Boise State (2-2,1-0) (-6) vs San Diego State University (2-2)

 

Boise State University (-6) vs San Diego State University

Date: Friday, September 30, 2022

Time: 6:00pm MT

Stadium: Albertsons “Bronco” Stadium 

TV:FS1

TV Commentators: Alex Foust and Petros Papadakis

Radio: KBOI 670 AM

Commentators: Bob Behler and Pete Cavender

 Know Thy Enemy

It might not be James Buchanan High and the Sweathogs, but it is welcome back, Koetter as former Boise State head coach Dirk Koetter returns to his old stomping grounds to take over a Bronco offense that is headed for the glue factory! The return of Koetter and his iconic visor may not be the only thing that is having Bronco nation feeling nostalgic as Boise State will don throwback helmets as they welcome the Aztecs of San Diego State to the Blue Chaos at Albertsons Friday night in a Mountain West showdown! 

San Diego State was picked to finish second in the West Division in the preseason polls but have their eyes set on reaching the top as they start their conference schedule on Friday. Last season the Aztecs fell short of a championship falling to Utah State in the championship game. The Aztecs are 2-2 on the season and have flip flopped in the win/loss column through four games. After losing their season opener to Arizona, they beat Idaho State then lost to Utah before beating Toledo last weekend 17-14. 

The pillars of the San Diego State offense have always been solid offensive line play and a stellar rushing attack. This season is no different as the Aztecs are ranked 2nd in the Mountain West in rushing offense, averaging 220 yards per game and 5.8 yards per carry. The rushing attack this season is a three headed monster with a combination of running backs Jordan Byrd andJaylon Armstead along with quarterback Braxton Burmiester. Each of these guys are averaging over five yards a carry and over five carries per game. The Aztecs won’t usually light up the scoreboard and such is the case this season as SDSU is only averaging 20.5 points per game. In their last two games the offense has only managed to score 24 points total. Two weeks ago against Utah they only managed one touchdown and last week against Toledo they mustard up 17 points. 

San Diego’s defense can be as stingy as their offense is anemic. Over the first four games the Aztecs rank sixth in the conference and third in their division in scoring defense allowing just over 23 points per game. However, they have adopted a “bend but don’t break” philosophy this season as they are ranked 7th in the conference in yards allowed, giving up almost 400 yards per game to their opponent. Also this season the Aztec defense loves to bring pressure and force turnovers. Through four games the SDSU has 7 sacks and have forced 7 turnovers.

San Diego State is coached by Brady Hoke. Coach Hoke is in his second stint with SDSU as their head coach. Hoke first coached the Aztecs in 2009 and 2010 before leaving for the Big House and Michigan. Hoke took over for the Aztecs this time before the 2020 season. After finishing 4-4 in a COVID shortened season, Coach Hoke posted a 12-2  record a season ago and a trip to the Mountain West Championship game. Coach Hoke is 31-20 during his five seasons at SDSU.

The battle of the ‘Not a State’ state schools has been going down since 2011. Friday will be the eight time these two schools have met. During the first seven meetings SDSU holds a slim 4-3 advantage in the series. The Aztecs are also the only group of five school to have a winning record against the Broncos. SDSU is 2-1 when playing on ‘The Blue’

What Happened Last Time

With a kickoff time seen more often in Pop Warner football, Boise State traveled to San Diego State's home away from home in Carson, California to play a game that was scheduled to kickoff at 9:00am local time the day after Thanksgiving. The No.22 Aztecs scored 24 unanswered points after replacing their starting quarterback late in the first half en route to a 27-16 win a year ago. 

Jordan Brookshire passed for 192 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 46 yards and another score for the Aztecs completing their first 11-win regular season in 99 years of football. San Diego State erased an early 13-point deficit with a bounce-back effort from its vaunted defense, which shut out the Broncos over the final 38 minutes.

Kurt Rafdal and Khalil Shakir caught early TD passes from Hank Bachmeier for the Broncos in the loss. 

Players to Watch 

SAN DIEGO STATE

SR., BRAXTON BURMEISTER, QB #5 

Boise State’s defensive coordinator Spencer Danielson had high praise for the signal caller out of La Jolla, CA. Danielson said, “one of the fastest quarterback’s we have played against. He can not only take off and get a first down, he takes off and you don’t get him, he’s out.” Boise State didn’t really have an answer for UTEP’s qb run game last week so here’s hoping that they have one for Burmeister.  

SR., MICHAEL SHAWCROFT, LB #46

It’s hard to miss Michael Shawcroft when watching the SDSU defense. Shawcroft routinely makes plays in every facet. He comes downhill in underneath coverage like a missile. Shawcroft patrols his side of the field with sticky coverage and sure tackling. He also presents a challenge against slow-to-react offensive players because of his keen instincts paired with his superb athleticism.

SR., JACK BROWNING, K #13

Once again, kickers aren’t usually the talk of the town on Rev’s Rundown, but SDSU has something in the water when it comes to producing special teams standouts. The Senior from Lakeside, CA was named Mountain West Special Team Player of the Week last week with his 9 punts that went 364 yards and downing 6 of those inside the 20 yard line. He was also 1-for-1 in field goals with a 50 yarder late in the 3rd quarter that proved to be the difference in the game. That wasn’t the only good news Browning got this week as he was also put on scholarship for the Aztecs. 

BOISE STATE 

Rs.FR., TAYLEN GREEN, QB #10

Taylen Green will get his first collegiate start this week. Green has plenty of athletic ability that will allow him to extend plays and make something out of nothing. There are also plenty of question marks when it comes to his throwing ability and his vision. Will he make all the right reads Friday? Maybe, maybe not, but the one thing Taylen Green brings is a lot of potential for explosive plays that Boise State’s offense desperately needs.  

Rs. SR., TYNEIL HOPPER, TE #88

With the absence of Riley Smith the last two weeks, Hopper has become the top Tight End for the Broncos. The Senior has had three catches for 38 yards in the past two games. Now that might not seem like a lot, but he could become a reliable safety blanket for his new Quarterback who is also his locker neighbor. Not to mention the tight end has had some high production in the Dirk Koetter offense. Now things might not change in a week's time, but with a lack of production out of the Wide Receivers so far this year, Hopper and the rest of the tight ends might get a little more action going forward. 

RS., SR., DEMITRI WASHINGTON, DE #38

Washington was one of the few Broncos who didn’t have a disaster of a game last week. In last week’s game alone Washington had more tackles, tackles for loss and sacks than he had in the previous three games combined. It was a game that a lot of Bronco Nation has been waiting for with Washington and would probably be more celebrated had the team been on the right side of the scoreboard at the end. Washington along with his fellow defensive line mates will have to play sound football Friday night in hopes of stopping the Aztec rushing attack. Being a defensive end he will need to “establish the edge” and not let Aztec runners get outside for big gains. 

Rev's Route to a Bronco Win

1. 1/11

Quite a bit has been said all season long about the Boise State offense and defense doing their “1/11th.” Meaning each player needs to focus on doing their job and nothing else. That has seemed to really be the case for the Broncos defense this year. IN their two wins this season, no single player has had over 4 tackles. In their two losses, you saw two or three guys have double digit tackles. Now that could be because in the two wins, the defense by getting off the field in fewer plays and executing their game plan to a high level. If they want to win this week against a tough opponent they have to sure up their run defense and execute their game plan. And lets hope no one has over 4 tackles.

2. Brick Fight 

Boise State’s basketball coach Leon Rice said many times last season during their championship run that they would be in “brick fights” on nights that the offense just wasn’t there. I believe he even said it in their first win against SDSU. This week has all the makings of a classic defensive brick fight. Boise State has to be able to make the plays when it counts. Making key 3rd down stops, converting third downs on offense. Not committing turnover or penalties. They will have a quarterback making his first collegiate start on FRiday. They can’t expect him to be Superman and rely on him to save the season. It’s going to take everyone doing their job for them to win. 

3. One Big Play

“Exciting” isn’t a word that has really come to mind when it comes to Boise State football so far this season. Things have been pretty predictable on offense and the defense hasn’t caused many turnovers and there hasn’t been any real big returns on special teams. This week someone on some side of the ball has to make a big play. With the aforementioned key of “brick fight” I don’t expect this to be a high scoring game so one big play might be all the difference. It could be a big throw, a big run, an interception or fumble returned for a touchdown or a big return, I don’t care, there just needs to be at least  one big play. 

Editor Note: 

Tempered Expectations 

In spite of the tumultuous week that the Boise State football program has had, there is new energy around the team. For some it's nervous energy, but there is lots of intrigue as a new era of Bronco football dawns this week. What will the Koetter/Green era bring? How much change can actually happen in a week? How will a quarterback who has only one game of extended playing time perform against a tough opponent? All of these are valid questions and only time will tell, but I don’t think we should expect to see Superman wearing a #10 jerseys. I think TG needs to just play his game and not try to be something he’s not. I'm sure there will be growing pains, but the potential is A+ and that has Bronco Nation and this amature sports blogger really looking forward to whatever happens the rest of the season. 

Everything in Front 

Even with the major clunker that was last week, the number one goal of this football team is still very attainable. Yes, bigger hopes of major bowl games and marquee matches are always on the minds of this fan base, but need we not forget there is none of that without being a conference champion. To play for championships is what makes a great team and this team despite all the inconsistent play and the head scratching losses this team still sits at 1-0 in conference play and has a whole slate of conference games ahead of them. The real season starts now and that's reason enough to still be excited. 

Prediction

It has been hard to get a real gauge on this team the last season and a third. The play has been very inconsistent which makes it almost impossible to predict what will happen on the field on game day. This week is really no different. Both teams have anemic offenses, but may explode at any time. Both defenses have looked impenetrable at times and then at other times look to be doing their best swiss cheese impression. I really see this being a defensive struggle with the outcome hinging on one or two plays. Boise State gets a turnover late to seal the win. 

Boise State 21, San Diego State 20