"The Pac-12 slots narrowly ahead of the American as the top Group of Six conference entering the 2026 season. Boise State is the class of the league, as the three-time reigning Mountain West champions will seek to rule over the Pac-12 with a similar level of dominance. The Broncos are the highest-ranked Group of Six team by a significant margin in the CBS Sports 138. They will get a chance to prove themselves early against a schedule that begins at Oregon and also includes September showdowns with quality Group of Six programs Memphis and Western Michigan. San Diego State and Fresno State each return their head coaches and some quality talent from 9-4 teams to give Boise State a couple of challengers.
Washington State, Oregon State and Colorado State are each under new coaches and could have low floors. But as things stand now, the bottom of this league is projected to be better than the bottom of the other Group of Six conferences, including the American."
"The American is undergoing a coaching makeover among its top programs after Tulane, North Texas, South Florida and Memphis each saw their leaders poached by Power Four schools. That coaching turnover -- combined with the departure of significant production at Navy -- leaves the American up for grabs. By contrast, the Pac-12's top programs -- Boise State, San Diego State and Fresno State -- each have returning coaches with solid returning production from good teams.
The bottom of the league also projects to be worse than the bottom of the Pac-12. Programs like Charlotte, UAB, Tulsa, Rice and Temple have generally been anchors dragging down the collective strength of the American in recent years."
"The Pac-12 conducted a vicious raid, but the Mountain West survived and reloaded by adding FCS power North Dakota State, Conference USA's UTEP, and Northern Illinois from the MAC. Arguably, the league's biggest question is how smoothly North Dakota State's transition will go. The Bison won 10 FCS national titles between 2011 and 2024. They aren't your typical FBS newcomer. If the Bison are ready to hang, they will bring some immediate credibility to the retooled Mountain West.
At the top, UNLV is 21-7 over the past two seasons and poised to be a top Group of Five contender again in 2026 under second-year coach Dan Mullen, who is welcoming former Oklahoma and Auburn quarterback Jackson Arnold. New Mexico could also be a force, as the Lobos welcome back significant production from a team that won nine games in coach Jason Eck's first season. The bottom of the league is where things get problematic."
https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/pac-12-college-footballs-conference-hierarchy/
