Monday, May 27, 2013

2013 Bronco Freshman of the Year

We began this category last year because freshmen are beginning to be "impact players" for Boise State in several sports.  This year, there are no less than 10 deserving student-athletes in this category:

Jay Ajayi (football) rushed 84 times for 548 yards and four touchdowns last season.  His 6.7 yards-per-carry average broke John Smith's 40-year-old record of 6.57.  

Holden Huff (football) stepped up when Gabe Linehan was injured and caught 17 passes for 250 yards (14.7 average) and four touchdowns.

Maddie Krentz (gymnastics) was fifth in floor exercises and bars against Southern Utah with scores of 9.80 and 9.875, respectively.  She then scored 9.825 on bars, good for 10th at the Western Athletic Championships, as she helped Boise State capture the team title.  Krentz was honored as the WAC Freshman of the Year.

Devin Madsen (swimming & diving) was second in both the 100-yard and 200-yard backstrokes against #13 Arizona, and won both backstroke events against BYU.  She was third in the 200-yard backstroke at the Missouri Invitational.  Madsen helped the Boise State 200-yard medley relay team set a school record and set an individual mark of 1:57.56 in the 200-yard backstroke to finish fifth at the Mountain West Conference Championships.  Madsen was also sixth in the 100-yard backstroke.

Samantha Martin (women's golf) had six Top 25 finishes this season, which already ranks seventh in school history.  She finished ninth at the Mountain West Championships, helping Boise State to a second-place finish.

Thomas Tenreiro (tennis) finished the season with a 23-3 record, and won his last 18 matches in a row.  Thomas's play was a key reason Boise State won the Mountain West Conference and fought #23 Clemson to the wire in the opening match of the NCAA Tournament before falling 4-3.

Darian Thompson (football) was credited with 28 solo tackles and 43 overall, and picked off three passes for 19 yards, recovered a fumble, and had six pass deflections.

Mikey Thompson (basketball) averaged 7.9 points per game for the Broncos.  He hit 83-216 of his field goal tries (38.4%), was second on the Broncos with 25-57 shooting from three-point land, and connected on 47 of 67 free throws (70.1%).  Thompson also averaged 2.4 rebounds per game, had 41 assists and 17 steals as Boise State finished tied for fourth in the tough Mountain West Conference and earned its first at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament.

Makenna Weir softball) had 42 hits in 142 at bats this season, including 11 doubles and four home runs.  She batted .296 on the season and drove in 31.

Sam Wicks (swimming & diving) won the 50-yard freestyle against Denver and the 100-yard backstroke against Wyoming and helped the 200-yard medley relay team win against BYU.  Wicks anchored the record-breaking 200-yard medley relay team and set an individual school record when she swam the 100-yard backstroke in 53.93 to finish fifth at the Mountain West Conference Championships.

Bronco Coach of the Year--2013

Our annual poll for Bronco Coach of the Year showcases four coaches who won conference championships (Bird & Resnick are co-coaches), three coaches who led their team to Top 25 finishes, and four coaches who guided their troops to the NCAA postseason.

Bird & Resnick helped the Bronco gymnasts to an upset win in the WAC Championships over #13 Denver.  Caitlin Mann and Kelsey Black both made the All-WAC team in all-around, Black was also all-conference in the vault and floor, Mann was honored on beam and Kelsey Morris was All-WAC on bars.  Mann was named WAC Gymnast of the Year, Maddie Krentz of Boise State was Freshman of the Year and Bird and Resnick were awarded WAC Coaches of the Year.  Boise State was ranked in the Top 20 most of the year and finished #23.

Coach Patton led Boise State to its second straight Mountain West tennis championship and automatic berth in the NCAA Championships.  Andy Bettles was named MWC Player of the Year.  Bettles was All-Mountain West in both singles and doubles (with partner Nathan Sereke).  The Broncos shocked both #22 Notre Dame and Texas Tech to win the Blue-Gray Tennis Championship, and Boise State battled #23 Clemson before falling in the NCAA Championships, 4-3.  Boise State finished the season ranked #42.  Bettles finished the year ranked #40 in singles and will compete in the NCAA Men's Tennis Singles Championship.

Chris Petersen led the football team to an 11-2 record, with the two losses consisting of a combined six points.  Boise State won the Mountain West Conference, then edged Washington 28-26 to win the Las Vegas Bowl.  Boise State finished the season #14 in the USA Today Coaches' Poll and #18 in the AP.  Center Matt Paradis, defensive linemen Mike Atkinson and DeMarcus Lawrence, linebacker J.C. Percy and cornerback Jamar Taylor were named All-Mountain West.

Greg Randall led Boise State to a second-place finish in the Pac-12 and Jake Swartz Jason Chamberlain captured individual PAC-12 titles.  Three Broncos (Chamberlain, George Ivanov and J.T. Felix) advanced to the national quarterfinals at the NCAA Tournament and Chamberlain wrestled for the national championship before finishing second.  Boise State finished 19th in the Team Standings.

Leon Rice led the Boise State basketball team to a 21-11 record this season, including a win over nationally-ranked Creighton as Boise State tied for fourth in the Mountain West.  Boise State earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in its history before losing to LaSalle in the opening round.


The winner, with 138 votes--Coach Rice is the 2013 Bronco Coach of the Year.  Coach Petersen garnered 19.25% while Coach Patton had 3.74%, the team of Neil Resnick and Tina Bird had 2.67% and Coach Randall received one vote.