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You can’t mix business with pleasure
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Nobody knows more than the Boise State Broncos what is on the line in the Poinsettia Bowl.
With all of the activities and festivities leading up to a bowl game it’s easier said than done to keep focused on the prize at hand.
The Broncos have been doing their fair share of activities thus far in San Diego, but ask any of the players or coaches and they will tell you the biggest key to winning a bowl game is to act like the stuff leading up to the game never happened.
“We have to do a great job enjoying the environment in San Diego, but when it’s time for football, practice, and meetings, we really have to key in and know why we’re here,” head coach Chris Petersen said. “This is an important process in terms of keeping the momentum going. Knowing how to prepare for a game like this, but still be able to take in the excitement at the same time.”
From the moment the Broncos buses pulled up to the hotel on Friday and were greeted by the Poinsettia Bowl representatives the distractions that can make or break a teams’ bowl experience began.
While it’s important for a team to enjoy the bowl experience, it’s even more important not to let their minds sway away from why they are here and what they had to do to get here. 12-0 is a good season for any team, but if that season ends in a bowl loss than it was all for not.
“The coaches are just telling us to have fun, we deserve it because we went undefeated this year,” freshmen safety George Iloka said. “Right now I’m just having fun but when we’re out there on the field it’s a totally different thing.”
Fun was an understatement of what the Broncos were able to do on Saturday morning when they visited Sea World. The Broncos were the center of attention at the resort. No more than when they took the attention off the killer whales at the resorts main show Believe put on by the trainers of the killer whales.
Some of the players, dressed in their bowl game warm-up suits, stood front row center in the soak zone of Shamu Stadium after coach Petersen told them that the wetter they got the better practice would be for them.
The whales’ trainers did their best to get the players as wet as they could, even one time having Shamu stop right in front of the players and give them a private soaking.
But the fun was short lived. After a couple of hours at the resort the Broncos were bused straight to practice to get back to work.
“We have to just stay focused and limit the amount of fun that you have, you can’t mix business with pleasure,” sophomore safety Jeron Johnson said. “Just know what to do and know your assignments is the number one thing.”
On Sunday the Broncos will practice in the morning before going to the Miramar Speed Circuit for some high speed go-kart racing.
Trent Lootens