RENO, Nev. — Leaving no situation unscrutinized, the Boise State football team already is mulling strategies for the pre-game coin tosses.

"We're going with 'tails,' " said offensive tackle Daryn Colledge, the BSU co-captain who succeeds linebacker Andy Avalos as the team's coin-flip strategist. "Andy chose 'heads' a lot. I was behind him going, 'tails ... tails ... tails ...' He won nine out of 12 times, but when he didn't, I would say, 'Oh, we should have won that one.' "

"Daryn is an I-told-you-so guy," teammate Korey Hall said.

"I'm going with 'tails,' " Colledge said. " 'Tails' is going to have a good year."

It is that obsession to detail that has boosted the Broncos into a level above their Western Athletic Conference opponents. The WAC Football Media Preview was intended to launch the league's reimaging campaign. Instead, it served as reaffirmation of the Broncos' dominance.

The Broncos, members since 2001, have won the past three WAC titles — or one more than Hawai'i has won in 26 seasons. The Broncos have won 26 consecutive WAC games; their last loss came in 2001, when Michelle Wie was a pre-teen.

"They're the team to beat right now," said Fresno State defensive tackle Garrett McIntyre, whose team has lost four in a row to the Broncos. "They're our rival right now. They're everybody's rival. That's my circle game. I get the schedule and I circle the date of the game on my calendar."

Fresno State quarterback Paul Pinegar said: "We've been able to knock off some big-name schools, yet we're not able to knock off Boise State. Until we get a different mentality, they're a better team."

What's most confounding is Boise State appears to be the Team Next Door. Its players don't get drafted nor are they household names other than in their own homes.

"We study the game a lot," Hall said. "Half the teams we go against are good or better than we are. We have a great coaching staff. We go out and pride ourselves on working hard and winning ballgames."

For the second consecutive summer, every player on the active roster remained in Boise for unsupervised workouts.

"Workouts are a chance to push each other even more," Colledge said. "We don't yell or bump heads. We push each other in the weight room. It's, 'Hey, man, you can do more.' ... We've had an amazing run. We've had some great success, but we're still trying to get better. We don't think we've plateaued by any means. We don't think we're at the top. But I'll tell anybody in the press, we'll put our 22 against any 22 in the country and we'll run with it and see what happens."

Here's a look at the WAC:

BOISE STATE BRONCOS

WAC membership: Fifth year, three titles.

Last year: 11-1, 8-0 WAC.

Quick look: On the Boise campus, the largest tome is the Broncos' offensive playbook. There are nearly 900 plays involving scores of sets and motions, turning opposing defensive coordinators into Advil addicts. The Broncos averaged 48.9 points per game last season, second nationally. "We want to make things happen," offensive lineman Daryn Colledge said. "We're not afraid to go for it on fourth-and-6 or throw deep on first-and-10. We're just gripping it and ripping it." The Broncos, who will rotate five running backs and a chorus line of receivers, rely on one quarterback, Jared Zabransky (63-percent efficiency).

Keep an eye on: From his Humble roots — 2003 graduate of Humble High in Humble, Texas — punter/kicker Kyle Stringer is a double threat in two other areas that the Broncos dominate.

Good stat: Broncos have nation's third-best record (54-9, .857) in the 21st Century.

Bad stat: Only one Bronco has been selected in the past three NFL drafts.

Did you know: The Alaskan home town of offensive lineman Daryn Colledge was renamed North Pole in hopes of attracting a toy manufacturer. The company didn't relocate, but North Pole remains "a Christmas-themed place, with candy-caned light poles and a Santa Claus house," Colledge said. "The population is 1,400 in the town limits, but that triples when the elementary school, middle school and high school are in session."

FRESNO STATE BULLDOGS

WAC membership: 14th season, three titles.

Last year: 9-3, 5-3 WAC.

Quick look: Although the Bulldogs had earned national recognition for their success in non-conference games, Pat Hill, in the middle of the 2003 season, decided to reshape the team. FSU started 14 second-year freshmen in the 17-9 victory over UCLA in the 2003 Silicon Valley Football Classic. "We had some young 'Dogs who really wanted to hunt," Hill said. The makeover continued on the offensive line, where Hill figures leaner means meaner. Instead of 320-pound linemen, Hills wants his tackles weighing 270 and guards between 260 and 280. "This offseason has been very intense," Hill said, adding his players "understand how slowly the elevator moves up and how quickly it moves down." With 19 returning starters, including senior quarterback Paul Pinegar, and the host's role against Boise State, the Bulldogs are poised to challenge for the elusive WAC title. "We've got to play every game as a Game 7," Hill said.

Keep an eye on: WAC preseason Player of the Year Garrett McIntyre, who made a quarter of his 46 tackles in the opposing team's backfield. "He's an amazing player," Hill said. "He's just wired differently from most other people."

Good stat: The so-called "Red Mile," the path lined with hecklers leading to Bulldog Stadium's field, has been lengthened because of the completion of the new visiting team's locker room.

Bad stat: The Bulldogs' ticket to the postseason has been the Silicon Valley Classic, where it has played in four of the past five years. The bowl game, like most ventures started in the Silicon boon, is now kaput.

Did you know: According to the FSU media guide, cornerback Marcus McCauley's brothers are Michael and Jordan, and defensive tackle Charles Tolbert's mother is Willie.

HAWAI'I WARRIORS

WAC membership: 27th season, two titles.

Last year: 8-5, 4-4 WAC.

QUICK LOOK: Coach June Jones said the Warriors have been energized by the hiring of former NFL head coach Jerry Glanville as defensive coordinator. Jones said Glanville also will be heavily involved with special teams. "He was one of the best in that area in the NFL," Jones said. Glanville's plans have been scattered in his office. Jones noted that Glanville showed the staff a defensive play he drew up on a discarded pizza box. The Warriors must replace starters at the four receiver positions, but one spot apparently has been filled. Jones praised freshman slotback Davone Bess, who excelled in the 15 days of spring practice.

Keep an eye on: Defensive end Ikaika Alama-Francis, who is expected to emerge as pass-rushing threat.

Good stat: The Warriors averaged a point every 46.2 seconds, the high-scoring ratio in the WAC last season.

Bad stat: Allowed 38.4 points per game, second-worst in the league.

Did you know: Robert Kekaula, analyst for UH football broadcasts, donates a full college scholarship to a UH student each year. Whoops, was that supposed to be a secret?

IDAHO VANDALS

WAC membership: Rookie.

Last year: 3-9, 2-5 Sun Belt.

Quick look: In a charitable gesture that is symbolic of the Vandals' clean-slate approach, coach Nick Holt shaved his head to raise money for the team's summer-school program. The on-campus stadium and Holt's head are now the two most recognizable domes in Moscow, Idaho. "When I first got it, I looked like an egg because I didn't have a tan," he said, smiling. "Now you get a tan and you're naturally good looking, then you can wear any 'do." To be sure, many of his players are sporting peach fuzz. The Vandals played 16 true freshmen last season. A full year of recruiting — Holt was hired less than two months before the 2004 signing period — has improved the competition, including at quarterback, where Michael Harrington (younger brother of the Detroit Lions' Joey Harrington) is being challenged by Steven Wichman, a transfer from Delta College.

Keep an eye on: Running back Jayson Bird, who rushed for 859 yards (5.7 yards per carry) in nine games as a freshman last season.

Good stat: After playing 12 consecutive weeks last season, the Vandals have a nine-day break in September and a bye in November.

Bad stat: The Vandals relinquished 39 points per game last season.

Did you know: The Vandals earned the handle in 1917, when a sportswriter noted that Hec Edmundson's basketball team "vandalized" opponents with its defense.

LOUISIANA TECH BULLDOGS

WAC membership: Fifth season, one title.

Last year: 6-6, 5-3 WAC.

Quick look: Coach Jack Bicknell is seeking a compromise between last season's running attack featuring Ryan Moats and the Luke McCown-inspired passing schemes of two years ago. With defenses cramping as many as nine tacklers near the line of scrimmage against Moats, Bicknell recalled thinking, "There were times we kept saying, 'We can't keep doing this.' " The offense will be settled when Bicknell decides between senior quarterbacks Matt Kubik and Donald Allen. Until then, the Bulldogs have a functional replacement for Moats and an experienced offensive line. Randy Bates was promoted to defensive coordinator, succeeding Tim Rose, who went to Toledo.

Keep an eye on: Sophomore wideout Jonathan Holland, who ran 100 meters in 10.26 seconds at the Texas Relays. He averaged 22.2 yards per catch last season.

Good stat: There are 13 offensive linemen on scholarship.

Bad stat: Of the Bulldogs' three tight ends last season, two completed their eligibility and injured Anthony James missed spring practice.

Did you know: Freshman running back Joshua Lewis is the son of Timmy Smith, a former Washington Redskin who ran for a record 204 yards against the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXII.

NEVADA WOLF PACK

WAC membership: Sixth season, no titles.

Last year: 5-7, 3-5 WAC.

Quick look: At age 23, Chris Ault became the youngest high school head coach in Nevada history. At 55, he was named to the NFL's College Hall of Fame. Last year, at 57, he resigned as the Pack's athletic director to return to coaching. At 58, he's starting all over again. He redesigned the defense, going with four down linemen and assigning two full-time coaches to the secondary, and implementing the "Pistol" offense. A hybrid of the shotgun, in the pistol, the quarterback is aligned with his heels 4 yards from the line of scrimmage — a shotgun passer is 5 yards back — and the running back is directly behind, in an I formation. The strategy, partly inspired by Florida coach Urban Meyer, gives the tailback a running start and quarterback Jeff Rowe a better view of the defense. Ault said he was "humbled" by last season's results. If "you learn more from your failures than your successes," Ault said, "you're looking at a genius."

Keep an eye on: J.J. Milan, who moves from defensive end (where he made 4.5 sacks last season) to outside linebacker.

Good stat: Last season "we played guys my size" at linebacker, the 5-foot-7 Ault said. This year's average starting linebacker is 6 feet 1 and 240 pounds.

Bad stat: The Pack was ranked No. 106 in run defense last season. "When you're 106th against the run, you're a bad defense," Ault said.

Did you know: Offensive lineman Dain Lutz won his age group at the 2003 World Taekwondo Championships.

NEW MEXICO STATE AGGIES

WAC membership: Rookie.

Last year: 5-6, 4-3 Sun Belt.

Quick look: The arrival of pass master Hal Mumme (pronounced Mummy) is tempered by survivor's guilt. "I feel it's our fault the old coaching staff was dismissed," linebacker Jimmy Cottrell said. "We underachieved for a while, always shooting ourselves in the foot, settling for second place. But that's college football. With this change, we'll be better. Change is good." Mumme has hit the air gunning, installing a spread passing attack that has the same genetic code as Hawai'i's four-wide offense. The personnel is still sketchy, but Mumme's intent isn't. In the spring game, juniors Joey Vincent and Royal Gill combined to throw 81 passes (with one interception). Mumme said he will pick a starting quarterback in training camp. "We don't like splitting up reps," he said. "I'm not a guy who can coach two quarterbacks at a time." The best receiver could be last year's backup quarterback, Paul Dombrowski.

Keep an eye on: Right guard Nick Cole, will attempt to increase his bench press by 10 pounds, to 500, this week. He also can squat lift 650 pounds. Most impressive is that he is lifting well after shattering the bones in his right hand a year ago. "I set off metal detectors in airports," he said.

Good stat: In his first season at Kentucky, Mumme improved the offense from 109th nationally to sixth.

Bad stat: To improve relationships with fans, Mumme drove from town to town for eight consecutive days. "New Mexico is a great state, but there's a lot of distance between the great people."

Did you know: New Mexico State does not use an offensive playbook.

SAN JOSE STATE SPARTANS

WAC membership: 10th season, no titles.

Last year: 2-9, 1-7 WAC.

Quick look: The man with the most WAC experience — Dick Tomey — returns 20 years after leaving UH (and the league) to become Arizona's head coach. "I'm probably more excited than I've ever been," Tomey said. "I can't wait to play." Tomey will implement his trademark Desert Swarm defense, his variation of the West Coast offense (coordinated by former UH assistant Ken Margerum) and no-idle practices. "He's a perfectionist," defensive tackle Kinji Green said. "He wants everything perfect from the first stretch to the last play. We were all excited on that first day of spring ball and we were all tired after that first day of spring ball. He didn't care it was the first day. He wanted us to be perfect."

Keep an eye on: Wideout Rufus Skillern, the Spartans' only returning All-WAC player in 2004. During his career, he averaged a reception of 30 yards or longer every 6.8 plays.

Good stat: Tomey is the winningest Division I-A coach in UH and University of Arizona history.

Bad stat: He did not win a league title in 24 years at both schools.

Did you know: Safety Brian Nunez and two former teammates own a window-cleaning business.

UTAH STATE AGGIES

WAC membership: Rookie.

LAST YEAR: 3-8, 2-5 SUN BELT

Quick look: Motivation comes in many forms, and for the Aggies, the rallying cry is: "Beat Nicholls State." The Aggies have not won a home opener since 1996, the last time they finished above .500. Or, as new coach Brent Guy noted, "We have 16 seniors who never had a winning record." Guy, whose background is in defense, will yield the game-day decisions to defensive coordinator Mark Johnson. The Aggies also switch from a 3-4 defensive to a 4-3. Spring practice did not resolve the competition between quarterbacks Leon Jackson and Eric Sobolewski, but whoever emerges as the starter will need to be durable. Guy wants the quarterback to average 15 to 20 carries per game.

Keep an eye on: Multi-tasker Matt Wiser, the starting middle linebacker who also has been used as a kick returner and deep snapper.

Good stat: Four of the Aggies' first five opponents were a combined 12-32 last season.

Bad stat: The Aggies have 75 scholarship players, 10 below the NCAA limit.

Did you know: Linebacker Josh Anderson is a beekeeper.