2013 Mountain West Conference Preview
The Mountain West Conference expands to 12 teams this year and divides into two divisions with a championship game to be held on December 7 at the home field on the division winner with the higher BCS ranking.
The divisional split here is geographical in an east/west split, but the divisions are named, Mountain and West. All Mountain teams reside in cities in the Mountain Time Zone, while all West Teams resided in cities in the Pacific Time Zone, or in the case of Hawaii, in the Hawaii Time Zone (2 hours behind the Pacific Time Zone).
Last year, Fresno St., San Diego St., and Boise St. tied for the conference title. Throw in two new teams (both 11-2) that finished in the top 25 in last year’s final poll, and the league should be stronger this season, but not as strong as when TCU was in the league.
We expect a little changing of the guard this season. We suspect Boise State to experience a rebuilding season and have their worst season in a decade. It is the first time our ratings have not listed BSU as the top-rated team in their league since 2005.
This league has produced multiple BCS Bowl qualifiers, and we believe there is a good chance that one more team could challenge for a spot this season. An October 26 road game against San Diego St. and a November 29 road game against San Jose St. and a win in the inaugural MWC title game are the three crucial games that must be victorious for Fresno St. If the Bulldogs win those three games, they should be 13-0. Our ratings have FSU favored in every game.
Additions: San Jose St. and Utah St. move from the now football defunct WAC.
Departures: None
Pre-season PiRate Ratings
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Official Pre-season Media Poll |
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2013 MOUNTAIN WEST FOOTBALL PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM | |||
Offense | |||
QB | Derek Carr * | Sr. | Fresno State |
WR | Davante Adams * | So. | Fresno State |
WR | Noel Grigsby | Sr. | San José State |
RB | Kasey Carrier ** | Sr. | New Mexico |
RB | Adam Muema ** | Jr. | San Diego State |
OL | Charles Leno ** | Sr. | Boise State |
OL | Matt Paradis * | Sr. | Boise State |
OL | Weston Richburg | Sr. | Colorado State |
OL | Austin Wentworth * | Sr. | Fresno State |
OL | Tyler Larsen | Sr. | Utah State |
TE | Marcel Jensen | Sr. | Fresno State |
Defense | |||
DL | Demarcus Lawrence * | Jr. | Boise State |
DL | Tyeler Davison * | Jr. | Fresno State |
DL | Brock Hekking ** | Jr. | Nevada |
DL | Travis Raciti | Jr. | San José State |
LB | Jake Fely ** | Jr. | San Diego State |
LB | Keith Smith | Sr. | San José State |
LB | Kyler Fackrell | So. | Utah State |
DB | L.J. Jones | Sr. | Fresno State |
DB | Derron Smith * | Jr. | Fresno State |
DB | Nat Berhe ** | Sr. | San Diego State |
DB | Bené Benwikere | Sr. | San José State |
Specialists | |||
P | Ben Skaer | Sr. | New Mexico |
PK | Austin Lopez | So. | San José State |
Ret. | Chase Clayton | Jr. | New Mexico |
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year: | Derek Carr, Sr., QB, Fresno State | ||
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year: | Derron Smith, Jr., DB, Fresno State | ||
Preseason Spcl Teams Player of the Year: | Chase Clayton, Jr., KR, New Mexico | ||
* – member of the 2012 All-Mountain West first team. | |||
** – member of the 2012 All-Mountain West second team. |
PiRate Ratings Summary
About Grades
93-100 A+
86-92 A
79-85 A-
72-78 B+
65-71 B
58-64 B-
51-57 C+
44-50 C
37-43 C-
30-36 D
0-29 F
About Predictions
Predictions are based on the PiRate Ratings with home field advantage factored in. The PiRate Ratings use different home field advantages for every game, since the opponent factors into the equation.
Mountain Division
Team |
Utah St. Aggies |
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Head Coach |
Matt Wells |
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Colors |
Navy and White |
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City |
Logan, UT |
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2012 Record | |||||||
Conference |
6-0 (in WAC) |
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Overall |
11-2 |
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Grades | |||||||
Run Offense |
67 |
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Pass Offense |
63 |
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Run Defense |
75 |
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Pass Defense |
61 |
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Ratings | |||||||
PiRate |
100.9 |
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Mean |
92.5 |
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Bias |
101.1 |
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Rankings | |||||||
PiRate |
53 |
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Mean |
93 |
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Bias |
50 |
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Prediction | |||||||
Conference |
7-1 |
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Overall |
8-5 (Lose MWC Championship Game) |
Team |
Boise St. Broncos |
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Head Coach |
Chris Petersen |
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Colors |
Blue and Orange |
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City |
Boise, ID |
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2012 Record | |||||||
Conference |
7-1 |
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Overall |
11-2 |
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Grades | |||||||
Run Offense |
59 |
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Pass Offense |
67 |
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Run Defense |
63 |
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Pass Defense |
69 |
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Ratings | |||||||
PiRate |
100.0 |
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Mean |
102.3 |
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Bias |
101.7 |
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Rankings | |||||||
PiRate |
58 |
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Mean |
49 |
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Bias |
47 |
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Prediction | |||||||
Conference |
5-3 |
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Overall |
7-5 |
Team |
Colorado St. Rams |
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Head Coach |
Jim McElwain |
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Colors |
Forest Green and Gold |
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City |
Ft. Collins, CO |
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2012 Record | |||||||
Conference |
4-4 |
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Overall |
4-8 |
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Grades | |||||||
Run Offense |
55 |
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Pass Offense |
55 |
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Run Defense |
51 |
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Pass Defense |
59 |
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Ratings | |||||||
PiRate |
90.3 |
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Mean |
94.4 |
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Bias |
90.8 |
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Rankings | |||||||
PiRate |
91 |
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Mean |
86 |
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Bias |
91 |
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Prediction | |||||||
Conference |
5-3 |
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Overall |
7-5 |
Team |
Wyoming Cowboys |
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Head Coach |
Dave Christensen |
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Colors |
Brown and Gold |
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City |
Laramie, WY |
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2012 Record | |||||||
Conference |
3-5 |
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Overall |
4-8 |
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Grades | |||||||
Run Offense |
41 |
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Pass Offense |
69 |
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Run Defense |
40 |
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Pass Defense |
68 |
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Ratings | |||||||
PiRate |
85.8 |
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Mean |
85.6 |
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Bias |
85.9 |
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Rankings | |||||||
PiRate |
103 |
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Mean |
114 |
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Bias |
105 |
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Prediction | |||||||
Conference |
2-6 |
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Overall |
5-7 |
Team |
Air Force Falcons |
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Head Coach |
Troy Calhoun |
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Colors |
Blue and Silver |
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City |
Colorado Springs, CO |
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2012 Record | |||||||
Conference |
5-3 |
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Overall |
6-7 |
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Grades | |||||||
Run Offense |
69 |
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Pass Offense |
28 |
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Run Defense |
43 |
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Pass Defense |
50 |
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Ratings | |||||||
PiRate |
81.3 |
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Mean |
87.7 |
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Bias |
81.2 |
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Rankings | |||||||
PiRate |
115 |
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Mean |
107 |
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Bias |
114 |
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Prediction | |||||||
Conference |
2-6 |
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Overall |
3-9 |
Team |
New Mexico Lobos |
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Head Coach |
Bob Davie |
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Colors |
Cherry and Silver |
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City |
Albuquerque, NM |
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2012 Record | |||||||
Conference |
1-7 |
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Overall |
4-9 |
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Grades | |||||||
Run Offense |
66 |
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Pass Offense |
26 |
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Run Defense |
45 |
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Pass Defense |
44 |
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Ratings | |||||||
PiRate |
78.8 |
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Mean |
83.8 |
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Bias |
79.4 |
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Rankings | |||||||
PiRate |
120 |
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Mean |
117 |
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Bias |
119 |
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Prediction | |||||||
Conference |
1-7 |
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Overall |
2-10 |
Team |
Fresno St. Bulldogs |
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Head Coach |
Tim DeRuyter |
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Colors |
Cardinal and Blue |
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City |
Fresno, CA |
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2012 Record | |||||||
Conference |
7-1 |
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Overall |
9-4 |
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Grades | |||||||
Run Offense |
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Pass Offense |
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Run Defense |
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Pass Defense |
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Ratings | |||||||
PiRate |
104.0 |
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Mean |
101.4 |
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Bias |
105.0 |
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Rankings | |||||||
PiRate |
44 |
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Mean |
56 |
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Bias |
43 |
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Prediction | |||||||
Conference |
8-0 |
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Overall |
13-0 (win MWC title game) |
Team |
San Jose St. Spartans |
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Head Coach |
Ron Caragher |
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Colors |
Blue and Gold |
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City |
San Jose |
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2012 Record | |||||||
Conference |
5-1 (in WAC) |
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Overall |
11-2 |
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Grades | |||||||
Run Offense |
39 |
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Pass Offense |
83 |
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Run Defense |
63 |
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Pass Defense |
69 |
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Ratings | |||||||
PiRate |
100.3 |
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Mean |
94.9 |
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Bias |
100.7 |
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Rankings | |||||||
PiRate |
56 |
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Mean |
85 |
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Bias |
55 |
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Prediction | |||||||
Conference |
7-1 |
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Overall |
9-3 |
Team |
San Diego St. Aztecs |
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Head Coach |
Rocky Long |
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Colors |
Red and Black |
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City |
San Diego |
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2012 Record | |||||||
Conference |
7-1 |
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Overall |
9-4 |
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Grades | |||||||
Run Offense |
62 |
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Pass Offense |
56 |
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Run Defense |
76 |
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Pass Defense |
63 |
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Ratings | |||||||
PiRate |
98.6 |
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Mean |
98.3 |
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Bias |
98.8 |
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Rankings | |||||||
PiRate |
66 |
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Mean |
66 |
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Bias |
65 |
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Prediction | |||||||
Conference |
6-2 |
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Overall |
8-4 |
Team |
Nevada Wolf Pack |
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Head Coach |
Brian Polian |
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Colors |
Blue and Silver |
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City |
Reno, NV |
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2012 Record | |||||||
Conference |
4-4 |
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Overall |
7-6 |
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Grades | |||||||
Run Offense |
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Pass Offense |
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Run Defense |
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Pass Defense |
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Ratings | |||||||
PiRate |
88.5 |
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Mean |
96.2 |
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Bias |
89.5 |
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Rankings | |||||||
PiRate |
97 |
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Mean |
80 |
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Bias |
96 |
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Prediction | |||||||
Conference |
3-5 |
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Overall |
4-8 |
Team |
U N L V Rebels |
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Head Coach |
Bobby Hauck |
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Colors |
Scarlet and Gray |
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City |
Las Vegas |
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2012 Record | |||||||
Conference |
2-6 |
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Overall |
2-11 |
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Grades | |||||||
Run Offense |
55 |
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Pass Offense |
62 |
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Run Defense |
31 |
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Pass Defense |
51 |
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Ratings | |||||||
PiRate |
85.7 |
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Mean |
92.0 |
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Bias |
86.3 |
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Rankings | |||||||
PiRate |
104 |
||||||
Mean |
95 |
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Bias |
103 |
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Prediction | |||||||
Conference |
2-6 |
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Overall |
4-8 |
Team |
Hawaii Rainbow Warriors |
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Head Coach |
Norm Chow |
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Colors |
Green, Black, and Silver |
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City |
Honolulu |
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2012 Record | |||||||
Conference |
1-7 |
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Overall |
3-9 |
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Grades | |||||||
Run Offense |
27 |
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Pass Offense |
62 |
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Run Defense |
39 |
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Pass Defense |
53 |
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Ratings | |||||||
PiRate |
82.0 |
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Mean |
82.4 |
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Bias |
82.4 |
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Rankings | |||||||
PiRate |
114 |
||||||
Mean |
120 |
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Bias |
113 |
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Prediction | |||||||
Conference |
0-8 |
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Overall |
1-11 |