Three things in life are certain: Death, taxes and Ashton Jeanty will run you over. The Boise State running back ran for 209 yards (223 total yards) and has led the Broncos to their first College Football Playoffs in program history.
The #10 ranked Boise State University Broncos hosted the #20 ranked University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) in the Mountain West Championship with playoff implications on the line for both teams.
The game started off slow, with both of the teams first drives ending in punts, but quickly turned electric. Albertsons Stadium erupted when Broncos quarterback Maddux Madsen threw a 40 yard bomb to tight end Matt Lauter, backed by a 22 yard passing touchdown to senior wide receiver Latrell Caples.
UNLV drove all the way down the field two drives later to try and chip away at the lead, however their 48 yard field fell short, hitting the front cross bar and erasing the drive that they had just worked for.
The Broncos capitalized on the miss, capping off their own drive from a 14 yard rush from quarterback Maddux Madsen.
Boise State led 14-0 heading into the half but Jeanty wanted more. With 42 seconds left in the half, in an attempt to run out the clock, Jeanty took the ball 75 yards to the house and gave the Broncos a 21-0 lead heading into the half.
The second half was very quiet for both teams, with seven straight drives ending without a score. The Broncos failed to move the ball almost at all, only totalling six first downs in the second half.
For UNLV, the Rebels were moving the ball well but struggled to capitalize.
On the Rebels second drive of the half, running back Kylin James broke loose for an 86 yard run, but was stopped four straight times on the goal line, turning the ball over.
Midway through the fourth quarter, the Rebels made it onto the score board, thanks to running back Greg Burell rushing for a 31 yard touchdown. The Rebels quickly got the ball back and drove all the way to the Bronco 21 yard line, but were again stopped on fourth down.
After two quick first down rushes from Ashton Jeanty, the clocks hit zero, clinching the Broncos spot into the College Football Playoffs and winning the Mountain West Conference in back to back seasons.
“It has never been done here at Boise State,” Jeanty said in a postgame press conference. “And to get that done … it means everything.”
The college football playoff bracket will be finalized on Tuesday as Boise State awaits their names to be announced.
Boise State Stats:
Quarterback Maddux Madsen: 158 passing yards and two total touchdowns.
Running back Ashton Jeanty: 209 rushing yards (132 yards away from breaking the NCAA all-time rushing yards record in a season) and a touchdown (eight touchdowns short from the NCAA all-time rushing touchdown record in a season).
Tight end Matt Lauter: Five catches for 62 yards.
UNLV Stats:
Quarterback Hajj-Malik Williams: 110 passing yards and an interception.
Running back Greg Burell: Five rushes for 47 yards.
Wide receiver Corey Thompson Jr.: Two catches for 32 yards.
