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Broncos run all over the Aggies
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The Boise State Broncos used a key fourth down stop on defense to break the game wide open as the Broncos dominated New Mexico State 56-6 Saturday at Bronco Stadium.
Cam Hall tackled David Romaka on the fake punt with just over 10 minutes to play in the third quarter.
“I think that’s always a momentum killer for them. If they end up getting that, we are going to be on the field again and we ended up stopping them. We knew they were going to come out with something like that. That was a really momentum builder for us,” linebacker Korey Hall said. Hall led the Broncos with seven tackles.
Boise State (7-2 overall, 5-0 Western Athletic Conference) was up by only 15 points to a winless Aggies (0-8, 0-5 WAC) team. But, the turnover on downs gave Boise State the ball on the Aggies 28. Eight plays later, Jared Zabransky ran the ball in on the quarterback sneak as Boise State scored 49 straight points in front of 28,545 fans.
“I think the bottom line is you want to play well and you want to score and however you do that,” head coach Dan Hawkins said.
Boise State dominated on the ground against an Aggies defense that was ranked 100th in the nation in rushing defense.
Saturday, Boise State rushed for a season-high 303 yards.
“That’s a good showing for our offensive line as well as our running backs,” center Jeff Cavendar said.
And finally, through nine games, a Boise State running back eclipsed the century mark. Coincidently, it was Lee Marks. The senior rushed for 112 yards and one touchdown, one of five different Broncos to score on the ground.
“It feels pretty good. I’m glad I got it, but I’ll have to thank my offensive line again. They did a great job. It feels pretty good. I’m pretty happy,” Marks said.
The last time Boise State didn’t have a 100-yard rusher was 1992. However, BSU didn’t have four quality running backs and a great runner at quarterback.
“That was huge. We’ve had such a running back by committee all year long. It’s really good to see Lee, being such a good guy finally breaking the 100-yard game. We’ve been working really hard,” Cavendar said.
The Broncos were also able to rest most of the starters throughout the entire fourth quarter.
“It was great to see those guys come in and make some plays and have some fun and have some success,” Hawkins said.
“Every game on schedule is a big game for us. If we lose then we are probably not going to a bowl game from here on out. I think Fresno even makes it a little sweeter,” Hall said. “They are coming in here undefeated (in the WAC). It’s definitely going to be a good game.”
Despite the chance to over look the Aggies, this team was adamant about making sure things were done right against a team that had nothing to lose.
“I was ready to play New Mexico State. Honestly I wasn’t even thinking about Fresno,” Marks said.
The Aggies made it look interesting early on as mobile quarterback Joey Vincent kept the ball on a pass play and rushed down field for 33 yards. On the tackle going out of bounds, safety Marty Tadman was flagged for a late hit on Vincent, tacking on 15 more yards, and a first-and-10 on the Broncos 26.
Five plays later, Vincent found Derek Dubois in the end zone for a 13 yard score. Unable to convert on the extra point, Boise State was up just one with 3:26 left in the first quarter.
“I think that first drive we knew they were going to come out it would be a fast paced game,” Hall said. Marty Tadman intercepted a pass at the seven-yard line. “The second drive I think we kind of stepped on our own foot there for a bit.”
From there on out, it was all Boise State. New Mexico State had 89 total yards on offense in the first quarter, the final three-just 87 yards.
“After that, our defense really got a handle on how fast the game was moving. Just them coming up to the ball so quick and getting our plays in from the sideline-we were able to adapt a little bit,” Hall said.
Boise State took a 21-6 halftime lead as Marks and Antwaun Carter (14 carries, 60 yards 2 TD’s) both scored in the second quarter.
“Offensively we just kind of misfired there for a minute,” Hawkins said.
New Mexico State had four possessions in the third quarter. All were three-and-outs as the defense shut down both the running game of Justine Buries (10 carries, 11 yards), and the passing game of Vincent (14-38, 115 yards and three interceptions).
The fourth quarter was highlight time for many reserves for Boise State.
“It’s cool to see the second team guys doing that,” Alex Guerrero said.
Following a fumble by running back Jeff Carpenter, sophomore safety Ashlei Nyong-Dunham intercepted his first of two passes on consecutive defensive plays for Boise State.
The ensuing drive after Nyong-Dunham second pick, freshman quarterback Bush Hamdan completed a 13-yard touchdown pass to freshman wide receiver Tanyon Bissell, giving the Broncos a 56-6 lead.
Since scoring just 21 points against Portland State on Oct. 1, Boise State has scored 38, 45, 49 and now 56 points in each of the last four games.
“Now we are finally putting up the points and hopefully we can continue to do that the rest of the year and be the offense everyone has to worry about,” Cavendar said.
The reserves on defense continued to dominate against the Aggies up until the last play of the game.
The Aggies were able to drive down to the 9-yard line with 24 seconds remaining, but junior cornerback Rashaun Scott deflected two passes in the final three plays as the Aggies were unable to score against the Broncos in the final three quarters.
Scott battled down a pass in the end zone on fourth down as time expired.
“I went up to Rashaun and told him that was a great play,” Guerrero said.
Boise State has now won seven straight overall, 30 straight at home and 31 straight in the conference.
The big test will be Thursday in Fresno against the (ranking) Fresno State team that is 7-1 and has won six straight.
“I’m ready to play Fresno,” marks said. “I think this is a huge game.”
Trevor Horn
