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Logan • Utah State has been picked to finish sixth in the Mountain West Conference, according to a poll of the league's head coaches which was released Tuesday.
Defending champion Fresno State was first in the preseason balloting. The Bulldogs received eight first-place votes and finished with 64 points. San Diego State finished second with one first-place vote and 57 points.
San Jose State (49), New Mexico (34), UNLV (31), Utah State (28), Colorado State (27), Nevada (26) and Boise State (8) rounded out the voting.
Utah State's sixth-place spot in the preseason poll is its highest since the Aggies joined the Mountain West in 2013-14.
"… We have a lot of unknowns with the new kids we've brought in," USU coach Steve Johnson said. "Certainly we'd love to start out higher but, at the end of the day, the only standings that matter are those at the end of the year."
Utah State opens its season this weekend at Arizona State's Kajikawa Classic in Tempe. The Aggies play six games during the four-day tournament, starting with Virginia and 20th-ranked Arizona on Thursday.
Utah State returns six starters and nine letter-winners from last season, when the Aggies finished 19-36 overall and 11-13 in the Mountain West.
— Steve Luhm