It’s OK to nitpick the 8-1 Boise State football team — even after wins. Here’s why.
The Boise State football team operates in a different world than most college football programs — a world occupied by the likes of Ohio State, Alabama, Oklahoma, North Dakota State, St. Thomas and few others.
Wins come at such a high rate — the Broncos have won 84.5 percent of their games over the past 18 seasons — that the discussion and analysis each week goes far beyond whether the team won or lost.
It’s about how the team performed. Who stepped up. Who took a step backward. How this showing compares to others in the country, particularly in the race for major bowl games — a race decided in part by just that type of analysis.
And you know why it’s that way?
Because that’s what the Broncos have built.
And that’s why, despite coach Bryan Harsin’s protestations this week, it’s perfectly acceptable for fans to criticize a team that just won a game and has an outstanding record (without, as he pointed out, sending your frustrations to the players directly).
Even Harsin, in the moment Saturday night, lamented his team playing below its standard against Wyoming and not winning by as large of a margin as it should have. He hinted at that frustration Monday but was more defensive of his team — and took a shot at the “Twitiots” who aren’t satisfied with what they’re seeing.
“We’re on an 8-1 football team, making a run toward the end of the season,” Harsin said. “And let’s not forget that. Let’s kind of keep everything in perspective here a little bit on what opportunities we have.”
Those opportunities, of course, are the reason that a win is not just a win.
The mistakes that plagued the Broncos in early-season games became the reasons they lost to BYU, so it’s natural to wonder if close wins against San Jose State and Wyoming are foreshadowing a loss at Utah State next week that could cost the team the Mountain West Mountain Division title.
And the too-close-for-comfort scores against a statistically soft schedule — five wins by 11 points or fewer — are limiting the Broncos in the CFP rankings, which will decide if the champion of the American Athletic Conference (No. 17 Cincinnati and No. 18 Memphis are the leading contenders), Mountain West (No. 21 Boise State) or Sun Belt (No. 25 Appalachian State) gets the big-money, huge-spotlight bid to the Cotton Bowl.
But even if you remove the big-picture implications from the games, Boise State coaches have insisted during this incredible, nearly two-decade run that they hold the team to their own standard — that it’s less about the scoreboard and more about the process and performance.
That was the message as Dan Hawkins went 45-7 during his final four seasons, from 2002 to 2005; as Chris Petersen went 92-12 from 2006 to 2013 (there’s also a loss in the bowl game he didn’t coach in 2013); and as Harsin has built a 60-16 record. That’s an absurd 197-36 record in 18 seasons.
Quarterbacks and offensive coordinators, in particular, have noted how high the bar is — and how much they appreciate the opportunity to pursue it. Lately, it’s the offensive line under intense scrutiny because of a lackluster run game and intense pressure on the quarterback.
“The O-line is getting pointed at ... but, hey, that’s part of football, right?” offensive coordinator Zak Hill said. “That’s part of my job. I’m going to get pointed at, too. That’s great. That’s fine. I signed up for that. So I don’t mind it. They don’t mind it. They’re tough kids. And Boise State football is a tough brand of football.”
So, yes, Boise State beat Wyoming 20-17 last Saturday. But the Broncos beat an average team playing its backup quarterback by three points in overtime — in a game the Broncos never led at any point in the second half.
That’s fine for the typical Mountain West program. It’s less fine for Boise State — which has carved out a special niche for itself, somewhere between the Power Five and the Group of Five, complete with its own ESPN TV deal.
Just look at what happened in the College Football Playoff rankings this week. Cincinnati, the team Boise State is chasing for a New Year’s Six bowl berth, climbed three spots for beating hapless Connecticut 48-3. Boise State moved up one spot with its narrow win against a 6-2 team — essentially losing two spots to the Bearcats.
Or consider this example: Boise State beat Marshall 14-7 on Sept. 6, in another less-than-stellar performance that resulted in a win. Cincinnati beat that same team 52-14 on Sept. 28. Both teams topped the Thundering Herd — but you can bet those two scores will be part of the CFP committee’s discussion if Cincinnati and Boise State win out, and that won’t be a good comparison for the Broncos.
So if this team wants to finish the season right — three more wins would secure the first Mountain West sweep in school history — it must start fixing its flaws.
Against six likely bowl-bound teams, the Broncos have scored an average of 30.7 points per game (about average for college football) and rushed for 3.84 yards per carry (well below the national average). The quarterbacks have absorbed 21 sacks in nine games overall, with starter Hank Bachmeier missing two games with injuries and backup Chase Cord visiting the medical tent briefly against Wyoming. The offense has endured a stretch of at least 20 minutes without a touchdown in seven games. The defense has forced just 11 turnovers, which is tied for 90th in the nation. And the special teams, while better than last year, continue to make head-shaking mistakes like the two fumbled punt snaps last week.
All that leads to an easy conclusion that this 8-1 football team is a strong contender for the Mountain West title but doesn’t appear equipped to play a team like Penn State in the Cotton Bowl.
At least not yet.
“Have we played our best football yet? Nope,” Harsin said. “Have we done that consistently with all three phases? No. Is that what we’re going to keep working on — everything we can do to get that done? Yes.”
Which, essentially, is the same thing all those critics have been saying.
Three predictions
Boise State (8-1 overall, 5-0 Mountain West) and New Mexico (2-7, 0-5) meet at 8:15 p.m. Saturday at Albertsons Stadium (ESPN2).
Boise State is a 28-point favorite in Las Vegas with an over/under of 59 total points. The Broncos are 20-12 against the spread in their past 32 games but with three straight losses.
New Mexico is 3-13 ATS in its past 16 games. However, the Lobos are 6-2 ATS against Boise State in Mountain West games, including 4-0 in Boise.
My pick (7-2 straight up, 4-5 ATS): It’s Senior Day on the Blue, and the Broncos are due for an eruption after the loss to BYU, a bye week and four-quarter battles against San Jose State and Wyoming. The one cause for concern is that New Mexico’s defensive weakness is against the pass, where the Broncos have struggled without a healthy Hank Bachmeier. Expect the defense to keep the Lobos at bay and the offense to find more rhythm. But New Mexico will show ample fight, particularly in its first game since the death of defensive lineman Nahje Flowers. Boise State 38, New Mexico 14
New Mexico perspective, from J.J. Buck of The Sports Animal (opponent view is 3-4, 3-4): “Bob Davie hopes the love of football can help bring his team together this week after the tragic loss of teammate Nahje Flowers. New Mexico spent last weekend remembering their friend and brother after their game against Air Force was postponed. The Lobos are seventh in total yards (392.4) and 10th in scoring (18.6) through their five conference games. They’ve struggled to finish drives and keep the football as they have turned the football over 19 times this season. Defensively, they have only created seven takeaways. They have started nine different players in the secondary, which has given up 340 yards passing per game. That should allow whoever starts at quarterback for Boise State to have success getting the football to playmakers on the perimeter. So much has gone wrong for a team that has left Davie saying they are just not good enough after their 21-10 loss at Nevada. The big plays should be there for the Broncos as the Lobos will try to slow the game down like Wyoming did, but haven’t shown anywhere near the same strength.” Boise State 42, New Mexico 10
Betting expert Lee Sterling of Paramount Sports, who appears weekly on KTIK (6-2, 4-4): “(The Lobos) didn’t have any weapons of note last year on offense. Some things have changed. I think they’re going to give a nice effort here for their fallen teammate.” Boise State 38, New Mexico 17
Chadd Cripe is the Idaho Statesman’s assistant editor and sports columnist. Contact him at ccripe@idahostatesman.com and follow @chaddcripe on Twitter.
This story was originally published November 15, 2019 at 12:40 AM.
