TBT: Statue of Liberty

If you ever google search Statue of Liberty and you see Boise State come up, here's why. Some have only heard the Statue of Liberty referred to as the Statue in New York City, but there is also a famous trick play where the Quarterback fakes a pass and hands the ball off behind his back. The Broncos know this play all too well...

Jan. 1, 2007: Boise State's famous Fiesta Bowl win over Oklahoma was 

won with the Statue of Liberty play

April 6, 2014: Boise State practicing the Statue of Liberty play in Spring ball

Nov. 22, 2014: Boise State gets a touchdown against Wyoming with the same Statue of Liberty play

Next Stop: Fiesta Bowl

ESPN predicts the newly ranked Boise State at #23 will once again be returning to the Fiesta Bowl.

They would face off against UCLA (9-2), the PAC 12 champion who has only lost to #12 Oregon and #25 Utah.

Of course this is just their prediction but with a win against Utah State, the Broncos secure their place in a New Years Bowl Game - over other BCS buster potential teams Marshall and Colorado State, who lack a strong strength of schedule.

Boise State has had good luck in Fiesta Bowls, with two trips - 2007 and 2010. In 2007 they had their historic win over Oklahoma in a wild finish and in 2010 Boise State beat the former other BCS buster favorite TCU 17-10.



Sources:

http://espn.go.com/blog/ncfnation/post/_/id/103976/playoff-breakdown-if-the-games-were-today-4

Attack The Future

The Broncos will "Attack The Future" Saturday against Utah State

Their future in the College Football playoff rankings

Boise State was ranked in the College Football Playoff rankings for the first time this year, above Marshall and Utah

Their future as Conference Champions

Boise State wins the conference with a win against Utah State

Their future as a dominant football program

Boise State have had winning seasons since 1998

The Broncos are also 3rd in overall winning % over all college football teams [1]

Boise is known as BCS busters and need to keep reminding teams of this

The future of their current 12-0 home record

 Protect the blue!
The Broncos need to win at home, and Bronco Nation will be cheering loud at Senior Night which will help them secure the win
They are also 85-4 at home since 2000.

Key to Winning against Utah State 

Boise needs to stop the run.

All these things depend on Boise's Achilles heel - stopping the run game. In the past few games, teams have ripped through the broncos defensive line and blown up their yards. Corey Bell was replaced in the New Mexico game and his replacement had been solid. Safety Chanceller James was injured against Wyoming and will be out of the lineup, which means Bell needs to return with a chip on his shoulder. He will be sharing time with Sumner-Gardner and will hopefully stop Utah State's run game. [2] On a side note, Sumner-Gardner is a 4-star freshman recruit from Texas.

Going into week 5 Boise State had kept teams to under 100 yards rushing but then they allowed...

287 yards...Air Force
156 yards...Nevada
186 yards...Fresno State
505 yards...New Mexico
169 yards...San Diego State

The success against Utah State hangs on the Broncos stopping the run. They have offensive weapons and have proved they can score, come back to win, and that their defense can make stands in the second half. But can the Broncos walk onto the Blue Turf Saturday ready to make the defensive statement against the run that they did in their season opener against Ole Miss...only allowing 71 yards rushing and stopping big run plays. Utah State is on their 4th string quarterback and Boise's secondary defense is too strong to win the game, so they will depend on their rushing game.

Closing the regular season with a win against their next door neighbors Utah State, Boise State will continue their Attack of The Future and onto the next game, a bowl game.



Sources:

[1] http://www.winsipedia.com/ranking
[2] http://www.idahostatesman.com/welcome_page/?shf=/2014/11/24/3506173_boise-state-safety-chanceller.html

Boise State's Uniforms - Past Decade

2005-2007

2011

2013-2014

Boise State and the New Years Bowl

Let's take a look at my reasons for why Boise State belongs in the New Years Bowl:

Strength of Schedule

Marshall

Mountain West Conference Champions

Also with the recent College Football Ranking, we can see that the Committee believes as well that Boise State belongs in a New Years Bowl over any other Non-AQ team.

First. Strength of Schedule. Simple.

Let's compare.

Boise State: 74th
Marshall: 122nd
Colorado State: 125th

So if Boise State, Colorado State and Marshall were all 12-0, there would be a clear winner. Let's not forget that the Broncos have also beaten Colorado State.

Now since the Broncos have lost 2 games they clearly aren't better than Marshall, Right? If they were playing the same teams or even in the same conference I would completely agree with you. But who are all these teams Marshall has beaten?

Marshall and their 11-0 Record

Miami (OH)   2-9
Rhode Island   1-11
Ohio   5-6
Akron  5-6
Old Dominion  5-6
Middle Tennesee  6-5
FIU   4-8
Florida Atl   3-8
Southern Miss  3-8
Rice  7-4
UAB    5-6

Only 2 teams even have winning records, of those two teams (Rice is #116 and Middle Tennesee is #124 on NCAA strength of schedule rankings)

If an undefeated record meant everything, why did Boise State leave the WAC conference where they trounched opponents to join the Mountain West? Why did they schedule hard teams like Ole Miss, Nevada, Utah State, BYU, San Diego State? Sorry Marshall, not this year. Even Boise State's weakest opponest [of course my personal opinion] Lousiana Lafeyette has a winning record of 7-4.

Been there done that. Boise State joined a bigger conference and scheduled harder schools to solidify their argument that they are a great football program.

Conference Champs

But that's just it. Boise State is now a part of the #1 non-power conference [1], The Mountain West. The Broncos have played in a small conference in the past, and gone undefeated. And with a win Saturday against Utah State, the broncos will be conference champions. Being champion of the conference when the only conferences ahead of you in the power rankings are:

1. SEC

2. PAC12

3. Atlantic Coast

4. Big 12

5. Big 10

6. Mountain West

It's a pretty good argument to say Boise State deserves that spot to play in the New Years Bowl. Strength of Schedule, Marshall's wins over losing teams and Boise's dominance in the conference are all proof of this.

[1] http://www.mwcconnection.com/2014/11/23/7271595/mountain-west-is-now-the-1-non-power-conference-in-fbs

Boise State - The BCS Buster

For all those who argue that Boise State is a small school from Idaho who can't compete against big teams, here is evidence to refute your argument.

Oregon. Oklahoma. Georgia. Arizona State. TCU. Utah. Virginia Tech. Colorado State. Nevada. BYU. Uconn. SMU.

All great teams that Boise State has played and defeated.

If you ever run into anyone who doubts the bronco's greatness - please refer them to this post.

These are some of the biggest schools and football programs in all of College Football. Boise State has lived up to it's name when playing against all big conference opponents in recent years. They came, and they conquered. All games from the year 2000 and on...

University of Oregon (Ranked #2 in CFB Rankings)

2-0 Record against the Ducks

2008: Boise State 37  Oregon 32  W

2009: Boise State 19    Oregon 8  W

University of Oklahoma (#23 in AP Polls)

1-0 Record against the Sooners

2007: Boise State 43    Oklahoma  42  W

This game is argued to be the best game of college football ever played.

University of Georgia (#15 in CFB Rankings)

1-0 Record against the Bulldogs

2011: Boise State 35   Georgia 21 W

Arizona State University (#6 in CFB Rankings)

1-0 against the Sun Devils

2011: Boise State 56    Arizona State 24  W

Texas Christian University (#4 in CFB Rankings)

2-2 against the Horned Frogs

2003: Boise State 34   TCU 31 W

2008: Boise State 16    TCU 17  L

2010: Boise State 17    TCU 10  W

2011: Boise State 35   TCU 36  L

University of Utah (#23 in CFB Rankings)

2-0 against the Utes

2006: Boise State 36     Utah 3   W

2010: Boise State 26    Utah 3   W

Virginia Tech University

1-0 against the Hokies

2010: Boise State 33    Virginia Tech 30   W

Colorado State University (#22 in AP Polls)

4-0 against the Rams

2011: Boise State 63    Colorado State 13  W

2012: Boise State 42    Colorado State 14  W

2013: Boise State 42    Colorado State 30  W

2014: Boise State 37    Colorado State 24  W

University of Nevada

13-1 against the Wolf Pack

14 Games between the years 2000 - 2014

Brigham Young University

4-1 against the Cougars

2003: Boise State 50    BYU 12  W

2004: Boise State 28    BYU 27  W

2012: Boise State 7   BYU 6    W

2013: Boise State 20    BYU 27  L

2014: Boise State 55    BYU 30  W

University of Connecticut

1-0 against the Huskies

2014: Boise State 38    UConn 21  W

Southern Methodist University

2-0 against the Mustangs.

2003: Boise State 45   SMU 3    W

2004: Boise State 38   SMU 20  W

It Ends Saturday...

Boise State has the highest winning percentage at home since 2000 with an 85-4 record.

Boise State will "Black Out" the Aztecs sporting black uniforms
as well as the fans all wearing black.

That being said...It's not a dominate winning record at home that ends Saturday. It's San Diego State's dominance the last two years in this matchup.

Losing a game is a big deal for Boise State, the school with the most winningest record in all FBS (155-26). Winning 85.6% of all games played since the year 2000. Obviously it is a bigger deal if they lose on the blue, at home.

In the last two years they have lost not once but twice to San Diego State, last year having a tough loss in overtime 31-34 on the road.

But the year previous, lost on the blue. Ouch.

I am going to go on a limb here and say Boise State will make a statement this year, ending the two year losing streak to San Diego State. They are going to battle hard and it is going to be a tough fight, but Boise State will come out in the second half and defeat the Aztecs. They are going to show them what they have shown every team in the past, you don't mess with the Broncos at home.

Boise State needs a good defensive stand against the run and will have to prove itself as the Top 25 contender that it is. San Diego State is the #1 rushing team in the Mountain West Conference and will need to be stopped to be forced to pass.

Boise State will win this tough game, but with the help of the Smurf Turf and some of the loudest fans in FBS.

Boise State's record breaker

Ryan Finley. 

He may only be breaking records with his height so far, but just wait.

The future of the Quarterback position in Boise looks bright, and hopefully he will leave an enormous impact on the Boise State Football program.

He got his first start as a Bronco against Air Force and put 14 points on the board in his short appearance in the 4th quarter when Boise State could not score anything in the first 3 quarters. His completion percentage is not that impressive yes, but he drives the ball down the field and scores...That's what matters.

Ryan Finley threw an interception in that game, isn't that bad news? Yes we don't want to turn the ball over in any game, but if you watch game film - the offensive line could not keep Air Force from getting to the quarterback and many times Finley was having to run out of the pocket to make throws, and that is how the ball was intercepted. Air Force had five sacks, the most any team has had on Boise State so far this season. That also doesn't take into consideration all the hurried plays and scrambles quarterbacks have to make to avoid a sack.

But Ryan also has a huge advantage, his height. Ryan is 6 foot 3 inches. That is considerably larger than Grant Hedrick and Kellen Moore who were both 6'0 and have been two of the more recent success stories at Boise State.

On a side note, Jared Zabransky was 6'1

Think about it this way. Two days ago I woke up to 3 inches of snow on the ground, man it had snowed a ton overnight. 3 inches! I'm sure others have experienced this as well. Well that is the height difference between Kellen Moore (arguably Boise State's best quarterback of all-time) and Ryan Finley. That's what will make Ryan Finley stand out as a quarterback on this team. He can be coached and will get better, but you can't give someone size - that you are born with or without.

Now Ryan Finley is also lacking in body size/strength but he will get bigger, in fact he's put on 10 pounds just in his first year. All of those Idaho spuds he has been eating. Keep in mind Kellen Moore wasn't the biggest guy on the field either.

The Arizona native showed in the BYU game as well that he could run the ball too, versatility that Boise State has lacked in a quarterback (dating back to Jared Zabransky '03-06) only until recently Grant Hedrick has blown up the field with rushing touchdowns (160 yards and 3 touchdowns in the last 2 games). He ran once for 21 yards. Imagine if we gave him even more playing time than the 4th quarter...

I am excited to see what Ryan Finley can do under Bryan Harsin in the Boise State program.

Boise State is a Top 25 Team

Colorado State is now ranked #23 according to the Associated Press poll...

74. Boise State – 78-75, 50.98%

That's Boise State's Ranking for the Strength of Schedule. 74th. But this number is solely based off winning percentages of teams. This is the only reason they are not being looked at closer. Let's look at teams that Boise State has played so far...

#10 Ole Miss (8-2) Obviously a good team, one of the hardest Boise has played, and were held to ZERO touchdowns heading into the 4th quarter.

#23 Colorado State (9-1)    Their one loss comes from none other than Boise State

Nevada (6-3) - Take a look at Nevada's losses, one is to Arizona (Who beat Oregon), the other to #23 Colorado State and the last to Boise State. This is a Solid team who have battled good teams

BYU - A team who was bound to be in the top 5 before an injury to their heisman nominee took them out of the running

Their loss to Ole Miss was a hard-fought battle won by a bigger school with bigger players in a dominate SEC conference. Won fair and square. But the Broncos loss to Air Force was a fluke a complete collapse of Grant Hedrick, who threw 4 interceptions and added to the team turnover count of 7. Any team that turns over the ball 7 times is bound to lose, no matter how well the rest of the team plays. Air Force is not a better team but capitalized on Boise's mistakes, and had better control of the ball. I don't feel like Air Force beat Boise State, but the Broncos beat themselves that night...

IF...the loss the Air Force didn't happen Boise State would easily be on the Top 25 Ranking list today. 

They would be 8-1 while most teams ranked #15-25 have 2 losses, with #25 Utah having 3 losses.

Strength of schedule aside, I believe Boise State is a top 25 team who let one game slip past them and now is struggling to make it into the AP Top 25 Rankings with one vote. In the USA Today polls however, Boise State received 7 votes.

Boise State is undeniably one of the best football programs to emerge in the last decade. They will continue their dominance in the years to come.

The Curse of the Orange Helmets

Boise State has two losses this season, both with one thing in common. The color of their helmets.

The Boise State Broncos unveiled Orange Helmets this year for the first time in school history, and this change has not turned out to be good luck for the broncos. They opened their season playing #10 Ole Miss, one of the best football programs Boise State has ever faced. Unlike memorable wins against Big Schools that the Broncos have previously had, this game did not end or even begin in their favor. I have come to the conclusion this loss has something to do with their uniform change, however superstitious this may sound. Boise State lost badly to Ole Miss 13-35 with Grant Hedrick throwing four interceptions, and Boise State's powerhouse offense only being able to muster a few field goals and a measly touchdown at the end of the game. What color helmets was ole miss wearing? Blue. Maybe Grant Hedrick was confusing those helmets with his own team, who are usually sporting some form of blue.


Later in the season they pulled out the helmets again. This time against Air Force, a team that is not exactly dominant in the Mountain West, in fact they went 2-10 last season. And maybe Grant Hedrick still had problems recognizing players running around with orange. Grant ended up throwing it to the team with white helmets (another one of the options in the Boise State wardrobe). He had 4 interceptions again and the team had 7 turnovers, even Jay Ajayi fumbling the ball. To make matters even worse, Wide Receiver Matt Miller, who has the school record for receptions and was in his senior year playing at Boise State suffered a season ending injury in this game. Is there a way that all of this is a coincidence? Either way...

Please Boise State, never put out the orange helmets again...At least not this season.

Game Recap: Boise State @ New Mexico

MVP of the Game:

The New Mexico Lobo's came to find out on Saturday why Grant Hedrick is the 2nd most accurate passer in the NCAA with a 71.8 completion percentage, second only to Brett Hundley of UCLA. He turned to his offensive weapons with touchdown completions to Chaz Anderson, twice to Shane Williams-Rhodes, and the huge 75-yard completion to Jay Ajayi. He took matters into his own hands as well, running 131 yards on 15 carries and 2 TDs, running more yards than most teams have successfully run on Boise State this season. Bronco Nation is now seeing a whole different look of a versatile quarterback which differs from what they've had in the past with Southwick and Moore. Considering Hedrick contributed to putting 36 points on the board, I would name him the MVP for this tough road game against New Mexico. I also love that he did not have any turnovers.

Impact Play of the Game:

Kamalei Correa, the former Defensive Player of the Week of the Mountain West Conference had a huge play starting the second half blocking a punt and recovering it down in the red zone. This really turned around the game and put the momentum on Boise's side.

Other Key Player of Game: 

Thomas Sperbeck did not get any touchdowns Saturday night, therefore slid under the radar but had 9 catches for 122 yards. That's an average of 7 .6 yards per catch. Not only did he have amazing catches and great yardage, but he had catches at critical drives which led to touchdowns and had the big catch which set up a Shane Williams-Rhodes touchdown to help their comeback in the 4th quarter. He is doing a great job stepping up to the wide-out position after Matt Miller's injury, becoming Grant Hedrick's new go-to receiver.

Let's Not Forget:

Boise State fans know it is very important to not take your kicker for granted. This game we have to remember how important it is to have a solid kicker, and I want to give full credit to Dan Goodale. He has made the extra points and field goals when it comes down to the wire, and thankfully we did not have to depend on his skills to win the game but if we had to I would put my trust in him. Hopefully we never have a repeat of the Nevada game in 2010. The game which ended Boise's chance at a BCS Championship game being ranked #3 in the Nation, losing only because of missed field goals. Dan Goodale was awarded the offensive and special-teams award from the Mountain West Conference on Monday.

Things to Improve before Next Game:

Starting the game right

Boise's defense and special teams struggled in the first half but came up big to help secure their win, they need to start off better next game vs San Diego at home, or they might not be able to recover.

Run Defense

For the #15 run defense in the NCAA, allowing 500 rushing yards in this game is unacceptable - if the Broncos can work on stopping the run this will help them in their next games vs San Diego and Utah State, a team that is on its 4th string quarterback that will depend on its run game.

3rd Down Conversions

The Broncos 4th conversions looked better with 2/3 converted, but they struggled getting the 1st down when they were at 3rd down, only converting 3 of the 11. Hedrick has lots of weapons to throw to and hopefully with the help of Jay Ajayi, can convert more of their 3rd downs this next weekend.

Big Plays

Boise's defense has shown that they can stop teams and win games. They need to work on consistency and make clean tackles to prevent blown coverages and huge runs. New Mexico had the majority of their points come from a 49 yard run, two 75 yard runs, and a giant 100 yard kickoff return. The Broncos have to stop these if they are to win out the rest of their games.