Career firsts, career highs: Boise State seniors have big games on their night
Boise State senior safety Zion Washington has played in 49 games.
That isn’t 49 games via garbage-time snaps. This is a guy with 152 career tackles as a Bronco.
The one thing Washington had not managed to do? Grab an interception.
Then came Saturday evening’s game against Colorado State, when he recorded his first career pick on Senior Night in Boise State’s 49-21 win.
“It was crazy. I just thank God, it’s been long overdue,” Washington said after the game. “He’s been having me wait for a while. I’m just blessed to be able to be out here for so long and then finally capitalize on the play.”
Washington picked off Colorado State quarterback Darius Curry in the third quarter when the Broncos led 27-7. Boise State blitzed Curry at midfield, forcing him to try a quick pass over the top. Washington dived forward to snag the errant throw before clattering to the blue turf with it still in his grasp.
“I saw it was coming,” Washington said. “That’s a little bit of film study right there. We knew it was coming, and he gifted it to me.”
Washington also ended the night with a team-high nine tackles, eight of which were solo, and a tackle for loss.
And he wasn’t the only senior to shine on what was almost certainly their final game at Albertsons Stadium. (Barring a miracle scenario, it’s highly unlikely that Boise State could host the Mountain West championship game in two weeks.)
Senior cornerback Jeremiah Earby ended the night with two interceptions and a fumble recovery. He picked off Curry both times on a pair of underthrown passes deep down the sideline.
“A guy that I know at times has taken some criticism, but you look at the body of work he’s had his senior year,” Boise State head coach Spencer Danielson said. “A bunch of interceptions, but even more than that, very consistent making tackles, really good coverage, tight coverage.”
Earby had just one interception in his career coming into 2025. This year he has four, with the other two also coming in a single game, against Nevada.
He also leads the team in pass breakups with eight.
“Him going on that field as a senior and having the performance he had tonight, he absolutely is deserving of that and has earned it with the work he’s put in,” Danielson said.
Seniors on the offensive side enjoyed big nights, too. Sixth-year running back Malik Sherrod, a transfer from Fresno State, rushed for 56 yards and two touchdowns on just seven carries, and senior tight end Matt Lauter had a four-reception, 38-yard performance.
But the most impressive performance from a senior on the offensive side came from wide receiver Latrell Caples. The sixth-year player is the longest-tenured Bronco on the team, having arrived in 2020, and he made his last home game a big one.
Caples was the most targeted player on the night, with redshirt sophomore quarterback Max Cutforth sending 10 passes his way, and he caught seven of them for a team-high 70 yards. His seven catches tied a career high.
Though he didn’t find the end zone, Caples made four catches of at least 11 yards and helped Cutforth out of a third-and-long situation early in the game.
“We had a good talk as an offense, like, ‘Who do we need to get the ball to, who are our weapons?’” Danielson said. “And we went through some of those, with Latrell Caples being one of the top ones. We’ve got to give him the football: screen game, pass, play action, whatever it is, we’ve got to make sure we get our playmakers the ball.”
Caples exited the game in the third quarter after seemingly getting knocked out while making a catch. He remained on the ground for a few minutes — motionless at first — before walking off the field on his own. He spent a few minutes in the medical tent before emerging to cheer on the team from the sidelines for the rest of the game.
The catch was ruled complete for a 9-yard gain, meaning that was likely Caples’ final catch on The Blue. Danielson said after the game that Caples was fine but would be under concussion protocol.
“Latrell Caples is a young man who this will always be home for him, and he embodies Boise State football with his blue-collar work ethic,” Danielson said. “And he had a bunch of big-time catches tonight. Obviously, my heart goes out to him. I know he’s going to battle to get back healthy.”
