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Mountain West media days are little more than a month away (July 24-25 in Las Vegas), so we may as well start guessing at how much the conference adores the Boise State football team. Presumably and perhaps unanimously, the Broncos will be the preseason favorite to win the conference, just as they were last year (I forget how that turned out). Less of a sure thing is how many Boise State players will end up as preseason all-conference. Here are my guesses:
D.J. Harper. Harper has name recognition going for him since he's been at Boise State for half a decade. Plus, the Mountain West loses three of its four all-conference picks from last year (Doug Martin, Ronnie Hillman, and Asher Clark). Harper's competition for the two preseason RB spots will be Colorado State's Chris Nwoke and Fresno State's Robbie Rouse. Seniority FTW?
Matt Miller. Last year, Tyler Shoemaker was a first-team all-conference pick, so the Mountain West could do itself a solid and just sub one sensational Bronco wideout for another. Both second-team all-MWC receivers return from last year, but one plays for New Mexico and the other plays for Wyoming. I mean, come on. New
Joe Kellogg. Who knows how people choose offensive linemen for preseason teams other than name recognition and making as few changes as possible from last year's ballot. Kellogg has name recognition going for him as the most notable Boise State offensive lineman.
Jamar Taylor. You have to figure that someone on the Boise State defense gets a preseason all-conference honor, and you can basically flip a coin between Taylor and Gavins. I'm going with Taylor because I think his 100+-yard interception return against Arizona State is still fresh in the minds of people who just can't shake that Vegas Bowl out of their heads (no one, but maybe some MWC media members).
Other possibilities: Gabe Linehan, Charles Leno, Michael Atkinson, J.C. Percy, Jerrell Gavins, Lee Hightower
Your turn
What players do you think will be preseason all-conference picks? Who will get snubbed? Share your thoughts in the comments.