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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WOW.

If you were lucky enough to brave the raging Boise winds and catch the first spring scrimmage this afternoon...you were treated to a blistering display of offensive and defensive fireworks, and some of the best 15-yard punts you've ever seen.

All jokes aside, the first spring scrimmage is in the books and it looked like...well...the first spring scrimmage. A lot of guys sitting out, among them: Jarrell Root, Billy Winn, Jeremy Avery, Mike T. Williams, Kyle Wilson etc.

A lot of bad snaps, dropped passes and general miscues...but we expect that in the first spring scrimmage. Bush Hamdan and Kellen Moore seem like VERY early frontrunners for the QB job. I liked Moore's decisions and mobility and Bush made some nice throws and improvised well. Saw the first glimpse of a Ian Johnson/Doug Martin kick-return tandem and I liked what I saw...they will house a few this season.

Didn't get to see as much of Doug Martin's angry running as I would've liked, but all the backs looked capable and even Jarvis Hodge impressed on one long run.

Absolutely stacked at RB: Ian Johnson rushed four times for 70 yards, Jarvis Hodge three times for 57 yards, Doug Martin 10 times for 59 yards and sophomore D.J. Harper nine times for 40 yards. Yikes. Nice job O-line or "get well soon" D-line.

A pretty good crowd on-hand for a windy day with the NCAA tourney going on. A lot of excitement about the new-look Broncos.

I have decided to drop the scrimmage vids as I don't want to run afoul of the practice gestapo. I don't think my grainy vids are going to step on anyones toe with "actual" media credentials...but I also don't want to risk "ruining" it for anyone who consider practice video and reports to be the only real thing to get excited about until August 30th. Hence, here is a link to some "real" scrimmage video minus the pithy comments. Enjoy.

A good recap from the Statesman: Moore shines.

Got Milk?

BSU got their mojo back—and they picked a perfect night. Friday night on ESPN2, BSU answered two big questions that had been swirling around the program for two weeks; the first one? Where the heck is our defense? The answer, on Friday, was: RIGHT where we left it, with Marty Tadman, Jeron Johnson (back after a 3-game absence) Kyle Gingg, Ryan Winterswyk and the rest of the crew—BSU's defense played phenomenal football for 3 quarters, putting big hits on Fresno QB Brandstater and shutting down the potent Bulldog run game. The second big question? Can two freshman running backs really move the ball on Fresno with Ian johnson out? The answer to this was a resounding "YES". Redshirt freshman Jeremy Avery and True Freshman DJ Harper exploded against Fresno and combined for over 200 yards in the first half of the game. DJ Harper had a breakout night, and possibly a pivotal night in his development as a Bronco; rushing for over 150 yards and a clutch TD run where he fought off multiple tackles and dove into the endzone. Avery looked smooth as silk as he made quick cuts, juked defenders and followed his blocks masterfully, en route to a 125 yard game and 3 TDs.

The Bulldogs came out quickly, matching BSU's first TD and then taking an early lead as Clifton Smith raced to the endzone after fielding a BSU punt. DJ Harper's TD knotted the game up at 14 and then a huge field-goal block by Orlando Scandrick and crew put the Broncos in position to kick their own—leaving the score 17-14 at the half.

The Dawgs have been known this year for huge second-half efforts, so the Broncos needed to stay focused and make the necessary adjustments—they did. BSU, behind terrific efforts by Avery and freshman kicker Kyle Brotzman, were able to outscore Fresno 17-7 in the second half—sealing a 34-21 win, keeping pace with WAC first-place team Hawaii, and winning their 6th game in 7 tries against the Bulldogs.

The stat of the game? BSU's defense held Fresno to 1 of 13 on 3rd down conversions. An amazing stat for a Bronco defense that had struggled mightily in their previous two WAC contests. Jason Robinson's interception on 4th and long was the night's only turnover and clinched the night for Boise. All told, BSU beat Fresno at their own game—they ran the ball down their throats. BSU outgained Fresno 282-89 on the ground and 440-352 in total yards. Taylor Tharp looked efficient and managed the game well for Boise State as the passing game never really took off, Austin Pettis made a clutch diving catch on 3rd and long to keep one Boise State scoring drive alive, and Marty Tadmand and Dallas Dobbs both contributed 9 tackles on the defensive side of the ball.

Fresno is a talented and, like the Broncos, young team and I was impressed with the following players: Marlon Moore, AJ Jefferson, Bear Pascoe, and Clifton Smith. With these youngsters and Pat Hill's tutelage—Fresno should be a force to be reckoned with in the WAC in coming years (alongside BSU, of course)

All in all, a very solid, hard fought victory for the Broncos who return home for San Jose State on Saturday. With the defense seemingly righting their ship, I expect pretty smooth sailing through November until the epic showdown with Hawaii (who is 8-0, but hasn't played anyone with a pulse yet).

The Milk Can stays in Boise for one more year.