Boise State fans guide: How to watch, what to watch for against Colorado State
Dating back to their first meeting in 2011, the Boise State football team has yet to lose to Colorado State.
Twelve games, 12 wins.
The Broncos go for 13-0 against the Rams when the two meet in a Mountain West game at 7:55 p.m. Saturday at Canvas Stadium in Fort Collins. The game will be televised on FS1.
While Rams players don’t have any experience beating Boise State, second-year coach Jay Norvell does. He was the head coach at Nevada in 2021 when the Wolf Pack defeated the Broncos 41-31 at Albertsons Stadium.
Still, Norvell is just 1-3 against the Broncos.
“They don’t take as many chances as old Boise teams used to take, and they’re not as creative as the old Boise teams were, but they play good, solid defense and they try not to make mistakes,” Norvell said during a Monday press conference. “... I’ve been on the side of teams that have come up short against Boise, and I’ve been on teams that beat Boise.
“The way you beat them is you just have a group of guys that make their mind up that they want to go win. It’s really that simple.”
Although the Rams enter Saturday’s game with a 2-3 record, they remain the fourth-ranked passing team in the nation this season, averaging 351.8 yards per game. Redshirt freshman quarterback Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi averages the seventh-most passing yards in the country at 316.6 yards per game, and senior receiver Tory Horton — the younger brother of former Boise State cornerback Tyler Horton — checks in at No. 6 nationally with 112 receiving yards per game.
Defense has been a different story for the Rams, who are next-to-last in the league, giving up 478 yards per game. Their bright spot has been defensive end Mohamed Kamara, who leads the nation in sacks, averaging 1.90 per game. Colorado State combined for six sacks in a 44-24 loss to Utah State last week but surrendered 639 total yards.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
Can the Broncos get off to a fast start?
Boise State made an amazing comeback to beat San Jose State last week. Of course, that was necessary because the Broncos fell behind 17-0 and 27-7 to a 9.5-point underdog — at home. Their first four series on offense were punt, fumble, interception, punt.
In their other Mountain West game this season, at San Diego State, they didn’t pick up a first down in the first quarter, with two possessions producing negative yardage.
The best way for Boise State to keep Colorado State from thinking it can finally beat the Broncos is to start quickly and build an early advantage. Let the Rams take a lead into halftime and things could get dicey, because there won’t be a raucous crowd to help spur a come-from-behind win this time. (Not that there will be a full stadium of Rams fans overwhelming Andy Avalos’ team, but still.)
Avalos is sticking with the two-quarterback system — Taylen Green starts, Maddux Madsen also plays — so it’s imperative to have fast success against a weak Colorado State defense.
Can Boise State’s secondary avoid being torched?
Opposing receivers running behind and through the Broncos’ secondary has been a frightful sight much of the season. The big-play count is startling from any sampling you take. San Jose State had completions of 21, 34, 58 and 63 yards in the first half. San Diego State and UCF both had five passing plays covering 20 yards or more in those games. Memphis had two plays that went for over 50 yards.
The Rams don’t do a lot well, but they do have a good passing attack (see above). They have eight touchdowns this season through the air that have covered 20 yards or more, and they have fast backs and receivers. Boise State has surrendered six passing TDs of 20 yards or longer.
The Rams also throw the ball in any situation and throw it a lot — more than 40 times per game — so the Broncos will have to be ever-alert.
Ashton Jeanty keeps his stellar season rolling
The Colorado State defense has been victimized more through the air than on the ground, but it gave up over 200 yards rushing last week to Utah State. And Jeanty is going to crash through the Rams one way or the other.
The super sophomore has more than 600 yards rushing and his total from scrimmage has eclipsed 1,000 already. His only problem has been fumbles, simply because he fights so hard to go down. He has to get that cleaned up, but he’ll keep getting his touches regardless. He has yet to have back-to-back 100-yard rushing games, but coming off a 167-yard effort, chances are he breaks that streak this week.
BOISE STATE AT COLORADO STATE
When: 7:55 p.m. Saturday
Where: Canvas Stadium (36,500, Synthetic PowerBlade Pro System), Fort Collins, Colorado
TV: Fox Sports 1 (Dan Hellie, Dirk Koetter)
Radio: KBOI 670 AM/93.1 FM (Bob Behler, Pete Cavender)
Records: Boise State 3-3, 2-0 MW; Colorado State 2-3, 0-1 MW
Series: Boise State leads the series 12-0, including a 49-10 win last season in Boise
Vegas line: Boise State by 8.5
Weather: High of 59, 5% chance of rain, 7 mph wind
THIS WEEK’S COVERAGE
This former Boise State coach will be on the TV call for Broncos’ game at Colorado State
Analysis: Boise State QBs ‘having fun’ despite sharing time. They just need to keep winning
Former All-Pro linebacker helped Boise State’s leading tackler hone his skills
Boise State’s head coach ‘lit a new fire’ in left tackle. He then earned starting spot
This story was originally published October 10, 2023 at 4:48 PM.
