Boise State’s game at Colorado State has postseason implications; Broncos add O-lineman
Boise State football coach Andy Avalos said work on what it means to be a Bronco began as soon as he was hired in January.
“It has been re-establishing the foundation since day one,” Avalos said. “Re-establishing what it means to bleed blue, what it means to have the family first, the team first. It takes great teamwork to make a family.”
But Avalos and his staff didn’t just come in and make sweeping changes to a team that played in four straight Mountain West championship games under former coach Bryan Harsin, who left to take over at Auburn in December. Instead, the Broncos’ coaches got the players’ opinions on what, if anything, needed to change.
Avalos said the coaches polled every player on the roster individually, and that stuck with many of the veterans on the team.
“That shows we’re surrounded by a staff of players’ coaches and they really believe in what we have to say,” Boise State wide receiver Khalil Shakir said. “We can go to them with any issue, and we feel comfortable doing that, too.”
Neither players nor coaches would specify what was said in those meetings or what changes were made. But fifth-year wide receiver CT Thomas’ sudden, unexplained exit from the team recently and the fact that Avalos, after a loss to Air Force, alluded to players showing up late to meetings are proof that something needed to change.
Avalos and the Broncos hope that a commitment to their blue-collar mentality might have clicked during the bye week. The team didn’t take the week off after that Air Force loss, despite not having a game last weekend. The coaches spent the weekend on the road recruiting, but they were back on campus by Sunday, and Avalos said the team had some of its most competitive practices of the season this week.
Boise State (3-4, 1-2 MW) has a chance to turn things around Saturday (5 p.m., CBS SN) in a game at Colorado State that will have major postseason ramifications for both teams. A loss will all but eliminate the Broncos from Mountain West title contention and leave them in danger of not getting invited to a bowl game for the first time in 19 years. The team qualified for a bowl last year, despite the season being shortened to seven games by COVID-19, but the players voted not to take part because of the toll the virus had already taken.
The Broncos need to win four of their remaining five regular-season games to improve their odds at earning a bowl bid. That’s no easy task with road games at Fresno State (6-2, 3-1) and No. 21 San Diego State (7-0, 3-0) still on the schedule. Teams can qualify for a bowl game with a 6-6 record, but programs with better records are given priority.
Colorado State (3-4, 2-1) is not only looking for its first win over Boise State in program history on Saturday, but also trying to stay in contention for a Mountain Division title and a chance to play for a Mountain West title. They’re only a game behind division leader Utah State.
The stakes are high for both teams, but Avalos doesn’t expect his players to wilt under the pressure. That’s why his staff has been so focused on re-establishing the mentality that his alma mater used to approach every game with.
“Mentality always starts with a purpose,” Avalos said. “We’re resetting the vision of what that looks like, and the work it takes to be a consistent team.”
Even though Boise State is 10-0 against Colorado State since 2011, a win is far from a guarantee in Canvas Stadium on Saturday. The Broncos will face a team that ranks No. 2 in the country with 30 sacks and is surrendering just 100 rushing yards a game, which ranks No. 3 in the Mountain West.
“They have experience and play physical at the line of scrimmage,” Avalos said. “In the past month, they’ve been unbelievable at line of scrimmage, stopping run and putting pressure on quarterbacks.”
Playing a defense that’s stout against the run isn’t good news for Boise State, which was without its top two running backs — George Holani and Oregon transfer Cyrus Habibi-Likio — against Air Force. Holani has missed three games with what his coaches described as a soft-tissue leg injury. Avalos said on Monday that he hopes to have several injured players back this week, but he wasn’t specific.
Facing one of the nation’s top pass-rushing units doesn’t bode well for the Broncos, either. Quarterback Hank Bachmeier has played behind four different starting line combinations and taken plenty of hits this fall, and he may be in for a few more on Saturday. Colorado State racked up eight sacks last weekend in a loss to Utah State. The Rams had seven different players record at least half a sack, and they’re led in that department by former Miami Hurricanes defensive end Scott Patchan, who has seven this season.
“The D-line is special,” Boise State offensive coordinator Tim Plough said. “Those four guys are relentless, and they’re a dangerous group. They’re able to create pressure every play.”
Defensively, Boise State will have to contend with Colorado State tight end Trey McBride, who ranks No. 2 in the Mountain West with 55 catches and is getting plenty of publicity as a likely first- or second-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.
“I think he’s an NFL-caliber tight end,” said Boise State cornerbacks coach Jeron Johnson, who spent five of his six seasons in the NFL playing for the Seattle Seahawks. “He’s a special guy, and we have to know where he is on the field at all times.”
Broncos add lineman to 2022 class
The latest recruit to join Boise State’s 2022 recruiting class comes from a familiar high school program.
Offensive tackle Tyson Molio’o verbally committed to the Broncos on Friday afternoon via Twitter. The 6-foot-4, 295-pound lineman plays for St. John Bosco, which is the same high school in California that produced Holani and quarterback Katin Houser, who was committed to the Broncos’ 2022 class before backing out and deciding on Michigan State instead.
Molio’o is a three-star recruit and he also has scholarship offers from UNLV, San Jose State and Idaho State, according to 247Sports. He is the second recruit to verbally commit to the Broncos in a little more than a week, following Australian punter James Ferguson, who joined the class last Thursday.
BOISE STATE 2022 RECRUITING CLASS
CB Dionte Thornton, 6-3, 185, Lawndale (California) High
OT Kage Casey, 6-6, 250, Clackamas (Oregon) High
TE Austin Terry, 6-5, 230, Tumwater High (Olympia, Washington)
LB Kaeo Akana, 6-3, 205, Theodore Roosevelt High (Honolulu, Hawaii)
WR Keenan McCaddy, 6-4, 180, Moanalua High (Honolulu, Hawaii)
OT Roger Carreon, 6-5, 295, Jal (New Mexico) High
DL JJ Talo, 6-3, 250, Kearns High (Salt Lake City, Utah)
LB Jayden Virgin, 6-3, 220, Mt. Carmel High (San Diego, California)
OT Hall Schmidt, 6-7, 300, Peninsula (Washington) High
WR Zamondre Merriweather, 6-2, 200, Valencia (California) High
QB Maddux Madsen, 6-0, 185, American Fork (Utah) High
LB Jake Ripp, 6-3, 215, Los Gatos (California) High
LB Gavin Hambrick, 6-2, 220, Apple Valley (California) High
RB Ashton Jeanty, 5-9, 195, Lone Star (Texas) High
P James Ferguson, 6-1, 175, Pro Kick Australia
OT Tyson Molio’o, 6-4, 295, St. John Bosco (Bellfower, California)
BOISE STATE AT COLORADO STATE
When: 5 p.m. Saturday
Where: Canvas Stadium, Fort Collins, Colorado
TV: CBS Sports Network (Rich Waltz, Aaron Taylor, Jenny Dell). That’s channel 139 on Sparklight, 221 on DirecTV and 158 on Dish Network.
Radio: KBOI 670 AM/KTIK 93.1 FM (Bob Behler, Pete Cavender)
Records: Boise State 3-4, 1-2; Colorado State 3-4, 2-1.
Series: Boise State is 10-0 all-time against Colorado State, including a 52-21 win at Albertsons Stadium last season.
Vegas line: Boise State by 2.5
Weather: 60 degrees at kickoff, 0% chance of rain, 12 mph winds
This story was originally published October 29, 2021 at 2:04 PM.
