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MWC Week Five Games & Game of the Week Prediction

What is the Week 5 action in the Mountain West, and what will be the Game of the Week for the conference?

Wyoming v Boise State
Boise State travels to Wyoming for an important Mountain Division game.
Photo by Loren Orr/Getty Images

Only 5 games this week. Four teams are off this week. That means no Colorado State, UNLV, Utah State, or San Diego State.

Game 1 - Nevada (2-2) at Air Force (1-2)

Game Time: 2:00 PM (Mountain)

Television - ESPN News

Spread - Air Force by 6.5

The Wolf Pack are coming off a loss to Toledo, 63 to 44. Meanwhile, Air Force is looking to rebound from a loss of their own to Utah State, 42 to 32. This should be an interesting game. Air Force has struggled defending the pass the last couple of games, and the Wolf Pack passing offense will be a real challenge. On the other side, the Nevada defense has really struggled so far this season and will get a new and difficult challenge when the Wolf Pack face the triple-option from Air Force.

Game 2 - Liberty (1-2) at New Mexico (2-1)

Game Time: 4:00 PM (Mountain)

Spread - New Mexico by 6.5

New Mexico is coming off a bye week. Before that, the Lobos beat in-state, rival New Mexico State, 42 to 25. Meanwhile, Liberty is coming off a blowout loss to North Texas, 47 to 7. So far on the season, Liberty is terrible at stopping the run, so that should be a favorable matchup for the Lobos, On the other side, Liberty is a team that wants to throw the ball. So if the New Mexico defense can limit the passing game, the Lobos should have a good chance at winning.

Game 3 - Boise State (2-1) at Wyoming (2-2)

Game Time: 5:00 PM (Mountain)

Television - CBS Sports Network

Spread - Boise State by 17

Both teams are coming off a bye week. Boise State will try to rebound from a loss to the Cowboys (the Oklahoma State kind), 44 to 21. Wyoming had a come-from-behind win against Wofford (FCS), 17 to 14. The matchup to watch in this one is the Boise State passing game against the Wyoming defense. The Cowboys have struggled in pass defense against Washington State and Missouri. The Cowboys hope to continue playing the Broncos tough after losing a close one in Boise last season and pulling off the big upset at home in 2016.

Game 4 - Hawaii (4-1) at San Jose State (0-3)

Game Time: 5:00 PM (Mountain)

Spread - N/A

The Rainbow Warriors are coming off of their 4th win of the season against Duquesne, 42 to 21. San Jose State is coming off a bye, but the Spartans lost to Oregon the week before that, 35 to 22. On paper, this does not look like a favorable matchup for San Jose State. Currently, San Jose State has the worst pass defense in the country - ranked 129th. Going up against Cole McDonald and the Hawaii passing offense will be a tall task.

Game 5 - Toledo (2-1) at Fresno State (2-1)

Game Time: 8:30 PM (Mountain)

Television - ESPNU

Spread - Fresno State by 8

The Bulldogs are coming off a bye week, but, prior to that, Fresno State crushed UCLA, 38 to 14. Toledo is coming off of a shootout win versus Nevada, 63 to 44. This game should be way tougher for Toledo. Reason being, Fresno State currently has the 13th ranked total defense in the FBS. Points will likely be at a premium for Toledo. On the other side, Toledo has the 100th ranked defense, so Fresno State could end up blowing out the Rockets if the defense and offense play up to their potential for the Bulldogs.

Game of the Week Prediction - Boise State at Wyoming

In 2016, Wyoming beat Boise State, won the Mountain Division and ended up hosting the MWC Championship game. In 2017, Boise State beat Wyoming, won the Mountain Division and ended up hosting the MWC Championship game. I’m not saying that history will repeat itself this year. However, based on the last, two seasons, this has been a pretty important game.

Let us know which game you think will be the Game of the Week in Week Five.

Poll

What will be the Week 5 - Game of the Week?

This poll is closed

  • 8%
    Nevada at Air Force
    (4 votes)
  • 0%
    Liberty at New Mexico
    (0 votes)
  • 60%
    Boise State at Wyoming
    (27 votes)
  • 6%
    Hawaii at San Jose State
    (3 votes)
  • 24%
    Toledo at Fresno State
    (11 votes)
45 votes total Vote Now