College football is back, which means the Western Group of Six has once again reminded us why following the teams nobody else is watching is so much fun.
One team nearly knocked off the No. 2 team in the country. Another got upset by an FCS opponent while wearing cow-print helmets. And somehow, Oregon State may have looked better in a loss than it did in a lot of its wins last season.
Welcome to the Wild Wild West.
After one week, we've already got some teams making statements, some teams making excuses, and at least one team that probably shouldn't be allowed near a grill for a little while.
Let's get into it.
Boise State: okay, maybe we should take these guys seriously
Let's get one thing out of the way:
Boise State is really, really good.
The Broncos walked into Eugene on Saturday to face the No. 2 team in the country and somehow made Oregon look like the team that was supposed to be nervous.
Boise State ultimately lost 34–27, but the final score doesn't really capture how impressive the Broncos looked for large portions of the afternoon. Oregon had to fight through a slow start, and Boise State repeatedly showed that it wasn't intimidated by the Ducks, the Autzen Stadium crowd, or the fact that basically every national outlet had already penciled this in as an Oregon victory.
This wasn't one of those classic Group of Six games where everyone spends three hours pretending there's a chance before the Power Four team remembers it's significantly more talented.
No.
Boise State looked like it belonged.
The Broncos moved the ball, played physical football and kept the game within striking distance all the way into the fourth quarter. Oregon quarterback Dante Moore ultimately delivered, but Boise State forced the Ducks to actually earn the victory.
And that's the important part.
Boise State didn't win, but it changed the conversation.
The Broncos entered the season as one of the Western Group of Six's best hopes of making noise nationally. After Saturday, that doesn't look like preseason hype anymore.
It looks legitimate.
Boise State isn't going to get to spend the rest of the season hiding behind the phrase “Group of Six contender.” They're going to have expectations now.
And judging by Saturday, they probably deserve them.
Stock: 📈📈📈
Utah State: somebody get these Aggies a BBQ sauce
There are losses.
There are bad losses.
And then there is losing to an FCS team while wearing cow-print helmets.
Utah State dropped a 29–17 decision to Idaho State on Saturday, and frankly, we're not sure there is a more Utah State way to begin a season.
Let's establish the facts.
Utah State is the Aggies.
The Aggies were wearing their famous cow-print “Battle Cattle” helmets.
The opponent was Idaho State.
And somehow, the Bengals were the ones doing the cooking.
Idaho State picked off Utah State four times, kicked five field goals and walked out of Logan with its first win over an FBS opponent since 2017.
Utah State actually led 17–16 late in the third quarter.
Then the Aggies proceeded to get outscored 13–0 the rest of the way.
So, naturally, the question must be asked:
Who was the cow and who was the farmer?
Because based on Saturday, Idaho State showed up with the grill, the charcoal and the meat thermometer.
Utah State showed up dressed like the meat.
The Aggies have plenty of time to recover, but this is the kind of loss that follows a team around for a while.
Especially when you voluntarily put cow spots on your helmet.
Stock: 📉📉📉
Oregon State: don't let the score fool you
Oregon State lost to No. 23 Houston 33–20.
And yet, we're walking away from this game feeling significantly better about the Beavers than we did before kickoff.
That might sound strange considering they lost by 13 points, but Oregon State showed flashes of a team that looks considerably more capable than it did last season.
The Beavers moved the ball, showed some offensive explosiveness and refused to let the game get completely away from them.
Oregon State fell behind 19–7 at halftime but responded with 13 points in the third quarter to cut the Houston lead to just six points.
Then Houston finally pulled away.
That's obviously not the result Oregon State wanted. Nobody is handing out trophies for “most encouraging 13-point loss.”
But there was something different about the Beavers.
There was life.
This looked like a team that actually believes it can move the football and compete.
And that's important because Oregon State doesn't need to be perfect to be dangerous this season. If the Beavers can clean up some of the mistakes and find a little more consistency, they could become a major headache for the rest of the Western Group of Six.
So yes, Houston won.
But if you're an Oregon State fan, you're probably feeling better after this one than you expected to.
And maybe that's because…
Oregon State is cooking.
Stock: 📈
Nevada: the Wolf Pack has entered the chat
Somebody should probably check on Western Kentucky.
Nevada absolutely demolished the Hilltoppers 49–14, and it wasn't one of those games where the final score got inflated by a couple of late touchdowns.
The Wolf Pack looked like they knew exactly what they wanted to do.
They were physical, efficient and generally unpleasant to play against.
Nevada entered the season with some legitimate questions, but after Week 1, those questions have been replaced by another one:
Wait… is Nevada actually good?
We don't know yet.
But 49 points is 49 points.
And we're contractually obligated to overreact to Week 1.
Stock: 📈📈
New Mexico: the Lobos are apparently done being polite
New Mexico spent Saturday reminding everyone that preseason expectations are mostly just educated guessing with nicer graphics.
The Lobos absolutely hammered Central Michigan 38–7, and the performance was particularly encouraging because there were legitimate questions surrounding this team coming into the season.
Those questions can wait another week.
New Mexico controlled the game, played with confidence and looked like one of the Mountain West's teams that could become genuinely annoying for everybody else.
And “genuinely annoying” is basically the highest compliment you can give a Group of Six team.
Stock: 📈📈
San Diego State: the Aztecs are not messing around
San Diego State handled Portland State 53–20, and while nobody is handing out playoff invitations for beating an FCS team, the Aztecs did what good teams are supposed to do.
They took care of business.
There wasn't much drama. There wasn't a fourth-quarter scare. There wasn't an existential crisis.
Just 53 points.
San Diego State came into the year with legitimate expectations, and Week 1 did nothing to change them.
We'll learn considerably more when the Aztecs start playing teams that can actually fight back.
For now?
Job completed.
Stock: 📈
Colorado State: Wyoming came for the Bronze Boot and left with the receipt
Colorado State absolutely handled Wyoming 35–13 in the Bronze Boot rivalry, which means there will be at least one Wyoming fan spending the next several months insisting that the final score was somehow misleading.
It wasn't.
Colorado State controlled the game and looked like a team that might be considerably better than the preseason projections suggested.
Meanwhile, Wyoming has some serious questions to answer.
Rivalry games are weird. Sometimes the better team wins.
Sometimes rivalry magic happens.
And sometimes you get punched in the mouth for three hours while your rival celebrates with your trophy.
Saturday was option three.
Stock: 📈 Colorado State · 📉 Wyoming
Washington State: well, at least it wasn't 59–7
Washington State walked into Seattle for the Apple Cup with roughly the same assignment every Group of Six team gets when it plays a bigger brother:
Don't get embarrassed.
Mission accomplished.
The Cougars fell 24–10 to No. 17 Washington, but unlike some of the other Western teams that ventured into Power Four territory this weekend, Washington State actually made its opponent sweat a little.
The Cougars' defense kept Washington out of the end zone for most of the first three quarters, and Washington State eventually cut the lead to 17–10 in the fourth before the Huskies put the game away.
Caden Pinnick had a rough afternoon through the air, throwing two interceptions, but he also rushed for 61 yards and a touchdown. The defense held Washington to just 10 points through three quarters and even came up with a goal-line stand before halftime.
So no, Washington State didn't win the Apple Cup.
But considering the Cougars were playing a ranked Washington team on the road, this wasn't exactly a disaster.
And honestly, that's probably the most important takeaway.
Washington State looked like a team that can hang around.
They just couldn't quite finish the job.
The Apple Cup trophy is staying in Seattle, but Washington State leaves with something almost as valuable:
A reason to think this season might be pretty fun.
Stock: 📈
Texas State: okay, maybe don't change the website name yet
Last week, we had some fun with Texas State heading into its season opener against Texas.
The Bobcats were coming off a massive 2025 season, had legitimate expectations, and were heading into Austin with a chance to prove that they weren't just a fun Group of Six story.
We even joked that if they pulled off the upset, they might as well change the name of the website.
Well…
Don't change it.
Texas State got absolutely obliterated.
The No. 5 Longhorns jumped out to a 14–0 lead, doubled it before halftime, and then apparently decided that four touchdowns in the second half wasn't enough.
Texas finished with a 59–7 victory.
There were still a couple bright spots for the Bobcats. Brad Jackson threw for 150 yards and added 32 on the ground, and defensive back Ryan Nolan picked off Arch Manning in the end zone for the first interception of his career.
Unfortunately for Texas State, that interception was basically the football equivalent of finding $20 on the sidewalk while your house is actively on fire.
The Bobcats were simply overwhelmed by Texas' size, speed and depth.
But here's the thing: this game doesn't define Texas State's season.
Texas State wasn't supposed to beat Texas.
It was supposed to prove that last year's success wasn't a fluke and that it could take another step toward becoming one of the Western Group of Six's best programs.
It has plenty of time to do that.
Just maybe don't schedule another trip to Austin anytime soon.
And as for that website?
The domain name survives another week.
Stock: 📉, but we're not panicking yet
UNLV: Dan Mullen's Rebels bounce back
After a disappointing opening-week loss, UNLV responded exactly how it needed to.
The Rebels beat Hawai‘i 21–6 and looked significantly more comfortable on both sides of the ball.
The offense wasn't exactly setting the world on fire, but the defense did its job and the ground game helped UNLV control the game.
For a team with legitimate expectations this season, that's a good sign.
You don't need to win every game 45–3.
Sometimes you just need to stop the bleeding.
UNLV did.
Stock: 📈
San Jose State: the Spartans survive the MAC experience
Remember when we said San Jose State needed to bounce back?
They did.
The Spartans beat Eastern Michigan 27–21 in a game that was much closer than it probably needed to be, but hey — a win is a win.
Cooper Hoch provided a major spark offensively, while the defense made enough plays to keep the Eagles from stealing the game.
Was it perfect?
Absolutely not.
There were turnovers. There were penalties. There were several moments where SJSU appeared determined to make things much more difficult than necessary.
But after getting embarrassed by USC last week, the Spartans needed to show some response.
They did.
Now comes the harder part: figuring out whether this is a team that can actually compete near the top of the Western Group of Six.
Stock: 📈, but we're watching closely
Air Force: the triple option remains a horrible thing to defend
Air Force beat Duquesne 34–0.
You know what happened.
Air Force ran the ball.
Duquesne tried to figure out where the ball was.
Duquesne failed.
Air Force scored some more.
This is not a criticism.
This is simply the natural order of things.
Every year, the Falcons show up, run an offense that was seemingly designed before the invention of the forward pass, and make defensive coordinators question every decision that led them to this career.
A 34–0 shutout is a pretty good opening statement.
Stock: 📈
North Dakota State: welcome to the FBS
North Dakota State's first Mountain West season couldn't have started much better.
The Bison shut out Fordham 38–0, immediately reminding everybody that this isn't some random FCS team that wandered into the FBS because somebody lost a bet.
This is North Dakota State.
The Bison have been one of the most dominant programs in college football at the FCS level for more than a decade, and Saturday looked like a continuation of that identity.
The question isn't whether NDSU can compete.
The question is how quickly the rest of the Mountain West figures out just how annoying they're going to be.
Stock: 📈📈
Northern Illinois: welcome to the other side
North Dakota State made the jump to the Mountain West and immediately won 38–0.
Northern Illinois made the jump and immediately lost 40–0 to Iowa.
That is what we in the journalism business call:
“Not ideal.”
There isn't much to say about this one. Iowa controlled the game from start to finish, and the Huskies never really got anything going.
The good news?
It's Week 1.
The bad news?
It was Week 1.
And Iowa just reminded everyone that the Big Ten has perfected the art of making football look like a punishment.
Stock: 📉
UTEP: Oklahoma was not interested in your feel-good story
UTEP lost 51–0 to Oklahoma.
That's it.
That's the section.
Okay, maybe not.
The Miners were simply overwhelmed from the opening whistle. Oklahoma's size, speed and depth were on a completely different level, and UTEP never found an answer.
There isn't much shame in losing to a major program.
There is, however, a considerable amount of shame in giving up 51 points.
The good news for UTEP is that the Miners don't have to play Oklahoma every week.
The bad news is that this is the level of competition they eventually want to reach.
Baby steps.
Stock: 📉
Fresno State: someone please check on the Bulldogs
Fresno State lost 39–0 to USC.
Not 39–28.
Not 39–21.
39–0.
The Bulldogs never found the end zone, and USC apparently decided that Fresno State's offense was something that needed to be removed from the ecosystem.
There isn't really a clever way to spin this.
Fresno State got beat badly.
The good news?
It's only one game.
The bad news?
It was USC.
And USC didn't exactly have to break out the entire playbook.
Stock: 📉
Sacramento State: pick a lane, Hornets
Sacramento State has already played two games, and somehow both games have told us something completely different.
First, the Hornets lost 28–17 at Eastern Michigan in their first-ever FBS game. Then they came home and absolutely annihilated Mississippi Valley State 52–0.
So what are we supposed to make of that?
Honestly?
No idea.
But Sacramento State's offense looked dramatically better in its home opener, while the defense pitched a shutout.
The Hornets now get Fresno State next week.
And that game should tell us a lot more about whether Sacramento State can actually compete with the Western Group of Six's established FBS programs.
At the very least, Sacramento State has figured out how to make a home opener entertaining.
Stock: 📈
Week 1 winners and losers
🏆 Winner: Boise State
The Broncos may have lost, but they arguably came out of Week 1 with more national respect than any other Western Group of Six team.
Losing by seven to No. 2 Oregon in Eugene is not a moral victory.
It's a résumé.
🐄 Loser: Utah State
Idaho State intercepted Utah State four times.
Utah State wore cow-print helmets.
I don't think we need to overcomplicate this.
The Bengals cooked.
The Aggies were the beef.
🦫 Biggest encouraging loss: Oregon State
The Beavers lost by 13, but there was enough offensive production and fight to suggest this team could be much better than it was a year ago.
Don't sleep on Corvallis.
📈 Team we didn't expect to talk about this much: Nevada
49–14 is how you get people to pay attention.
👀 Team to watch: New Mexico
The Lobos were one of the biggest surprises of the weekend and could become a serious factor in the Mountain West.
😬 Team that needs to have a meeting: Fresno State
Zero points against USC is a pretty effective way to start the season on the wrong side of the conversation.
The Elevation Change Week 1 verdict
One week into the season, we're still nowhere near ready to declare a Western Group of Six champion.
But we can make a few observations.
Boise State belongs in the national conversation.
Oregon State looks better than expected.
Nevada and New Mexico might be real.
San Diego State and UNLV handled business.
North Dakota State looks exactly like the terrifying program we expected.
Washington State looks like it can hang around against good teams.
Texas State should probably avoid Texas for a while.
And Utah State?
Well…
Maybe next week the Aggies can leave the cow helmets at home.
Because after Saturday night, the only thing that got smoked in Logan was Utah State's playoff hopes.
Welcome back, Western Group of Six.
We've missed you.