2018 Mountain West Conference Football Championship Game

The 2018 Mountain West Conference Championship Game was played on Saturday, December 1, 2018, at Albertsons Stadium in Boise, Idaho, to determine the 2018 football champion of the Mountain West Conference (MW). For the second consecutive year, the game featured the West Division champion Fresno State Bulldogs visiting the Mountain Division champion Boise State Broncos. The game was broadcast nationally by ESPN for the fourth consecutive year.

2018 Mountain West Conference Football Championship Game
Conference Championship
Fresno State Bulldogs Boise State Broncos (10–2) (10–2) 19 16 Head coach:  Jeff Tedford Head coach:  Bryan Harsin AP Coaches CFP 25 23 25 AP Coaches CFP 19 20 22
1 2 3 4 OT Total Fresno State 7 3 3 0 6 19 Boise State 7 0 0 6 3 16
Date	December 1, 2018
Season	2018
Stadium	Albertsons Stadium
Location	Boise, ID
MVP	Alexander Mattison (Offense, Boise State) Mykal Walker (Defense, Fresno State)
Favorite	Boise State by 1.5
Attendance	23,662
United States TV coverage
Network	ESPN
Announcers	Steve Levy (Play-By-Play) Brian Griese (Analyst) Todd McShay (Sidelines)
Mountain West Conference Football Championship Game  < 2017  2019 >

2018 Mountain West Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Mountain Division
No. 23 Boise State x		7	–	1					10	–	3
No. 22 Utah State		7	–	1					11	–	2
Wyoming		4	–	4					6	–	6
Air Force		3	–	5					5	–	7
Colorado State		2	–	6					3	–	9
New Mexico		1	–	7					3	–	9
West Division
No. 18 Fresno State x$		7	–	1					12	–	2
Nevada		5	–	3					8	–	5
Hawaii		5	–	3					8	–	6
San Diego State		4	–	4					7	–	6
UNLV		2	–	6					4	–	8
San Jose State		1	–	7					1	–	11
Championship: Fresno State 19, Boise State 16 (OT)
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

Both Boise State and Fresno State finished the conference season with a 7–1 record. Boise State earned the right to host the championship due to their win over Fresno State on November 9 in Boise.^[1] After also meeting twice during the 2017 season, this was the fourth time the two teams met in a span of 372 days.

The 2018 championship game was the sixth edition of the event. In the 2017 championship game, Boise State defeated Fresno State 17–14. The two schools also met in the 2014 game.

In a low-scoring game on a snow-covered field, the teams played to a 13–13 tie through regulation. In overtime, Boise State was held to a field goal, while Fresno State scored a touchdown to win, 19–16.

Teams

Fresno State

Main article: 2018 Fresno State Bulldogs football team

The Bulldogs finished the season 10–2 overall record, with a 7–1 conference record to be champions of the West Division. Their only conference loss came to Boise State. Fresno State enters the game ranked No. 25 in the College Football Playoff rankings and AP poll.

Boise State

Main article: 2018 Boise State Broncos football team

Boise State finished with a 10–2 overall record, with a 7–1 conference record, with their only conference loss coming to San Diego State. The Broncos tied Utah State for first place in the Mountain Division. However, the Broncos won the head-to-head meeting to be crowned Mountain Division champions as the Mountain West does not recognize co-champions in a two-way tie. Boise State enters the game ranked No. 22 in the College Football Playoff rankings, No. 19 in the AP poll, and No. 20 in the Coaches poll.

Game summary

Scoring summary

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP FRES BSU 1 9:03 3 20 1:08 FRES Michiah Quick 15-yard touchdown reception from Marcus McMaryion, Asa Fuller kick good 7 0 1 1:56 15 75 7:07 BSU Sean Modster 10-yard touchdown reception from Brett Rypien, Haden Hoggarth kick good 7 7 2 3:20 10 51 3:32 FRES 44-yard field goal by Asa Fuller 10 7 3 11:07 9 43 3:53 FRES 38-yard field goal by Asa Fuller 13 7 4 8:01 7 87 3:09 BSU Alexander Mattison 34-yard touchdown run, Haden Hoggarth kick blocked 13 13 OT 6 19 BSU 23-yard field goal by Haden Hoggarth 13 16 OT 5 25 FRES Ronnie Rivers 1-yard touchdown run 19 16 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 19 16

^[2]

Statistics

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
No. 25 Bulldogs	7	3	3	0	6	19
No. 19 Broncos	7	0	0	6	3	16

Statistics[3]	Fresno State	Boise State
Total Yards	288	350
Passing Yards	170	125
Rushing Yards	118	225
First Downs	14	22
Penalties	6-50	6-50
Turnovers	2	1
Time of Possession	23:58	36:02

References

1. "MOUNTAIN WEST ANNOUNCES NEW FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP HOST DETERMINATION PROCEDURE". Mountain West Conference. July 23, 2018.
2. "Fresno State vs. Boise State - Game Recap - December 1, 2018 - ESPN".
3. "Fresno State vs. Boise State - Team Statistics - December 1, 2018". ESPN. Retrieved December 2, 2018.