BOISE, Idaho — Wednesday Weekly…October 30, 2024.
No doubt, the six sacks Boise State racked up at UNLV last Friday were key to the grinder of a win in Allegiant Stadium. But a case can be made that the zero sacks given up played almost as big a part in Vegas. For the season, the Broncos have logged 35 sacks on defense, No. 1 in the nation. But they’ve also yielded just six sacks, tied for seventh-fewest in the country. Makes you think of the good ol’ Kellen Moore era, doesn’t it? Boise State’s best sack differential in history was 49 made against just eight allowed in 2010, the year the Broncos fielded arguably their best team ever. And let’s call this “sack distribution”: of the 35 this season, 9.5 have been posted by the secondary. There’s more than one way for them to stop the pass.
The “sore thumb” stat of the year for Boise State is two interceptions (although the second one last Friday by Andrew Simpson was one of the most important plays of the year). All the while, the Broncos have recovered only four fumbles. That’s only six turnovers forced all season. Yet Boise State is plus-2 in turnover margin. That’s because of these underappreciated numbers: the Broncos have lost just one fumble and three picks (just two of them thrown by Maddux Madsen). Take Ashton Jeanty, for example. Despite the punishment being doled out to him, Jeanty has—knock on wood—not lost a fumble this year. It’s been a remarkably disciplined effort by the Boise State offense all season. Defensive footnote: the Broncos may lead the nation in sacks, but be aware that San Diego State is tied for third with 28.
REMEMBERING ASHTON JEANTY’S NIGHT
By most accounts, Jeanty maintains a slim lead in Heisman Trophy odds despite UNLV’s all-out game plan to stop him last Friday. So we wonder: what goes through the minds of Heisman Trophy voters? Do they remember this night and take the Rebels’ game plan into consideration? Do they remember that Jeanty was injured with six minutes left in the first half, went into the medical tent, and came right back out to play the rest of the game and help his team to a pivotal win? Do they remember that Jeanty scored the winning touchdown and—when Boise State got the ball back on its own 14-yard line with 8:07 left in the game—Jeanty carried the ball seven times for a bruising 26 yards and caught a pass for seven more, converting two critical third downs? I’d like to think they’ll remember.
ANOTHER REMEMBRANCE
Remember what the Boise State running game was like just three years ago? It was water cooler talk. The Broncos averaged 3.1 yards per carry and just 120 yards per game. This season, they’re second in the nation at 275 yards per game and first in yards per carry at 7.2 yards per attempt. The Broncos have rushed for at least 175 yards in 16 straight games. The only other FBS team with an active streak of more than six games is Army with 12 straight. And it’s not just Jeanty. George Holani had a big hand in this down the stretch last year.
SOMETHING ABOUT THE BLUE FOR SDSU
Item No. 1: San Diego State is one of only two teams that have ever beaten Boise State twice on the blue turf in Mountain West play (Air Force is the other). Item No. 2: the Broncos are favored over the Aztecs by 23.5 points Friday night. Those points do not intersect. Both teams have new coaches this year, with contrary results. Boise State’s Spencer Danielson is 10-2 dating back to last season. San Diego State’s Sean Lewis is 3-4 after last week’s narrow loss to Washington State. But these are the Aztecs we’re talking about. They hold a special place in their hearts for the Broncos.
SHAKIR & MATLOCK SHINE
Among Boise State products in the NFL, Khalil Shakir and Scott Matlock had scrapbook weekends. Shakir hauled in a career-high nine catches for 107 yards in Buffalo’s 31-10 thumping of Seattle at Lumen Field. Shakir leads all NFL wide receivers this season in “catch rate” (targets vs. receptions) at 94.7 percent. And Matlock, everybody’s favorite three-way player (offense-defense-special teams), made his first NFL reception for nine yards and recorded a sack in the L.A. Chargers’ 26-8 win over New Orleans. Next stop for the former Homedale Trojan: the end zone.
HUTCHISON & MARTIN KEEP PLAYING
Looks like former Boise State hoops star Chandler Hutchison wants to make a comeback. The 2018 first-round NBA Draft pick, now 28, was chosen fifth overall Saturday in the G League Draft by the Long Island Nets—and then the Cleveland Charge, the Cavaliers affiliate, traded for him. Hutchison had retired from the NBA two years ago after a 79-game run over three seasons. And Cam Martin, who played through a shoulder injury for the Broncos last season, was selected 12th overall by the Motor City Cruise (Detroit Pistons affiliate). Like Martin’s ex-Boise State teammates will tell you, look out when he's healthy. We just saw flashes of how good Martin can be—like his clutch performance at the end of the game at San Diego State when he won the game on two free throws and blocked the Aztecs’ desperation shot.
PERFECT HALLOWEEN OPPONENT FOR THE STEELIES
The Idaho Steelheads play their next six games on the road, beginning with three in three nights against the new Tahoe Knight Monsters in Stateline, NV (the series starts on Halloween, appropriately enough). In the 2000s there were always rumblings of Reno returning to the hockey world, but that never materialized. Oh well, the Knight Monsters are less than an hour away. Tahoe hasn’t lost yet—it’s 1-0-1 early in its inaugural season. The Steelies are 3-1 after taking two of three from the Toledo Walleye last week.
THE YOTES’ DEFENSIVE ADVENTURES
College of Idaho’s defense had been trending in the right direction, allowing 326 and 142 yards in wins over Arizona Christian and Montana State Northern, respectively. But the Coyotes were ambushed with a 518-yard barrage from Carroll College in a loss at Simplot Stadium last week. The Yotes will try to reverse that misfortune Saturday against Eastern Oregon in LaGrande. C of I hopes its pressure matches its pass coverage against the Mountaineers—it did have six sacks versus Carroll, three of them from former New Plymouth High standout Kobe Roberts.
BLUE & ORANGE LUMINARIES
I, for one, am looking forward to Saturday night’s Boise State Athletic Hall of Fame induction ceremony Saturday night. (Psssst…I’m privileged to emcee it.) The inductee I know the best is my neighbor, Brock Forsey, who set a new standard for grit when he went from walk-on to all-time Broncos great from 1999-2002. His years coincided with Boise State’s entrance on the national scene. Forsey scored a school-record 68 (count ‘em, 68) touchdowns. But the other inductees are on par: former NFL first round draft pick Ryan Clady, men’s basketball career scoring leader Tanoka Beard, women’s hoops great Tasha Harris, PGA Tour veteran Troy Merritt, and three-time women’s national steeplechase champion Allie Ostrander. It’s especially cool to see Ostrander return to campus.
THIS DAY IN SPORTS…October 30, 1974, 50 years ago today:
The “Rumble In the Jungle” pits world heavyweight champion George Foreman against challenger Muhammad Ali in Kinshasa, Zaire. Ali, trying to regain the title stripped from him in 1967, employed his “rope-a-dope” strategy for the first time, wearing down the younger and stronger Foreman by forcing him to throw punch after punch without connecting. Ali finally knocked down Foreman in the eighth round, and when the champ barely made it back to his feet, the fight was stopped.
(Tom Scott hosts the Scott Slant segment during the football season on KTVB’s Sunday Sports Extra and anchors four sports segments each weekday on 95.3 FM KTIK. He also served as color commentator on KTVB’s telecasts of Boise State football for 14 seasons.)
