The Fresno State Bulldogs were surprising overachievers a season ago – normally the Bulldogs go into a season with tremendous amounts of hype only to fizzle out when it matters most (and usually against subpar WAC teams). Last year, though, expectations were low after a disastrous 4-8 2006 season and injuries to two of their best players. Go figure, then, that Fresno exceeded expectations by finishing 9-4 and rolling over Georgia Tech in the Humanitarian Bowl.

It remains to be seen whether the 2008 preseason hype the Bulldogs are getting will prove to be a boom or bust for a team that has let down on many occasions. Certainly, Fresno State looks good on paper. Just as certain, there are a number of strong fantasy players that could have very productive seasons. Yet traditionally, a Bulldogs team that has lofty aspirations usually ends up failing somewhere along the line and never living up to expectations. David Carr (right) knows what I mean.

The offense is the reason why this year’s Fresno team is getting so much attention. Ten starters return from a season ago, and last year’s offense seemed to get better and better as the weeks went on.

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The WAC’s new fantasy Mecca resides in Reno.

With Hawaii’s rebuilding efforts and Boise State’s uncertain quarterback situation, Nevada has the most experienced sure-thing of an offense in the conference, and head coach Chris Ault has empirical evidence that the Pistol formation actually works.

The Wolf Pack went to their third consecutive bowl game last year (at 6-7, they were Exhibit A for having too many bowl games), and Nevada had freshman QB Colin Kaepernick (right, AP) to thank for that.

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With no June Jones, no career-TD leader QB Colt Brennan, and no experienced wide receivers, the Hawaii Warriors’ offense is far from the fantasy scoring machine it was a year ago.

Record-setting QB Brennan is gone, his four top receivers (who totaled over 4,000 yards and 40 touchdowns last fall) have split, and Jones is plying his trade at SMU.

Former defensive coordinator Greg McMackin is in charge now, and suddenly the Warriors are expected to win games with…defense?

Can Armageddon be far off?

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The Air Raid offense is the encyclopedia salesman of football strategy, yet New Mexico State and head coach Hal Mumme are intent on hawking their version of Worldbook Britannica to the rest of the WAC.

Thus far, it has been incredibly unsuccessful. There are better, more dependable ways of scoring points, but Mumme and the offensive coordinator duo of Gary Goff and Matt Mumme (nepotism!) continue to believe in their eclectic style of play.

The Aggies only averaged 24 points per game last season and failed to score more than 20 in six games. Certainly, their scheme is designed for big plays and big stats, but until recently, NMSU has simply not had good enough players to make the system work effectively.

If the Aggies and the Air Raid stand any chance of moderate success, the responsibility will be entirely on Chase Holbrook. The senior quarterback had a solid sophomore year that he followed up with a injury-laden junior season equivalent to a giant step backward…resulting in an interception. Turnovers were Holbrook’s downfall; he threw 18 picks, which was twice the number he had in the season prior. Might he be in store for a 36-INT year this season?

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The more things change around the landscape of college football, the more they stay the same in Boise, Idaho.  The Boise State Broncos are perennial WAC favorites, perennial BCS busters and one of the most high-flying, entertaining teams in all the land.  Why should this year be any different? 

Well, actually there are a number of reasons why.  Boise State is coming off a two-game losing streak, having lost the season finale at Hawaii with the conference title on the line and following that up with a loss in the Hawaii Bowl.  To make matters worse, the defense underperformed at linebacker, two of the top defensive backs are gone, Ryan Clady is in the NFL and four of his O-line mates graduated.  A starting quarterback is undecided, the team’s leading receiver was suspended for the spring and a healthy Ian Johnson is growing increasingly rare.  Despite all that, the Broncos are still picked by everyone to finish no worse than second in the WAC.  Take that, parity.

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