The Boise State Broncos started the season like they have so many times over the last two decades- with a trip to a big time Power 5 team to put themselves to the test early. Sadly, a trip to Seattle to take on the No. 10 Washington Huskies proved to be too much for the Broncos, who fell 56-19 in the season opener in front of nearly 70,000 people at Husky Stadium.
Things started VERY well for the Broncos. They won the toss, and instead of trying to grab momentum, Coach Andy Avalos showed faith in his defense, deferring to the second half and giving the opening drive to the Heisman-Hopeful Michael Penix, Jr. That gamble paid off, as the Broncos forced a three and out, including a big time sack on Penix Jr. Both teams traded punts until Ashton Jeanty stepped up, punching in a seven yard touchdown to cap a drive that started on the Bronco’s own 10 yard line. The Broncos would miss the extra point (Doink!), but lead at the quarter break, 6-0.
Penix Jr. waisted no time in the second quarter, taking the lead with a 7 play, 73 yard drive that took only 3:30 off the clock. Penix Jr. capped the drive with the first of three touchdowns to Jalen McMillan. Five player and two minutes later, the Broncos would retake the lead with a Jonah Dalmas 39 yard field goal. That would be the last time the Broncos led. Washington ripped off another McMillian TD, this time for 38 yards, and then added a Ja’Lynn Polk grab for a TD thanks to a 44 yard bomb after a Taylen Green interception. The Broncos tacked on a field goal at the end of the half, but trailed 28-12 at the break.
Ashton Jeanty found the end zone on a 50 yard screen pass just four plays into the second half, breathing life into the Broncos (see below). That would be the last positive that happened in the game, and the less said about the remaining 27:49, the better. Penix Jr. threw another touchdown to Rome Odunze, before two rushing touchdowns put the game to bed. UW finished the game with a touchdown with 4:03 to go, and the final score was achieved.
It’s difficult to feel good about a game that finished with a score that gaudy, on national TV, but there are some positives to take away. Taylen Green showed that, although he’s still a little rough around the edges at times, he has made significant strides in his passing game. His wide receivers did nothing to help him today, dropping multiple balls that were delivered on the numbers. His pocket presence was good as well.
Another plus: Ashton Jeanty is that dude. He showed tonight why he is pushing George Holani for the RB1 spot, and why he is going to be one of the best running backs to come out of Boise State, maybe ever. He caught the ball well, rushed the ball with patience and violence, and tried to keep the Broncos in the game when they looked dead and done going into halftime.
The final plus from this evening: No team that the Broncos will face for the remainder of this year will be anywhere near as dynamic, deep, and explosive as the UW QB/WR combo that took the field today. A secondary that has been questioned all summer long was exposed at times tonight, and the lack of a physical monster like JL Skinner in the secondary is obvious; but this defense was baptized by fire tonight. As they say: it’s all down hill from here.
Even though tonight was rough, Bronco Nation, it’s still okay to be VERY bullish on this team. Wins at home over UCF and North Dakota, combined with road wins over a weakened San Diego State and a solid-at-best Memphis team will have this BSU team right back in the conversation.
For now, the Broncos fall to 0-1 and turn their attention to one of the more highly anticipated home openers in a while: 2017’s most fraudulent national champions: Central Florida.
I wasn’t expecting to come away with a win on this one but, after the first couple of series I thought we had a solid chance to do so. However, whether it was a change in our defensive scheme or their offense, something happened, and not for the better (for us). What it came down to was their receivers were too much for our secondary, and their O-line adjusted and picked up any pressure we brought. Without their passing game, they really don’t have much offense. So, when they come up against a good passing D, I think we’ll see… Read more »
Taylen is not going to thread the needle on every pass; just as Penix did not. However, a receiver has to catch the ball. If a receiver has two hands on the ball or it hits him, it is catchable. That keeps drives alive and the opponent’s offense off the field. That’s points you get and the other team doesn’t or has to wait to get. Announcers get fired for misgendering, perceived ethnic or racial slurs, speaking ill of lunatic social causes, and not walking the narrative. Kaden Dudley takes a horrific hit to the head and two jackass announcers… Read more »
Yes ugly hit but it’s part of the game. I hope he’s doing well and only his ego is hurt.
It was not the hit but the laughter of the announcers. Even if it was a Udub player the announcers are still clueless jackasses. Unprofessional and inhumane.
Was Austin Bolt out there last night?
Most points given up since 2003. Head coach is supposedly a ‘defensive specialist’.
very few commenters, here. Is this a legit fan-boy site?
This is a legit fanboy site. It’s actually THE fanboy site. That’s why there is still a lot of optimism and good feelings about our broncos.
2017 fake national champions! Lol. Looking forward to the T-shirt for game day! Make it happen FKWG crew!!
I always thought the story on Boise State was, ‘We’ll go anywhere to play anybody.” That still holds true. They won’t win them all but they will bounce back. The teams that rub their noses in it will be a lesson and not a defeat. Adversity builds character. The Broncos played a good team on their turf. Sure would have liked an upset or at least a close score but it is what it is. As one commentator said, Udub might have one of the best receiving corps in the country. That’s hard to overcome with so many new faces… Read more »
But when do we stop making excuses. Yeah BSU came out swinging and punched UW in the mouth but after the first quarter that was it. I don’t feel this team has gotten any better since Andy started. I believe last year it was really Dirks team and he bailed out Andy. This is Andy’s 3rd year and we should start to see some improvement or something.
I’m not an Andy apologist. BSU hired the wrong guy. I’m not rooting for him to fail. Hope he succeeds but the program has taken a step back since his arrival.
Andy isn’t going backward. 1st year 7-5 2nd year 10-4. It’s one game, not the end of the season. Let the season play out before calling for his head.
Agree with the comment below. Avalos was not my first choice either. Not being able to recognize that Plow was a disaster much earlier says a lot about his ability to lead a team as the head coach. Also, not being able to change the strategy after the other team adjusts. Good coaches have plan B, C, D and E dialed up for every occasion. Avalos doesn’t appear to have that. So to the when do we stop making excuses question I would say that we need to define expectations around here. We aren’t getting into one of these super… Read more »
There is no way that after loosing to a team that likely will be contending for/going to the playoffs, we are talking about dropping a division. If we are really talking about dropping a division, it would be to FCS, not D2. I’ve spent the last two years working in D2, that’s 7500 seat stadiums and 6,000 student schools. Not even remotely close. I don’t understand the doom and gloom, however. The playoff committee has already hinted about going to a 5+7 model going forward, meaning the 5 top conference champs and the 7 best remaining go to the playoff.… Read more »
Yes, FCS. That is what I meant. Obviously I’m not suggesting that they drop to FCS because of 1 loss. I’m suggesting that these power conferences are looking to cut every other team out of the money grab. Why share with the Mountain West or American when you can just simply cut them out. All of this realignment is just a money grab make no mistake about it. Ultimately these colleges are going to push back because college football costs too much and they can’t continue Olympic sports while they are paying college football players thousands, some even millions. Never… Read more »
DB’s outmatched.
I wonder how much of that was scheme. It looked like we had our safeties playing up to stop the run and they couldn’t recover to play the deep ball. After about the first quarter we should have switched the game plan when it was clear Washington had all but abandoned the run. In the absence of speed in our secondary, the only option was to pressure that QB and we didn’t. No doubt we were outmatched in the speed department, but we have been outmatched before in that department . The game changer in the past has been scheme… Read more »
Agree. DB’s should always paly pass first run 2nd.
We have a serious wide receiver issue. So many dropped balls. So many opportunities to keep their offense off the field. Ten incomplete passes in a row isn’t gonna get that done.
I still think this team can be very good. I hope this game helps them take a big step forward.
Agree. Too many drops. 1 or 2 drops in a game is frustrating. 10 drops is demoralizing for a QB. Greens receiving corps really let him down. I would have benched a receiver after 2 drops and put in some younger players. It’s no different than a running back that fumbles a lot. It simply can’t happen with the expectation of winning the game.
It also looked like the receivers weren’t comfortable with greens ball. He throws it hard, but having spent spring and fall camp with him they should have been used to it.
Exactly; the talk from the Broncos was about how deep the wide receiver room was full and deep. A drop or two–next man up. It’s just that simple. However, we didn’t see much of that depth. Only three receivers had catches, plus the two backs. How many drops? Don’t know but I saw at least 5 or 6.
Well it depends on what you consider catchable…lol. But I think that deep one to McCallister was catchable. Bowens had 3 that were catchable. And I can recall 2 or 3 others. It was rough for sure. I know nothing about how the team operates behind the scenes, but I really hope we aren’t keeping these young guys off the field because of some seniority mentality. They were good enough to be offered scholarships. If they made the team and are the best player, they should be on the field. Bush Hamdan should know this better than anyone! If it’s… Read more »
Hats off to Washington. Def has work to do. No need for dramatics, on to the next.
Okay, all things considered, the Broncos are human, and not divinely chosen. Broncos have UCF at home, a team they should handle. If we see the receivers drop balls or fail to bring catchable balls in, if we see the secondary being beaten, if we don’t see holes open, and if there is a loss–it is a pattern. A previous commenter said Avlelos was moving forward, (7-5 and 10-4). But no thanks to Andy and his staff. If not for Dirk…? Where would this team have been if not for the miracle at Wyoming? Not sure, but if not for… Read more »