Mountain West Recruiting Roundup 12-15-25. Can MW schools gain an advantage with recruiting graphics?

SB Nation

It’s another week of the Mountain West Recruiting Roundup.

Back in October, we interviewed Parker Titus, who does a lot of graphic edits for recruits when they commit to schools. But Parker isn’t the only

one in the business. We heard from 918 Graphics (@918graphics on social media), who was happy enough to provide us some info as well. They were able to take a different approach on educating us about the profession, choosing to highlight how recruiting graphics can potentially give an advantage to mid-major schools on the recruiting trail.

“Mountain West programs compete nationally for talent. Many recruits come from places that don’t get consistent exposure to the conference. That means the first impression a fanbase or coaching staff makes often happens online — through the athlete’s commitment announcement. And that’s where 918 graphics changes everything. When a Mountain West commit posts a powerful, professional-level edit, it grabs attention instantly. It builds excitement around the athlete and the school, it increases the program’s visibility, it helps the school look more competitive in a crowded recruiting environment, and it resonates with other recruits considering Mountain West offers. Then, recruits who had never looked seriously at that program started engaging with the post because they elevated their brand with a professional, high-energy post.”

While a well put-together graphic may be the most important thing in an announcement, there is also an instant connection that is built by the viewer.

“Most people see a hype graphic as just a cool picture. But it’s also a bit deeper; it can be a psychological tool that influences perception, emotion, and momentum for both the athlete and the school they’re committing to. In the Mountain West, where schools fight for national attention, that psychological impact matters. When I build a graphic for a Mountain West team, it instantly signals strength, builds a visual association with the program, and makes the commitment feel official.”

For programs that are constantly fighting uphill battles, any potential advantage, big or small, is important, Recruiting graphics may be one small way to stand out in recruiting.

Over the past week, recruiting in the Mountain West has been pretty quiet. While a few teams are still scouring the high school ranks, other programs are starting to target transfers. On that note, Hawaii spent the week offering four known transfers, so they appear on the cover photo this week.

Class of 2026 Cover Photo Total:

Boise State: 5
Hawaii: 5
Colorado State: 4
New Mexico: 4
UNLV: 4
Air Force: 3
Fresno State: 3
San Diego State: 3
San Jose State: 3
Wyoming: 3
Nevada: 2

Recruiting Calendar:

Starting today and extending through January 5th, we are in a dead period. This is the most restrictive recruiting period, as no face-t0-face contact of any kind is allowed. As always, coaches can still talk to recruits via phone, text, email, or DM.

Next College Student Athlete says:

The most restrictive of all the recruiting periods is the NCAA Dead Period. During the dead period, coaches may not have any in-person contact with recruits and/or their parents. In other words, coaches are not allowed to talk to recruits at their college campus, the athlete’s school, an athletic camp or even the grocery store.

While the term “dead period” makes it seem like all recruiting stops during this time, that’s actually not the case. Athletes and coaches are still allowed to communicate via phone, email, social media and other digital communication channels. While NCAA Division 1 programs are prohibited from conducting any in-person recruiting, D1 college coaches can still contact student-athletes via digital forms of communication during the dead period.

Air Force Commitment Tracker:

Since the Air Force Academy regularly has by far the most commits among Mountain West recruiting classes, it’s fun to track them over the course of the year.

Number of Falcon verbal commits: 39 signees