New Mexico Lobos Football – on Branch Field/University Stadium
When/Who: 5:04 p.m. (MT), Saturday — Boise State (6-2, 3-1 MW) at New Mexico (3-5, 1-3 MW)
On The Air: CBS Sports Network; 770-AM KKOB/Lobo Radio Network
GoLobos.com: Game Story, LoboTV, Photo Gallery, Final Stats, Quotes, Game Notes
By Richard Stevens – Senior Writer/GoLobos.com
A talented Boise State football team invades University Stadium on Saturday, but this isn’t simply a 6-2 Bronco team that will stand on Branch Field to battle Lobos.
It’s also a program – a program rich in tradition, a program conditioned by excellence, a program expecting that excellence to continue because, well, because that’s Bronco football.
To understand the advantages that an established program has over a Bob Davie program in its third year, all you have to do is look at the Broncos’ depth chart for Saturday’s Mountain West contest.
The Broncos have 21 redshirt players on the offensive side of their depth chart and 14 on the defensive side.
Davie’s Lobos are still in the “All Hands On Deck” stage of rebuilding. Oh, Davie can redshirt a couple of players here and there, but the depth of an established program allows that luxury at a much higher level.
Simply put, the Broncos can redshirt players because they are loaded. They often don’t need freshmen to play because there are established, more experienced, older – better – players ahead of them in the depth chart. When you see “redshirt” after a player’s name, you know that individual was given a season to grow and mature as a player.
The Broncos (6-2, 3-1 MW) come into University Stadium bowl eligible, but looking to hold off Colorado State (8-1, 4-1 MW) in the race for the MW Mountain Division title. The CSU Rams are heading toward one of the best seasons in program history, but the Rams also fell 37-24 to Boise. The Broncos have the tiebreaker edge should it come down to that.
The Broncos, 5-0 against New Mexico, will ride a three-game win streak into Albuquerque and are posting some impressive numbers on offense during that run: 51-46 at Nevada, 37-25 over Fresno State and 55-30 over Brigham Young. The Broncos have scored at least 34 points in their six wins, but lost 35-13 at Ole Miss (No. 12 this week) and 28-14 at Air Force.
Boise State also is coming off a bye week which gave the Broncos’ defense more time to prepare for the New Mexico option. The Broncos won 32-29 on Branch Field in 2012.
The Broncos still have a chance to toss out an outstanding season in 2014, but these are still unusual times for Boise State. It was the first time since 2008 that Boise State entered a season unranked in both The Associated Press and Amway Coaches Polls. The CSU Rams actually are receiving more votes than Boise in both polls.
But the Broncos have time to make a charge. That means they can’t look past the 3-5 Lobos (1-3 MW).
The Broncos are coming off a 2013 season that wasn’t up to Boise State standards. The Broncos have won games at the FBS level at a 72 percent rate. Only Notre Dame (.733 percent) and Michigan (.731) have done better. The Broncos are ahead of big-name football powers such as Oklahoma, Ohio State, Alabama, Texas, Nebraska, USC, Florida State and Penn State, just to name a few.
Boise State typically has a solid defense, but it’s reputation has been carved by an offense that since the 2000 season has led the nation in scoring with a 40.01 average. A huge key for the Lobos on Saturday is not to allow the Broncos’ offense to get on a roll. That unit has averaged 42 points in Boise State’s six wins.
Boise State can score, but the Broncos also can give up points.
The Broncos have a nice one-two punch on offense. They can run. They can throw. To simplify the Lobos’ mission vs. Boise: the Lobos need to stop Jay Ajayi; stop Grant Hedrick.
Running back Ajayi is 15 yards away from a 1,000-yard season at 985. The junior (redshirt) is nearing back-to-back season of 1,000-plus rushing yards.
Boise State is one of 16 teams nationally to average more than 500 yards (504) in total offense. The Broncos get 305.9 yards passing. A prime example of what a hot Boise State offense can do is to look back at the Broncos’ win over CSU. Boise totaled 676 yards against a team that has lost only one game so far in 2014. Boise had 637 yards in the win over Brigham Young.
Boise State throws the ball at a high level. The Broncos are No. 2 nationally in completion percentage at 70 percent. Quarterback Grant Hedrick is No. 1 in the nation with his .725 percentage in completions. Boise State is No. 20 in the nation in time of possession (32:32) and No. 24 in third-down conversions. The Broncos top the MW in scoring.
Hedrick, who also has run for 424 yards (minus 135 in sacks, etc.), has thrown for 2,241 yards and 12 touchdowns. He has been picked off 11 times – not a preferred ratio.
The Broncos have four receivers with more than 20 grabs with Shane Williams-Rhodes leading the way with 51 receptions. Ajayi has 37 on shorter routes, but the big running back can turn a short pass into a long gain. Williams-Rhodes also is prime target on shorter routes while tight end Jake Roh and Thomas Sperbeck usually run the deeper routes.
The Boise State defense obviously is giving up more points than it prefers to, but that unit is No. 15 nationally in rush defense averaging 113.3 yards per game. Boise has held five opponents under 100 yards so far this season. It held pass-happy CSU to 28 rushing yards.
A game that relates more to what the Lobos do on offense is Boise State’s 28-14 loss to Air Force. The Falcons’ option ran for 287 yards and passed for 48.
A huge factor in that Boise loss was the Broncos giving up seven turnovers – five interceptions and two fumbles. The Broncos had more total yards – 467 to 335 – but shortened the field too often for Air Force via the turnovers. The Falcons punted nine times to three for Boise. Fresno State, a decent running team, had 186 rushing yards against Boise State. BYU had 63 rushing yards vs. Boise.
Editor’s Note: Richard Stevens is a former national award-winning Sports Columnist and Associate Sports Editor at The Albuquerque Tribune. You can reach him at rstevens50@comcast.net.
Heroes’ Day: — New Mexico Lobos vs. Boise State
Seats For Solders: $10 tickets in the turquoise section for active or retired military and all first responders. Tickets are $10 each. To purchase ticket donations, please contact Joe Gehling at 505-925-1620/jgehling@unm.edu or Andrew Aho at 505-925-5743/aaho@unm.edu
Other activities/promotions
- Special Military themed performance from the UNM Spirit Marching Band
- The Howl Zone will feature Military & First Responder vehicles for fans to explore
- Scout Day, over 350 scouts are expected to be in attendance
- Special HALL OF HONOR recognition at halftime
- $2 hot dogs for all fans in attendance