Benjamin Franklin was purported to have once said, “Whatever is begun in anger, ends in shame” but in the case of Boise State’s freshman-phenom running back Ashton Jeanty, I’d offer this small amendment, “whatever Ashton Jeanty begins in anger, ends in shame for the defenders”.
At the midpoint of the Broncos’ 2022 season, Jeanty is second to George Holani in yardage (301 to 549) and touches (58 to 107) while edging the uber-talented junior in yards per carry (5.3 to 5.1) and while Holani has also dished plenty of punishing runs, my unofficial analysis has the youngster ahead in “impolite” runs. Hearkening back to the original Boise State RB fueled by rageohol—Doug Martin—many have already called Jeanty an “angry runner”. I couldn’t agree more.
Don’t get me wrong, Holani will lower the boom on you, but something just seems different about the ferocity of Jeanty runs and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little excited to see #2 trot onto the field to spell #24. Frankly, it’s an embarrassment of riches but I’m not blushing yet. Boise State might have the best 1-2 punch in the Mountain West that we might not have known about had something not clicked in the post-Plough spate of games. And honestly, this newfound ground prowess may have more than a bit to do with who’s currently under center—as good as these dudes are, getting hit in the backfield is never the best way to start a potential first down scamper. I apologize, Ashton Jeanty does NOT “scamper”.
It’s hard to quantify, as in the Broncos last two outings George went OFF, but something about Jeanty’s runs in those two Broncos wins were just pure, rage-filled nostalgia. The kid runs like the defenders stole something from him, and then he steals their dignity. Here’s a great example of a Jeanty run with an inauspicious start. Heck, if you were sitting on the east side, you might even have thought the play was effectively over, but no…Jeanty sees the first down marker and had a few souls to pry loose.
Do not get in his way!
So what’s with the rage?
Part bull?
Jeanty has gone off on several teams with his angry runs..of note, San Diego State, Fresno State, and UNM. All three of those opponents have red in their uniforms. Perhaps Jeanty is angered by the color red like the proverbial bull. Ferdinand he is not.
Against the machine?
If Jeanty IS part bull, he is on parade.
Against the dying of the light?
Jeanty will NOT go gentle into that good night, so this is a real possibility as well.
Doug Martin rays?
Bruce Banner was bombarded with gamma rays and then had a good smash. Jeanty at some point was in proximity to Bronco great Doug Martin and absorbed his angry run style. SMASHton Jeanty?
Whatever the source of Jeanty’s on-field anger, it seems fitting to keep him in that state. Heck, maybe he’s a Bobby Boucher-like visualizer and needs no outside help. At any rate, I’m glad he’s a Bronco and a part of our stable. Oh, and he only had one carry against UTEP—maybe that was Tim Plough’s fireable offense?
I really don’t think Holani is any less punishing than Jeanty. (MHO) What little has been seen of Crowe, I think he is punishing. All good runners have the mentality, ‘if you’re going to tackle me, it’s going to hurt you.’
Martin, Ajayi, and Matteson put the hurt on a lot of defenders.
#2 runs like a charging pitbull. He puts fear in a defenders mind. You don’t want to get in his way!
Smashton is right Drew. He’s not one to go down on an arm tackle. I think the combo of Jeanty, Holani, and Green are really going to cause a lot of grief to all defenses we face this year. It will help with the pass game AND it will keep our D fresh by running clock. This was Plough’s thought process, but I think he made it too hard on the QBs. Koetter basically told Green to use his gut and his intuition, and it’s working. The unsung heroes, however, are the O-linemen. We’ve given them oodles of grief this… Read more »
Ha!! Bulls on Parade! After being rescheduled 3x due to COVID, the RATM tour was finally cancelled this year. They said it was due to the health of the lead singer….but as you pointed out, one of their parade bulls is currently housed in boise. Now we know the truth about why the tour was cancelled.
I greatly appreciate when true freshmen have so much success, talent, and drive. Smashton drives like a MACK truck and appears to have plenty of gas in the tank.