BOISE, Idaho — Friday, December 3, 2021.
(TOM SCOTT’S COLUMN WILL RETURN WEDNESDAY)
After about a month of “no ways” from the media (me included), B.J. Rains of Bronco Nation News reported Thursday that the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl is actually on the table for Boise State when invitations are doled out on Sunday. “Other things would have to be juggled and moved around to make it happen,” writes Rains. One of the key considerations is the date of the game: Tuesday, December 21. Playing on the blue turf would allow the Broncos to put a bow on the season and get everyone home for Christmas—a huge chance to set the reset button on what is currently a 7-5 season. Boise State has played in its hometown bowl four times—but not since 2005, when a wild comeback fell short in a 27-21 loss to Boston College.
The curious thing is, the Frisco Bowl north of Dallas has been rumored as a possible Boise State destination, and it’s being played the same night as the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. And it has a 7:30 p.m. Eastern time kickoff on ESPN, a much better spot for exposure. Perhaps that has ceased to be a realistic option. But think about the bowl experiences for this senior class. Yes, a few of them played in the 38-24 win over Oregon in the 2017 Las Vegas Bowl. It doesn’t get much better than that (short of a Fiesta Bowl). But the four-year guys have experienced a First Responder Bowl that was scrapped with five minutes left in the first quarter, a 38-7 loss to Washington in the 2019 Las Vegas Bowl, and an opt-out in last year’s bowl season. So you’d think these Broncos would want to go somewhere.
JIMMY KIMMEL AWAITS
Whoever wins Saturday’s Mountain West championship game stands to get some quality late-night airtime on ABC. Utah State takes on San Diego State, and with Jimmy Kimmel sponsoring the inaugural L.A. Bowl at SoFi Stadium, somebody’s going to be sitting in the guest chair during Kimmel’s show. Will it be an Aggie or two? They’re 9-3, but they have absorbed a couple of inexplicable routs at the hands of Boise State and Wyoming. USU is also a six-point underdog. The Aztecs are 11-1, but they’ve been living dangerously. Who will Brady Hoke start at quarterback? Was Jordon Brookshire’s lights-out performance against the Broncos just an aberration last week? One thing’s for certain: there will be very little homefield advantage for San Diego State, if any, at the soccer stadium in Carson.
A BAD IDEA FROM THE START
After being fired by Boston College two years ago, coach Steve Addazio landed a job at Colorado State. Well, the school that hired him has now fired him, too, as Addazio was cut loose at CSU on Thursday, the day his contract buyout dropped from $5 million to $3 million. After some public relations missteps out of the gate, the Rams fan base never warmed up to him. The last straw, apparently, came last Saturday in a 52-10 home loss to Nevada when Addazio was ejected because of two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties. In his two seasons in Fort Collins, Addazio went 4-12, and it ended on a six-game losing streak.
PRESSURE? WHAT PRESSURE?
Ryan Dinwiddie’s first start in the CFL came in the 2007 Grey Cup championship game for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. So the former Boise State star is familiar with the microscope he’ll be under Sunday in Toronto. Now, instead of quarterbacking, Dinwiddie is coaching as his Toronto Argonauts host the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the 108th Grey Cup Division Finals. He was hired as the Argos’ coach for the 2020 season, but that didn’t happen due to COVID. So 2021 is serving as Dinwiddie’s rookie season, and it has been solid, with Toronto going 9-5 and winning the Eastern Division crown. And on Thursday he was named a finalist for CFL Coach of the Year. Dinwiddie was a Bronco from 2000-03 and still holds the Boise State single-game passing record with 532 yards as well as the single-season mark with 4,356.
NO MORE NO. 11
B.J. Rains struck again Thursday night from his Bronco Nation News site, reporting that coach Leon Rice has dismissed Devonaire Doutrive from the Boise State men’s basketball team. That was quick. Doutrive, the much-celebrated transfer from Arizona, had led the Broncos in scoring in the debacle against Cal State Bakersfield a week ago, then he was taken out of the starting lineup in favor of Tyson Degenhart in Tuesday night’s overtime loss to Saint Louis. Many commented about Doutrive’s bad body language, both on the bench and during his 13 minutes on the floor. I might be missing somebody, but I can’t recall Rice ever dismissing a starter in his 12 seasons as head coach.
SHAVER’S BAD NIGHT IS BEHIND HIM
Boise State hopes Marcus Shaver Jr. is truly back to his old self tonight in ExtraMile Arena as the Broncos host Tulsa. The Golden Hurricane, at 4-3, have a win over defending Pac-12 Tournament champion Oregon State (although they did lose by a point to Air Force). Shaver hit Boise State’s final bucket in the win over Ole Miss at the Charleston Classic, but he was 0-for-7 from the field and went scoreless versus Cal State Bakersfield last Friday. In fact, Shaver didn’t score again until almost 29 minutes had elapsed Tuesday night against Saint Louis. From there it was a flurry, though, as he put up 14 points, including a trio of three-pointers. That’s the Marcus Shaver everybody expects.
UNDERDOGS SERVE IT UP IN PROVO
Boise State women’s volleyball, upset winner of the Mountain West Tournament, makes its second-ever NCAA Tournament appearance tonight at BYU. The Broncos’ last NCAA trip saw them upset 20th ranked Western Kentucky before falling to eventual national champion Stanford in 2016. And a big upset is needed this evening, as the Cougars come in as the 11th overall seed with a record of 28-1. Boise State is winless against BYU in nine tries all-time. The Broncos, by the way, have three Idahoans on their roster, led by Centennial High grad and Pepperdine transfer Alli O’Hara. The Cougars feature Skyview High grads Morgan and Whitney Bower.
This Day In Sports…brought to you by ZAMZOWS…Nobody Knows Like Zamzows!
December 3, 2011, 10 years ago today: Kellen Moore plays his final game in Bronco Stadium as Boise State blanks New Mexico, 45-0, on Senior Day. Moore became the first Bronco quarterback ever to throw 40 touchdown passes in a season when he connected with fellow senior Tyler Shoemaker on a 16-yard score in the first quarter. Shoemaker broke the school record for single-season TD receptions on the same play with his 15th. And Chris Petersen won his 72nd game to become the winningest coach in Boise State history, passing the late Tony Knap.
(Tom Scott hosts the Scott Slant segment during the football season on KTVB’s Sunday Sports Extra and anchors five sports segments each weekday on 93.1 FM KTIK. He also served as color commentator on KTVB’s telecasts of Boise State football for 14 seasons.)
Watch more on Boise State Football:
See all of our Boise State football coverage in our YouTube playlist:
