Mountain West football preview: Nevada Wolf Pack

LAS VEGAS – Ken Wilson is still searching for his first Mountain West victory.
Nevada’s second-year head coach hopes an influx of talent from the Pac-12, where he plucked over a dozen new players out of the portal, will improve his luck in Reno.
The Wolf Pack, coming off a 2-10 finish that included an 0-8 mark in conference play, are picked to finish 11th in the preseason MW media poll.
But the roster has been bolstered with the addition of Colorado transfer Brendan Lewis (quarterback), Oregon transfers Sean Dollars (running back) and Jackson LaDuke (linebacker) and Cal transfers Ashton Hayes (running back) and Keleki Latu (tight end).
“I think going into fall camp, we have a lot more competition, specifically on the offensive side of the ball,” Wilson, a former Oregon assistant, said at the MW media day event in Las Vegas. “Most of the defense is back and we've supplemented. We've got a lot of new secondary guys in the competition, but at wide receiver, running back, tight end, we've really upgraded the depth so we can get better competition.”
Lewis was part of the mass exodus in Boulder with Deion Sanders bringing in his “Louis Luggage” and placing most of the players he inherited on the baggage carousel for other programs to collect.
The former four-star recruit completed 58.4% of his passes for 1,727 yards with 10 touchdowns and three interceptions over 15 games with the Buffaloes. Lewis will have to hold off Oklahoma State transfer Shane Illingworth for the starting spot during fall camp.
The competition between Dollars and Hayes also should elevate an offense that finished 120th in scoring (18.8 ppg) and 123rd in total yards (304.7 ypg) last season.
The offensive line is still expected to be a weak link, especially with tackle Aaron Frost transferring to Arizona State.
“Last year, we just didn't have that depth,” Wilson said. “So, guys just had to play and play, and we had to be very careful to not get guys hurt because when you only have two tight ends, and one gets hurt you change your whole offense. We just didn't have the depth to be able to have competition and have the hard practices and guys really battling. I think spring ball this year was a little bit different for everybody as we've got two or three guys battling for each spot.”
The Wolf Pack should be solid on defense with the return of cornerbacks Jaden Dedman (50 tackles, eight pass breakups) and Isaiah Essissima (35 tackles, two interceptions) and linebackers Drue Watts (57 tackles, 9.0 tackles for loss) and Naki Mateialona (53 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss).
Nevada started the Wilson era 2-0 before ending the campaign with a 10-game losing skid.
Getting off to a strong start, especially defensively, will be nearly impossible with a road game at USC on Sept. 2. The Trojans are led by reigning Heisman Trophy winner and projected No. 1 NFL draft pick Caleb Williams.
Flirting with bowl eligibility isn’t out of the realm of possibilities with winnable games against Idaho, Texas State, UNLV, New Mexico, Hawaii and Utah State.
"I want us to be better. What that looks like, I don't know yet,” Wilson said. “What we talked about in our football team is that we want to be the most in-shape football team on the field every time we play. And we want to be the hardest-playing team on the field every time we play. That's directed right from the head coach and how hard I'm going to work, and it goes down. I've got to convince my staff and the players that that's what we're going to be.
“If we do those things and we have a good fall camp and we keep working, the season will take care of itself."
The Wolf Pack will face former head coach Jay Norvell (now at Colorado State) on Nov. 18 in Fort Collins before finishing the season against Wyoming on Nov. 25 in Reno.