The Pac-12 heads into conference play with a split personality after an uneven final week of non-conference action.
Through four weeks of the 2026 season, only two teams in the league have a winning record, and both of them kept rolling on Saturday. Boise State and Fresno State each came through with convincing victories, while the middle and lower tiers of the conference kept wobbling.
Boise State made the loudest statement of the bunch, going on the road and flattening Western Michigan 32-7. The Broncos, now 3-1, controlled the game from start to finish and only allowed the reigning MAC champions to spoil the shutout with 63 seconds left.
Afterward, Boise State head coach Spencer Danielson praised how his team handled the game.
“We have a lot to improve on and we have to be better down the stretch, but this is absolutely the most complete game we’ve played, and I’m proud of our guys for learning and growing,” Boise State head coach Spencer Danielson said after the game. “We continued to chip away and play really good football, sound football, against a really good football team. Super proud of our players.”
Maddux Madsen delivered one of his cleanest outings of the season, throwing for 204 yards and three touchdowns. Dylan Riley gave Boise State balance on the ground, piling up 138 yards and a touchdown on 28 carries.
Fresno State matched that momentum with a comeback win of its own, beating Rice 38-24 to stretch its winning streak to three. The Bulldogs trailed 17-14 at halftime, then took over with 17 unanswered points to open the second half and seize control.
Jayden Mandal kept the offense moving, completing 22 of 34 passes for 210 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. Fresno State head coach Matt Entz was especially pleased with how Mandal responded after a rough Week 1 showing against USC.
“Our kids trust him, our coaches trust him,” Fresno State head coach Matt Entz said of Mandal, who struggled mightily in a Week 1 loss to USC. “He’s going to make the right decisions.
When he does make mistakes, he doesn’t make them again, so he’s always learning. Again, this was his fourth game starting as a quarterback.
His best football is still ahead of him.”
Rayshon Luke was just as dangerous, rushing 11 times for 167 yards and a touchdown.
Elsewhere, three Pac-12 teams are parked at 2-2: Colorado State, Oregon State and Texas State.
Oregon State closed out its non-conference slate with authority, rolling past UTEP 33-7 on the road. Braden Atkinson threw for 301 yards, three touchdowns and one interception, and freshman receiver Jesse Legree continued his breakout stretch with six catches for 109 yards and two scores.
Texas State delivered the biggest margin of the week, blasting FCS opponent Incarnate Word 63-10 at home. Brad Jackson was in total command, throwing for 244 yards and five touchdowns.
Colorado State, meanwhile, took its second straight loss, falling 59-45 at UTSA. The Rams were without starting quarterback Hauss Hejny, who is dealing with a hamstring injury.
At the bottom end of the standings, Utah State showed some life with a 21-10 home win over Troy. Washington State started fast against Arizona, jumping ahead 14-0 in the first quarter, but the Cougars couldn’t hold on and lost 34-24 at home.
San Diego State’s skid also continued. The Aztecs, dealing with injuries, were thumped 41-16 at Toledo and have now lost three in a row.
Conference play begins next Saturday with four intraconference games on the schedule, all listed in Mountain Daylight time:
Oregon State at Colorado State, 4 p.m. (USA Network)
Utah State at Boise State, 5:30 p.m. (CBS Sports Network)
Fresno State at Washington State, 7:30 p.m. (USA Network)
Texas State at San Diego State, 8:30 p.m. (The CW)
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Kirby Moores Washington State Debut Comes With Real History Attached
Kirby Moores first season at Washington State arrives with more weight than a standard coaching debut, because the matchup on the other sideline also carries its own layers. Fresno State comes in under second-year coach Matt Entz, a proven winner who built his reputation at North Dakota State, and the Bulldogs have already shown the kind of balance that can make a September or early-season test feel much bigger than the calendar suggests.
There is also some familiar coaching overlap in the backdrop, with Moore now trying to put his own stamp on the Cougars after stops as an offensive coordinator at Fresno State and Missouri. Meanwhile, Fresno State has gotten important recent production from quarterback Jayden Mandal and running back Rayshon Luke, giving the Bulldogs a steadier profile as Moore steps into a game that connects his present job to parts of his past in more than one way. [Read more 🡒]
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Washington State Faces An Early Home Test It Cant Take Lightly
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For Washington State, the game also sets up a few individual matchups that could shape the afternoon. Fresno State receiver Josiah Freeman has been one of the names to track, while cornerback Simeon Harris will be part of the Cougars' effort to keep the Bulldogs from finding easy answers outside. Early conference games can punish a team that assumes the record tells the whole story, and this is the sort of home opener in league play that can reveal whether Washington State is ready to handle the details that matter. [Read more 🡒]