Bronco Beat
Boise State backup WRs shine in key moments
The Boise State football team slowly is expanding its options at wide receiver to include some new faces.
Two weeks ago at UNLV, redshirt freshman wide receiver Sean Modster became the latest to make a big play.
Modster entered the game on third-and-9 after starter Chaz Anderson limped off the field. Quarterback Brett Rypien went right to Modster on the first play and he made the catch for a 10-yard gain and the first down.
The officials first marked the ball short of the marker but the replay booth gave the Broncos the first down.
The drive kept alive by Modster’s catch — the first of his college career — resulted in a touchdown.
“That’s pretty cool,” senior wide receiver Shane Williams-Rhodes said. “I’m sure he’ll never forget it — his first catch was a reviewable first down. That’s a great way to start.”
Modster finished the game with two catches for 22 yards.
“Definitely after those two catches, I feel a lot more confident in my game, so I’m ready for the next one,” Modster said.
He is Anderson’s backup, so he watches the junior throughout the game and comes in when Anderson indicates he needs a break.
“I’m always prepared and staying ready,” Modster said.
Two weeks before Modster’s breakthrough, redshirt freshman A.J. Richardson made his first career catch on a third down against Utah State. He also made a fourth-down catch. Now Richardson has five catches for 41 yards on the season.
True freshman Akilian Butler (two catches for 21 yards; two rushes for 13 yards and a TD) also has gotten the ball this year.
Coaches said after the Utah State game that it was time for the backups to get more opportunities.
“I didn’t know which game it was going to be but I did feel it (coming) because those guys have been getting a lot more reps in practice,” Williams-Rhodes said. “They seized the moment that they got.”
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