Jordan Kaye
LAS VEGAS – Every coach and a handful of the best players in the Mountain West will be in Las Vegas this week. I say a handful because many schools did not decide to bring their creme de la creme to Mountain West Media Days.
Some of that is the venue. The conference decided to bring media days to the greatest hotel in Las Vegas, our great sponsor Circa. The one catch is Circa does not allow anyone under 21 years old into the building, which means Taylen Green will be stuck in Boise while tight end Riley Smith represents the Broncos.
Elsewhere, either Colorado State wide receiver Tory Horton — the best pass catcher in the Mountain West — is the youngest senior in America or CSU coach Jay Norvell didn’t want anyone talking with him. And who did Norvell decide to bring instead of Horton? His dang punter, Paddy Turner, who ranked 12th out of the 13 punters who kicked a ball in the Mountain West last season.
Why Paddy Turner is in Las Vegas instead of Tory Horton is really what I’m most intrigued by this week. But here are five other questions I want answered at Mountain West Media Days.
What tone is Gloria Nevarez going to take with SDSU publicly?
Gloria Nevarez has been the Mountain West Commissioner for less than eight months and already has an alter ego.
I like the name our colleague John Mallory coined for Nevarez: “Gloria the Gangster.” Maybe we can shorten it to Gangsta Gloria.
Regardless, it fits. In her first year on the job, Nevarez has handled turbulence with bravado and confidence.
San Diego State sent the Mountain West and its presidents a letter that sounded a lot to Nevarez and others like an exit letter. Even when SDSU President Adela de la Torre tried to clarify that the original letter wasn’t a notice of resignation, Nevarez didn’t accept that explanation.
And later, when de la Torre wrote another letter saying how excited she was to announce that San Diego State was staying in the Mountain West, Nevarez basically said, That is so awesome … but you still left in the first place and owe us that $17 million exit fee. We accept cash, check or Venmo.
And Nevarez wasn’t just putting up a front. Last week, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune, the conference informed San Diego State that it would withhold a $6.6 million distribution fee to the school as “the initial payment of its exit fee.”
Nevarez hasn’t put up with any crap. She has not conceded any ground to San Diego State, the school most responsible for elevating the Mountain West conference in the last year with its run to the national championship.
All of this, though, has gone on behind closed doors. Nevarez has looked like a champion for the Mountain West, a strict enforcer that isn’t putting up with wishy-washy claims.
But on Wednesday, she will make her first public appearance since this SDSU kerfuffle got going and it will be so fascinating to see if she keeps the same tone publicly as she has in private.
What does Andy Avalos actually expect from his transfers?
Back on National Signing Day in February, Andy Avalos was adamant that Boise State is a “developmental program,” saying that the Broncos were committed to recruiting high school players “even in the era of the transfer portal”
Back then, Boise State had added five kids from the portal against 19 from high school. Since then, the Broncos have added four more kids from the transfer portal.
Avalos and Co. definitely aren’t avoiding the transfer portal, but here’s what is odd to me: It doesn’t seem like the Broncos got much immediate impact.
Trying to project a little bit, I really only see a few guys who have even a chance at maybe starting for the Broncos. I think Utah transfer Tyler Wegis has a shot to start at the EDGE position opposite Demitri Washington. And I think either Northern Arizona transfer Sheldon Newton or Iowa State transfer Howard Brown could start at defensive tackle.
Other than that, it seems to me that the Broncos just added depth — which isn’t a bad thing.
But hopefully this week we can get a better understanding of Avalos’ plan for his transfers this season.
How does San Diego State plan to capitalize on this incredible exposure?
No publicity, as they say, is bad publicity.
Over the past six months, one could argue San Diego State has been in the news more than any other six-month span in history. Back in March, the Aztecs’ men’s basketball team made a Cinderella run to the National Championship Game and, as mentioned above, SDSU and its future has been a hot-button topic.
San Diego State has gotten incredible exposure — which means what to SDSU football coach Brady Hoke?
I wonder if Hoke has noticed any benefits on the recruiting trail from all the media buzz about San Diego State and, if so, how he plans to capitalize off that.
Does Barry Odom have an actual recruiting philosophy at UNLV?
Currently, the best 2024 recruiting class in the Mountain West belongs to … UNLV.
Barry Odom, the former head coach at Missouri, took over the Runnin’ Rebels in December and has put together a stellar recruiting class that already includes 15 commits, including four-star linebacker Melvin Lester.
The interesting part about UNLV’s current pledge is these kids are coming from all over. There are commits from Missouri, Texas, Nevada, California, Oklahoma, Hawaii, Kansas, Minnesota and Arizona.
I find it hard to think that’s sustainable. I understand why and how UNLV landed some of those kids — Odom previously worked in Missouri and offensive coordinator Brennan Marion was at Texas — but if UNLV build a winner, I think the Rebels going to have to go heavy recruiting kids in their general area.
I want to know if Odom plans on recruiting nationally for years to come or if this was just a one-off.
Why is Easton Gibbs still at Wyoming?
Over the past two years, the transfer portal has decimated Wyoming.
Two years ago, the Cowboys lost star tailback Xavien Valladay and a number of other starters. Then after Wyoming wrapped up the 2022 regular season, four more guys — including running back Titus Swen, who entered the portal after being dismissed from the team — left for greener pastures.
But linebacker Easton Gibbs decided to stay.
Gibbs, my pick for MW Defensive Player of the Year, made 121 tackles last year and was the anchor for the Cowboys’ defense. He could have easily left for a Power-5 school, maybe even one closer to his home in Southern California.
Instead, he chose to stick it out in Laramie, Wyoming and I can’t wait to ask him why.
