‘It felt really good’: Holani clears 100-yard hurdle, sparks Boise State offense in win
Boise State quarterback Hank Bachmeier says George Holani likes to play video games and order Taco Bell from DoorDash.
The Boise State running back also seems quite fond of Saturday afternoons on The Blue.
Holani ran for 110 yards and contributed touchdowns rushing and receiving to carry the Broncos to a 30-7 victory over UT Martin at Albertsons Stadium in the team’s home opener.
“It felt really good to be back out there,” Holani said. “Especially first game (of the season) on The Blue. We were definitely excited as a team to come back out and just protect The Blue.”
It was Holani’s first 100-yard game since a 114-yard outing against New Mexico last season, and the eighth of his career. It also was his first game with multiple touchdowns since 2020.
The 5-foot-11, 208-pound redshirt junior from Bellflower, California, racked up 226 all-purpose yards against the Skyhawks, adding 47 receiving yards and 69 yards on punt returns.
“We’ve got to get him as many touches as we can,” Boise State coach Andy Avalos said.
Holani kick-started the Broncos’ opening drive, gaining 50 yards on four carries, including a 34-yard run to the UT Martin 8-yard line. Two plays later, Boise State scored on a 4-yard pass from Bachmeier to redshirt senior receiver Stefan Cobbs.
By halftime, Holani had 70 yards on 11 carries, and the Broncos led 20-7. Holani had a 4-yard TD reception from Bachmeier just before the break to provide that margin. He ran 8 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter.
Crowd gets the assist
The announced crowd of 36,396 — the 10th largest in Albertsons Stadium history — provided a major assist to the Broncos on Saturday.
The Skyhawks were whistled for five false starts, which Avalos said wouldn’t have happened without the crowd noise.
“Bronco Nation was awesome today,” Avalos said. “I know we had a few false starts, and that had a lot to do with our fans and how loud they were, especially down on the south end zone. I want to give a shoutout to that crew down there.
“They were exceptional today for our defense. We were down there, luckily, a fair amount with great field position and again, Bronco Nation showed up and gave us a great home-field advantage.”
Injuries take toll
Boise State lost two players to injury and potentially a third against the Skyhawks.
Utah State transfer Jared Reed had to be carted off the field with 9:36 remaining in the first quarter, and then cornerback Caleb Biggers left the game with an injury in the third quarter.
“At this point, I don’t have anything on Jared Reed,” Avalos said. “Obviously, I don’t think that’s a good situation, but I can’t comment further on that. I won’t (comment) unless it’s a season-ending injury.”
After taking a sack with 6:34 to play in the fourth quarter — a roughing-the-passer penalty was called — Bachmeier needed to be helped off the field and was replaced by Taylen Green, who played the remainder of the game. Bachmeier was seen walking on the field and talking with other players and coaches after the game.
Diverse passing game
Bachmeier didn’t play favorites against the Skyhawks, completing passes to nine different players.
Redshirt sophomore receiver Latrell Caples and Holani led the way with four catches each, while Stefan Cobbs had three receptions and tight end Tyneil Hopper had two. Five other players had one grab apiece.
“I mean, I’m not going to sit up here and say that we’re at where we need to be at ... but I’m not talking about being frustrated either,” Avalos said. “We did some things that we improved on that we wanted to improve on, and we got to just keep growing. We spread the ball around today and different guys touched the ball.”
Bachmeier went 18-for-25 for 204 yards and two touchdowns without an interception. He had a QB rating of 166.9.
Broncos missing three starters
Boise State was without three starters and a key transfer against UT Martin.
Offensive lineman Ben Dooley missed his third straight game with an undisclosed injury. His backup, Mason Randolph, was also out for the second game in a row.
Texas Tech transfer Will Farrar started at right guard for the second game.
Tight end Riley Smith and reserve linebacker Marco Notarainni were also out with undisclosed injuries.
Defensive end Cortez Hogans, who joined the Broncos after transferring from Snow College, missed his third game with an undisclosed injury.
Quick hits
The Broncos wore blue jerseys, white pants and blue helmets. ... Team captains Scott Matlock and John Ojukwu were joined by Holani and Biggers as game captains. ... Boise State won the coin toss and deferred. ... Boise State was led on the field by linebacker Andrew Simpson, who carried the Dan Paul Hammer. ... Offensive lineman Will Farrar carried the American flag and edge Demitri Washington carried the Bleed Blue flag.
This story was originally published September 17, 2022 at 8:11 PM.
