Mountain West football roundup: UNLV’s magic runs out against Boise State

Broncos blow by Rebels, 56-31

Boise State's Sire Gaines | Boise State Athletics

Eleven FBS teams entered Saturday with perfect records during the 2025 college football season. 

Five of those teams — including UNLV — were knocked from the ranks of the undefeated during a wild day of action. 

No. 2 Miami, No. 5 Ole Miss, No. 7 Texas Tech, No. 22 Memphis and unranked UNLV all stumbled on Saturday, leaving No. 1 Ohio State, No. 3 Indiana, No. 4 Texas A&M, No. 12 Georgia Tech, No. 15 BYU and Navy as the only unbeaten teams in FBS. 

The Rebels (6-1, 2-1), who were coming off a 51-48 shootout win over Air Force, couldn’t slow down Boise State’s (5-2, 3-0) offense at Albertsons Stadium. The Broncos piled up 558 total yards in a runaway 56-31 victory.

“Too many little mistakes,” first-year Rebels coach Dan Mullen said after the game. “We had some opportunities at different times. We got the stop to start the second half and got the ball for an opportunity to take the lead. In big games you have to make those plays to go do that and too many mistakes can catch up to us. 

“We’ve been talking about how we’ve been finding ways to win, even though we haven’t played exceptionally well at times. And today, you make those mistakes against a really good football team, it catches up to you.”

Boise State, the two-time defending MWC champion, sits alone in first place atop the standings. San Diego State (5-1, 2-0) had a bye this week and is half a game behind the Broncos. 

Hawaii (6-2, 3-1) is already bowl eligible after scoring a 31-19 road win over Colorado State (2-5, 1-2). 

“It means so much to represent the pride of Hawaii,” Rainbow Warriors running back Landon Sims said after the game. “We’re always the underdog. People are always doubting us. But to be in a position of leadership, and give the younger guys this, it’s the greatest feeling in the world.”

Hawaii quarterback Micah Alejado is making a strong case for MWC Freshman of the Year honors. After torching the Rams for 301 yards and three touchdowns, Alejado now has 1,757 passing yards and 12 touchdowns with six interceptions in six starts. 

Air Force (2-5, 1-4) snapped a five-game skid on Saturday with a 24-21 win over Wyoming. The Falcons had surrendered an average of 45.5 points per game during the losing streak. 

New Mexico (4-3, 1-2) held on for a 24-22 home victory over Nevada (1-6, 0-3). 

On Friday, San Jose State (2-5, 1-2) suffered another close loss at Utah State (4-3, 2-1). The Spartans gained 534 total yards but found the end zone just three times in a 30-25 defeat.