is doubtful that the offense will be able to duplicate the numbers it put up last season, the defense will have to play a larger role in leading this team to a title.
Idaho +2000
The Vandals turned in a respectable performance last season with a 6-7 record overall but could only manage three victories in the conference. This season will be a major rebuilding process on offense as a good chunk of last year’s starting roster is gone. Defensively, Idaho has a bit more experience, but will have to rely on a number of players to elevate their game in a starting role.
Louisiana Tech +500
The Bulldogs only managed to go 1-3 in their non-conference schedule last season, but proved to be a worthy competitor in the WAC with a 4-4 record. On offense, QB Colby Cameron will be the starter this season after throwing for close to 500 yards in a back-up role last year. He will have WR’s Richie Casey and Quinten Patton back as his two primary targets in the passing attack. Louisiana Tech’s main concern will be improving a defense that gave up over 30 points a game in 2010.
Nevada +225
It will be next to impossible for the Wolf Pack to match last season’s performance after going 13-1 overall and finishing the season ranked 11th in the final AP poll, but they still have their sights on a WAC title before departing for the MWC next season. The first order of business will be to try and find a suitable replacement for QB Colin Kaepernick and RB Vai Taua, who were responsible for the bulk of the Wolf Pack’s offensive production over the past few seasons. They should still be solid on defense with seven starters back from a squad that gave up just 21.4 points a game last year.
New Mexico State +2500
The Aggies woes continued in 2010 with a 2-10 record that was their eighth straight season under .500. There is some hope for a reversal of fortunes behind QB Andrew Manley, who threw for 604 yards last season in relief of Matt Christian. While the offense should be able to do a better job in 2011 than the 15.7 points a game they averaged last year, the defense has almost nowhere to go but up after allowing an average of 39.5 points a game in 2010.
San Jose State +1000
If the Aggies were bad, the Spartans were worse with just one win last season and a 0-8 record in conference play. The only bright spot was a passing game that averaged 237 yards a game, but they will need to find a new starting quarterback in a group of inexperienced underclassmen. There are major holes across every level of this team, but you have to credit Head Coach Mike MacIntyre with doing a good job at bringing some bigger and faster players that should help point this program in the right direction.
Utah State +1000
The other set of Aggies in the WAC were somewhat better than their counterparts with a 4-8 record overall, but just two wins in the conference. Utah State will also be faced with the task of replacing a quarterback who was the most productive member of the offense. The strength of the defense will be in the front seven, which will be noticeably bigger and stronger through a concerted effort to add some size on this side of the ball through its recruiting efforts.
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