**Mountain West Championship Edition**

Boise State University (-8) at #24 San Jose State University

Date: Saturday December 19th, 2020

Time: 2:30pm MT

Stadium: Sam Boyd Stadium; Clark County, Nevada (40,000)

TV: FOX

Commentators: Tim Brando, Spencer Tillman

Know Thy Enemy

It will be like two Greek gods battling it out in the Colosseum, but instead of greek gods it will be the Boise State Broncos and the San Jose State Spartans and instead of the colosseum it will be Sam Boyd Stadium! It’s Mountain West Championship time! The Spartans are on a magic carpet ride of a season, going 6-0 and the best record since 1939 when Dudley DeGroot coached the Spartans to a 13-0 season.

The Spartans are making their inaugural trip to the Mountain West championship game after being one of three teams in the country to win every game this year by double digits. In a normal year the championship game is played at the home of the team with the best win/loss conference record. Since both teams are undefeated in conference play the host was determined by computer rankings, which deemed San Jose State the home team. In true 2020 fashion however, Santa Clara County has put restrictions on contact sports, so the Spartans were forced to move from their humble abode in CEFCU Stadium to Sam Boyd Stadium, which by the way has housed the New Mexico Lobos all season due to the same kinds of restrictions in their state. Let's hope the endzones don’t say “New Mexico” and “Lobos” this week like they did last week when the Spartans played Nevada.

On offense the Spartans are led by their econd team all-conference quarterback Nick Starkel. Starkel has been aided by three very good pass catchers this season. Receivers Bailey Gaither and Tre Walker as well as tight end Derrick Deese Jr have combined for over 1,200 yards and 11 touchdowns on the season. All three of these guys made the all-conference team as well.

On defense it's all about the front seven. Led by Defensive Player of the Year Cade Hall the Spartans defensive line and linebackers have been a headache for offensive coordinators all season. The Spartans only allow 17.5 points per game and have only given up more than 21 points once this season. SJSU is also top five in the conference against the run.

San Jose State is coached by Brett Brennan. Brennan was just announced as the conference Coach of the Year by the Mountain West. Brennan has coached the Spartans for the last four seasons and this year is the first year that he has led the team to more than 5 wins. This may be Brennan’s last game as the head coach of the Spartans, as his name has been mentioned with filling the vacancy at the University of Arizona.

The Broncos and the Spartans have faced off 14 times since way back in 1978. The Broncos lead the all-time series 14-0. Boise State's largest margin of victory was 63 points back in 2003. Their smallest margin of victory was in 2004 when it took Over Time to win by 7. Last year the Broncos beat the Spartans by 10.

What Happened Last This Year

November 28, a day full of anticipation and excitement. San Jose State and Boise State were set to play on the big stage on FOX at 2:00pm. It was going to be a battle between the upstart “Cinderella” against the “Standard” of the conference with both teams poised and ready to make their mark on the season. However just five hours before kickoff, came the dreaded words that 2020 has become synonymous with...CANCELED. Due to COVID issues with Boise State the Mountain West deemed it unsafe to play and declared the game a NO CONTEST.

Players to Watch

SAN JOSE STATE

GS., NICK STARKEL, QB #17

Nick Starkel is somewhat of a journeyman in college football. Starkel started off his college career at Texas A&M before transerfing to Arkansas before his junior season. After starting five games for the Razorbacks he decided he was going to enroll at SJSU as a grad transfer. Starkel has brought that big time SEC mindset to the Spartans and has balled out this season. Starkel has a big time arm that is able to make any throw he needs to.

SR., TYLER NEVENS, RB #23

This wreckingball of a human has busted on the scene the last two weeks for the Spartans. Nevens is coming off back-to-back games of 150 yards or more rushing. Last week against Nevada, Nevens rushed for 184 yards and a touchdown. The 6’0 225lbs senior punishes would be tacklers with his power and also has the breakaway speed to hit the “homerun.” In a game that will be headlined by quarterbacks, Nevens will try his best to steal the show.

JR., CADE HALL, DE #92

The son of former NFL defensive lineman Rhett Hall, Cade Hall is a one man wrecking crew on the defensive line for the spartans. In his third season with the program, has been starting games since day one. This season Hall leads the conference with 8 sacks and has had multiple sacks three times this season, including three against UNLV and 2.5 against Nevada.

BOISE STATE

SR., AVERY WILLIAMS, CB #26

Williams may be listed a corner on the roster, but he may be even more valuable to the team on special teams. Williams the former walk-on has become one of the most electric kick returns in all of college football. The back-to-back Special Teams Player of the Year ranks fifth nationally with 575 combined kickoff and punt return yards. He also has three returns for touchdowns this season. A big play in the return game from Avery could be the difference this week.

Rs.JR., JOHN OJUKWU, LT #70

It’s rare to highlight an offensive lineman as a Player to Watch, but second team all-conference offensive lineman John Ojukwu has a tall task this Saturday that could make all the difference. Ojukwu, the junior out of Boise High School will be called upon to protect Hank Bachmeier from the pass rushing animal Cade Hall. Hall has eaten opposing offensive lineman for lunch this season, but if Ojukwu can keep Hall in check, the Broncos will be in good shape.

Rs.SO., RILEY SMITH, TE #3

Riley Smith has had quite the journey during his time with the Boise State football team. Coming to campus as a quarterback prospect, Smith made the switch to tight end in early 2019. This year Smith has played in all six games. Smith is small for a traditional tight end at only 225lbs, but the Broncos use him in creative ways to maximize his athletic ability. On the season Smith has 11 catches for 97 yards and a touchdown. The Broncos also use him in the running game on the occasional end around. Don’t be surprised if the Broncos pull out a trick with Smith running the ball or even passing the ball this weekend.

Focus Position Group: DEFENSIVE BACK

Faceing a quarterback who likes to rip the ball around the yard, the Broncos secondary will have to be on their “A game” come Saturday afternoon. Boise State has to keep an eye on multiple targets this week which they haven’t had to do much of this season. The Broncos secondary has done a great job ranking tops in the mountain west in passing defense. All eyes will be on the Broncos secondary and to see if they will be a “No Fly Zone” Saturday.

Rev's Route to a Bronco Win

Gift Wrap Up

In the last two games Spartans running back Tyler Nevens has had three runs of 70 yards or more. He broke off two of those against Nevada alone. The Broncos will need to make sure they wrap up and not give any gifts to the Spartans by allowing a short gain to turn into a big one with a missed tackle.

Sacks on sacks on sacks

San Jose State ranks second in the Mountain West in sacks against. Meaning they protect their quarterback well. Through six games the Spartans have only given up five sacks. The Broncos have had multiple sacks in every game but one this year. Last week against Wyoming the Broncos had a season high five sacks. If the Broncos want to win this game they will have to get after the Spartans QB.

Khaili as the Other Side of the Pillow

There is no doubt that Khaili Shakir is the main weapon for the Broncos. Through six games Kahili is averaging 10 touches per game. Twice this season Khaili has recorded double digit catch numbers. Khaili will be going up against a secondary that has only given up more than 100 yards to an individual receiver twice this season. The Broncos have to find ways to get Shakir the ball this week.

Editorial Note

“One game, four hours. You better be ready.”- Bryan Harsin.

Year after year Boise State has been the standard in the Mountain West Conference. Year after year Boise State plays spoiler to [insert random Mountain West flash-in-the-pan]’s “magical season.” Year after year coach Harsin gets passed over for Coach of the Year despite being the current winningest coach in the conference. Harsin, by the way, is fourth on the all-time winning percentage list in the Mountain West.

Saturday Boise State will play in their fourth consecutive title game and fifth over all. This will be the first time that they will not be playing in Boise for the title. However, if there was a year when home field advantage didn’t really matter it would be this year, as the Spartans will only “technically” be the home team with the game being played in a stadium that wasn’t supposed to host college football ever again.

Boise State is favored by oddsmakers, but will be unranked, playing a top-25 team. Boise State will need to come into this game with a we-have-been-disrespected-emotional-underdog chip on their shoulder and remind the Spartans that the Broncos are still the class of the Mountain West.

The Spartans keep it close but the Broncos pull away in the second half.

Boise State 45, San Jose State, 27

Rev's Rundown

Rev's Rundown 2020 Week Nine: Mountain West Championship Game Boise State at San Jose State University