2017 Mountain West Conference Football Championship Game

The 2017 Mountain West Conference Championship Game was played on Saturday, December 2, 2017 at Albertsons Stadium in Boise, Idaho, to determine the 2017 football champion of the Mountain West Conference (MW). The game featured the MW West Division champion Fresno State Bulldogs visiting the Mountain Division champion Boise State Broncos. It was broadcast nationally by ESPN for the third consecutive year.

2017 Mountain West Conference Football Championship Game
Conference Championship
Fresno State Bulldogs Boise State Broncos (9–3) (9–3) 14 17 Head coach:  Jeff Tedford Head coach:  Bryan Harsin AP CFP 25 25
1 2 3 4 Total Fresno State 0 14 0 0 14 Boise State 3 7 0 7 17
Date	December 2, 2017
Season	2017
Stadium	Albertsons Stadium
Location	Boise, ID
MVP	Brett Rypien, QB, Boise State, Leighton Vander Esch, LB, Boise State[1]
Favorite	Boise State by 9.5[2]
Referee	David Alvarez
Attendance	24,515 [3]
United States TV coverage
Network	ESPN
Announcers	Adam Amin, Dusty Dvoracek and Molly McGrath

2017 Mountain West Conference football standings
	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Mountain Division
No. 22 Boise State xy$		7	–	1					11	–	3
Colorado State		5	–	3					7	–	6
Wyoming		5	–	3					8	–	5
Utah State		4	–	4					6	–	7
Air Force		4	–	4					5	–	7
New Mexico		1	–	7					3	–	9
West Division
Fresno State xy		7	–	1					10	–	4
San Diego State		6	–	2					10	–	3
UNLV		4	–	4					5	–	7
Nevada		3	–	5					3	–	9
Hawaii		1	–	7					3	–	9
San Jose State		1	–	7					2	–	11
Championship: Boise State 17, Fresno State 14
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

The championship game is hosted by the participant with the best record in MW play. If the teams have the same conference record, as was the case in 2017, a tiebreaker system is used. Even though the two teams played a conference game on November 25, with Fresno State winning, the MW does not use head-to-head results as its first tiebreaker in such a situation. The first tiebreaker of College Football Playoff ranking could not be used because Boise State lost their final regular season game (coincidentally, to Fresno State) to fall out of the CFP rankings. Fresno State was ranked in the final CFP poll and would have been the host, but the CFP poll did not come out until Tuesday evening and a host selection was needed prior to its release for logistical reasons. The second tiebreaker of a composite of computer rankings was used, with Boise State receiving hosting rights.

The 2017 championship game was the fifth edition of the event. In the 2016 championship game, San Diego State defeated Wyoming 27–24.

Teams

Fresno State

Main article: 2017 Fresno State Bulldogs football team

The Bulldogs far exceeded expectations in 2017, after finishing 1–11 with a 0–8 conference record in 2016. They finished the regular season at 9–3, with a conference record of 7–1, to finish as champions of the MW West Division. They defeated Boise State in their regular season matchup just one week before the championship game, 28–17.

Boise State

Main article: 2017 Boise State Broncos football team

Boise State finished with a 9–3 overall record, with a 7–1 conference record, with their only conference loss coming to Fresno State in the final week of the regular season, whom they face again in the championship game. With just one conference loss, they won the MW Mountain Division by two games.

Game summary

Scoring summary

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP FRES BSU 1 2:10 10 60 3:46 BSU 31-yard field goal by Haden Hoggarth 0 3 2 8:01 10 66 3:43 FRES Marcus McMaryion 1-yard touchdown run, Jimmy Camacho kick good 7 3 2 4:08 3 4 1:19 BSU Alexander Mattison 3-yard touchdown run, Haden Hoggarth kick good 7 10 2 1:53 5 77 2:15 FRES Marcus McMaryion 8-yard touchdown run, Jimmy Camacho kick good 14 10 4 4:42 7 90 3:03 BSU Ryan Wolpin 2-yard touchdown run, Haden Hoggarth kick good 14 17 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 14 17

Source: [3]

Statistics

Bryan Harsin and players celebrate with the MW championship trophy.

Statistics[3]	FRES	BSU
First downs	19	19
Plays–yards	69-309	70-364
Rushes–yards	35-137	38-109
Passing yards	172	255
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	16-34-1	17-32-0
Time of possession	29:28	30:32

References

1. "2017 Mountain West Football Championship". The Mountain West. Retrieved December 4, 2017.
2. "Fresno State Bulldogs vs Boise State Broncos". Odds Shark. Retrieved November 28, 2017.
3. "MW Championship: Fresno State at Boise State". Stat Broadcast. Retrieved 2017-12-04.