Unbeaten Broncos puzzled by 2nd-half scoring woes
Things are going well for Boise State. The Broncos are 3-0 on the season and ranked 24th in The Associated Press Top 25 poll.
“Going well,” however, has never been what Boise State shoots for. “Going great” has been not only the goal, but the expectation.
Thus, the concern in Idaho’s capital city this week is the Broncos’ secondhalf doldrums: a total of only 24 points scored in the second half of victories over Louisiana-Lafayette Washington State and Oregon State.
When a team scores a total of 76 points in the first half of its first three games, and wins, why worry? But the Broncos, if not worried, are looking for an answer.
“We’re looking at every angle,” BSU co-offensive coordinator Zak Hill told B.J. Rains of the Idaho PressTribune. “... We’re looking at all the different options and changes that we could make.”
The Broncos play at New Mexico on Oct. 7, a Friday night. This Saturday, they’re at home against Utah State — the team that embarrassed the Broncos 52-26 last season.
AIR FORCE: There’s never a good time to be missing a twotime all-conference safety for the first half of one’s next game. But when that next game is against Navy, with a shot at the Commanderin-Chief’s Trophy possibly at stake, the suspension for targeting of Air Force star Weston Steelhammer seems especially damaging.
Steelhammer was ejected from the Falcons’ 27-20 victory over Utah State last Saturday for what was deemed a helmet-to-helmet hit on Aggies quarterback Kent Myers.
In postgame interviews, Air Force coach Troy Calhoun said the targeting rule is subject to interpretation, “and until we learn to interpret that the right way, we’ve got all these interpretations and nothing’s clear cut.”
The Falcons (3-0) play New Mexico at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas on Oct. 15.
UTAH STATE: Myers wasn’t injured on the play that got Steelhammer ejected, but the Aggies are awaiting further word regarding injuries to star running back Devante Mays (leg) and safety Dallin Leavitt (ankle), one of the team’s best defenders.
“… If they are out an extended time, I’ll let you know,” USU coach Matt Wells told Steve Luhm of the Salt Lake Tribune. “And if they’re not, it will be day-to-day and we won’t talk about it much anymore.”
Utah State (2-2) hosts New Mexico on Nov. 12. COLORADO STATE: As does New Mexico — at least before Lobos quarterback Austin Apodaca was injured at Rutgers — the Rams have settled on a two-QB offense. But the role of quarterback Faton Bauta, a graduate transfer from Georgia who spells freshman starter Colin Hill, is more specialized.
Bauta is a designated runner — a read-option specialist who’ll see the field primarily in third- or fourthand-short situations.
“It makes defenses (play) something else, and that’s what you want to do offensively,” Rams coach Mike Bobo told Kelly Lyell of the Coloradoan as CSU prepared for its annual Border War against Wyoming on Saturday..
Colorado State (2-2) will host New Mexico on Nov. 19 in the final game ever at Hughes Stadium in Fort Collins. CSU’s new on-campus stadium will open in the fall of 2017.
HAWAII: The Rainbow Warriors’ home game Saturday against Nevada will be special for first-year Hawaii coach Nick Rolovich. The former Hawaii player and assistant coach returned to the islands after spending the past four seasons as a Nevada assistant.
Rolovich and Nevada head coach Brian Polian are close friends, but Rolovich told the Reno Gazette-Journal he relishes the chance to compete against his former boss and the many Nevada players he recruited and coached.
“(Shoot) yeah, I love it,” he said. “... What happens is you’ll always be friends, but you’ll always have something to ding them about.”
Hawaii (1-3) will host New Mexico on Oct. 29. The following Saturday, Nevada comes to Albuquerque.
WYOMING: Cowboys running back Brian Hill is only a junior, but, as reported by Robert Gagliardi of wyosports.net, Hill needs only 74 yards on the ground Saturday against Colorado State to become the school’s all-time leading rusher.
Devin Moore, the current leader, rushed for 2,963 yards from 2005-08 in a career that spanned 44 games. Saturday’s game will be Hill’s 29th.
The Cowboys (2-2) play at New Mexico in both teams’ regular-season finale Nov. 26.