Boise State University vs University of Hawaii **Mountain West Championship**

   

**CHAMPIONSHIP EDITION**

#20 Boise State University (-15.5) vs University of Hawai’i

Date: Saturday, December 7th, 2019

Time: 2:00pmMT

Stadium: Albertson’s “Bronco” Stadium (36,500)

TV:ESPN

Know Thy Enemy

The bell has rung for round two as Rolovich and the Rainbow Warriors from the Aloha state travel to Boise for a battle with the Broncos on ‘The Blue’ Saturday afternoon. This time it is for all the marbles! Its Championship Saturday!

So how did the Warriors end up coming back to the mainland to battle for a Championship? After losing to Boise State on October 12, The Warriors went on to finish their season winning five of their last seven and four straight to end the year.  In a must win game against San Diego State two weeks ago, the Warriors defense stepped up and beat the Aztecs at their own game. The ‘Bows defense allowed only three points in the first half and eight points in the second half to claim the West Division Title, Hawaii's first Mountain West division title in school history.

Similarly to the Broncos, the Rainbow Warriors have used multiple quarterbacks to get the job done. In the second half of the season Hawaii has used both Junior Cole McDonald and Freshman Chevan Cordeiro almost interchangeably. It will be interesting to see who starts at quarterback for the Broncos and the Warriors.

As usual, Hawaii features a spread offense that likes to get the ball in the hands of their play makers at quickly as possible. The Warriors like to use the short pass game to lure the defense to cheat up and then burn them with the deep shot. Hawaii likes to ‘share the love’ if you will, and will get four receivers involved regularly in the pass game. Their top four receivers all have over 55 catches and three receivers have over 900 yards receiving on the season.

Hawaii’s defense has had some ups and downs this season and have given up as many points as 59 and as few as 7. However, they are an opportunistic defense, intercepting 11 passes and taking four of those picks back for touchdowns, which leads the conference. Last week against Army, defensive back Rojesterman Farris II took an errant Army pass 100 yards for a house call to seal the victory in the fourth quarter.

Hawaii is led by head coach and former UH quarterback, Nick Rolovich. Rolovich is in his fourth year as head coach of the Warriors. The Warriors are making their first trip to the Mountain West Conference championship game.

There has been 16 matchups between the two programs with Boise State winning 13 of the 16. Boise State is currently on a seven game win streak and is 8-0 when playing at home.

What Happened Last This Year

Every year that Boise State has played in the conference championship game they have played their opponents during the regular season. That is the case again this year as the Broncos and the Rainbow Warriors met on October the 12th in Boise.

The “Hawaii Game” was arguably the most highly anticipated home game of the season. At the time the Warriors were 4-1 and on the cusp of being in the top 25.  Many thought that Hawaii could topple the Broncos, but then Kick-off happened.

Boise State controlled the game from wire to wire. Boise State got off to a 14-0 start less than midway through the first quarter with one scored aided by a Hawaii fumble. Hawaii would cut the deficit to 14-7 on a 17-yard pass from Cole McDonald to Lincoln Victor, but the Broncos would score the next 17 points to take a 31-7 lead and never looked back.

Hank Bachmeier would start the game, but would exit after a hip pointer injury in the second quarter. Back up Chase Chord would relieve Bachmeier and toss three touchdowns on 12 of 18 passing and 175 yards. Even third string QB Jaylon Henderson would get in the action, going 6 of 10 for 82 yards and a touchdown.

Boise State’s defense would not record a sack, but did force three fumbles and an interception in the 59-37 win.

Players to Watch

HAWAI’I

Rs.FR., Chevan Cordeiro, QB #12

Cordeiro, a freshman out of Honolulu, O’ahu, has played in 11 of the 13 games this season, making three starts. Cordeiro made his first start against San Jose State, and then started again the next week against UNLV. He did not start, but played against SDSU, and then started again against Army a week ago. Whether Cordeiro starts this week or not, expect him to play. Boise State’s defense needs to know that Cordeiro has a strong arm and will make plays with both his arm and his legs.

Rs.SR., Jason-Matthew Sharsh, WR #3

Sharsh, a Honolulu native, has had a rough road to getting to be a major playmaker for the Warriors. Out of high school, Sharsh did not have one Division I football offer, so he decided to go the Junior College route. After an ankle injury at Santa Barbara City College, Sharsh again didn't receive any offers. Coach Rolovich asked Sharsh to walk-on in 2017, and as they say the rest is history. Sharsh only had 4 catches against BSU in october, but has been tearing defenses apart the last couple weeks. Over the last two weeks, Sharsh has 16 catches for 175 yards and three touchdowns.

Rs.FR., Jonah Laulu, DT #99

Laulu hasn’t had a huge statistical year for the Warriors, but Hawaii fans think he could be something special as he develops. Laulu did have a few stats in the Boise State game, recording one tackle and one sack. Last week against Army, he recorded  three tackles and a tackle for loss. Laulu is a “high motor” guy who is always in pursuit of the football and has the speed to chase down a runner from behind. Laulu could play a major role in stopping the Boise State ground game.

BOISE STATE

FR., George Holani, RB #24

Until Holani breaks the 1,000 yard mark, he probably will be a player to watch. Two weeks ago he had a career day, with his 175 yards rushing. But last week he only managed 42 yards on 18 attempts, against what was supposed to be a terrible CSU run defense. Against Hawaii this season Holani had 64 yards and a touchdown on the ground to go along with his 38 yards and two touchdowns receiving. Look for Holani to get the 88 yards he needs to break the 1,000 yard mark and continue the streak and have another big game against the ‘Bows.

Rs.SR., John Hightower, WR #16

John Hightower has been nothing but a playmaker this year for the Broncos. When Hightower gets the ball the Broncos usually win. Hightower has had four games this season where he has over 100 yards receiving. One of those games was against Hawaii, when he had seven catches for 141 yards and two touchdowns. If Boise State wants to win, whoever is throwing the football needs to throw it to number 16.

JR., Kekaula Kaniho, Nickel #28

All Kaniho does is make big plays in big games. Over his career, Kaniho has made play after play when the lights are the brightest. Look for Kaniho, the Hawaii native, to ball out and make a key defensive play, whether it be a tackle for loss or causing a turnover, which he has eight in his three year career.

Focus Position Group: Safety

Over the course of the season there has been some personnel changes to the Safety position. Several different players have lined up in the defensive backfield for the Broncos this season. Last week they moved Kekaula Kaniho from his usual spot at Nickel corner to Safety next to Kekoa Nawahine. Other players like Tyreque Jones, Jordan Happle, and DeAndre Pierce have all started this season. Whoever starts this week will have their hands full when Hawaii lines up with more receivers than you can count. The Safety position is the last line of defense and if they don’t do their job on Saturday afternoon, it might be a long day for the Broncos.

 

Rev's Route to a Bronco Win

1.     Empty the Chamber

In the four Hawaii Losses this year the defense has given up over 40 points in each and more than 50 points in three of the four including 59 points to Boise State. However, Hawaii’s defense has been stingy the last three weeks giving up just 7 to UNLV, 11 to SDSU, and 31 to Amry. If Boise State is going to win this game, the offense will have to have a big day.

2.     Pressure the Quarterback

In the last meeting between the two teams, the Hawaii offensive line played extremely well. The big boys upfront did not allow a sack and the Bronco defense was only able to get two tackles for loss, both of which were season lows for the Broncos. It has been said that Defense wins championships, and if that’s going to reign true, the Broncos defensive front will have to get pressure on the quarterback.

3.     Leave No Doubt

The Hawaiians are flying high with their recent success and are playing inspired football as of late. This game has all the makings for a major upset. If Boise State is going to win, they will need to listen to the words from the 2000 hit movie Remember the Titans; during the state championship, defensive coordinator coach Yoast tells his players, "You make sure they remember the night they played the Titans...leave no doubt."  This means playing fast with sound fundamentals and like your hair is on fire!

           

Editorial Note:

This one is for all the marbles. The whole kit and caboodle. The Broncos are on the tail end of what has really been a remarkable season. Before the season I thought this team could be special and they have not disappointed too much. If Hank would have figured out how to slide I do think we could be 12-0 with a chance at a perfect season. However, 11-1 is not bad and there are only three other teams in the FBS that have a better win/loss record than the Broncos. The Broncos also achieved a perfect 8-0 conference record since joining the Mountain West that in itself is worthy of praise. Every other time the Broncos have made it to the championship game they have needed help. Not this year; they took care of business and accomplished the #1 goal of each season: Play for a title.

This week a hyped Hawaii team comes to the land of ice and snow to try and do what no Hawaii team has ever done and that's beat the Broncos on ‘The Blue.’ I will admit that this Warrior team has been playing really well lately; their offense has seemed to play well enough to win and their defense has found some extra life and are playing inspired football. This Hawaii team believes that they have what it takes to win…

but in the famous words of Lee Corso, “Not so fast!”

This Bronco team is going to smash Hawaii. Boise State knows that there is potential for a NY6 game and they want it. They know that 8-0 in conference is a nice legacy to leave, but they want that hardware.

I see Boise State’s defense coming out and hammering the Warrior offense and the Bronco O-line totally dominating up front.

Holani runs for a buck-fifty and Henderson throws for three scores

Broncos 52, Warriors 30