2008 Western Athletic Conference Pre-Season Picks

The Western Athletic Conference has gained much media exposure thanks in large part to Boise States win over Oklahoma in The Fiesta Bowl on the first day in January 2007. Last year Hawaii followed up Boise State by also making a BCS bowl game.

The nation will be watching as the WAC conference will be featured on national television in 10 games on ESPN,ESPN2, and ABC.

The following are my Preseason predictions for the Western Athletic Conference.

1. Nevada Wolf Pack

   QB Colin Kaepernick will be leading this potent offense. Kaepernick has proved that he can play at the top of his game during any situation. The only question is if Nevada’s weak defense will be able to step it up and help the offense.

2. Boise State Broncos

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   The quarterback situation has yet to be decided. The starting job comes down to Senior QB Bush Hamdan and Freshman Kellen Moore. Whomever gets the nod to be the play caller for the broncos will need to be able to play under pressure. The Broncos have a knack for always stepping up their game in any given situation. This year will be no different for the broncos. Ian Johnson is able to rush for over a 1,000 yards again if he can stay healthy. If Ian Johnson can stay healthy then that will mix up the plays a lot more and allow Boise more opportunities to score from their deep playbook..

3. Fresno State Bulldogs

   Most media outlets have Fresno State picked to finish first in the WAC. I say OVER RATED. Yes they are an excellent team and will dominate many of their conference games. The problem will be their over reliance on the Play Action. Teams will rapidly catch on to the Play Action calling by Fresno’s QB. If Fresno State learns to adapt as a team faster then they stand a chance of finishing higher in the WAC standings but I am placing them to finish 3rd.

4. New Mexico State Aggies

   QB Chase Holbrook should have an outstanding season. Now if their defense could play as well as the QB then New Mexico State would be a top contender in the WAC.

5. Hawaii Warriors

   Coach June Jones is gone as is QB Colt Brennan. Hawaii also needs to replace some receivers. Greg McMackin takes over the head coaching position. His transition should be pretty smooth considering he was Hawaii’s defensive coordinator. If the offense can click then they may have a lot better year. The defense will be tops in the WAC conference but the offense will struggle to keep up. If the offense struggles with too many turnovers early in a game then that will also hurt the defense. If the offense does its job then there is going to be some good games. If the offense struggles then it will be a long year for the Warriors from Hawaii.

6. Louisiana Tech Bulldogs

   Louisiana has two strong quarterbacks in Roscoe Jenkins Taylor Bennett. Regardless of which one starts the Bulldogs will be in a good offensive position to score and score big. If the defense was a strong as the offense then the Bulldogs would be a top 4 WAC team.

7. San Jose State Spartans

   Another team with with an above average defense but will struggle on the offensive side. The San Jose Spartans will struggle to score in the high scoring WAC.

8. Idaho Vandals

   If Idaho can just stay close to Boise at their November 15th matchup then they can consider it a successful year. Defensive back Shiloh Keo will be a key player for Idaho.

9. Utah State Aggies

   If any of the linebackers get injured then the Aggies will be in for a long year. The secondary is awful. If they can figure out who will be QB and nobody get injured then they should win more than a 3 games. If not expect Utah State Fans to commit suicide as the season wears on.