Duh: Kellen Moore WAC Freshman of the Year

Yes WAC, you get 3 more years of this.

The All-WAC selections were announced today and the list has a heavy blue and orange tint.

The "duh" awards:
WAC Coach of the Year—Chris Petersen
WAC Freshman of the Year—Kellen Moore

1st Team Offense:
WR Jeremy Childs
OL Andrew Woodruff

1st Team Defense:
DE Ryan Winterswyk
S Ellis Powers
DB Kyle Wilson

2nd Team Offense:
WR Austin Pettis
QB Kellen Moore
RB Ian Johnson

2nd Team Defense:
DE Mike T. Williams
S Jeron Johnson

2nd Team Specialists:
PR Kyle Wilson (2nd team?)

Colin Kaepernick received Offensive Player of the Year honors and first team QB honors...no qualms with the OPOTY award, but I think they're being awful fast and loose with the term "quarterback" when Kaepernick is involved. Here's what I mean: Colin Kaepernick threw for 2,479 yards this season, completing 54% of his passes for 19 TDs and 5 INTS. Conversely, Kellen Moore threw for 3,264 yards this season, completing 70% of his passes for 25 TDs and 9 INTs. Which was the better "quarterback"? You tell me. Kaepernick is certainly a dangerous offensive weapon and deserves the offensive accolades, but if this is how we're judging excellence at the quarterback position, Kellen Moore can look forward to two more years as 2nd team WAC QB, even though he'll likely be a national leader in TDs and efficiency. Nice.

Hard to believe, but this will be coach Pete's first Coach of the Year award...he was famously snubbed for the honor in 2006, though he led the team to a 13-0 record and snared the Bear Bryant award. Thankfully, June Jones is now gone and there is no more butt for Hal Mumme to kiss in his absence.

I think it is also worth noting that preseason WAC favorite Fresno State (who you may remember got demolished by Boise State on Friday) placed but one player on a WAC first team (OL Bobby Lepori)

All-WAC Honors
Boise State 2008 Team Awards

Bronco Nation Podcast 11-18-08

Boy, I hope you like the sound of Jadon Dailey's voice...cuz he came in with some pretty epic analysis last night and showed why he's going places in the industry. We break down the Idaho game and the hammer "controversy", Byron Hout and his POTW hardware, and talk each other down over the Nevada game on Saturday.Make sure to listen towards the end when JT basically says that I suck.

 The Bronco Nation Podcast - 10 Years of Whoopins: Hide Player | Play in Popup | Download

Swamped!

Is this the "Boston Crab" or the "Sharp Shooter"?

The preceding headline not only describes the Wednesday night beating that the Broncos delivered on ESPN, but also the reason that I did not post on the game yesterday...just swamped.

Kellen Moore is mortal...he threw an ugly pick on the opening series midway through what looked to be a long scoring drive. Whether Kellen misread the play or his receiver was in the wrong place...it was ugly. In typical fashion, however, Kellen was unfazed on the next drive and led the Broncos on a 80+ yard scoring march. Truthfully, Kellen didn't really make another error in the game finishing 20 of 28 for 325 yards and 2 TDs. If you want a tiny bit of perspective on the freshman signal caller, consider this: through 4 games last season, 5th year senior Taylor Tharp (who had a very solid year) had 5 TDs and 4 INTs and had completed 63% of his passes for 958 yards. The kid, Kellen Moore, through 4 games this year has 7 TDs and 2 INTs, while completing 72% of his passes for 1165 yards. Mull that over for a while...and savor the flavor.

The running game is going nowhere...but fast! The run game really never took off on Wednesday, but it didn't get much of a chance...IJ and DJ only ran the ball 9 times apiece. Harper scored two rushing TDs (both in the redzone) and Titus Young scored on a 15-yard scamper. The ballgame was really put out of reach for the Bulldogs, however, when Kellen Moore decided to use our largely ineffective running backs as receivers. Now, I don't know if this was a direct reaction to Louisiana Tech's defensive adjustments or if Kellen Moore decided to improvise—either way—it blew the game open and notched Ian Johnson a ridiculous 106 receiving yards on only 3 receptions.

The trickeration made a special guest appearance on Wednesday under ESPN's bright lights as Chris O'neill scored on a 44 yard pass from Kellen Moore, Vinny Perretta and Kellen Moore. Personally, I would've preferred to see a couple of more laterals on that play...something along the lines of: pitch to Perretta who hands off to Titus Young on a reverse...Young then flips the ball over his shoulder to Kellen Moore (who was lying prone on the field, feigning a twisted ankle)...Moore then gives the ball to Ian Johnson, who punts the ball to Perretta...back to Moore...THEN to O'Neill. These guys just don't "get" real theatrics.

Once again, the "D" was solid...allowing La Tech to flirt with the endzone, but never score. A few blemishes on the night for the D (big plays)...but they didn't break and, unlike last year, didn't allow big plays to kill them or their momentum. The defense and butterfingers allowed Bulldog QB Taylor Bennett to only complete 33% of his passes. If the defense continues their stellar play, the offense will have time to find their rhythm (they stalled on several drives) and learn to run-block (how can Kellen have 3 minutes to throw, but Ian has to try to squeeze through a 6-inch hole?)

38-3 ain't half bad. Kansas "only" beat La Tech by 29.

Another excruciating half bye week lies ahead and then on to Hattiesburg to play the Golden Eagles of Southern Miss.

Want highlights?


A much timelier review of the action over at Statueleft's blog.

Kevan divvies up game balls.

Photo by Greg Kreller/IPT

Know your enemy (for this week, anyway)

"Go OUIALST!"

Boise State will open up their WAC schedule this Wednesday when the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs come to town. The Broncos are coming off a HUGE win at Autzen Stadium against the Oregon Ducks while the Bulldogs took care of business against Southeast Louisiana in their last contest. Most fans, like me, know little about Louisiana Tech and lil ole Ruston, LA. Needless to say, there is a lot to be learned about this week's foe (don't worry, Kellen Moore already knows their defense intimately)...so let's explore through the magic of factoids and childish jokes. For the mutual benefit of the Bulldog faithful, I will let you get to know us a little bit too...so take notes.

Ten things Bronco fans might not know about Louisiana Tech

10. Louisiana Tech University was created and founded by Act 68 of the Acts of the State of Louisiana of 1894, established "for the education of the white children of the State of Louisiana in the arts and sciences". Don't worry...they integrated in 1965.

9. Louisiana Tech offered the first Nanosystems Engineering program in the nation. If your Nanosystems need a tune-up...you know where to go.

8. Louisiana Tech is not the only school located in tiny Ruston, LA—the Louisiana Center for the Blind is there, too. Insert referee joke ---->here.

7. Country music singer Trace Adkins is a Louisiana Tech alum—as is Terry Bradshaw, who you may also best remember as a country singer.

6. Louisiana Tech is one of only 3 current WAC members to have beaten Boise State in football (in 2001). You will pay for this transgression, Derek Dooley...you will pay.

5. Louisiana Tech quarterback Taylor Bennett once famously committed to play for Boise State before turning tail and running to Georgia Tech. This weekend he will get to play on the blue and will also be playing the role of lunch meat with Ryan Winterswyk and Mike T. Williams reprising their roles as "the bread".

4. Current Tech coach Derek Dooley practiced law for two years before becoming a coach—this means that he not only examines game film...but also cross-examines it.

3. Coach Dooley is the son of legendary Georgia coach and Athletic Director Vince Dooley...the man responsible for unleashing Herschel Walker on the world.

2. There are currently 5 active NFL players that played for Louisiana Tech...2 of them are kickers (Josh Scobee and Matt Stover). Good news, Brad Oestriecher!

1. Louisiana Tech has an all-time win percentage of 55% and have won 23 conference championships since 1915. Most of the Dogs' championships were won in the Southland Conference of the FCS and the Gulf States Conference of the NAIA. The Bulldogs won divisonal national championships in '73 and '74. For a team with barely over .500 lifetime record...I would say that these accomplishments are pretty darn impressive, no?

Ten things Louisiana Tech fans might not know about Boise State

10. Dr. Robert Kustra, Boise State University president, is the former Lieutenant Governor of Illinois. Who says that a Lt. Governor can't be president?

9. Troy McClain, a cast member on the first season of The Apprentice, was offered a full-ride scholarship to any school of his choice by Donald Trump. McClain chose Boise State. Eat that, Harvard!

8. According to an antiquated and bizarre statute...it is illegal for residents of Boise to fish from a giraffe's back. Dang, there goes my afternoon.

7. The school record of 732 yards of offense in one game came against...wait for it...the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs in 2003. Pssh...Kellen Moore could do that all by himself!

6. Earl Boen, who played Dr. Silberman in Terminator 2, attended Boise State. We so totally own Louisiana Tech in the B-list actor department.

5. Once upon a time the land on which most of Boise State's campus sits was an island. Its most famous resident was Sage Brush Ann (also known as Tarpaper Annie), who lived alone in a modest tarpaper shack. I got nothin'...this one speaks for itself.

4. A ghost named "Dinah" is said to haunt Boise State's Communication Building, that was built in 1941. This is extremely relevant, because after Wednesday's game, Jeron Johnson is going to haunt Taylor Bennett fortnightly.

3. The father of Boise State football, Lyle Smith, compiled a record of 156-26-8 in his time as head coach. The Broncos had 5 undefeated seasons under Smith as well as 16 conference titles and a national championship. Smith also coached the baseball team for 17 years and the basketball team for one season. Smith once raced Superman and won by 2-tenths of a second.

2. The attendance record (32,335) for Bronco Stadium was set two weeks ago when Bowling Green came to town. See mom, I told you I'd be in the record books one day.

1. Bronco safety Ellis Powers and Bronco wide receiver Jeremy Childs are cousins. Kellen Moore's cousin? Chuck Norris.

There...now we all know each other better—and knowing is half the battle.

I am legend

Photo by Joe Jaszewski/Statesman

The kids are alright. Boise State played exactly how they needed to and the Bronco coaching staff put together a brilliant game plan to beat the Ducks and send monkeys flying off the collective backs of this young, but talented squad.

Autzen was plenty loud at times on Saturday (just ask my ruptured eardrums), but at other times was as quiet as a funeral when Boise State reeled off 24 unanswered points to put the Ducks on the ropes. Oregon was able to mount a furious comeback in the 4th quarter due to some deft passing by frosh Darren Thomas, a fumble by the Broncos and some painful 15-yard penalties...but it was all too little and much too late as the boys in blue (white) notched the first true BCS road win for the program and the first non-BCS win at Autzen in 14 years. Needless to say, we couldn't have been happier as we loaded the shuttles back to the Thurston High parking lot.

The crappiness of the Oregon fans was greatly exaggerated as we found them by and large to be very gracious and complimentary of the Bronco program. Most Duck fans were bummed at the outcome, but shook hands with us as we left Autzen and praised the scrappy Broncos and the unflappable Kellen Moore.

Only upon returning home did I see some unfortunate comments and allegations of dirty play by the Broncos. Unfortunately, I think that OSN's own commentators fed these claims that the Broncos were playing dirty regarding the Ellis Powers and Jeron Johnson hits. Ok...I was at the game and saw these plays from a very good vantage point and their subsequent replays on DuckVision (or whatever it's called). Ellis Powers was rightly flagged for roughing the passer as he laid a good smack on Masoli after he had released the ball, but this hit was not as egregious as some revisionist Duck homers are making it. The ball had scarcely been released and Powers was barreling full steam unabated toward Masoli and he popped him...it wasn't after the whistle or even close to the 3 seconds that some time-perception-challenged Duck fans contend. Roughing the passer...he got flagged...get over it. The Jeron Johnson hit may have been even less of an infraction than Powers', but I think he was on the receiving end of some payback by the refs. Remember, in the 4th quarter, Darren Thomas had come in and orchestrated some quick passing TDs and Ed Dickson was making the Bronco secondary pay, grabbing some big gainers over the middle...he went for a high pass over the middle (he eyed the ball the whole way and was leaping for the ball) and Jeron Johnson did like any Safety would've and played the receiver, not the ball. Dickson got crushed by Johnson, but Johnson was called (and ejected) for "targeting a defenseless player"—Is any tightend running at mid-field with his eye on the ball in a "defensive" position? Of course he was defenseless, he wasn't looking at the defender, but rather, the ball...the defender (Johnson) was looking at the player and gave him a shot. Fine with the flag...not with the ejection. Neither player had malicious intent, but both may be guilty of an error in judgement. End of story.

Kellen Moore looked stone cold. The Autzen noise levels are not exaggerated...it is ridiculously loud at times, but I didn't see one false start by the Broncos. Very impressive. Moore bounced back immediately from a tip-ball interception and engineered a great drive...he finished the day 24-36 and threw for almost 400 yards on a Duck secondary that was supposed to be one of the best in the nation. Kellen Moore is something very special...we are all starting to see that now. I am going to predict right now that Kellen Moore will win the Offensive Player of the Year award in the WAC. Heck, while I'm at it, I will predict that Jeron Johnson, not Solomon Elimimian, will win Defensive Player of the Year honors too. This team may just be scary good...and much sooner than a lot of people think.

Here are the players that I was extremely impressed with on Saturday:

Kellen Moore—duh...he was Walter Camp NPOTW good
Billy Winn—reminds me an awful lot of Alex Guerrero...and he's just a frosh
Mike T. Williams—played like a beast all game long
Jeremy Childs—the only way to describe some of his catches would be "miraculous"
Austin Pettis—can't think of a better guy to field an onside kick
Vinny Perretta—forget the long TD...he literally risked his neck to get a critical first down...we don't blame you for not holding on Vinny...hope you're feeling better
Kyle Wilson—we've known it for a while...kid's a baller
Brandyn Thompson—amazingly athletic interception
Jeron Johnson—we know your not a dirty player, JJ...but lordy, can that kid hit
O-line—run blocking be damned...keep pass blocking like you have been and Kellen Moore can pick apart any defense

On a final note...I didn't think that Saturday could've gotten much better. I was wrong.

Know your enemy (for this week, anyway)

Boise State will have their hands full this weekend in Eugene, OR when they have their first-ever (hard to believe) tussle with the Ducks. The Ducks survived a double overtime game against Purdue last weekend whilst the Broncos beat the Bowling Green Falcons. Most fans, like me, know little about the University of Oregon outside of Dennis Dixon, Mike Belotti and all that Nike moolah. Needless to say, there is a lot to be learned about our week 4 foe (don't worry, Kellen Moore already knows their defense intimately)...so let's explore through the magic of factoids and childish jokes. For the mutual benefit of the Duck faithful, I will let you get to know us a little bit too...so take notes.

Ten things Bronco fans might not know about the University of Oregon

10. The University of Oregon has been playing football since 1894. It would have been cool to see all those Dayglo Nike leather helmets, huh?

9. The Ducks, while enjoying great success as of late under coach Mike Belotti, have only won 52% of their football games all-time. The Broncos are hovering around 70%...neener neener.

8. The University of Oregon has won 7 conference championships since 1919 and are 52-3 against the University of Idaho. That last bit wasn't really related, but I thought it was hilarious.

7. The Ducks football venue, Autzen Stadium, is named after it's chief financial contributor and lumberman Thomas J. Autzen...an Oregon State alum.

6. Oregon's first home game at Autzen Stadium was a 17-13 loss to Colorado in 1967—their first win at Autzen? A 31-6 victory over, you guessed it, Idaho (it was the only home victory that year for Oregon)

5. David Ogden Stiers, who played Winchester on M*A*S*H, attended the University of Oregon as did Ann Curry, current host of The Today Show. Also: a lot of hippies.

4. Nike founder and CEO Phil Knight is a University of Oregon alum and remains a huge donor. He enlisted a Portland State University student to design the famous Nike "swoosh" logo...she was paid $35 for her effort.

3. The Oregon Country Fair is held every year in Veneta, Oregon about 15 miles outside of Eugene. Boasting an attendance of over 45,000, it is a great place to hear folk rock, jazz and slam poetry...it is also a great place to see a naked hippie playing a cello.

2. During half-time of the 2002 game against Stanford, the Donald Duck-like Oregon mascot hatched a terrifying and extremely ill-advised roundhouse-kicking new mascot known affectionately as "Robo Duck". Wow...just wow.

1. The cult-hit comedy Animal House was shot on and around the University of Oregon's campus. They say that John Belushi's ghost still haunts the Lillis Business Complex

Ten things that Duck fans might not know about Boise State University

10. Boise State started out as a junior college in 1932 and became 4-year Boise College in 1968. Hal Zimmerman was the starting QB for BJC in 1967 and in 1968 was the starter for Boise College. How many can make that claim?

9. The first U.S. commercial air flight was an airmail flight in 1926 from Pasco, Wash., to Boise on Varney Air Lines, predecessor of United Airlines. The dirt landing strip was where Bronco Stadium is now. Prior to the campus being built, it was Boise's first airport...and before that: a landfill.

8. Boise State offers the nation's only masters of science in Raptor Biology. We're assuming, the kind from Jurassic Park.

7. Boise State's mascot, Buster Bronco shares his name with Western Michigan's mascot. Extra fun fact: Did you know that Idaho's "Joe Vandal" is the first openly gay mascot in the NCAA? Talk about progressive!

6. Boise State's legendary coach, Lyle Smith was an amazing 153-25-6 at the helm of the Bronco program from 1947-1967. He could still beat you in arm wrestling too.

5. Prior Boise State's coaches that have gone on to not be as successful at their next school: Houston Nutt, Dirk Koetter, and Dan Hawkins (this ain't intramurals, Dan).

4. Boise State's famous Statue of Liberty play that they used to defeat Oklahoma in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl (or at least their particular version)was notoriously RIPPED OFF by none other than the Oregon Ducks when they played in Ann Arbor last season.

3. Current Defensive Coordinator, Justin Wilcox, is an Oregon alum who played for the Ducks from 1995 to 1999. His father, Dave Wilcox is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame...and played his college ball for Boise State...and Oregon.

2. Boise State head coach, Chris Petersen, is 25-3 as the Broncos' head honcho...he won Bear Bryant coach of the year honors in 2006 and was nominated several times prior to that for the Frank Broyles award...given to the nation's best offensive coordinator. Petersen played college ball at UC Davis, as did Oregon HC Mike Belotti. Petersen served as Belotti's wide receivers coach at Oregon from 1995 to 2000.

1. Boise State, since moving to Division 1-A in 1996, has been one of the most successful teams in the nation...but still have not won a road game against a BCS opponent. *Sigh*

Well, now you know some things about your foe, Ducks and Broncos...and knowing is half the battle.

A win's a win...

Photo by IPT/Greg Kreller

While the Boise State win on Saturday may not have set the nation abuzz like, say, Missouri's demolition of Nevada or BYU's ridiculous beatdown of UCLA, it was not without it's merits. Boise State played a pretty good Bowling Green team and dominated them... far more than the final score indicated.

The Boise State defense was on their game once again, swarming to the ball, pressuring the QB and locking down receivers. The Bronco defense definitely look like they have largely fixed the mistakes of last season and have only given up 7 points in the first two contests of the year. If I were to pick a low point of the game for the D it would be getting fooled on a 4th and goal were the Falcon receiver got it way too easy. Of course, another low point could be that the Falcons were even that close to the endzone anyway after the Bronco D allowed Bowling Green into the redzone following a pass interference call on 3rd and long. The call looked a little suspect, but nonetheless. The Broncos collected 3 turnovers on Saturday and will need to maintain that level of production in Eugene this weekend. Ellis Powers played like a man possessed, Jeron Johnson continued his torrid pace, and Ryan Winterswyk was back in action (though somewhat quiet on the evening). Billy Winn looks like he will be hard to keep off the field as he made his presence known several times during the game. Derrell "hard luck" Acrey was injured in the game...no telling how bad (thanks, Augusto).

The Bronco offense was the other big story from Saturday night. They came out with their hair on fire behind an 11 for 11 start by Kellen Moore. The Broncos were spreading the ball well, flummoxing the Falcon defense en route to a 20-0 halftime score. Then the second half happened. No telling exactly what the issue was, but the Broncos seemed to be flat and confused and did not score again on the night. Thankfully, the Bronco defense was on top of things allowing only one Falcon score in the 4th quarter of play...but clearly, the Bronco offense will need a MUCH better performance at Autzen. The offense in the second half seemed far too cutesy and far too sloppy. Drives were killed by penalties, drops and abandoning a run game that had been very productive in the first half. Also slowing the Bronco offense a bit was the absence of Titus Young, who was serving a (hopefully) one game suspension. Young's ability to stretch the field was sorely missed as the Falcons took away the dink and dunk passing game that Moore had exploited in the first half. The Falcons offense was also on the field longer in the second half which kept the Bronco offense from getting much rhythm back. The sour taste that many felt after the game was certainly due to the yawn-inducing second half offensive effort...the only real detractor of the evening.

The bottom line is that the Bronco offense needs to keep pace with the defense. The defense has been showing an intensity and focus that I haven't seen since 2006 (so far), and the offense, though young, needs to match it. The playcalling has been okay and Moore has run the offense incredibly well for a frosh...but the Bronco receivers need to gain the confidence of Moore and the Bronco run game needs to pick up the production a bit. The O-line play was actually a pleasant surprise...they kept Moore relatively safe and opened some decent running lanes. Mentally, the O-line has a little ways to go. All in all, a very dominant game by the Broncos...they shut down the vaunted spread offense of the Falcons and showed that they can score at will...unfortunately their will was missing in Saturday's second half. We'll give them a 2-quarter mulligan this time...but things need to be fixed by Saturday...you already know that.

Grades
Offense—which quarter?
Defense—A-
Special Teams—B (you can't run into the kicker, IJ)
Derrell Acrey's injury—D
Titus Young's absence—F
Idaho losing to WMU—A+

Get Noisy, Boise

Understanding that this headline reinforces the improper pronunciation of the name of our fair city—it still serves as a public notice to Bronco fans who plan on attending tomorrow night's game. In 2005, the Bowling Green Falcons made the trip from Ohio only to be buried 48-20 by the Broncos. The Falcons had highly-touted QB Omar Jacobs and a scary spread offense that had nearly beaten Wisconsin the week prior...and they had the no-huddle. The no-huddle doesn't work in Bronco Stadium (at least for visitors)...and the Falcons still run it. Remember last year's win over a no-huddling Wyoming team that had coach Joe Glenn claiming that the Broncos were illegally "piping in" crowd noise to throw them off their game? Well, Bronco fans now know that Joe Glenn was/is nuttier than a fruitcake and no crowd noise was actually being pumped in, but we certainly don't blame Glenn for thinking that—the stadium was a-rockin' and the no-huddle wasn't a-knockin'...on the door....of the endzone...ahh forget it. My point is that the no-huddle offense (which the Broncos are fiddling with this season) didn't work for Wyoming in Bronco Stadium last season and it certainly didn't work for Bowling Green in 2005—stands to reason that we should get a little loud tomorrow night, eh? Who's with me?

Now seems like a good time to reinforce some fundamentals of stadium noise-making.



Catch the fever.

Oversimplification

The Bowling Green Falcons will roll into town in a couple of days to take on the Broncos. The Falcons are coming off a tough home loss at the hands of Minnesota and prior to that a nice win over sorta-ranked Pitt. Conversely, the Broncos are coming off a half-hearted drubbing of the Idaho State Bengals and an excruciating bye week. It's safe to say that neither team knows exactly what to expect come Saturday. How will Boise State's young team respond to a veteran squad? Will BSU's O-line really be fine? Is Minnesota as terrible as they were last year? We just don't really know these answers, but one thing is clear: Boise State knows a lot more about Bowling Green than their team knows about Boise State. Let's look at the following examples...

Falcon Five-O
It's no surprise that what doomed Bowling Green against Minnesota last week were the turnovers...the Falcons had 5. Certainly, they had the Gophers right where they wanted them, but gave the ball away far too many times. However, insiders in the program appear to believe that a) Minnesota can be compared favorably to Boise State, and b) playing in Boise is something akin to playing at home against a weak Big Ten team. I believe this to be true because of the following head scratcher of a comment from BGSU coach Gregg Brandon:

"If ['5'] happens we're going to lose, probably," Brandon said. "If ['0'] happens, we'll win. We have a great chance."

Oversimplification? So...if the Falcons have 5 turnovers they will lose "probably"...I'd say "definitely". Also, coach Brandon also seems to think that if the Falcons have 0 turnovers they will win. Well, coach...you certainly will have a better shot at winning, but let's not mince words here—Boise State is FAR superior to Minnesota and Pitt offensively, and I think your defense may have to factor into this one too. It will not only take 0 turnovers offensively for the Falcons, but some takeaways by the defense because if you leave the Bronco offense on the field, they will score.

It ain't the uniforms
Bowling Green defensive end Diyral Briggs thinks the Falcons are in for a test. Why? Well because of our jerseys, of course!

"I think it's an advantage," Briggs said. "I went up there my redshirt sophomore year. It was pretty tough to play in there. They got the crowd behind them, and having the blue turf and the blue jerseys, it definitely gives them an advantage."

Oversimplification again? Bingo. The Broncos are also pretty good on the road, Diyral...if it were the jerseys that made the Broncos so good wouldn't Marshall, USF, Oregon, and others have the same "advantage"? I think disciplined football, few errors, good coaching and gameplan, high powered offense and defense factor in as well. I'm just joking...it's the uniforms.

I would welcome Bowling Green players and coaches to believe that they can put up a similar effort against the Broncos that they did against Pitt and Minnesota (sans turnovers) and come away with a win. The Broncos aren't 59-2 since 1999 on the blue for no reason (jerseys, remember?) and have had a bye week to prepare some crazy offensive and clean up any sloppy defensive play. Might want to keep in mind that Boise State is incorporating the no-huddle this year as well, and while the Bowling Green defense sees their own version of the no-huddle all the time...they haven't seen the Broncos run it and it will keep them guessing with the personnel sets that BSU is constantly rotating in and out. If the Falcons can get to Kellen Moore early and often and force the Broncos to run behind their young O-line, they might have a chance to slow the offense a bit—even then, Ian Johnson, Jeremy Avery, Doug Martin and DJ Harper don't need huge holes to run through. Of course, the Falcons are going to have to answer with some offense of their own—how's that for oversimplification?

Jeron Johnson's felonious assault

I've been warning people since last season—Jeron Johnson is going to kill somebody. No one listened...people shrugged it off, but I kept repeating my warnings. The sophomore safety has been incredible for the Broncos in his short tenure here...but seems to have a disregard for his own body and a disdain for the bodies of opponents. Witness the following evidence and I defy you to tell me that Jeron Johnson isn't a bad, bad man.

Russell Hill was courageous to take the field again after this hit...it left him with a bloodied nose (most likely due to whiplash). I fear we may witness Jeron snapping someone in half before the year is out, heck, it may be this Saturday against Bowling Green. We're all going to be accessories.

Thanks to JT for finally getting this vicious hit online.

Like this...except opposite.

For all of the Bronco games this season—I will be doing in-depth unit breakdowns, gameplans and player profiles for the opposing teams. That said...do I really need to do this for the Idaho State game? I'm not being lazy or anything, I just am not sure what angle to take on this. Sure, the coaching staff and players are giving Idaho State the Lou Holtz treatment in the media...but this game just really will not be close...if it is, we are in serious trouble. No matter...here is my best half-assed shot at it.

Ok, here goes...
Boise State has arguably the best stable of running backs in the west. Ian Johnson is a Doak Walker nominee, finished 8th in Heisman balloting in 2006 and is coming off back to back 1,000+ yard seasons. Jeremy Avery can flip a light switch and be in bed before the room goes dark. DJ Harper torched Fresno State last year and by all accounts is a much badder man this year. Doug Martin was the scout team player of the year when he redshirted last season and looks like he could run, Incredible Hulk-style, through a barrage of M-1 Tank fire.

Boise State also has an extremely talented group of wide receivers. Titus Young and Austin Pettis return for their sophomore seasons after playing as true freshman last year and combined for 11 TDS. Vinny Perretta is back for his senior season after missing most of '07 with a shoulder injury. Perretta has lit up the Broncos Defense in fall camp.

Kellen Moore, a freshman, is the most decorated QB in Washington State history. He wrestled the starting job away from a 5th year senior. He may possess miraculous healing powers.

Idaho State did not place a single defensive player on the All Big-Sky first OR second team last season.

ADVANTAGE—Boise State (small silver lining for the Bengals: Jeremy Childs will not be playing)

Go for 3
Ryan Winterswyk is a bad, bad man. Mike T. Williams is too. Linebackers Kyle Gingg, Derrell Acrey, Tim Brady and Dallas Dobbs are playing like their hair is on fire after a not-so-hot 2007. Redshirt Freshman LB Aaron Tevis has been drawing raves from about everyone in town. Jarrell Root and Billy Winn are no longer redshirting. Kyle Wilson is a potential first team All-WAC pick at DB and sophomore Brandyn Thompson has been impressive this fall. SafetyJeron Johnson wants, very badly, to remove an opponents head on any given play and Jason Robinson has benefitted from the tutelage of Marty Tadman.

Idaho State placed one returning player on an All Big Sky team last season...WR Eddie Thompson.

ADVANTAGE—Boise State (Eddie Thompson will have 0 to 2 catches tomorrow evening)

Blah
If you couldn't tell from my informal style and sentence fragments...this game should be a yawner. Hopefully it will afford our guys an opportunity to get some game time experience in...gel a little bit and then carry that momentum into the rest of their schedule. Boise State will roll in this game 52-3 and I will commence writing actual game previews from here on out.

Cupcakes are good...

Though this weekend's opener lacks the drama or uncertainty that the rest of the Broncos' slate offers...there's no reason to get down about it. Most Bronco fans are just happy that real life football is due to be played at Bronco stadium in only a few short days. But maybe there is more intrigue in this matchup than meets the eye. Just look!

Records will fall
Not only will this Saturday's game be the first start for a Freshman ever in an opener, but for a couple of weeks at least it will be the largest crowd ever to witness a game on the blue turf. The Stueckle Sky Club, Loge boxes and other stadium upgrades will allow for over 32,000 Bronco butts in the seats. No word yet if the Guinness folks will be on hand.

Payback time
The Broncos have played the Bengals 29 times in school history—winning 23. It's finally payback time for the 6 losses to the Bengals. You're gonna pay Zamberlin...you're gonna pay.

Swike streak begins
As the season progresses, I am going to run a graphic showing all of the opposing QBs to get "swiked" by sophomore DE Ryan Winterswyk. No place like Russell Hill to start.

Barbeque scrimmage
You wouldn't want to waste your best tailgating on a 1-AA opponent, would you? Think of this Saturday's game as a tailgate scrimmage so your smokers and chip dips can get into mid-season form before the Falcons come to town.

Bob Behler's coming out party
Think of this as Bob Behler's scrimmage too. Behler and Jadon Dailey will have a full game to talk about the ineffectiveness of Eddie Thompson, Mitch Rudder, the Big Sky conference and Jadon's love for tacos—so tune in and hear the dynamic duo for the first time!

The Century mark
Boise State has yet to score 100 points in their years playing football. All I'm asking is 11 TDs (going for 2 every time) and then 4 simple field goals. You can do it fellas.

O ye of little faith
We all know how special the freshman signal caller is...but this weekend, if you have enough faith...we may witness Kellen Moore heal a blind referee, feed the entire stadium with naught but a handful of nachos, cast a demon out of Buster Bronco.

Flappymouth, we hardly knew ye
Buster Bronco (besides being possessed, apparently) has a new noggin...and it's jaw is 50% less flappy. We can't wait to see him run on the field and chest bump Andrew Woodruff and then go and fight the Carl's Junior Star guy.

You kidding me?
Where else have you got to be? Really...Mr. Stuckup...where've you got to be? I thought so, get down there and watch a good old fashioned beatdown.

8-26-06 Bronco Nation podcast

A rather pared down crew joined the Bronco Nation podcast last night...just JT Ray of Bronco Nation N.O.W. and yours truly. The smaller crew doesn't mean that we didn't make fun of the Vandals, though. Sherm Blaser and Idaho State's Frank What's-his-name signed on during the cast as well to weigh in on Kellen Moore, left-handedness, and Idaho State's chances this weekend. We also break down the opening weekend in WAC football, new NCAA rule changes and Boise State's recruiting boom. Check it out (might wanna just leave this one running while you do your work...it's a long one).

 The Bronco Nation Podcast - It Begins [61:21m]: Hide Player | Play in Popup | Download

Bush Hamdan has class

Bush Hamdan granted the media one last interview on Saturday and said a mouthful. Is Bush a little bitter? Maybe—but that guy has given his blood, sweat and tears to the Bronco program just like everyone else, so he has a right to be a little down...remember, he just found out on Wednesday that he lost the QB competition for the second straight year and to a freshman no less. Though I may have perceived a twinge of bitterness from Bush...I also saw a lot of humility, toughness and understanding. He said what he needed to say, but didn't throw a fit or throw anyone under the bus. We basically just see a guy that has given 5 years of his life and done everything asked of him, but came up a bit short. Just like if you or I were passed over for a promotion at work, when they decided the fresh-faced 20 year old with a BA was just a better fit. It stings a little, but you move one. Cheers to Bush for taking the news and his "new" role with a lot of grace.

KTVB interview HERE.

Seeing is believing

After seeing what many in Bronco Nation thought unlikely yesterday when Kellen Moore was announced the starting quarterback, I'm a believer...but what other improbable or not-so-improbable things will we see this season? What will we not see? Let's discuss, shall we?

10 things Bronco fans will see this season

10. A freshman as starting quarterback—If you were in a cave in Afghanistan yesterday, you might not have heard...Kellen Moore is the Broncos' starting QB (I'm kinda excited about it)

9. Dominant defense—The Broncos took a step back last season from previous campaigns...we let teams run on us, didn't get a lot of takeaways, looked soft on the D-line, etc.—well that is going to change this year. Ryan Winterswyk and Mike T. Williams can't both be double teamed and the secondary and linebacking corps are hungry. It's lights out for opposing teams this year.

8. Unstoppable run game—Ian Johnson will have a year closer to his '06 campaign and the stable of backups (doesn't feel right to call them that) will keep defenses guessing. Doug Martin, DJ Harper will add the power—Jeremy Avery will provide the elusiveness.

7. Special teams TDs—With runningbacks as kick-returners and the possibility of Titus Young returning punts...Broncos are gonna take some to the house this year. Believe it.

6. Derrell Acrey takes it to the next level—Acrey has been much hyped and rightly so. "Little Ray" is going to add intensity and physicality to the middle of the D.

5. No Huddle Offense—The Broncos have had success with the hurry-up and with the amount of Offensive looks they already bring to the table...the No Huddle should confuse the heck out of opponents. Don't start the "BOISE/STATE" chant when we're on offense, though.

4. 60 points in regulation—The Broncos have hit the 60 pt. plateau numerous times in their history...last year's came in a 4 OT game against Nevada. This year, the Broncos will accomplish the feat in regulation...and the best candidates (or victims) look to be Idaho State or Utah State.

3. A National award finalist—Ian Johnson may be a finalist for the Walter Camp award or Kyle Brotzman may be a Groza finalist—our money is on George Iloka for the House Party 3 award.

2. 11 wins—If the offensive line gels...this is attainable. The offense should be prolific, the home slate is favorable and the defense should be improved. The 11th win will likely come in the bowl game.

1. WAC championship #6—I think we may share this year...we'll get by Fresno on the blue in November, but will let one go on the road against a sleeper. An 8-0 WAC run is not off the table...but luck runs out sometimes.

10 things Bronco fans will not see in 2008

10. A loss to Hawaii—Shouldn't have happened last year...certainly won't happen this year. Brent Rausch is not Colt Brennan and Greg McMackin is not June Jones. One of those is a good thing.

9. An undefeated season—I'd love to view the world through orange and blue goggles, but let's be realistic...an undefeated season is not in the tarot cards this year. Let our boys mature a bit and then look out for the world-beatin'.

8. Idaho finishing last in the WAC—As much as I'd love to see it...I think the Vandals may double their win output from last year. What's 1 multiplied by 2, again?

7. A lot more quarterback sacks—A lot of people think that a young O-line equals a bad O-line. The new look Bronco line will have some growing pains, but with a QB with as quick a release as Moore and with the Tight End packages we employ, Moore should stay relatively safe.

6. A WAC loss on the blue—Fresno State is the trendy pick this year and will give Boise State their stiffest challenge on the Smurf Turf, but the dogs will ultimately fall short and who else has a chance? Louisiana Tech? Pffft.

5. Colin Kaepernick goes off pt. 2—No way no how does chicken legs go off on the Bronco defense again this year.

4. 300 yards rushing by an opponent—If this year's Bronco team isn't motivated by the embarrassing Nevada and East Carolina games they are comatose. With a bigger presence at MLB and veterans on the outside the linebackers will be better, and a healthy Jeron Johnson is gonna bust some heads.

3. Any love from the media—After consecutive losses and being knocked off their WAC perch...the media isn't going to dole out any Bronco love this year. Kellen Moore and co. are gonna have to earn it. What's new?

2. A glut of true freshman starters—2007 saw 5 true frosh play, but 2008 should see less. We may see George Iloka or a few Offensive Linemen get the call, but any frosh playing at the "skill" positions is virtually impossible.

1. BCS roadgame letdown—I am not saying that we are going to win the Oregon game...but I guarantee that you will not see the same type of effort from our boys that we witnessed in Seattle. Broncos may lose...but will do with grace, non-pants-wetting.

If you want to be able to make similar psychic predictions...you must learn how to focus and relaxate. Observe:

I like my crow with a dash of Frank's red hot sauce

Ok, so my "gut feeling" the other day was a tad off. This is what happens when you channel Hal Mumme's psychic abilities. Coach Chris Petersen has named his starting quarterback...and Bronco Nation couldn't be happier. The kid stays in the picture and Kellen Moore is the guy. Remember the other day when I said that I thought Bush Hamdan would be the starter? Well, also remember that I said that I was a huge Kellen Moore bandwagoner...so I definitely don't mind being wrong on this one. The very fact that Moore was in as tight a race as he was with a 5th-year senior spoke volumes about the poise and determination of the redshirt frosh. I really like Bush Hamdan and I think he has shown great leadership in his tenure here, but the next 4 years at Boise State may indeed be special with the same signal-caller guiding the offense...especially after these beefy youngsters on the O-line get some playing time under their belts. Petersen offered the following assessment of Moore:

“Kellen has just got great football savvy,” Petersen said. “He understands our offense extremely, extremely well and he has performed very consistently throughout spring ball and fall camp.”

If you were counting, that was two "extremely"s from Coach Pete.

Moore will be the first freshman quarterback ever to start a season opener when the Broncos take the field against ISU in 10 days. If Moore performs close to as well on the blue as he did as a Prosser Mustang, bookkeepers should have the white out very close to Ryan Dinwiddie's name in the Bronco record books. Moore and Coach Pete will speak at a presser at 3 PM today...even EF Hutton will be listening.

OBNUG has a conniption.
Statesman tells it like it is.
Clarence gets his wings.

I'd gladly pay you Tuesday for a Shamburger today

Rivals.com sez Safety Will Shamburger from Jeremy Avery's old stomping grounds (Bellflower, CA) has verbally committed to play for Boise State. At 6'0" 180 lbs., Shamburger has an awesome frame to go with his awesome name. Shamburger also possesses 4.5 speed in the 40. Shamburger had 21 tackles and 1 INT last season for the St. John Bosco Braves—he also had 16 receptions for 299 yards and two scores on the offensive side of things. No position rankings were available for Shamburger, but he was given a grade of 5.4 by Rivals.com...for reference Joe Southwick and Malcolm Johnson were graded 5.6 by the same service. Shamburger is the 12th known verbal commitment for the Broncos in 2009 class.

Uneducated guesses

First off, let me state that I have tried to objectively look at the Boise State QB race from the beginning. Devotees of the blog may recall that prior to Spring ball, I had Coughlin as my frontrunner. It is clear at this point that MC is not going to be the man. Let me also state that I have been critical of the local media outlets when they have gone too far in campaigning for one QB over the other. I have no qualms saying that I have jumped on the Kellen Moore bandwagon and I think he obviously has a bright future at Boise State. So make no mistake, when I make my following prediction: I am not endorsing one QB over another (not that it matters to the coaching staff) and I think that we are gold if the coaches go either way. That said...after watching yesterday's scrimmage (and not watching any of the Fall practices)—I predict that senior Bush Hamdan is going to be the starter for 2008.

Hamdan, though he had a rougher outing in the first Fall scrimmage...has, from all accounts had a good camp. He was really neck and neck with Moore after Spring ball (an amazing testament to just how good the frosh is) and the 5th year senior has had a solid summer. Last night, though Moore again looked crisp, Hamdan looked more like a starter to me. Moore had a beautiful 50-yard TD pass to Jeremy Childs...but Hamdan had an amazing TD strike to Austin Pettis that he threw off of his back foot as the pocket had nearly collapsed on him. Hamdan also had a very nice touchdown pass to Vinny Perretta and several scrambling tosses that found their mark. Hamdan finished the night 9 of 14 for 214 yards with 3 TDs and one INT (thankfully to new starter Brandyn Thompson). Kellen Moore was 13 of 21 for 149 yards, one TD and one INT. These stats certainly don't indicate a huge chasm between the senior and the frosh and Moore did have the better first scrimmage...but like I said...Hamdan just looked more like the starter yesterday. I will pull a Hal Mumme and have my "gut feeling" moment. Hamdan is gonna be the starter...Moore will see some time this year...Moore will be unstoppable and incredibly good as a sophomore. For those of you that would like to serve up piping hot crow for me if I am wrong, I believe on a PC it's the alt-Print Screen command

Other observations from the 2nd Fall scrimmage

Vinny Perretta is going to tear it up this year. He had two long TD receptions last night and has looked very good this Summer. I think we would've done better last season with VP healthy.

Our RBs look great. I'm used to the sight of Ian Johnson in street clothes at scrimmages, so I'm not too rattled by the fact he didn't play. Doug Martin, Jeremy Avery and DJ Harper look great. They run hard and don't go down without a fight. Even freshman Matt Kaiserman and walk-on Carlo Audagnotti looked good on the blue.

Jarvis Hodge looks like Kimbo Slice. Hodge didn't play yesterday, but he is sporting a thick beard and if you squint...he looks a bit like the wannabe brawler.

Chandler Koch will be good. Koch is tall and has soft hands...maybe he uses Palmolive?

Our Freshman O-lineman are huge. Faraji Wright, Joe Kellogg, Tom Swanson and others are gonna be big players for us in the future...literally.

Tommy Smith and George Iloka will be all-WAC someday soon. alt-Printscreen

Boise State has international appeal. I had 3 Germans speaking ze Deutsch next to me at last night's scrimmage.

Offense ruled the night BUT Kyle Wilson, Jeron Johnson, Billy Winn and others were not suited up.

Brandyn Thompson will fill in nicely for our dearly departed Orlando Scandrick.

This will be a fun year. How's that for another bold prediction?

Scrimmage Links

Murphy less sure of QB race outcome.

Dustin Lapray weighs in on the action. Grab a thesaurus.

IPT's scrimmage photo gallery.

O, Glorious Day!

Today...by all accounts, sucked. I was nauseous last night, starving this morning and had to endure a rather routine but entirely unpleasant medical procedure. But then, I came home and found these:
Everything's coming up roses.

A lot better season ticket holder swag this year, too. A nice Bronco license plate frame. Bravo.

Are you ready for some football?!

All the hand-wringing and speculation about Jeremy Childs can now come to an end. Fall Camp opened today at East Junior High and Jeremy Childs was among the participants. Childs, who missed the Hawaii Bowl (causing Taylor Tharp to have several circuits blow) and the Spring semester due to off-the-field issues is back for his Junior season—and hopefully ready to sync up with whomever is under center this Fall. Childs should be the leader among the talented group of receivers that Boise State returns this year in senior Vinny Perretta and sophomores Titus Young and Austin Pettis.

A large contingent of walk-ons joined the team this morning:

No. 10 Drew Hawkins (QB, Boulder, Colo.), No. 17 Carlo Augnotti (RB, Johannesburg, South Africa), No. 20 Josh Borgman (CB, Boise), No. 33 Jimmy Pavle (PK, Molalla, Ore.), No. 38 Josh Hill (TE, Blackfoot), No. 39 Drew Wright (RB, Nampa), No. 43 Alex Ruben (LB, Scottsdale, Ariz.), No. 45 James Crawford (LS, Westlake Village, Calif.), No. 46 Hazen Moss (LB, Rifle, Colo.), No. 48 J.C. Percy (LB, Blackfoot), No. 54 Michael Ames (LB, Boise), No. 56 Alex Lavoy (LB, Reno), No. 63 Jake Densley (OL, Boise), No. 65 Tim Whipps (OL, Eagle), No. 74 Zach Gholson (DE, Carlsbad, Calif.), No. 78 Demetri Sauve (OL, Boise), No. 83 Brett Davis (WR, Boise), No. 84 Tim Ruben (WR, Scottsdale, Ariz.).

Absent among the newcomers is LB/FB Jake Hess out of Nevada, who was reported to be joining the team back in May. Two former walk-ons have left the program as well—kicker Brock Jaramillo and Safety Shaun Jordan. Sophomore Kyle Brotzman is just too good for Jaramillo to get any real time and we think Jordan may have seen the writing on the wall as well with the emergence of George Iloka, among others.

DJ Harper impressed in a morning session that included Kellen Moore, Bush Hamdan and Nick Lomax. Freshmen Chase Baker and Shea McLellin worked with their elders on the D-line. The young'uns practice this afternoon. We'll keep you all posted when the camper of the day is announced. Coach Pete is to hold a presser at 2:30

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