Boise State earns best Top 25 ranking since Kellen Moore days. Nevada kickoff time set
The current Boise State team is the best fans have seen since the Chris Petersen and Kellen Moore golden days — at least according to the latest Associated Press Top 25 college football rankings.
The Broncos (7-1, 3-0 Mountain West) were ranked No. 12 in the week 11 poll. It’s Boise State’s highest ranking since being No. 10 in week 12 of the 2011 season. That season, the Broncos finished 12-1, won the Las Vegas Bowl over Arizona State, and finished the season ranked No. 8.
Boise State quarterback Kellen Moore finished 8th in Heisman Trophy voting that season. Of course, the Broncos have their own Heisman Trophy hopeful this season, in junior running back Ashton Jeanty.
Jeanty had to contend with another defense doing everything possible to stop him against San Diego State on Friday night. The Aztecs stacked the box against Jeanty in Boise State’s 56-24 victory, but that didn’t stop him from putting up 180 total yards and two rushing touchdowns.
Boise State’s emphatic victory — which saw the Aztecs score 14 points in the fourth quarter to make the score slightly more respectable — helped the Broncos jump from No. 15 to No. 12 in the poll after a big weekend of upsets in college football.
Iowa State, Clemson and Texas A&M all suffered upsets to unranked teams Saturday, and those three teams fell below Boise State. Clemson and Iowa State were tied at No. 11 last week, and Texas A&M was No. 10.
Boise State picked up 853 points in the poll, slotting in behind No. 11 Alabama (867 points) and ahead of No. 13 SMU (752 points).
The Broncos are safely the highest-ranked Group of Five team, which is a good sign ahead of Tuesday’s first College Football Playoff rankings. The highest-ranked team from a G5 conference in the CFP committee’s rankings — the Mountain West, AAC, Conference USA, MAC and Sun Belt — is guaranteed a spot in this year’s 12-team playoff field.
The only other G5 team in the AP Top 25 is undefeated No. 18 Army of the AAC. Washington State, whose only loss is to Boise State, is ranked No. 20. The Cougars technically still are one of two Pac-12 teams but play a Mountain West schedule until the new Pac-12 forms in July 2026.
Boise State will have an opportunity to continue its climb next week and perhaps show the nation another home blowout victory. Fox announced that the Broncos’ game against Nevada (3-7, 0-4) will be broadcast on Saturday in the primetime slot. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. Mountain time against the struggling Wolf Pack, who have lost three in a row.
The Broncos have won their four home games by an average of more than 30 points and will be huge favorites against Nevada.
Boise State also took a nice jump in the Coaches Poll, which has tended to have Boise State ranked lower than the media voting in the AP poll. The Broncos jumped from No. 19 to No. 14, accumulating 615 points, coming in behind No. 13 LSU (653 points) and ahead of No. 15 SMU (603 points).
Like the AP Poll, the only other G5 team ranked is Army, which is No. 19.
AP Top 25
Here are the full rankings for week 11 of the AP Poll:
Oregon
Georgia
Ohio State
Miami
Texas
Penn State
Tennessee
Indiana
BYU
Notre Dame
Alabama
Boise State
SMU
LSU
Texas A&M
Ole Miss
Iowa State
Army
Clemson
Washington State
Colorado
Kansas State
Pittsburgh
Vanderbilt
Louisville
This story was originally published November 3, 2024 at 12:22 PM.
