Sunday, November 21, 2010

Here is a real good article about Boise State written after the beatdown against Fresno

Courtesy of the Fresno Bee's Matt James:

As one parent of a Fresno State player said the day after, you can't really appreciate this year's Boise State team until you see it in person.

It is ruthless. Eye-catching. It is General Patton looking dynamite in an evening gown. It is some combination of an IRS auditor and Cirque du Soleil.

Mike Tyson would say the Broncos' offense is impetuous and their defense is impregnable, and he would be right on both accounts. They are, in every sense, ferocious.

The Broncos beat Fresno State 51-0 Friday night, and afterward Pat Hill started to say that the score wasn't a true reflection of the actual game and he couldn't even get through it before he corrected himself.
Even in a college football coach's vulnerable, emotional moments, he couldn't spin what had happened.

"We've played some good teams before," Hill said. "We have never been manhandled like that."
This is a program that has gone to Ohio State, to Tennessee, to Oklahoma, to USC, to LSU, to Oregon, to anybody-anytime-anywhere, and the most overmatched it has ever been was on a Friday night in Boise.
The Broncos' quarterback is a Heisman candidate who makes every throw to every receiver, even into impossibly tiny slivers of space along the sideline. When his team needs 5 yards, he throws for 6. When it needs 15, he throws for 16.

Boise State has the best combination of two receivers of any college in America. Period. Its kicker made a 50-yarder on a cold, icy night. Its defense held a good Fresno State offense to almost nothing. A few token first downs.

This is a Fresno State team that was getting votes in the Top 25 poll earlier this season, you'll remember, and against Boise State it didn't even attempt a field goal.

If they play a national championship without Boise State in it, the nation should look away in protest. Oregon's offense isn't fast enough to run away from the Broncos. Auburn better hope its controversial quarterback stays eligible, because without him the Tigers would be 10-point underdogs to Boise.

Every part of the current system is set up to keep the establishment in power, and yet the Broncos accelerate against the tide. The best football team in America plays in a conference that is imploding underneath it.
After watching Boise State for an entire game, your neck hurts from all the head shaking. Surely there is trick photography or holograms at work, but I checked every corner of Bronco Stadium. They keep it all hidden well.

It sounds strange, but you almost wish Fresno State could keep it closer so the Broncos would at least have to use their A material. Chris Petersen only used one trick play Friday, which is like going to see Denis Leary and he doesn't even bother getting angry.

Petersen even joked that quarterback Kellen Moore's 11-yard rush on third-and-10 (of course it was) should win him the Heisman. Local writers weren't sure which to be more shocked about, that Petersen uttered the word "Heisman" or that he let the armed guards surrounding his personality relax long enough for a joke.
Everyone in Boise might be smiling, but it's not a feel-good story anymore. It's not the team that upset Oklahoma. This is a brutal, unforgiving force, void of vulnerability.

Football fans in the South like to say that Boise State would never survive an entire season in the SEC, and to them I say: This is not the season to test that theory.

Friday, November 19, 2010

Broncos To Play Georgia In 2011 Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game

The Atlanta Journal Constitution confirms that Georgia and Boise State will meet in the 2011 Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game at the Georgia Dome, it will be announced on a 3 p.m. conference call today.

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Hawaii to MWC?

The Honolulu Star Advertiser is reporting that Hawaii will join the Mountain West in football.

1,500 Additional Tickets to Fresno State Football Game on Sale


Boise State University students did not pick up 1,500 tickets from their allotment to Friday’s (Nov. 19) football game against Fresno State, which means those tickets are now on sale to the general public.

The tickets are in sections 120 and 121 and are half price.  The cost is $32.00 for adults, $31 for seniors and $21.50 for juniors.

Tickets are available online at idahotickets.com or stop by the athletic ticket office located on the west side of Bronco Stadium.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

2010 Heisman Watch Week 11: Cam Newton, Kellen Moore and More

We have a clear frontrunner right now in the Heisman race. Through eleven weeks, it’s obvious who should be awarded the Heisman Trophy. But, we can’t say it’s not getting more interesting by the day.

 An NCAA investigation has taken the college football world by storm and has thrown a serious curveball toward the Heisman race. At this point, the investigation is the only thing that could keep our current front runner from hoisting the bronze statue in three weeks.

  The Front Runners
  • Cameron Newton (QB/Auburn) – Cameron Newton is leading the Heisman race by a country mile right now. You have  heard by now that the NCAA is investigating whether or not Newton or anybody took money on his behalf to play college football. Even if the story is not true, Cameron Newton’s Heisman hopes have taken a bit of a dip. He would still be the winner by a considerable margin if it all ended today, but some voters are beginning to second guess voting for him. Cameron Newton put the NCAA investigation out of everyone’s minds for sixty-minutes on Saturday with an outstanding performance against Georgia. He controlled the game completely as he threw for 148 yards on 12/15 throwing and two of the passes were drops. He also had two touchdown tosses. He ran the ball 30 times for 151 yards and a pair of touchdowns on the ground. Newton has been the best player in college football so far this season and unless something comes of this investigation, he will be your Heisman Trophy winner.  
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  • Kellen Moore (QB/Boise State) – Kellen Moore has taken a step up in the Heisman race as he moves up to second this week ahead of Oregon RB LaMichael James. Moore is the most efficient passer in college football with a QB rating of 191.15. You can say it’s because he isn’t playing top level competition every week, but he is the leader by a lot. He was impressive again on Friday night against Idaho as the Broncos crushed the Vandals 52-14. He completed 19 of his 26 passes for 216 yards and three touchdown passes in the win. For the season, Moore is completing 72% of his passes for 2588 yards and 24 touchdowns to just 4 interceptions. Moore is going to be a Heisman finalist and is well deserving of actually winning the award, but we don’t see a Cam Newton every single year.  
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  • LaMichael James (RB/Oregon) – It wasn’t a banner day for LaMichael James or Oregon on Saturday. The Ducks staved off upset on Saturday night in Berkeley against California. Oregon survived 15-13 to hang on to their undefeated record and #1 ranking. James was held to a season-low 91 yards on 29 carries in the win over the Golden Bears and was on crutches after the game due to an ankle injury. James will still likely be a Heisman finalist, but his chances of winning the award did slip a bit against California. James has two more chances to impress the voters against Arizona and Oregon State following a bye week this weekend.  
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  • Andrew Luck (QB/Stanford) – I’m not sure other than Cameron Newton that there has been a player that meant more to his football team than Stanford QB Andrew Luck. He has played brilliantly all season long and once again did so on Saturday as he led Stanford to a 17-13 come-from-behind victory over Arizona State on Saturday. He threw the ball 41 times against the Sun Devils and completed 33 of his passes (81%). He threw for 292 yards with an interception and no touchdown passes. Stanford is now 9-1 on the season and I think they are the best #1 loss team in the country. If Luck could have led Stanford to a win over Oregon in Eugene, then the Cardinal QB would be near the top of the Heisman race.
  • Andy Dalton (QB/TCU) – TCU was another team in full out survival mode on Saturday as they had to come from behind to knock off San Diego State 40-35. Let me get on the soapbox for a second. Any of you who are knocking TCU for barely hanging on to a win over the Aztecs need to seriously think before they speak. San Diego State was a 7-2 team coming into that game and they nearly beat Missouri earlier in the year. Anyway, Andy Dalton once again played great for the Horned Frogs to lead them to victory. He completed 21 of his 36 passes for 240 yards and 4 touchdowns with only 1 interception on the afternoon. Dalton has been great all season long and has led TCU to an unblemished record and #3 ranking up to this point.
 Just off the Pace
  • Justin Blackmon (WR/Oklahoma State) – Justin Blackmon has played in nine games this season for Oklahoma State. In all nine games, Blackmon has recorded over 100 yards receiving as he did so again on Saturday against Texas. In Oklahoma State’s 33-16 win over Texas, Justin Blackmon had nine catches for 145 yards and a touchdown. He’s been by far the best WR in college football this season and if Oklahoma State is able to run the table and win the Big XII, then there is a strong possibility that Blackmon is a Heisman finalist. He’s had an incredible season so far and has made all the people in Stillwater forget about Dez Bryant.
  • Terrelle Pryor (QB/Ohio State) – As long as Ohio State keeps winning, Terrelle Pryor has a great chance of getting invited to New York for the Heisman ceremony. In Ohio State’s comeback win over Penn State on Saturday, Pryor completed 8 of his 13 pass attempts for 139 yards and two touchdowns with an interception. He also rushed for 49 yards on 9 carries. The Buckeyes will now travel to Iowa City to face off with the Hawkeyes on Saturday and if Pryor can have a big game, then he will likely creep his way up a bit and possibly back to being one of the frontrunners for the award.
 Falling off the Pace
  • Darron Thomas (QB/Oregon) – Darron Thomas had been creeping up a lot of people’s Heisman boards over the last few weeks, but he dropped a bit this week after he struggled a bit against California on Saturday. By no means did he play a bad game, but he didn’t have a Heisman-esque performance that would have helped his case. He completed 15 of 29 passes for 155 yards and a touchdown to go along with just 34 yards on the ground on 16 carries. California’s defense did a very good job in stopping the Oregon offense as both Darron Thomas and LaMichael James saw their Heisman hopes slip a bit this week. Thomas wasn’t going to win it, but he had a chance of being a finalist. Those chances pretty much ended in Berkeley on Saturday. 
  • Ricky Stanzi (QB/Iowa) – Ricky Stanzi had been hovering around the Heisman race the last few weeks, but Iowa’s 21-17 loss to Northwestern knocks Stanzi completely out of the running for the award. Stanzi went 23 for 41 for 270 yards and two touchdowns with an interception in Iowa’s third loss of the season. Stanzi’s hopes were already pretty slim, but they went from slim to none with the Hawkeyes falling short against the Wildcats. 

USA TODAY Bowl Projections - Week 12

In a little less than three weeks, all the speculation about bowl destinations will end. There are several changes in this week's projections at the top, but Oregon and Auburn retain their places in the BCS national title game.
Boise State now looks positioned for the Rose Bowl after its improvement in the BCS standings, while TCU will moves to the Orange. Pittsburgh is out as the Big East representative with West Virginia tentatively taking the spot. And there's a lot of shuffling among the other games.

Teams in bold have accepted berths. Teams with asterisk fill spots due to conferences not meeting allotment of teams.

BCS national championship: Oregon vs. Auburn
Rose: Boise State vs. Wisconsin
Sugar:
LSU vs. Ohio State
Orange: Virginia Tech vs. TCU
Fiesta: Nebraska vs. West Virginia
Alamo: Missouri vs. Stanford
Armed Forces: Air Force vs. Southern Mississippi
Beef 'O' Brady's: Louisville vs. East Carolina
BBVA Compass: Connecticut vs. Georgia
Capital One: Michigan State vs. South Carolina
Champs Sports: Pittsburgh vs. North Carolina State
Chick-fil-A: Florida State vs. Arkansas
Cotton: Oklahoma State vs. Alabama
Gator: Penn State vs. Mississippi State
GoDaddy.com: Troy vs. Temple
Hawaii: Tulsa vs. Hawaii
Holiday: Texas A&M vs. Arizona
Humanitarian: Ohio vs. Fresno State
Independence: Clemson vs. Brigham Young
Insight: Oklahoma vs. Michigan
Kraft Fight Hunger: Boston College vs. Nevada
Liberty: Tennessee vs. Central Florida
Little Caesar's Pizza: Northern Illinois vs. Notre Dame*
Maaco Las Vegas: Toledo* vs. Utah
Meineke Car Care: South Florida vs. North Carolina
Military: Georgia Tech vs. UTEP
Music City: Maryland vs. Kentucky
New Mexico: Fresno State vs. Miami (Ohio)*
New Orleans: Florida International vs. SMU
Outback: Iowa vs. Florida
Pinstripe: Kansas State vs. Syracuse
Poinsettia: San Diego State vs. Navy
Sun: Miami (Fla.) vs. California
Texas: Baylor vs. Northwestern
TicketCity: Texas vs. Illinois

Moore Named “Player to Watch” for Walter Camp Award


The Walter Camp Football Foundation announced 15 “Players to Watch” for its 2010 National Player of the Year Award, Tuesday (Nov. 16), which includes Boise State quarterback Kellen Moore as one of 13 offensive players recognized by the Foundation.

Moore, a redshirt junior from Prosser, Wash. (Prosser HS), has played a vital role in Boise State’s 9-0 record (5-0 Western Athletic Conference) and No. 4 BCS ranking heading into this week. He currently leads the nation in pass efficiency rating (191.45 percent), with a completion percentage of 71.9 percent. Moore has completed 174-of-242 passes for 2,588 yards, 24 touchdowns and four interceptions.

 Moore is one of nine quarterbacks selected as a “Player to Watch” for the Walter Camp Player of the Year Award, which is voted on by Football Bowl Subdivision head coaches and sports information directors. The watch list also includes three running backs, one wide receiver and two defensive players. Five finalists for the award will be selected on Dec. 1 (Wednesday). The winner will be announced on Dec. 9 (Thursday) during the 6 p.m. ESPN SportsCenter broadcast.

This marks the second postseason award shortlist for Moore in as many weeks as he was also named one of 16 semifinalists for the Maxwell Award on Nov. 8.