Mountain West finalizes scheduling agreement with Pac-12. Could it hurt Fresno State?
The Mountain West Conference finalized a scheduling agreement with Oregon State and Washington State on Friday, and while matchups for the 2024 college football season were not released they could significantly impact several of the top programs in the league and their ability to earn a spot in an expanded College Football Playoff.
Fresno State is among those teams.
The Bulldogs already are scheduled to play non-conference guarantee games at Michigan and at UCLA, for which Fresno State will be paid $1.85 million and $1.2 million. Would the conference saddle the Bulldogs with a third non-conference road game against Oregon State or Washington State?
The Beavers and Cougars were left behind when the Pac-12 was wrecked by realignment, but each still would bear at least some resemblance to a Power Five-level program next season.
Fresno State is not the only team in the Mountain West scheduled to play two Power Five opponents on the road next season. UNLV, which on Saturday will play in the Mountain West championship game for the first time in a matchup against Boise State, has games scheduled at Houston and at Kansas; New Mexico is scheduled to play at Arizona and at Auburn, though the Lobos haven’t had a winning season since 2016 and aren’t all that close to contending for a conference championship.
Under the scheduling agreement, Mountain West teams will play seven conference games instead of eight with one game against either Oregon State or Washington State. Four will be at home, four on the road.
The games against the Beavers and Cougars will not count in the conference standings, and Oregon State and Washington State will not be eligible to play for a Mountain West championship.
The conference also will receive $14 million from the two Pac-12 schools.
“This is a unique and unprecedented opportunity for Oregon State and Washington State to play against highly competitive Mountain West football programs in 2024,” conference commissioner Gloria Nevarez said, in a statement. “The scheduling agreement will expand the Mountain West footprint and enhance out national brand, while providing our student-athletes with new opportunities, all in line with our strategic priorities. The scheduling agreement strengthens the league’s non-conference schedules, and we look forward to having Oregon State and Washington State be a part of the 2024 slate.”
Oregon State, Washington State to play Mountain West teams in 2024
But the Mountain West did create some hurdles within the conference, after ditching divisional play this season to try to get the teams with the highest winning percentages in the conference championship game and put the league in the best position to put a team in a New Year’s Six bowl game.
With Oregon State and Washington State in the scheduling equation, some Mountain West teams will end up playing just three home games that will count in the conference standings while others will play four.
Fresno State this season was 3-1 at home and 1-3 on the road in conference play, and across the conference teams had a .625 winning percentage at home and a .375 winning percentage on the road.
The Bulldogs also had very favorable conference matchups for 2024 — the schedule will be released soon, according to the statement from the Mountain West.
Fresno State was scheduled to play Colorado State, Hawaii, San Diego State and San José State at home and Air Force, Nevada, New Mexico and UNLV on the road. Colorado State, Hawaii, San Diego State, Nevada and New Mexico all finished the season with losing records, overall and in conference play.
The Mountain West teams will have Oregon State or Washington State replace one of the eight conference teams already scheduled.
“We were aiming for the least disruptive (schedules), given the timing and how close we are to next year’s season,” Nevarez said, at a conference championship news conference.
