Cobbs’ first punt return TD mirrored that of Boise State’s former spark on special teams
Boise State football coaches spent the offseason answering questions about how they were going to replace special teams star Avery Williams.
The answer: wide receiver Stefan Cobbs.
Cobbs returned a punt 81 yards for Boise State’s first touchdown Friday in a 54-13 win over UTEP in its home opener. The touchdown was the spark the Broncos’ offense needed to rack up 31 points in the second quarter, and it was eerily similar to the first special teams touchdown of Williams’ career.
Williams returned his first punt for a touchdown in Boise State’s 2017 season opener against Troy, and it also covered 81 yards. He went on to score nine special teams touchdowns during his college career and was named the Mountain West Special Teams Player of the Year in 2019 and 2020.
Williams was picked by the Atlanta Falcons in the fifth round of this year’s NFL Draft.
The punt return Cobbs scored on Friday night tied Williams for the sixth-longest return in program history, and it got his teammates pretty pumped up.
“I was going crazy on the sideline,” Boise State safety JL Skinner said. “He reminded me a little bit of Avery Williams.”
Boise State (1-1) went on to rack up 461 yards of offense — including 340 through the air from quarterback Hank Bachmeier. The Broncos also scored more than 50 points for the first time since offensive coordinator Tim Plough brought his “half-a-hundred mantra” with him from UC Davis.
The Broncos host Oklahoma State (2-0) on Saturday (7 p.m., FS1). Here are three things we learned from Boise State’s home opener.
1. The running game is still a mess.
Running back George Holani was active for the first time this season against UTEP, but he was obviously on a snap count after missing the season opener at UCF with an undisclosed injury. He also missed most of last season after suffering a knee injury in game two at Air Force.
Holani scored a 10-yard touchdown in the first quarter on Friday, but he carried the ball just five times for 22 yards and finished the game without a catch after only being on the field for a handful of passing plays.
The Broncos’ leading rushers were Tyler Crowe (7 carries, 45 yards) and Taequan Tyler (5 carries, 28 yards) — neither of whom are listed on Boise State’s depth chart. Holani, 240-pound senior Andrew Van Buren and Oregon transfer Cyrus Habibi-Likio combined for just 36 rushing yards, and the team finished with 136.
That’s an improvement from Boise State’s 20 rushing yards in the opener at UCF, but it’s not going to be enough to help the Broncos beat Oklahoma State on Friday or Nevada (Oct. 2) and BYU (Oct. 9) in a few weeks.
It’s hard to accurately scrutinize Boise State’s running game because in an offense that relies so heavily on read-pass-option (RPO) plays, so many of those decisions are made by the quarterback — not the offensive coordinator.
But one thing is clear: Boise State is still in search of a running back that can effectively carry the load when Holani isn’t on the field.
2. Shakir is approaching G.O.A.T status
Wide receiver Khalil Shakir and his coaches said he was 100% heading into the home opener after he was on a snap count at UCF because of a nagging leg injury. But nobody outside the Broncos’ locker room really knows how healthy he is.
What anyone who watches college football does know is he’s a game changer, whether he’s 100% or not.
Shakir put on a clinic Friday against UTEP with spectacular one-hand catches and big plays when the Broncos needed them the most. The senior finished with seven catches for 166 yards — marking his seventh career 100-yard receiving game. His 161 receiving yards by halftime were the most in a half by a Boise State receiver since former Bronco Sean Modster also had 161 in the 2018 opener at Troy.
Shakir had to stretch for a leaping one-hand catch on a 31-yard reception in the first quarter, which set up the first of kicker Jonah Dalmas’ four field goals. The catch screams to be on a poster hanging in some kid’s bedroom, and it was No. 4 on SportsCenter’s top 10 plays on Friday night.
He came up with another one-hand catch to spark the drive that ended with Holani’s touchdown, but he made an even bigger play on that drive. The Broncos were near midfield when Shakir caught a short pass, made a defender miss and covered 36 yards to put the ball on UTEP’s 10-yard line. Holani scored two plays later.
Shakir is already No. 9 all-time at Boise State with 148 career receptions. He has 2,109 career receiving yards and needs just 246 more to move to No. 9 all-time in program history. He also has 17 career receiving touchdowns and needs just four to move into No. 9 on yet another of the Broncos’ all-time lists.
It’s obvious that Shakir is going to go down as one of the best wide receivers to ever play at Boise State. If he keeps performing the way he has, he’ll also be the latest Bronco to hear his name called in the NFL Draft.
3. The secondary is the strength of the defense
Coming into the season, it looked like the Broncos’ experience at linebacker would make that unit the strength of the defense. Or maybe it would be the defensive line because of improved depth and physical transformations from nose tackle Scale Igiehon and defensive tackle Scott Matlock.
Neither has proven true, and Igiehon isn’t even currently with the team. Boise State announced Friday that he was taking a leave of absence to deal with a personal matter.
Instead, the strength of the Broncos’ defense through two games has been the secondary, which is breaking in two new starters at cornerback.
After nabbing just three interceptions in seven games last season, the secondary has already accounted for five this fall. The defense, as a whole, has forced eight takeaways in two games.
Cornerback Tyric LeBeauf came up with two picks in the season opener — one of which he returned 100 yards for a touchdown. Fellow cornerback Markel Reed is proving to be a physical tackler, and safety Tyreque Jones made up for a dropped interception at UCF with a pick against UTEP.
Skinner leads the team with 22 tackles, and the future of the secondary looks bright.
Freshman safety Seyi Oladipo replaced Jones when he went out injured on Friday, and he snagged two interceptions in the first extended action of his college career. He also posted a tackle for a loss and almost came up with a third interception late in the game.
Redshirt freshman Rodney Robinson made his first career start at nickel after super senior Kekaula Kaniho missed the first half Friday because he was called for targeting in the second half at UCF. Robinson played fast and confident — just like his coaches said he would — and he finished with five tackles.
The secondary is sure to be tested Saturday against Oklahoma State, but if it can keep producing turnovers the way it has, Boise State is going to be hard to beat this season.
OKLAHOMA STATE AT BOISE STATE
When: 7 p.m. Saturday
Where: Albertsons Stadium
TV: FS1 (Aaron Goldsmith, Mark Helfrich). That’s channel 146 on Sparklight, 219 on DirecTV and 150 on Dish Network.
Radio: KBOI 670 AM/KTIK 93.1 FM (Bob Behler, Pete Cavender)
Records: Boise State 1-1; Oklahoma State 2-0
Series: This is the second meeting between the programs. Oklahoma State won the first, 44-21, in Stillwater, Oklahoma, in 2018.
Vegas line: Boise State by 4.5
Weather: High of 70 degrees, 24% chance of rain, 10 mph winds
This story was originally published September 12, 2021 at 5:37 PM.
