One Bronco Nation Under God

Comment thread: March Madness NCAA Tournament Friday

2010-03-19T16:00:45Z

Will the upsets continue on the tournament's second day? My bracket sure hopes not. Feel free to share your tourney thoughts in the comments throughout the day and evening. Links to live basketball are available in the scores below.

Here's to a great Day Two of the NCAA Tourney

Video: Boise State's Coach Pete on playoffs, Vandals, national championships, and more

2010-03-19T15:06:19Z

Boise State head coach Chris Petersen paid a visit to Idaho Public Television's Dialogue program recently to discuss pretty much every topic you could think of. National championships? Check. Playoffs? Check. Red-headed in-state step-programs? Check.

After the jump, read some highlights of Coach Pete's interview, watch the video of his Q&A, and share your opinion in the comments about what stood out to you.

Boise State's Chris Petersen on IPTV's Dialogue

Click picture above to view full video (30:00).

Web extra:

Click picture above to view full video (5:00).

Highlights

Interviewer extraordinaire Joan Cartan-Hansen, who apparently is the James Lipton of Idaho Public Television, did the question-asking for Coach Pete's segments, and she channeled Chris Myers at his smuggiest for her opener:

So ... no pressure. National championship?

Coach Pete was diplomatic in his response, essentially stating that things will take care of themselves.

It really doesn't matter what the outside noise has to say about us. We have a lot of pressure on ourselves because of our standards that we try to operate by day-to-day, and those are the things that we really need to focus on rather than our record.

I think if you get caught up in those things, you're headed down the wrong path.

When asked for his true feelings on the Idaho Vandals, Coach Pete took the high road and claimed that he condones Vandal success in any instance where the two teams are not facing each other. State pride seemed to outweigh the fact that the Vandals are the scourge of the earth. I am so conflicted right now.

When the topic turned to playoffs, Coach Pete came about as close as he has ever come to denouncing the BCS.

Everyone at the end of the day wants to solve it on the field. I don't think I'm any different than that.

The main factor keeping Coach Pete from selling out to the pro-playoff side is bowl games. He likes them. Players like them. Roady's truck stops like them. He would be in favor of a playoff system if there were a way to keep bowl games mostly in tact.

Speaking of bowl games, do you remember the 2007 Hawaii Bowl? At least one Boise State player does, and he remembers it fondly.

I had a player a couple years ago talk about the experience we had when we went to Hawaii and played in the Aloha (sic) Bowl and lost. It was one of the most painful games that I have been a part of for a long time. But the players were talking about that afterward. A couple months later, "Coach, I'm never going to forget the time I had in Hawaii."

Chadd Cripe needs to get to the bottom of this.

Finally, a few throwaway questions at the end of the "Web Extra" interview included what Coach Pete does for a gameday tradition (he wears the same hat until the Broncos lose) and what book he is currently reading. He could not have picked a more appropriate piece of literature:

Co-authored by The University of Tennessee. (via ecx.images-amazon.com)

If you had any concerns about the state of Boise State football, Coach Pete is obviously on top of it. Amazon describes the book thusly:

Decline, it turns out, is largely self-inflicted, and the path to recovery lies largely within our own hands. We are not imprisoned by our circumstances, our history, or even our staggering defeats along the way. As long as we never get entirely knocked out of the game, hope always remains. The mighty can fall, but they can often rise again.

On a related not, Robb Akey's current reading list includes:

Even Rob Spear! (via www.babble.com)

Extra

Anything stand out to you from the interview with Coach Pete? Surprised to hear his stance on a playoff? Confident that the Broncos have the best coach in America? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.

Wake up, Bronco Nation: Coach Pete to spend spring break at Oregon, Oklahoma

2010-03-19T13:47:47Z

Wake up, Bronco Nation: Coach Pete to spend spring break at Oregon, Oklahoma

Coach Pete to visit Oregon, Oklahoma over spring break
Marcel Yates has tough words for Boise State's secondary stars
TE coach Scott Huff mic'ed up at Boise State spring practice
Bronco wrestling excels on first day of NCAA tournament
Men's b-ball search committee finalized; what about Bronco stockholders?
Broncos may be targeting Gonzaga assistant
What if March Madness was handled like bowl season?

March Madness had a great opening day, unless you had Georgetown winning the whole thing. Check the results at the ESPN group, and get the Top Ten rankings in the right sidebar.

Rumor: Blazers' Demopoulos under consideration for Boise State job

2010-03-18T21:01:18Z

Rumor: Blazers' Demopoulos under consideration for Boise State job

Interesting report from the Oregonian's John Canzano on the possibility of Dean Demopoulos being in play for the Boise State job.

Comment Thread: March Madness NCAA Tournament Thursday

2010-03-18T16:00:57Z

Get your boss button ready. The NCAA Tournament tips off today, and brackets across America and specifically in the OBNUG Pick 'Em are about to get all sorts of messed up. Use this post to chat about the games, cheer on the upsets, and waste a lot of time at work. Links to live basketball are embedded in the scores below.

Enjoy Day One of the NCAA Tourney.

Spring practice recap: Day Five: Here's the kicker...

2010-03-18T14:18:32Z

The second week of Spring football is over the hump and it's been an interesting week to say the least. National media suddenly took an interest in Boise State's goings on after Jason Robinson's suspension details became all too clear. Local media continued to bat a ball of yarn around their offices. Look, any one of us here would gladly duck out of work to focus on Spring ball...you guys get paid for it. Throw us a freakin' bone!

While we wait for the narcolepsy that has befallen our local media to wear off...here are a few scraps we pieced together. Enjoy.

Story of the day

Special teams shakeups all over the place

The departure of Kyle Wilson will leave the most obvious void on special teams as the Broncos try to replace the All-American at punt returner. With Titus Young's emergence last season as a dangerous kick returner (he returned two kickoffs for TDs, and had another negated by penalty), Special teams coach Jeff Choate needn't look too far.

"What’s the most important thing on this unit? Possession," Choate said. "Whatever else happens after that is gravy. It’s going to be the guy we have the most confidence in in that regard. … If a guy like Titus can be that consistent guy, then that’s a bonus for us because we know he’s going to make something happen."

Choate didn't elaborate on the type of gravy. Signs point to turkey.

So what would be the holdup on putting the Broncos most dynamic offensive player back to field punts? The Statesman says it's ball security.

Young must first prove he can catch the ball consistently — and he has looked good in spring ball. Young has struggled with details like ball security since he arrived at Boise State.

Not quite. Young's true freshman year in 2007 was a breakout one, but Young indeed did struggle with ball security. Young was suspended for nearly the entire 2008 season but then was the picture of ball security upon his return in 2009. The fact remains, however, that consistency is key at the position and Young will need to get plenty of practice fielding the different ball trajectories of punts. The biggest test for Young, in my opinion, will be if he can shrug off his instincts to return every ball and call for a fair catch or simply let the ball go when it is warranted. When did you ever see Young settle for a touchback last year?

On the kicking front, other moves are afoot. With Kyle Brotzman sitting out Spring camp while recovering from shoulder surgery, Beaverton, OR walk-on kicker Trevor Harman has been getting a lot of attention. Choate wants desperately to lighten Brotzman's load that has included kickoffs, PATs, field goals, and punting duties for the better part of three years. Now, Harman is being groomed to handle kickoff duties to allow Brotzman some well-deserved rest.

I wholeheartedly endorse this move. Brotzman has been a steady performer on PATs and punting duties and, while a bit streaky on field goals, is manageable in that regard as well. One area that Brotzman has lagged a bit, however, is on kickoffs, where he rarely has generated touchbacks for the Broncos. Kicking to the 5-yard line and getting a stop on the 10 or 15 is obviously a better result, but nothing is quite as dejecting as not allowing opponents even an opportunity to improve their field position beyond the 20. If this works out like the Brett Thompson/Nick Calaycay kicking tandem of the late '90s the Broncos will be in great shape.

Other potentially exciting news on the Special team front is at the holder position, as Joe Southwick and Hunter White are vying to save Austin Pettis the indignity of another point-after injury. Personally, I'd love to see Southwick or even Mikey Tamburo lock down this position...there's a reason that QBs hold in the pros, and I see no reason why it can't work for Boise State.

Unit of the day: Linebackers

The linebacking unit that gave Bronco Nation fits of rage in 2007, has steadily given way to fits of fistpumping in the two seasons that have followed. The 4-2-5 scheme, that has been so deftly employed by the unit in 2008 and 2009 has taken some of the pressure off a linebacking corps that has lacked a true run-stopping MLB since Korey Hall's departure. With one less "true" LB spot up for grabs, the Bronco D has instead looked to maximize the athleticism of the Broncos' smaller 'backers who are then heavily rotated and assigned to specific packages that fit their strengths. Two LBs that emerged last year were former walk-on JC Percy and the lanky Aaron Tevis. Tevis and Percy both finished in the top four on the team in tackles, with Tevis' height adding an extra disruptive presence in passing lanes. Tevis played a magnificent game against TCU in the Fiesta Bowl and Bronco coaches and fans alike are expecting big things from the junior in 2010.

With Percy and Tevis essentially playing the same position as weak-side linebacker, the Bronco coaches will be looking to the middle-linebacker unit for better production. Derrell Acrey will return for his senior year as will Daron Mackey, and while both put forth solid efforts in 2009, they both will have to show something special with DE Byron Hout and promising soph Tommy Smith vying for roles. Mackey's recurring knee problems will keep him out of Spring ball, but his run-stopping prowess will be a big asset for the unit in 2010 if we're lucky enough to get him back at 100%.

Of course, we can't forget newbs Allen Mooney and John Michael Davis will be nipping at the seasoned 'backer's heels. Mooney will get a late start while nursing knee issues of his own this Spring, but Davis should get plenty of looks at the weak side. Last week's reports on those practicing at nickel all but ensure that my prediction of Davis moving to the hybrid spot will not come to pass. We'll have more depth and talent at linebacker in 2010 than we've had in some time.

Miscellany

Titus Young Twitter train rolls on

Titus posted a rather dangerous decree late last week on his Twitter account that he'd answer any question. What he didn't say is that his answers would rarely be comprised of more than a few syllables and the odd "LOL". Nonetheless, Titus delivered on his promise and answered everything thrown at him. Some highlights:

If you and the other WR's formed a Boy Band what would your groups name be?

"SWEET"

I guess Dudez a Plenti was already taken.

Who would you rathr play against? Florida, USC, or Ohio St.?

All of them

And with that milquetoast, non-commital answer it appears Titus in now running for public office.

you like booise and young jeezy.. you like weezy?

Lil Wayne ant real to me

Follow up question: What?

Hey T.Y. What do you think of OBNUG? (Boise State blog "One Bronco Nation Under God")

I haven't realy looked it up, I hear they talk alot of smack tho LOL. Which can Be a good thing :)

He's been hearing from Graham Watson, apparently.

Hot mic, we got a hot mic...

Coach K is wired. Pay close attention to Kharyee Marshall (#41)—dude is fast.

If the video doesn't load, here's the direct link.

Dustin Lapray quote of the day

Et tu, Lapray? LaDustin has fallen off quickly like the rest of the local media, time to flood his inbox demanding more tales of bandannas, yearning, and the nostalgic scent of chlorophyll.

Your turn

What do you make of the linebacker roulette? Could Kharyee Marshall be a factor this year without gaining 25 lbs? Inquiring minds want to know. Just don't pose the bulk of them to Titus Young.

Wake up, Bronco Nation: Kirk Smith wrestles at NCAA championships

2010-03-18T13:16:12Z

Wake up, Bronco Nation: Kirk Smith wrestles at NCAA championships

NCAA championships begin today for BSU wrestler Kirk Smith
Inside look at how bad it was for Kevin Sapien last season
Robinson's felony charge earns Boise State points in Fulmer Cup
Graham Watson senses trouble for Boise State in season finale at Nevada
More praise for Kellen Moore
Former Bronco Scandrick earns extra 300 grand for play with Cowboys

Happy 94th birthday, Lyle Smith! A 156-26-6 record, five undefeated seasons, 51 shutouts and a...

2010-03-17T21:28:02Z

Happy 94th birthday, Lyle Smith!

A 156-26-6 record, five undefeated seasons, 51 shutouts and a national championship. He was alright, I guess.

Download this full-sized pic of Smith rallying his '48 Bronco squad HERE.

Wake up, Bronco Nation: BSU basketball hiring rumors begin

2010-03-17T13:43:50Z

Wake up, Bronco Nation: BSU basketball hiring rumors begin

A couple names from Tom Scott for Boise State's next b-ball coach
College coaches speak on the pros/cons of BSU's basketball opening
Video of Coach Kwiatkowski at spring practice
Chadd Cripe previews Boise State's linebackers
Just imagine how cool this schedule will be once it is filled in

Jason Robinson charged with aggravated assault

2010-03-16T15:48:15Z

Jason Robinson charged with aggravated assault

Suspended Bronco safety accused of breaking a man's jaw in an altercation. Robinson was arrested Monday, posted bond, and now awaits a hearing on March 23. Was this the cause of the suspension?

Spring practice recap: Day Four: Keep the backup quarterbacks away from the red zone

2010-03-16T14:43:24Z

Boise State has been working on red zone offense this spring so as never to be in another 34-16 game against UC Davis. Results so far? Mostly good, no thanks to Michael Coughlin and Joe Southwick.

After the jump, read about Coughlin and Southwick's red zone adventures yesterday, and share your thoughts on who you expect to be under backup center when the first spring scrimmage kicks off next week. Are you Team Coughlin or Team Southwick? Let's discuss.

Story of the day

Mike Coughlin and Joe Southwick are not helping Boise State's red zone confidence

Dave Southorn reports from spring practice:

During the first four spring practices, the Broncos have done quite a bit of work inside the 20 during team drills, but on Monday, the defense got the upper hand, it seemed. Safety Travis Stanaway picked off Mike Coughlin and linebacker Derrell Acrey picked off Joe Southwick during the dozen or so plays the team worked on inside the 20 at the tail end of practice.

Southorn says nothing of the other 10 plays from inside the red zone or of how un-Coughlin-like Kellen Moore looked. So what can we really learn from this? A couple of things.

First, Coughlin and Southwick are going to have a fun time battling for Kellen Moore's backup job. It appears that both are flawed an equal amount, so the backup duties could come down to which one performs better in spring and fall scrimmages.

Second, Boise State is serious about this red zone business. Southorn also reminded everyone that BSU picked the brains of the Texas coaching staff on how to improve red zone efficiency. If only Tom Emanski made a DVD series on scoring from inside the 20! Bryan Harsin would be all over that.

Endorsed by Fred McGriff! (via www.theonion.com)

And third, the Boise State defense is just fine, thanks. In case anyone had forgot, the Broncos specialize in turning offenses into fumbling, bumbling anarchists. As such, I can only assume that Mike Coughlin's interception came off an ill-fated option right that he audibled into a jump pass.

Former Bronco of the day

TE Trevor Peterson

Chadd Cripe reports that Peterson, a highly touted TE prospect who redshirted in 2009, has left the team. There was a lot of buzz around Peterson when he joined the team. The California kid was a big-bodied, fast-moving prospect right out of high school, and he was expected to be Derek Schouman 2.0 once he saw the field. He will be missed.

Note: He will not be missed by small, WAC defensive backs. (via assets.sbnation.com)

Too soon for a depth chart update?

Kyle Efaw (junior)
Tommy Gallarda (senior)
Chandler Koch (sophomore)
Sean King (senior)
Gabe Linehan (redshirt freshman)
Holden Huff (incoming freshman)
Kyle Sosnowski (incoming freshman)

What's more is that Peterson was on scholarship, which means the Broncos now have a little more room to maneuver with their 2010 recruiting class. Instead of grayshirting anyone who looks at Coach Pete funny, they can now afford to stick an extra player on the roster. Might it be Sosnowski now that the team is down a TE?

Miscellaneous

Coach Pete on the MAC-esque Tuesday game on the Broncos' 2010 schedule:

"We're back on the weird days," Boise State coach Chris Petersen said. "That's OK. Our guys do a good job with those."

Good to hear Travis Stanaway's name mentioned. For all intents and purposes, Stanaway is Jeron Johnson's primary backup, so having him playing well is key to Boise State's defensive depth. Plus, Johnson is likely to kill a man this season, and that will probably be a one-game suspension.

Dustin Lapray quote of the day

Lapray has not covered spring practice since last Wednesday, but he did take the time to write a fluff piece on the Broncos for Sunday's paper. Who doesn't love opening the Sunday paper and reading about the changed bodies of defensive linemen? I sure do.

These truths are evident in the eyes of redshirt freshmen so ecstatic to be on the active roster, in the changed bodies of defensive linemen hoarding carbohydrates and gutting high-calorie diets to put on extra weight (so invaluable in the trenches).

Carbo-hoard is the new calorie-glut.

Your turn

What do you make of the Coughlin-Southwick QB battle? Think the Broncos need to improve in the red zone to have a successful 2010? Bummed about the loss of Trevor Peterson? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Wake up, Bronco Nation: BSU ticket prices may stay the same in 2010

2010-03-16T13:46:26Z

Wake up, Bronco Nation: BSU ticket prices may stay the same in 2010

Boise State ticket prices not expected to jump this year
Complete 2010 Boise State football schedule
Playoff PAC released 2011 BCS tournament bracket
Very early preseason all-conference team selections
Venable: "Your body's always going to be a little dinged up, but there's time to rest later in life."

WAC releases ESPN schedule, Boise State with six featured games

2010-03-15T20:36:16Z

The WAC came out with its ESPN schedule today, and like most WAC football announcements, Boise State is the big winner.

The Broncos will face Nevada in the de facto WAC championship on Thanksgiving Friday, and Boise State's trip to face the Vandals will air on ESPN. After the jump, view the full six-game slate of Bronco games on ESPN, and share your thoughts in the comments on which one you're most anxious to see.

Full ESPN schedule for WAC football

Thursday, Sept. 2, USC at Hawaii, 7:00 p.m. HT, ESPN
Saturday, Sept. 4, Cincinnati at Fresno State, 7:00 p.m. PT, ESPN2
Monday, Sept. 6, Boise State vs. Virginia Tech, 8:00 p.m. ET, ESPN
Friday, Sept. 17, California at Nevada, 7:00 p.m. PT, ESPN2
Saturday, Sept. 25, Oregon State at Boise State, TBD, ESPN or ESPN2
Friday, Oct. 1, BYU at Utah State, TBD, ESPN or ESPN2
Tuesday, Oct. 26, *Louisiana Tech at Boise State, 6:00 p.m. MT, ESPN2
Friday, Nov. 12, *Boise State at Idaho, 6:00 p.m. PT, ESPN2
Friday, Nov. 19, *Fresno State at Boise State, 7:30 p.m. MT, ESPN2
Friday, Nov. 26, *Boise State at Nevada, 7:15 p.m. PT, ESPN2

Joe Tessitore should be very pleased with this

Tessitore is ESPN's resident Friday night voice .. unfortunately. He and partner-in-yuks Rod Gilmore get the Broncos for the final three weeks of the regular season thanks to a string of Friday night contests against Idaho, Fresno, and Nevada. Maybe Tessitore will figure out that Kellen Moore is left-handed by the Nevada game. Or maybe not. He has a lot on his plate what with that fantasy team he keeps talking about.

Your 2009 Boise State half-schedule

Update: Full Boise State schedule, courtesy of BroncoSports.com and thanks to readers 7398Jacob and bbronco1813.

Monday, September 6, vs. Virginia Tech (at Washington, D.C.), ESPN
Saturday, September 11 - BYE
Saturday, September 18, @ Wyoming
Saturday, September 25, vs. Oregon State, ESPN or ESPN2 or ABC
Saturday, October 2 - @ New Mexico State
Saturday, October 9, vs. Toledo
Saturday, October 16 - @ San Jose State
Tuesday, October 26, Louisiana Tech, ESPN2
Saturday, November 6 - vs. Hawaii
Friday, November 12, at Idaho, ESPN2
Friday, November 19, vs. Fresno State, ESPN2
Friday, November 26, at Nevada, ESPN2
Saturday, December 4 - vs. Utah State

~~The remaining teams: vs. Utah State, @ San Jose State, vs. Hawaii, and @ New Mexico State~~

Boise State will play into December once again

Thanks to a Labor Day Monday showdown with VaTech and a Tuesday night game Louisiana Tech, the Broncos have two sort-of-byes during the season, meaning they will be playing a December game for the second year in a row. Not only that, but a December game that probably won't matter at all. Who do you want it to be against?

A Tuesday night game!

Imagine that!

Thoughts?

Are you happy that ESPN and the WAC chose a rematch of Boise State and Nevada for its de facto WAC championship? Surprised that the Worldwide Leader would want to send a crew to Moscow again? A little bit guilty that Boise State gets so much attention? Share your thoughts in the comments.

FrankenBroncos: Building the perfect team: Running backs

2010-03-15T15:00:36Z

As sports fans, we're fond of hypotheticals. We've all seen compiled our fantasy squads and all-time teams and wondered how an undefeated 2006 Bronco team would rate against the 2009 version. Well, OBNUG will be taking it one step further over the next few weeks. We're going to be assembling the perfect theoretical Bronco team by mashing up the best traits of the best all-time players into hybrid super Broncos. So if you've ever wondered how Ian Johnson would've fared with Antwon Carter's calves...this is your kind of series. We'll begin playing God after the jump.

Now, we're assembling the perfect Bronco running back by slicing and dicing some greats from the past and present. Mind you, this "slicing and dicing" is purely theoretical, so nobody call the cops or anything. When thinking about what makes a great running back, there's three things I look for first: Speed, Toughness, and Heart. Most elite running backs will have 2 out of these 3 traits, while the best of the best will have all 3. Let's dive in and assemble the perfect Bronco running back...Igor, hit the lights.

Speed

Speed can be a deceptive stat. As training regimens, nutrition, and conditioning get better and better...teams get faster and faster. No one can deny that the Broncos have more teams speed right now than they've ever had, and it isn't a stretch to believe that Boise State may well have their fastest running backs ever on the current roster as far as measurable speed. We're still going to consider some burners from the past and present, but at the end of the day...we are just as likely to bow down to the almighty stopwatch like everyone else.

The candidates: John Smith, K.C. Adams, DJ Harper

The donor: DJ Harper

John Smith played for the Broncos from 1972–1975 and was a real doozy. His nickname was "the Needle", and I'm guessing it had to do with his propensity to hide in haystacks. Smith held the record for best single-game YPC average (12.5) until just last year, when it was broken by Jeremy Avery. Smith was a do-it-all back of the highest order...running, receiving, and returning kicks. In fact, Smith may be the best receiving RB in Bronco history, finishing with over 1,600 receiving yards in his career (he notched nearly 900 of those yards in 1975 alone). Smith's 40 times are purely speculatory, but he sure could pull away from defenders in his day...to the tune of almost 3,600 all-purpose yards.

K.C. Adams is a name that is still somewhat fresh in the collective memories of both older and younger Bronco bandwagon hangers-on. Adams' body of work pretty much resides in one magical season—1994. During the '94 run to the 1-AA National Championship game, Adams racked up nearly 1,300 rushing yards and approached the 2K mark in all-purpose yardage by returning punts and receiving. Adams' big year had seven 100+ yard games, capped by a game against CS-Northridge where he tallied 257 all-purpose yards.

No one knows if DJ Harper will lose a step after an ACL injury sidelined him in 2009, but among the current speedy crop of 'backs...Harper is the fastest. Now, it would have been real easy to just put up the Broncos' current three-deep, and toss in Ian Johnson for good measure. They all have breakaway speed and have all been clocked at 4.4 and below. Surpisingly enough, Harper beats them all. I say "surprisingly enough" because man, it looks like Jeremy Avery is faster...but I suppose that's due to his diminutive stature...I mean, have you ever seen how fast squirrels appear to be going. Harper is a rare back in that he supplements his speed, with balance, vision, and power. He looked to be easily the best RB on the field last year before his knee injury at Fresno State. God willing, Harper will be back to his old tricks in 2010. The "punishing defenses" trick...not the "breaking his knee" trick, of course.

Toughness

Being a running back is serious business. Every down, you are either running straight at 11 guys that are generally bigger than you and eager to kill you or you are sacrificing your body, blocking more dudes that are much bigger than you so your quarterback doesn't get hit. It is little wonder that running backs have a very short shelf life...these guys here were some tough S.O.B.s.

The candidates: David Hughes, Terry Zahner, Brock Forsey

The donor: Brock Forsey

David Hughes was a member of the quartet known in Bronco lore as the Four Horseman, and played for some of the best Bronco teams ever between 1977 and 1980. Hughes came to Boise from Hawaii and immediately made a big impact on a team that was not hurting for depth or talent in the backfield. The fact that Hughes shared carries with Cedric Minter, and Terry Zahner and still waltzed away with nearly 1,900 yards and 12 TDs is truly amazing. Hughes was technically a fullback, but was a deft enough runner (and tough one, to boot) that he still had over 350 career carries. When is the last time you saw a fullback at Boise State (or anywhere else) do that? Hughes was basically a halfback in a fullback's body and averaged over 6 yards per carry his junior year. Re-diculous.

Terry Zahner shared the backfield with David Hughes and Cedric Minter, and still finished his Bronco career with 426 carries. He actually led the team in rushing his freshman year with 724 yards (again, with Minter and Hughes at the ready) and approached a 5 yard/carry average over the span of his career. Possibly the true testament to Zahner's toughness was that after starring as a freshman, he gracefully accepted diminished touches in his subsequent years after Minter's star-turn and continued to be a productive, team-first role player.

Brock Forsey was not the biggest guy, or even the fastest...but this local product sure could play some football. Between 1999 and 2002, Forsey racked up 6,670 yards of offense and put up pinball-type numbers. Forsey ran over, through and around defenders much larger than he throughout his career, but his body-sacrificing touchdown leaps were his biggest legacy (see below, 1:12 mark). Forsey led the nation in all-purpose yardage as a senior, 1,611 coming on the ground, 282 through the air, and a 26 yard kick return average. On top of everything, Forsey rarely was hampered by injury, despite his breakneck style of play and put in one of the finest bowl performances ever by a Bronco when he piled up 270 all-purpose yards against Louisville in the 2000 Humanitarian Bowl his sophomore year.

Heart

At one point in time, it seemed inevitable that Cedric Minter's career yardage record would fall to Ian Johnson. It never happened. Among other things, Johnson racked up too many injuries to threaten Minter's record in the end...but playing through those injuries is exactly what landed Johnson on this list so go figure.

The candidates: Cedric Minter, Chris Jackson, Ian Johnson

The donor: Cedric Minter

Cedric Minter, Brock Forsey, Ian Johnson. Those are kinda the "big three" in Bronco history when it comes to the most prestigious running back slots in the record books. Minter has been king of the hill for a good long time when it comes to career rushing numbers (4.452), and he's sure to stay there for a while. During Minter's Bronco career (1977-1980) he carried the ball 752 times, which could certainly put him in the "toughness" category, but force of will and heart had to have carried him a good many times. Minter's consistency got him in the record books, by and large, as he ran for over 1,000 yards in his final three seasons with the Broncos, reaching his pinnacle in 1978 with 1,526 yards. Minter's career YPC average of 5.95 yards is darn good any way you slice it and his durability was never in question as he on multiple occasions carried the ball upwards of 30 times in a game. Minter, a local product, was and still is the man at Boise State.

Chris Jackson held RB duties for the Broncos in 1986 and 1987 and while you won't find his career yardage or TDs atop any Bronco record books, Jackson willed himself to the top of another stat sheet—yards per carry. Jackson averaged 5.97 yards per carry over his career, topped by a 6.3 YPC average in 1987. Think about that for a minute, if you will...when Chris Jackson touched the ball on first down, the average marker for the subsequent second down was 2nd and a long 3. The fact that the Broncos went 5-6 and 6-5 in '86 and '87, respectively, says a lot about the ineptitude of the rest of the team. They were gifted 2nd and short every time Jackson carried the ball, and still managed mediocre seasons. Give us that now, with our current offense and we may well score 100 points per game.

Ian Johnson's 2006 was an interesting one. He burst onto the national scene with a 240-yard 5-TD game against Oregon State, then kept his momentum going en route to a 25-TD season and a darkhorse Heisman campaign. He also punctured his lung in a gritty performance at San Jose State that year and returned just two weeks later to clinch a WAC title against Nevada. No one can say that Ian Johnson didn't have heart. Yeah, two paltry weeks after playing through a potentially life-threatening injury and a week-long hospital stay with a tube in his side...Ian Johnson was back on the field running (nearly) as hard as ever. Then 2007 came and saw more freakish injuries...hernia, bruised kidney, etc. and the kid kept on going. Sure, he never again quite reached the heights he'd scaled in 2006, but Ian Johnson would still put up another 29 rushing TDs, eventually surpassing WAC legends LaDainian Tomlinson and then Marshall Faulk for that record. All told, Ian finished his career with 4,184 yards rushing (5.48 YPC) and 58 freaking TDs. Oh, and he knits, too—heart, I tells ya.

Ian left it all on the field. Even his spleen.

So there you have it, we've made a Bronco RB monstrosity that simply cannot be stopped (lest it's by villagers with pitchforks and torches). If you think I made a glaring omission, let's talk it out, no need to fight about it. Until next week, Igor, shut'er down.

Wake up, Bronco Nation: The reasons for Greg Graham's firing

2010-03-15T13:42:13Z

Wake up, Bronco Nation: The reasons for Greg Graham's firing

Gene Bleymaier discusses why he fired Greg Graham
BroncoSports.com headline writers go easy on Greg Graham
Bronco basketball job plenty enticing for many college coaches
Secret behind Venable's great game at Fresno? Fans were making fun of him
Kyle Wilson has interviews lined up with Jags, Browns, Eagles, and Rams
Oregon's Jeremiah Masoli suspended for the season
Robb Akey signs new five-year contract to stay at Idaho

NCAA tournament bracket set, let the Pick 'Em games begin!

2010-03-15T01:24:08Z

NCAA tournament bracket set, let the Pick 'Em games begin!

WAC sends two teams to the Big Dance as both Utah State and NMSU get No. 12 seeds. Are either capable of the traditional 12-5 upset? Karl Benson says yes!

Play OBNUG's Tourney Pick 'Em if you aren't already.

Spring practice recap: Day Three: The return of the shotgun fumble

2010-03-13T16:29:22Z

The Broncos wrapped up their first week of spring practice with a session on Friday that was short on details and apparently high on shotgun grief. The Idaho Statesman's Chadd Cripe reports on the status of the offensive line and the progress of the team's backup centers. Fumble level: Orange.

After the jump, read more about the Broncos centers and discuss how you think the position will shake out over the spring.

Story of the day

You can't stop the shotgun fumble, you can only hope to contain it

If you were a fan of Boise State's traveling fumble circus last season, then you should be pretty pleased with the progress of spring ball. With Thomas Byrd nursing an injury this spring, new faces are in the lineup at center, and as line coach Chris Strausser will tell you, snapping is not their forte.

"We don’t have a bunch of guys who are really natural at snapping the ball," Strausser said. "They’ve got to get better at it."

The shotgun snap support group includes main Thomas Byrd backup Bronson Durrant as well as former guard Joe Kellogg and redshirt Spencer Gerke. As Chadd Cripe notes in his story, one of the main problems with the group is that none of the three played center in high school. Boise State has not recruited a true center since Byrd, and the increase in the shotgun formation has made transitions tough for guards and tackles.

It will be interesting to see how this all plays out in spring scrimmages over the next few weeks. At the very least, it looks like the Doug Martin fumblerooski dive play gets to stay in the playbook.

Video of the day

Chris Strausser coaches stuff up

Boise State's offensive line coach was mic'ed up for practice this week. Commence learning:

Someone get me a brick wall to run through. That. Was. Awesome.

Of note: Joe Kellogg fumbled a shotgun snap with an invisible football.

Miscellaneous

Did you pick out some intriguing O-linemen in the above video? Charles Leno was there. I'm pretty sure that newly-minted OL Matt Paradis made a cameo. Anyone stand out to you?
When are we going to get a report on John Michael Davis? Soon, I hope, or else I am going to be making one up.
Drew mentioned it on Thursday, but it bears repeating: Where is all the media coverage of spring practice? I am going to operate under the assumption that the media is not allowed at practice because I cannot believe that local papers would pass up this type of reporting opportunity. What else is there to cover in southern Idaho? You can only spend so much time on a Boise Hawks preview.
Thank goodness Chadd Cripe is around. I would carry his Bronco Beat blog in my wallet if that was at all feasibly possible.
Remember last season when we fans started noticing bad mechanics from Kellen Moore but were too afraid to say anything concrete for fear of treason? Well no worries, everyone. Moore knows he throws off his back foot way too much, so we're all off the hook.

Moore: "It’s your mechanics, stepping into the ball, pocket presence — it’s little detail things where you review the season and see opportunities to get a little better."

More insight into Kevin Sapien's 60-year-old-man body.

Sapien said that he had up to 10 stingers in a single day last year as he fought through pain to finish the season.

Dick Tomey had the same problem last year, except "stingers" was a euphemism for whiskey sours.

Your turn

Looking forward to shotgun fumbles at the spring scrimmages? Excited about the new big bodies on the offensive line? Glad that Kellen Moore is resolving to throw less off his back foot? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Boise State Fires Greg Graham

2010-03-12T20:16:36Z

Boise State Fires Greg Graham

Will Boise State basketball move forward? Where do you want Boise State to look for its next coach? Discuss, rejoice, or worry in the comments.

Win prizes, prestige, prestigious prizes, and more. Sign up now at ESPN.com. Brackets will be...

2010-03-12T19:24:37Z

Win prizes, prestige, prestigious prizes, and more. Sign up now at ESPN.com. Brackets will be released on Sunday.

Spring practice: Transcript of Coach Pete's spring press conference

2010-03-12T16:12:44Z

More photos » Matt Cilley - AP

5 months ago: FILE - In this Nov. 8, 2008, file photo, Boise State head coach Chris Petersen looks on against Utah State during an NCAA college football game in Boise, Idaho. The Broncos' task of running the table is starting to look easier, particularly after a Wednesday night trip to Tulsa (4-1) that marks the toughest road game left on their schedule. Get past the Golden Hurricane, and the rest of Boise State's opponents have a combined record of 16-21. (AP Photo/Matt Cilley, File)

Browse more photos »

Boise State head coach Chris Petersen sat down with the media yesterday to discuss Titus Young, spring practice, old people, and much more. After the jump, read Coach Pete's thoughts on how spring practice is going so far and get some info on the latest player news.

Link to Coach Pete's press conference on BroncoSports.com.

Transcription in 5, 4, 3, 2 ...

Paul J. Schneider: Give me two plays from last year that you'll always remember.

Titus Young, when he recovered the fumble in the end zone against Fresno State. And probably because, just everyone's been talking about it so much, would be Brotzman's pass. But if I really had time to digest that a little bit more, I think there would be a handful of other ones that maybe not a lot of people would be talking about.

Question: I know in the past we've talked about safety ... (inaudible something about Kevin Sapien) ... What prompted that? Was it a series of injuries?

First of all, it's obviously plan B (Sapien ending his career due to injuries). We would love to have him playing with us. But you know, certain guys' bodies just wear out sooner than others. He's had multiple injuries. But the big thing is, even the year before, he was getting stinger, and they would just continually get worse as the season would progress. And he was just struggling so bad at the end of the year. Our doctors looked at him and checked him out. It's just scary when you're talking about your neck and those nerves and that type of thing. It's just kind of something that everybody, starting with him, felt he should do. We're happy to keep him involved, and he'll help us as a young coach and there's a lot of little things he can do for us.

Follow-up inaudible question: (something about toughing it out)

He was miserable. He was miserable in the Fiesta Bowl. It was hard for him. And I think when you're miserable in the Fista Bowl, you know something's not right.

Paul J: Anything stand out to you in the first couple days of practice?

Really pleased with the guys. I really feel like we hit the ground running in terms of effort and intensity. All that has been very, very good. We've told them that if we can keep this up for 13 more practices now, not having any bad days, just really this type of effort and focus, we'll be making progress that we need to make. It won't be as pretty as we like it, as clean as we like it, just because we do get a lot of guys reps, and that's part of the deal in spring ball is making mistakes and cleaning those up, and so that will go on throughout the entire spring practice. In terms of how hard they're going, we're really pleased.

Inaudible question about practice schedule:

We're in shells Friday, and then I can't remember. Sometime next week we're in pads. I think it may be Wednesday. Or it could be Monday. Not sure

Inaudible question about winter conditioning:

I think it was good. The winter conditioning is just really, really hard, and they've always done a pretty good job with that. Sometimes it's hard to tell if they're on the mark, turning the dial up there so to speak. But I think that our weight room efforts were very good, all the numbers that we tested in there, a lot of guys made tremendous improvements. I think (strength) coach (Tim) Socha did a nice job with those guys. But the bottom line is that we're here to play football. And so we're always anxious to get on the field and see how hard they're going.

It's only helmets. It's not real football. But for two days, it's what we wanted.

Inaudible question:

So many guys already know our practice tempo, but that doesn't always get you exactly what you want. Sometimes the guys think they know - hey, been here, done that - always trying to push that envelope. But for two days, I think it's been very, very good.

Inaudible question:

I think the number one way that guys can really learn how to do things is through modeling. When you've got guys out there who are doing things the right way, it will accelerate the process for the younger guys, and it makes it a lot easier on coaches when you put guys out there who know how it's supposed to look and the other guys can kind of follow through with it.

Tom Scott: Was Tim Socha able to give you any idea of guys who emerged during winter conditioning as guys who are emerging as leaders?

We have a crew of leaders that we like, and it's a work in progress. I think leadership and guys doing a good job playing football and in the weight room can be mutually exclusive commoddities. Because a guy's good player doesn't make him a good leader. Because a guy's good in the weight room doesn't make him a good leader. Now if he's a good leader and has those characteristics going with it, then we've got something special.

We really look for guys who can influence our guys to do things the way we want them to do them. So we have some guys that we rely on that aren't necessarily starters or marquee names that everyone knows but are very, very important to our team. We have more than 20, but we have probably a core group of 20 guys who we try to rely on

Pual J: The fact that 12, 15 are missing from spring practice, is that kind of a reverse blessing in disguise?

I think that's the way we have to look at it. The bottom line is it's never good when they're out . They're missing, and they're not improving. But the flip side is that there are going to be some other guys who get an opportunity. Our main goal is to hopefully have these guys ready to rock and roll by summer and have a tremendous summer, then we'll feel okay about things.

Question: There's not a lot of room in that lineup, but I assume some of those guys are going to make a push. What's your thought on that?

I really hope so. I said this before, I think I made a statement where I hope young guys beat out old guys. I love our old guys. Don't get me wrong. I don't want to come across like that. Those guys have been tremendous. But obviously as coaches, we're always trying to bring in - if we can upgrade somehow, some way. I really think of that as competitiveness. If our older guys know .. I think everyone needs to be pushed.

What's interesting going back to the leadership thing is that so many of our older guys take care of those young guys and really teach them how to do it. I see that going on all over this field, and that's one of the special things about this team. Those older guys will help those young guys. And know that there could be a chance that that could hut them a little bit, but I think when your'e truly a team and go about it for the right reasons, those are the things that they'll do

Inaudible question:

We think so. And it certainly is too early to tell. It's really hard with the young guys just because they're improving and making mistakes so often through the rest of this year. But there's no question that there's more than a handful of guys who we're thinking, "These guys can get into the mix somehow, some way."

Inaudible question:

I think our wide receiver corps is a fun group to pay attention to right now with Austin and Titus kind of the two veteran guys who have made a lot of plays. Austin's still a bit limited out there, and Titus is doing some very good things in terms of practicing hard and really trying to take the next step in his game. And then you've got some guys who have played for us before with Tyler Shoemaker and Chris Potter. And Kirby's not out there right now and a couple other guys as well .. Mitch Burroughs. And then a handful of young guys.

So I think that's that model thing, they're watching those guys, but they do have an upside where it's going to be pretty soon down the road where those guys are going to be pushing a couple guys. And that's a healthy situation for us to have. And then you get a guy like Brent Pease who just does such a great job developing guys. That's an exiting group to watch

Other notes from Coach Pete's press conference

Complete video of the presser did not make it to the BroncoSports website, probably to save bandwidth for swimming and diving highlight videos. No matter. Chadd Cripe and Dave Southorn took good notes.

There was lots of good material on Titus Young that was left on the cutting room floor of the above video.

"If Titus keeps working like he’s been working, he’s going to have a pretty special year," Petersen said.

"You'd like him not to put his face in cameras and give the 'hang loose' sign and all those type of things," Petersen said. "That can be frustrating. That's part of what we're taking about with the next step. He needs not to do that. Overall, in the direction he's heading and things he's done, I think we're making good progress."

"I think he's excited about this year, because I think he feels like we feel, that if he can take the next step in his game ... that he can do some really, really special things," coach Chris Petersen said.

"I just said this when it came up to No. 1 with him - it's like 'Titus, I have way more important things to worry about with you than what number you wear, so if that's important that you wear No. 1, have at it,'" Petersen said.

On Nate Potter:

"We’re seeing he might be a better guard. … Nate’s a big, physical guy."

On Raphiel Lambert's move from DB to RB:

"That may be his most natural position," Petersen said. "That was the whole idea behind it. … We are anxious to see him do something there. Even watching him go through drills, he has a natural feel for how he moves and hides behind things."

Cory Yriarte re-injured his knee - the same one that he tore up last fall. The extent of the injury is not known, and neither is the cause of the injury considering that Yriarte was not participating in spring drills this year as he recovered.
Defensive Scout Team POY Matt Paradis will be playing offensive line this spring and maybe longer.

Reading between the lines of Coach Pete's presser

For a unit that refuses media interviews and generally avoids attention like the plague, Boise State's offensive line sure is making waves this offseason. First there was Nate Potter's move to guard along with a near complete reshuffling of the offensive line positions. Now there is news that Cory Yriarte is back on the mend and that potential DT star Matt Paradis is on the OL. Someone get the college football equivalent of Hard Knocks on the phone. Boise State's offensive line is more exciting than an episode of Cougar Town.
When listing wide receiver backups to Austin Pettis and Titus Young, Coach Pete readily named off Tyler Shoemaker and Chris Potter, paused a little before bringing up Kirby Moore, and almost completely forgot about Mitch Burroughs. If his pace of speech is any indication, I think Coach Pete may have given us an inside look at the WR depth chart.
It would appear that Lambert's move to RB is not just to provide warm bodies for a spring that lacks D.J. Harper and Matt Kaiserman. I am excited to see Lambert show his stuff at the scrimmages.
On a completely unrelated note, do Paul J. Schneider and Tom Scott bring their own personal lapel mics to these press conferences? Every other media member sounded like they were asking questions in a vacuum. Paul J and The Slant sounded like they had their own P.A. system.

Your turn

Anything stand out to you from Coach Pete's press conference? What do you think about the latest offensive line moves? Got a favorite quote from the presser? Share your thoughts in the comments.