Mountain West Conference Football Championship Game
The Mountain West Conference Football Championship Game is an annual postseason college football game played to determine the champion of the Mountain West Conference (MW). From 1999 to 2012, the champion of the Mountain West was determined by regular season record. Beginning in 2013, following the expansion to twelve members and the division of the conference into Mountain and West Divisions, the conference championship game is held between the two division winners. The Mountain West is one of four conferences to have its championship game at a campus site, along with the American Athletic Conference, Conference USA, and the Sun Belt Conference.
| Mountain West Conference Football Championship Game | |
|---|---|
| Conference Football Championship | |
 Championship Game Logo | |
| Sport | College football |
| Conference | Mountain West Conference |
| Current stadium | Hosted by selected division winner (see below) |
| Current location | Varies by year |
| Played | 2013–present |
| Last contest | 2019 |
| Current champion | Boise State |
| Most championships | Boise State (3) |
| TV partner(s) | Fox |
| Official website | League Site |
| Sponsors | |
| Hampton by Hilton | |
The inaugural MW Championship Game was played on December 7, 2013 at Fresno State's Bulldog Stadium and televised by CBS.[1]
The Mountain West Conference champion customarily receives a berth to play in the Las Vegas Bowl. However, if the MW champion finishes ranked ahead of the champions from the other "Group of Five" mid-major conferences (American Athletic Conference, Conference USA, MAC, and Sun Belt) by the selection committee of the College Football Playoff, it is guaranteed a berth in one of the non-semifinal "New Year's Six" bowls. If ranked in the top four, the conference champion will play in the national championship playoff.
Divisions
Membership reflects changes that took effect with the 2013 season.
| Mountain Division | West Division |
|---|---|
| Air Force | Fresno State |
| Boise State | Hawaii |
| Colorado State | Nevada |
| New Mexico | San Diego State |
| Utah State | San Jose State |
| Wyoming | UNLV |
Past champions
Pre-championship game era (1999–2012)
| Season | Champion(s) | Conf. record |
Overall record |
Bowl result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Utah | 5–2 | 9–3 | Won Las Vegas Bowl |
| BYU | 5–2 | 8–4 | Lost Motor City Bowl | |
| Colorado State | 5–2 | 8–4 | Lost Liberty Bowl | |
| 2000 | No. 14 Colorado State | 6–1 | 10–2 | Won Liberty Bowl |
| 2001 | No. 25 BYU | 7–0 | 12–2 | Lost Liberty Bowl |
| 2002 | Colorado State | 6–1 | 10–4 | Lost Liberty Bowl |
| 2003 | No. 21 Utah | 6–1 | 10–2 | Won Liberty Bowl |
| 2004 | No. 4 Utah | 7–0 | 12–0 | Won Fiesta Bowl |
| 2005 | No. 11 TCU | 8–0 | 11–1 | Won Houston Bowl |
| 2006 | No. 16 BYU | 8–0 | 11–2 | Won Las Vegas Bowl |
| 2007 | No. 14 BYU | 8–0 | 11–2 | Won Las Vegas Bowl |
| 2008 | No. 2 Utah | 8–0 | 13–0 | Won Sugar Bowl |
| 2009 | No. 6 TCU | 8–0 | 12–1 | Lost Fiesta Bowl |
| 2010 | No. 2 TCU | 8–0 | 13–0 | Won Rose Bowl |
| 2011 | No. 14 TCU | 7–0 | 11–2 | Won Poinsettia Bowl |
| 2012 | No. 18 Boise State | 7–1 | 11–2 | Won Maaco Bowl Las Vegas |
| Fresno State | 7–1 | 9–4 | Lost Hawaii Bowl | |
| San Diego State | 7–1 | 9–4 | Lost Poinsettia Bowl |
Final AP Poll rankings shown.
Mountain West Conference Championship Game (2013–present)
Below are the results from all Mountain West Conference Football Championship Games played. The winning team appears in bold font, on a background of their primary team color. Rankings are from the AP Poll released prior to the game.
| Year | West | Mountain | Site | Attendance | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 24 Fresno State Bulldogs | 24 | Utah State Aggies | 17 | Bulldog Stadium • Fresno, CA | 31,362 |
| 2014 | Fresno State Bulldogs | 14 | 22 Boise State Broncos | 28 | Albertsons Stadium • Boise, ID | 26,101 |
| 2015 | San Diego State Aztecs | 27 | Air Force Falcons | 24 | Qualcomm Stadium • San Diego, CA | 20,959 |
| 2016 | San Diego State Aztecs | 27 | Wyoming Cowboys | 24 | War Memorial Stadium • Laramie, WY | 24,001 |
| 2017 | 25 Fresno State Bulldogs | 14 | Boise State Broncos | 17 | Albertsons Stadium • Boise, ID | 24,515 |
| 2018 | 25 Fresno State Bulldogs | 19 | 19 Boise State Broncos | 16OT | 23,662 | |
| 2019 | Hawaii Rainbow Warriors | 10 | 19 Boise State Broncos | 31 | 23,561 | |
Results by team
| Games | School | W | L | Pct | Titles | Runners-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Fresno State | 2 | 2 | .500 | 2013, 2018 | 2014, 2017 |
| 4 | Boise State | 3 | 1 | .750 | 2014, 2017, 2019 | 2018 |
| 2 | San Diego State | 2 | 0 | 1.000 | 2015, 2016 | |
| 1 | Air Force | 0 | 1 | .000 | 2015 | |
| 1 | Utah State | 0 | 1 | .000 | 2013 | |
| 1 | Wyoming | 0 | 1 | .000 | 2016 | |
| 1 | Hawaii | 0 | 1 | .000 | 2019 |
- Colorado State, Nevada, New Mexico, San Jose State, and UNLV have yet to make an appearance in a Mountain West Championship Game.
Championship game MVPs
| Season | MVP | Team | Position | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Derek Carr | Fresno State | QB | |
| 2014 | Offensive | Grant Hedrick | Boise State | QB |
| Defensive | Tanner Vallejo | MLB | ||
| 2015 | Offensive | Christian Chapman | San Diego State | QB |
| Defensive | Na'im McGee | DB | ||
| 2016 | Offensive | Rashaad Penny | San Diego State | RB |
| Defensive | Damontae Kazee | DB | ||
| 2017 | Offensive | Brett Rypien | Boise State | QB |
| Defensive | Leighton Vander Esch | LB | ||
| 2018 | Offensive | Alexander Mattison | Boise State | RB |
| Defensive | Mykal Walker | Fresno State | DE | |
| 2019 | Offensive | Jaylon Henderson | Boise State | QB |
| Defensive | Sonatane Lui | Boise State | DT |
Selection criteria
The division champion is the team with the highest conference winning percentage.
Two-team tiebreaker procedure
- Head-to-head record between the tied teams
- Winning percentage of the tied teams within the division
- Winning percentage against the next-highest placed team in the division, with placing based on the team's conference record, and proceeding through the division
- Winning percentage of the tied teams against common conference opponents
- Higher College Football Playoff ranking (or composite of selected computer ranking if neither team is ranked) following the final week of the regular season
- Overall winning percentage against FBS opponents
- Coin toss
NOTE: If inclement weather forces the head-to-head game between the two tied teams to be cancelled or end in a tie, the tiebreaker procedure ensures the tie will be broken by other means if necessary.
Three or more-team tiebreaker procedure
- Head-to-head record among the tied teams
- Winning percentage among the tied teams within the division
- Winning percentage among the tied teams against the next-highest placed team in the division, with placing based on the team's conference record, and proceeding through the division
- Winning percentage among the tied teams against common conference opponents
- Higher College Football Playoff ranking (or composite of selected computer ranking if neither team is ranked) following the final week of the regular season
Once the tie is reduced to two teams, then the two-team tiebreaker is used.[2]
Host determination
Current procedure
The division champion with the better conference record will host the championship game. If the teams have the same record, the following tie-breaking procedure is used:[3]
- Head-to-head record
- Higher College Football Playoff ranking going into the final week of regular season, excluding teams who are not ranked and/or that lost their final regular season game
- Composite of selected computer rankings
- Record versus common conference opponents
- Highest overall winning percentage (conference and non-conference excluding exempt games)
- Coin toss
2013–2017 procedure
From 2013 to 2017, the division champion with the higher College Football Playoff ranking going into the final week of regular season was designated as the host school unless it lost its final regular season game. If the latter occurred, or neither team was ranked in the latest available College Football Playoff rankings, then the following procedure was used:[2]
- Team with better composite ranking among selected computer rankings
- Head-to-head record
- Record versus common conference opponents
- Winning percentage against the next-highest placed common conference opponent and proceeding through the conference, with placing based on:
- Placement within the division
- Overall conference record
- Composite of selected computer rankings
- Coin toss
This procedure was discontinued after the 2017 Mountain West Conference Football Championship Game after Boise State was selected to host the game despite having the same conference record as their opponent Fresno State and losing to Fresno State during the regular season.
References
- Published August 19, 2013. "CBS Sports Gets TV Rights To Mountain West Football Championship - SportsBusiness Daily | SportsBusiness Journal | SportsBusiness Daily Global". SportsBusiness Daily. Retrieved 2013-08-30.
- Host and divisional tiebreakers
- "Mountain West Announces New Football Championship Host Determination Procedure". Mountain West Conference. July 23, 2018. Retrieved November 23, 2018.