By Nick Bartlett, SuperWest Sports
Wise is the fan who consults Nick’s No-Nonsense predictions before watching this week’s games.
Throughout the 2025 college football season, I give you my just-for-fun picks for contests involving the best teams in the West across five conferences.
Those teams include Arizona, ASU, BYU, Colorado, and Utah in the Big 12; Oregon, UCLA, USC, and Washington in the Big Ten; Cal and Stanford in the ACC; Oregon State and WSU in the Pac-12; and all of the Mountain West.
On rare occasions, when I blow a pick—or several—I evaluate my mistakes the following week, and analyze where I may have gone wrong.
This week, UNLV hosts Idaho State, Fresno State visits Kansas, and Hawai’i hosts Stanford. (Our Stephen Vilardo previews the games here.)
As always, my selections come with my best game-score guesses and just enough commentary to keep me from drinking too much coffee here at my favorite hangout in the South Shore District of Seattle.
I’m already on my second cup, so let’s get on with the picks!
Idaho State Bengals at UNLV Rebels
Saturday, August 23
1:00 PM PT, MW Network
This is an ideal matchup for UNLV to start the 2025 campaign. The Rebels lost all 10 starters on both sides of the line, so facing a mid-tier FCS opponent is a nice break-in game.
It should also serve as a good opportunity for new head coach Dan Mullen to get reps in for both of his potential starting quarterbacks.
If Jai’Den Thomas can get some big runs early, it should get the crowd amped up and build momentum. UNLV lost a lot on the defensive side of the ball, so grabbing the lead should help build confidence.
Idaho State likes to pass in chunks, and they’ll probably put some points on the board. But the Bengals were 5-7 in the FCS last year, and Mullen won’t debut his program in Sin City with that type of loss.
The two quarterbacks protect the ball decent enough to get the job done.
UNLV wins its home opener.
Final Score: UNLV 42, Idaho State 14
Fresno State Bulldogs at Kansas Jayhawks
Saturday, August 23
3:30 PM PT, FOX
This is a really tough opener for Fresno State. The Bulldogs have a new head coach in Matt Entz, and he’s gonna have to pull something slick to leave Lawrence with a victory.
Fresno State is breaking in a new signal-caller, and it’s the son of former NFL quarterback Kurt Warner. E.J. Warner can move the ball up and down the field, but he’s also prone to throwing interceptions.
He’s passed for 8,814 yards, 58 touchdowns, and 37 interceptions in his collegiate career.
Fresno State also returns halfbacks Bryson Donelson and Elijah Gilliam. If Warner and these two don’t establish the offense early, the Bulldogs could get cooked.
Kansas got off to a 2-6 start last year, despite having high expectations. That slow start isn’t gonna happen twice. Jalon Daniels is also back, and he’s been with the Jayhawks for six years.
The Bulldogs lost too much talent, and they’re facing a hungry KU team.
TimeOut doesn’t catch Big Jay.
Final Score: Kansas 35, Fresno State 24
Stanford Cardinal at Hawai’i Rainbow Warriors
Saturday, August 23
4:30 PM PT CBS
This could actually be the game of the day in Week Zero. These teams should prove evenly matched, with the early line switching from Stanford to Hawaii.
The Cardinal enter the contest with a new head coach, a new quarterback, and hopefully a new mindset. Offensively, their inexperience at signal-caller and lack of wideouts figure to hinder them at times.
On defense, Stanford could be decent this year.
New football general manager Andrew Luck, a former Cardinal and NFL star quarterback, has provided a spark.
Hawaii is one of those teams that could be sneaky good this season. In an era ruled by the transfer portal, the Rainbow Warriors return 15 players with experience.
The key to this team, however, should be the play of quarterback Micah Alejado. The ‘Bows return production everywhere else on offense, including two excellent receivers in Nick Cenacle and Pofele Ashlock.
They also get a lot of guys back on defense. The linebacking corps is probably their best unit. Hawaii could really surprise some people this year.
But Stanford has a solid secondary, and Luck has always been a winner.
The Cardinal enjoy their time at the beach.
Final Score: Stanford 20, Hawai’i 17
Writes about football and basketball as a Senior Writer and hosts “The Nick Bartlett Show” for SuperWest Sports.