UNLV Rebels Topple Down The Mountain West Power Rankings

With the Boise State Broncos knocking off the UNLV Rebels in Week 8, there have been some major shakeups across all the Mountain West Conference power rankings this week. The Rebels who had been sitting atop the Mountain West Connection Power Rankings all season have finally been knocked from the top spot. This is MWC's take on the Rebels, their last opponents, the Broncos, and their next opponents, the New Mexico Lobos.

The Mountain West Connection's Take On No. 3 Ranked UNLV Rebels

"The Rebels finally got burned after playing with fire in most of their games this season. This game exposed many of the shortcomings they have displayed all season: the lack of a consistent passing game, a porous defense that relies too much on turnovers, and too many penalties at the wrong time. UNLV has done well capitalizing when opponents start to make mistakes, but they couldn’t make enough plays themselves. Now that they are no longer undefeated, they can stop trying to be an elite team and can now focus on being a good team, which they are."

The Mountain West Connection Take On No. 1 Ranked Boise State Broncos

"The Broncos won by a wide margin, and though their offense wasn’t perfect, it reached its potential on the majority of their drives, scoring eight touchdowns on the day with seven different players. The defense has also hit a good stride with big plays, although consistent tackling is still an issue. But their past game demonstrated why Boise State is the most talented team in the Mountain West. When they are on, they are a notch or more above everyone else. But the lack of consistency in key areas keeps them from being truly elite."

The Mountain West Connection's Take On No. Ranked New Mexico Lobos

"The Lobos have been slipping a bit the past few games. Perhaps it’s expected regression now that teams have more game film on them. But credit to them for finding a way to pull out a win in Mountain West play, even if it wasn’t their best game, nor the best opponent they’ve faced this year. For New Mexico, learning to continue to play hard and find wins as the losses wear on them is the next step for this team."

The Broncos deserve to be in the top spot. We would still have UNLV ahead of the San Diego State Aztecs, who are in the second spot, but dropping them to third is understandable. The Rebels have a bye this week, then have to get back on track in Week 10 against the Lobos.