Air Force’s running back carries the ball in their 40-35 victory against Colorado State

Mountain West football hasn’t lived up to its preseason expectations through week three.

After a 13-2 season, a conference championship, and advancing to the FCFB semifinals last season, UNLV fell to 1-2 after a 54-21 pounding against Western Kentucky. Sure, UNLV has played stellar competition, but they aren’t playing like the championship contenders they were last season.

Meanwhile, Boise State has collapsed, looking nothing like the bowl eligible team they were last year. Colorado State and Utah State have delivered underwhelming performances.

So far, the only teams keeping the Mountain West afloat are Fresno State, New Mexico, and Nevada, who are all 2-1 with key out-of-conference wins. Air Force is also 2-1, but both their wins come against Mountain West foes.

So what team is the best of the best in the Mountain West? And what team should be relegated to the FCS? Read our thoughts below and decide for yourself.

12. Boise State (0-3)

Boise State’s season has been a train wreck so far. Although the have played tough competition, they haven’t put up much resistance against these teams. Boise State handed the program’s reins to Damien Jefferson from Villanova after the retirement of their former coach after their week one loss to Virginia Tech. So far, he has struggled to take control of the team. The Broncos were humiliated by Rice, losing by 42, and then fell to Kansas at home by three scores. In Jefferson’s defense, it would be tough to find two better teams to start off his coaching career against. Unfortunately for him, it doesn’t get any easier next week. Boise State travels to Colorado to take on 2-1 Air Force, current leaders of the Mountain division.

11. Wyoming (0-3)

Wyoming barely edges out Boise State and stays out of the very bottom of these rankings, where they sat for much of last season. There is an argument to be made for Wyoming to be last, however. Wyoming has dropped three games to far easier competition than Boise State, but has played these teams closer, losing a couple nail biters. Wyoming opened their season with a three touchdown loss to 2-1 Oregon State. Following the resignation of their coach, Wyoming hired Missouri State head coach Pary Ginkle. He has dropped two very close games, losing by three at Bowling Green, and by one after a defensive breakdown against Eastern Michigan. Ginkle hopes to right the ship against a good 2-1 Penn State team next week.

10. Hawaii (1-2)

Hawaii has so far looked like the same unimpressive 4-8 team they were last year. Their lone win is against 0-3 Kent State by 11 in their opening game of the season. They have steadily regressed, losing to 2-1 UCLA by 17 and 2-1 Kansas State by 24. Hawaii looks to rebound against an unimpressive Nebraska team next week.

9. San Diego State (1-2)

San Diego State dropped their first two games, but bounced back with a win against Georgia Southern. Surprisingly, they played undefeated Oklahoma close in week 1, but lost by a touchdown. They then fell to 2-1 Wake Forest by 20, but bounced back and defeated Georgia Southern by 11. Next week, San Diego State plays a terrible Illinois team, and may be in danger of sliding down the power rankings with a loss.

8. San Jose State (0-3)

San Jose State has played some great teams close, but has nothing to show for it. The Spartans fell to undefeated UAB by three in week one, and to 2-1 Western Michigan by two. San Jose State took a step back in week three, losing by three touchdowns to undefeated Stanford. Don’t be fooled by their 0-3 record though: the Spartans are a good football team, and have the talent to hang with every team in the conference. San Jose state will take on a tough 2-1 Minnesota team next week, who has already defeated fellow MWC team Colorado State.

7. Utah State (1-2)

Utah State has faced stiff competition in their first three games, and a 1-2 record is nothing to be ashamed of. The Aggies were defeated by a tough Arkansas State team on the road by two touchdowns. They have shown nothing but improvement since. They narrowly lost to 2-1 Washington, 14-7, then snagged their first win with a close victory over West Virginia. Utah State hopes to hit the .500 mark next week when they take on 2-1 Ohio.

6. Colorado State (1-2)

Colorado State could easily be 3-0, but they have lost two very close games against great teams. After picking up a solid 19-15 victory against Coastal Carolina, the Rams lost two extremely close games against 2-1 Minnesota (24-25) and 2-1 Air Force (35-40). Don’t sleep on the Rams though: after only a couple setbacks, they are still poised to make a run at the MWC Mountain crown. Colorado State faces a touch test next week. They host undefeated Arkansas State.

5. UNLV (1-2)

The reigning Mountain West champs check in at #5 after a 1-2 start. UNLV has played stellar teams, but these are teams that the Rebels would have won last year, not lost by 33. UNLV looked like a good football team early in the year, losing to undefeated NC State by one score and defeating 2-1 Oklahoma State by two touchdowns. However, a 33 point loss against Western Kentucky raises questions. UNLV needs to prove themselves next week when they travel to face a great Central Michigan team. I hesitate to call this a must win game, but UNLV will find it very difficult to make it into the playoffs again if they start 1-3.

4. Nevada (2-1)

The Nevada defense has led the Wolf Pack to a 2-1 record. Their defense is only giving up an average of seven points a game, good enough for third in the nation. However, Nevada has yet to beat a team with more than one win yet. Nevada dropped their first game to undefeated Old Dominion 16-7, but they have bounced back, shutting out Florida and defeating Louisiana Tech. Nevada’s defense will face a tough test next week when they travel to take on undefeated Charlotte, who is averaging 35 points per game.

3. Fresno State (2-1)

A big win over North Texas in overtime last week puts Fresno State in the #3 spot in the power rankings. Fresno State head-scratchingly dropped their opener to 1-2 Syracuse by two touchdowns. They have bounced back since, defeating Eastern Michigan 27-14, then taking down an excellent North Texas team. The Bulldogs take on 0-3 FIU next week, a team who gave up an astounding 135 points earlier in the season to Western Kentucky. If Fresno State loses, expect them to drastically drop in the power rankings.

2. New Mexico (2-1)

rer121915aa/spsorts/12.19.2015/ Roberto E. Rosales/Journal New Mexico’s sophomore safety Markel Byrd(Cq),no.22, celebrates with teammates after stopping Arizona on a field goal attempt Saturday afternoon in the Gildan New Mexico Bowl at University Stadium. Albuquerque, New Mexico(Albuquerque Journal)

New Mexico’s lone loss is to conference foe Air Force, and they boast an impressive win over UTEP. In their opener, they held rival New Mexico State to an astounding 34 yards of total offense, and shot up in the rankings. However, after falling to Air Force by 11, they fell from the 15th spot in the coaches poll. New Mexico’s 24-17 win over ranked UTEP was impressive, but not impressive enough for coaches poll voters, who failed to rank them. New Mexico is one of the most underrated teams in the country, and they look to prove to voters that they are the real deal with their next game against Bowling Green.

1. Air Force (2-1)

Air Force claims the number one spot in the power rankings for now. However, they need to prove that they are worthy of the spot with out-of-conference wins. Air Force bested Colorado State by five and New Mexico by eleven, but fell to undefeated Southern Miss by two touchdowns. Air Force has Boise State at home next, and needs to be careful not to overlook the Broncos by worrying about Fresno State, their week 5 opponent.