The Mountain West has a strong mix of experienced veterans and rising young coaches.
Photo: Harry How / Getty Images Sport / Getty
Article by Kent Doepel
1. Jeff Tedford (Fresno State)
Legendary coach, Jeff Tedford, returns to Fresno State where he won 12 games in 2018 and 10 games the year prior. Tedford is known for his stellar work with QB's and inherits Jake Haener for 2022 which should make the Bulldogs one of the favorites to win the conference. Many fans remember Tedford from his time at Cal where he spent 11 seasons and went 10-2 with Aaron Rodgers in 2004.
2. Troy Calhoun (Air Force)
Troy Calhoun has led the the Air Force program since 2007, taking over after Fisher DeBerry's retirement. During his tenure, the Falcons have won ten or more games four times and made eleven bowl appearances. Most recently, Air Force went 10-3 in 2021 and won the First Responder Bowl 31-28 over Louisville.
3. Blake Anderson (Utah State)
Utah State was one of the best stories in college football last season. Anderson took over a program coming off a 1-5 season and won the 2021 Mountain West Conference Title after dismantling San Diego State 46-13. On the way to an 11 win season, the Aggies notched victories over WSU and Oregon State from the Pac-12.
4. Brady Hoke (SDSU)
Hoke's reputation took a hit after a dismal stint at Michigan resulted in his firing back in 2014. After bouncing around college football, Hoke was given a second chance to lead the Aztecs. Hoke has made the most of his opportunity with a 12-2 record last season and amazingly had six players chosen for the 2022 NFL Combine.
5. Jay Norvell (Colorado State)
Norvell comes to Colorado State after a successful stint at Nevada. The Air Raid Disciple is known for his explosive offense, which will be a welcome change in Fort Collins after the Rams scored just 22.2 points per game last season under Steve Addazio.
6. Craig Bohl (Wyoming)
Craig Bohl is one of the most respected coaches in college football for what he accomplished at North Dakota State where he won 3 FCS National Titles. He hasn't reached those highs in Laramie but has built a consistent winner with 3 8 win seasons during his tenure.
7. Andy Avalos (Boise State)
Boise State hired Andy Avalos to continue Boise State's reign as the premier program in the Mountain West after Bryan Harsin left for Auburn. The initial returns, however, haven't been great. The former Boise State player went just 7-5 in his debut season, the worst record for the Broncos since 1998.
8. Brent Brennan (SJSU)
Brent Brennan is one of the hardest coaches to judge on this list. He miraculously went 7-1 in 2020 but has failed to reach a bowl in his other four seasons. Overall, he finds himself at 20-37 with the Spartans.
9. Marcus Arroyo (UNLV)
Marcus Arroyo has brought energy and excitement to Las Vegas and is excelling in recruiting which may pay dividends in the next few seasons. Arroyo's recruiting class in 2020 was 2nd in the MWC behind Boise State and the Rebels were 3rd in 2021. The Rebels ended the season strong with wins over Hawaii and New Mexico as well as an impressively close eight point loss to San Diego State. 2022 will be a prove it year for Arroyo.
10. Danny Gonzales (New Mexico)
Danny Gonzales was one of the best young DC's in the country when he made the decision to leave his position at Arizona State to return to where he played college ball to attempt to rebuild the Lobos. New Mexico is one of the toughest places in the country to win but five wins over the past two seasons won't cut it. Drastic improvement will be expected in 2022.
11. Ken Wilson (Nevada)
Ken Wilson returns to Nevada as the head coach after spending 19 seasons in Reno as an assistant. He will have big shoes to fill after Jay Norvell went 15-6 since 2020. Prior to being announced as the head coach for the Wolf Pack, Wilson was at Oregon since 2020 and WSU from 2013 to 2019.
12. Timmy Chang (Hawaii)
Todd Graham was an awful cultural fit for the Hawaii program and it appears the athletic department learned from that lesson with the hiring of Timmy Chang who is a Honolulu native. While playing at Hawaii, Chang was a prolific quarterback who tossed 117 touchdowns and threw for 17,072 yards. Chang has experience coaching Jay Norvell's Air Raid scheme after spending the past five seasons with the Wolf Pack as a receivers and tight ends coach.
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