What happens when there is a three-way tie to decide the two participants in a conference championship game? You go to the computers.
The Mountain West found itself in quite the pickle this weekend, with three teams finishing tied atop its standings. Boise State, UNLV and San Jose State all ended the regular season with identical 6-2 conference records. Since not all three teams played against one another and none of the three were in the College Football Playoff rankings, it left the conference looking elsewhere to determine its championship matchup.
The conference used four different computer rankings to figure out the two teams left standing in the fight for the Mountain West championship, and after crunching the numbers, it will be UNLV hosting Boise State in the title contest Saturday. San Jose State ends up being the odd team out, despite defeating UNLV in Las Vegas over the weekend.
MORE: Watch the Mountain West championship game live on Fubo (free trial)
It will be the Broncos' sixth Mountain West championship game appearance in the last seven years. Boise State lost to Fresno State last year in the title contest, and is looking for its first conference championship since 2019. For the Rebels, it's the program's first title game appearance since joining the conference in 1999.
Mountain West football championship game 2023
- Matchup: Boise State vs. UNLV
- Date: Saturday, Dec. 2
- Time: 3 p.m. ET
- Site: Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas
- TV channel: Fox
- Live stream: Fox Sports app, Fubo
Mountain West computer rankings
The Mountain West used four different computer rankings to break the three-way tie between UNLV, Boise State and San Jose State — Anderson and Hester, Colley Matrix, Massey Ratings and Wolfe.
The conference put together composite rankings for the three teams using those four systems. UNLV finished first with a composite ranking of 44.5 and Boise State finished second at 55.75. San Jose State was third at 58.5.
UNLV was ranked first among the group in three of the four composite rankings, with only Massey Ratings putting Boise State ahead. San Jose State was third in three of the four rankings, with the lone outlier being Wolfe, who had the Spartans ahead of the Broncos.
Anderson and Hester
Here are the results from Anderson and Hester. The complete rankings can be found here.
| Team | Rating | Ranking |
| UNLV | .641 | 31 |
| Boise State | .516 | 71 |
| San Jose State | .516 | 72 |
Colley Matrix
Here are the results from Colley Matrix. The complete rankings can be found here.
| Team | Rating | Ranking |
| UNLV | .656 | 33 |
| Boise State | .591 | 49 |
| San Jose State | .570 | 55 |
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Massey Ratings
Here are the results from Massey Ratings. The complete rankings can be found here.
| Team | Rating | Ranking |
| Boise State | 7.41 | 57 |
| UNLV | 7.28 | 68 |
| San Jose State | 7.25 | 71 |
Wolfe
Here are the results from Wolfe. The complete rankings can be found here.
| Team | Rating | Ranking |
| UNLV | 6.521 | 35 |
| San Jose State | 6.131 | 52 |
| Boise State | 6.039 | 57 |