Pool Party

Boise State's swimming team has started where it left off.  Coach Kristin Hill's squad won 15 events en route to a 198-96 win over Idaho at the Boise West YMCA today.

Senior Stephanie North and freshman Jessica Bottelberghe each won three individual events and contributed to a relay win, as it seems Hill is beginning to reload at Boise State. 

"It was a great first meet," said head coach Kristin Hill. "This was the first time most of the girls had raced since the summer at nationals or sectionals."

Bottelberghe captured titles in the 100 and 200-yard bastrokes and the 200-yard individual medley. 

"We had a lot of freshmen step up in their first collegiate meet," Hill said. "It's always fun to see how they will respond in that situation, and our freshmen did it really well."

North won the 50, 100 and 200-yard freestyle events for Boise State.  Sophomore Ciera Cortney won the one-meter diving final and was second in the three-meter event.  Junior Lexi Pfeiffer joined Cortney on the podium with a career-best 225.10, good for third. 

Sophomores Chelsea Miller and Rachel Heaney won in the 200-yard breaststroke and 200 butterfly and All-American Amber Boucher won the 100 fly. 

Boise State hosts New Mexico and Seattle next weekend at the West Y.  Friday'smeet starts at 6:30 while the meet with Seattle begins at 11:30 Saturday morning.  Come out and watch the exciting Broncos!

Boise State Proves, Beyond a Shadow of a Doubt, That They Are For Real

In one of the most incredible displays of offensive, defensive and special teams talent in several years in college football, Boise State dismantled a pretty good Fresno State team 57-7 tonight in Fresno on ESPN.





This is the same Fresno State team that had Nebraska on the ropes in Lincoln in the fourth quarter.  They couldn't finish the Cornhuskers as Wisconsin did.  They're not as good as Wisconsin, but they were through three quarters.  And against Boise State on their home turf, Fresno State recorded their first advancement past their own 40 with seconds remaining in the first half.  Heisman favorite Kellen Moore put on a baseball cap one series into the second half rather than pursue the all-time career touchdown passes record.  As indeed he should have.


Because that's the way they do things at Boise State.  They could pour it on and put up unbelievable stats.  But tonight, they didn't have to.  They proved to the nation in no uncertain terms that they deserve, finally, a shot at a national championship if they run the table.

We'll tell you that Moore was 23-31 for 254 yards and three touchdowns in essentially a half of football.  He now has sole possession of second place in NCAA history with a record of 43-2.  He passed both Danny Wuerffel of Florida and Tim Rattay tonight to land in sixth place in college football history with his 114 career TD passes.  We'll tell you that Boise State isn't going to lose anything once he graduates.  Backup Joe Southwick was 3-5 for 27 yards and freshman Grant Hedrick ran three times for 38 yards and a touchdown in the game's final moments.  And they have they have two amazing young prospects behind them that we won't tell you about; you'll just have to wait and see.  So Boise State is in fine shape at the quarterback position.



And we'll tell you that Doug Martin ran 16 times for 94 yards and a touchdown, including a brilliant third-quarter run in which he bounced outside, took it down the sidelines and was knocked out at the one.  Mitch Burroughs took an end around and sped into the end zone for a 25-yard score in the first half.  Super tailback D.J. Harper scored twice for Boise State.  





Freshman Matt Miller caught five passes for 78 yards and another score.  Miller ties two great Bronco receivers--Ryan Ikebe and Jay Swillie for #3 all-time at Boise State with 25 receptions as a freshman.  Geraldo Boldewijn caught three balls for 33 yards and two touchdowns in his first action of the season.  Burroughs had four catches for 43 yards.  Gabe Linehan had three catches for 48.  Martin had three catches for 14 yards.  In all, 11 Bronco receivers caught passes.  This isn't just a first team or second team effort or one or two talented guys (ala Titus Young and Austin Pettis last year).  This is an incredibly talented team you saw tonight.  From Kellen Moore down to the last guy on the bench.


Defensively, Boise State held Fresno scoreless until a brilliant run by talented punt returner Devon Wylie.  Cornerback Jamar Taylor made about as fine an interception as you will ever see anywhere at any level of football.  The Bronco defensive line was as tough as nails.  Anything that got past them was stuffed by opportunistic linebackers Byron Hout and Aaron Tevis.  And the Bronco secondary rarely allowed a complete pass for a first down.  Top that off with a great punt block by Hunter White and great punt returns by Burroughs.





Derek Carr was 17-30 for the Bulldogs.  He is a talented signal-caller who will win and win often for Fresno State.  Robbie Rouse (10 carries for 72 yards) is a dynamo back who never gives up and gets the tough yards for you.  Josh Harper had a great game--eight catches for 75 yards for Fresno State.  Logan Harrell on defense, in the top four in the nation in tackles for loss, is as fierce a competitor as anywhere you will find in college football.


Yes, Fresno is talented and we've given you all the stats.  But the real message, sent loud and clear tonight in Fresno, California, before a nationwide audience, is that Boise State is as fine a team as you will find anywhere in this land.  They block, they tackle, they play smart, they don't beat themselves, they run hard, they focus, they are coached brilliantly, and they can not be denied any longer.

Boise State Cross Country Team at Coyote Invitational

Boise State's cross country teams participate in the Coyote Invitational this evening.  Action gets underway at 5 tonight on the College of Idaho Campus in Caldwell.

The Average Pullman Household has 18 Televisions

The population of Pullman, Washington was 29,799 according to the 2010 Census.  I mention that because according to "the experts", the number of TV sets is what is important in considering teams for expansion into "BCS" leagues.


It has been well documented that the people that came up with the number of households in Boise's television market were on crack when they said there were 194,000.  Given that just the area within 30 miles of Boise is approaching 700,000 and the actual range of Boise television stations reaches close to a million people, we know the figure that gets thrown around the internet is a crock of $&@!


So using even the conservative estimate of 700,000 and the historical average of 2.5 as being the average household size, you actually get the number of households in the Boise market at 280,000--not 194,000.  And we're told by the condescending holier than thou BCS folks that that isn't enough TV sets to qualify as a BCS school.  


Which brings me back to Pullman, home of Washington State of the Pac-12.  Remember that their official population is 29,799.  I'm wondering how cluttered the average Pullman, Washington household is, and I think you can see where I'm going with this.  As reflected in the data that is linked, the average household has 2.73 televisions. Applying this average to Boise, that means there are 529,620 televisions in the Boise market, although we all know there are more than that from the bogus numbers above.  But stay with me.  Since Pullman, Washington is required to have more TV sets than Boise to qualify as a BCS school (meaning they have to have at least 529,621 to top Boise), that means that the average Pullman household has 18 televisions (529,621/29799).   And they are all tuned in to Washington State games.  That's not only unbelievable, but incredible!





Guess they love their television in Pullman...

Boise State Swim Team Hosts Idaho Saturday in Season Opener

Coach Kristin Hill, which built her program from scratch at Boise State, and now heads into her sixth season with the premiere swimming and diving program in the Northwest, leads the Broncos against Idaho this Saturday night in he season opener.

16 letterwinners from the two-time defending Western Athletic Conference Champions return for Coach Hill, including WAC Swimmer of the Year Amber Boucher and Stephanie North.  Both Boucher and North competed at the 2011 NCAA Championships, the first student-athletes in Boise State history to do so. 

The meet gets underway at noon Saturday at the Boise-West Family YMCA just off of Cloverdale and Chinden.  Admission is free and the first 25 Boise State students get a free t-shirt.  Can't beat that!

Link to Blue Football Through and Through

http://bluefootballthroughandthrough.blogspot.com/

Remember that this site will continue to share all Boise State-related news, including major stories for football.  The above site will be 100% focused on Boise State fooball, and will contain more football-related nws and information.

Great Day to Be a Boise State Receiver

Three talented receivers did excellent yesterday in the National Football League:  Legedu Naanee, Austin Pettis and Titus Young.  And it's no coincidence that they are all from Boise State.


Naanee, who has found a new home in Carolina, caught four passes for 27 yards, rookie Pettis had four receptions for 32 yards, and returned a kickoff for 19 yards for the St. Louis Rams, fellow rookie Young caught three passes for 41 yards to lead undefeated Detroit to a 34-30 victory in Arlington, Texas over Dallas.


Congratulations to this trio of Broncos now excelling in the NFL!  

Boise State Soccer Team Bounces Seattle 2-0

Senior forward Kati Lucas booted in the only two goals for Boise State as the Broncos scored a 2-0 road win over Seattle Sunday afternoon.


Katy Oehring set up Lucas for the first goal in the 52nd minute with a long shot in the front of the net.  Lucas flicked in the shot to the top of the goal.  Mikhaila Bowden sent a long ball to Lucas in the 86th minute, who fired a shot in from 15 yards out.  Lucas now has five goals on the season to lead the Broncos.


"Kati did a great job of being composed," said head coach Steve Lucas. "She had some time and did what a striker is supposed to do; she scored goals and put away the chances she had."


Redshirt freshman Maddy McDevitt earned the shutout in her debut in goal, recording nine saves and playing all 90 minutes.


"It was a total team effort today," Steve Lucas said. "We gave a lot of players some minutes and we are excited because it's a win against a good program. We're going to carry that momentum over to next week and I think that helps a lot."


Boise State is 5-7-1 while Seattle drops to 8-5.  The Lady Broncos host Air Force Saturday at noon at the Boas Soccer Complex.

Massey Ratings, Week Five

http://masseyratings.com/rate.php?lg=cf&mid=6

Clemson passed Boise State and the Broncos finished 5/1000th's of a point away from Oklahoma State.

Colley Ratings, Week Five

http://www.colleyrankings.com/currank.html


Boise State #9 as projected yesterday morning.

Boise State Stymies Nevada 30-10

An amazing Boise State defense suffocated a Nevada team that had put 34 points on the board against Texas Tech the week before, Doug Martin bulled his way for 126 yards and two touchdowns and #4 Boise State stopped the Wolf Pack 30-10 Saturday night in Bronco Stadium.


So overpowering was the Bronco defense that when the teams left the field for the first half, Nevada had eight yards passing and 42 rushing and hadn’t crossed midfield.  Nevada finished with 241 yards of offense, but 53 of those came on a touchdown pass from reserve quarterback Mason Magleby to Richard Matthews with 36 seconds in the game.  This Nevada team came into the game 15^th in the country in total offense, including the aforementioned performance against Texas Tech on the road.  The high-powered pistol offense of ingenious Nevada coach Chris Ault averaged 483 yards of total offense.  The Boise State defense held Nevada to just 2-of-14 on third-down conversions and logged a season-high 12 tackles for loss.  Even better, all tackles for loss were by a different Bronco player as it was a complete defensive effort.

Defensive end Shea McClellin paced Boise State with six tackles, one of those tackles for loss and the only sack.  McClellin passed Bronco great Korey Hall with his 17^th career sack and is now #12 all-time.  J.C. Percy added his first career interception Saturday night for the Broncos.  Safety George Iloka had four stops against the Pack to pass two players who went on to professional careers (Chris Carr and Stefan Reid) and now has 189 career tackles to rank #44 all-time at Boise State.  Iloka is just one tackle behind another pro player, Michel Bourgeau, who logged 190 career stops from 1980-1983.  Bourgeau is now the head of the popular Varsity B Club at Boise State.  Iloka is now #11 among defensive backs at Boise State and needs 11 more tackles to tie #10 Phil Bartle (1983-1986).

Martin toted the ball 21 times for a season-best 126 yards, and would have been well over 200 yards had a 92-yard touchdown not been called back by a phantom holding call.  Martin found the going tough early as Nevada joined the list of opponents who keyed on him, but eventually his determined running wore them down and he was able to pick up big chunks of yardage on a consistent basis. 


Martin’s first touchdown put Boise State up 20-0 in the first half.  Then he broke the game open with a dash down the left sideline of 43 yards in the third quarter that extended the lead to 27-0.  Martin passed Jeremy Avery and tied Jared Zabransky with his 31^st career rushing touchdown and now stands #6 all-time at Boise State.


"It feels real nice," said Martin, who recorded his 11th career 100-yard game. "We struggled with the run game the past two games and I think we picked it up today. I think we just focused on the details more."

Martin also passed two legendary Broncos--“Rocket” Rodney Webster (3,665 all-purpose yards from 1980-1983) and John “Super Needle” Smith (3,549 from 1972-1975) to reach the Top 10 in career all-purpose yards (Martin is now 9^th) with 3,673.  Martin also now ranks #15 all-time in career scoring at Boise State, passing Austin Pettis (190), Todd Belcastro (189) and Don Hutt and Jared Zabransky (188 points each.

D.J. Harper gained 36 yards on the ground, enabling the hard-working Bronco back to move into 18^th place all-time at Boise State.  Harper passed two tough runners—Larry Smith and Abe Brown, who gained 1,199 and 1,189 yards respectively in 1968 and 1969.  

Quarterback Kellen Moore was 19-33 for 142 yards and two scores.  The Broncos got on the scoreboard first midway through the first quarter on a 21-yard pass from Moore to D.J. Harper.  Moore’s second touchdown pass, a three-yard bullet to freshman Matt Miller, gave him 113 in his career and enabled him to move past Colt McCoy of Texas for #8 in NCAA history.  Moore has tossed 14 this season in four games, already #25 on the Boise State single-season list.  Kellen became the 16^th quarterback in college football history to pass for 12,000 yards in his career—he now has 12,004 and passed Marshall QB Byron Leftwich (11,903) with his effort against Nevada.


 Moore now stands second only to McCoy for wins as a starting quarterback—the brilliant Bronco signal-caller is now 42-2 at Boise State.  McCoy holds the NCAA record of 45-8.

Once again, Mitch Burroughs led the Bronco receivers with five catches for 34 yards while freshman Matt Miller had five receptions for 27 yards.  Miller passed Derek Schouman (17 in 2003) and Kyle Efaw (17 in 2008) for receptions by a freshman and now has 20 on the season, #7 at Boise State.

The Bronco special teams also got in the act as punt returner Mitch Burroughs consistently gave his team field position in averaging 23 yards per return and Dan Goodale nailed his first field goal attempt of the year, a 31-yarder in the first half.


Nevada starting quarterback Tyler Lantrip was 5-16 for 50 yards and an interception before Magleby came on to hit four-of-four for 73 yards and the touchdown.  Matthews paced the Pack with four receptions for 84 yards.


Nevada had spoiled Boise State’s perfect season and a strong bid for a national championship last year in Reno but it was not to be this year.  However, the Broncos know that each remaining opponent could be this year’s Nevada.


Boise State travels to face rival Fresno State Friday night in a nationally-televised game on ESPN.  The Bulldogs played well against SEC opponent Mississippi before falling 38-28.

Boise State #4 In Unofficial BCS Standings--Week 5

1.    LSU 95.59% + 98.20% + 94.50 = 288.29
2.    Alabama 95.46% + 95.67% + 93.50 = 284.63
3.    Oklahoma 96.34% + 93.13% + 71.50 = 260.97
4.    Boise State 80.41% + 83.20% + 84.50 = 248.11
5.    Oklahoma State 78.78% + 79.40% + 86.50 = 234.68
6.    Wisconsin 83.80% + 84.40% + 65.00 = 233.20
7.    Clemson 69.69% + 72.87% + 86.0 = 228.56
8.    Stanford 83.86% + 79.00% + 48.00 = 210.86

9.    Texas 59.59% + 55.53% + 64.50 = 179.62
10.  Michigan 54.78% + 54.13% + 62.50 = 171.41
11.  Oregon 68.95% + 68.53% + 25.50 = 162.48
12.  Georgia Tech 49.36% + 44.47% + 57.00 = 150.83
13.  Arkansas 53.42% + 57.33% + 28.50 = 139.25
14.  Illinois 36.68% + 28.53% + 64.50 = 129.71
15.  Nebraska 37.76% + 37.00% + 48.00 = 122.26
16.  South Carolina 37.90% + 32.47% + 35.00 = 105.37
17.  Auburn 14.71% + 36.67% + 42.50 = 93.88
18.  Kansas State 17.90% + 23.27% + 50.00 = 91.67
19.  Virginia Tech 31.86% + 22.73% + 33.00 = 87.59
20.  Florida 30.92% + 33.20% + 18.00 = 82.12
21.  West Virginia 29.56% + 36.27% + 7.00 = 72.83
22.  Arizona State 12.00% + 17.07% + 15.00 = 44.07
23.  Texas Tech 4.61% + 1.67% + 32.50 = 38.78
24.  Michigan State 24.81% + 10.27% + 2.00 = 37.08
25.  Florida State 15.53% + 15.80% + 2.00 = 33.33




26.  Texas A&M 10.80% + 14.40% + 7.50 = 32.70
27.  Washington 2.03% + 2.47% + 17.00 = 21.50
28.  Penn State 2.51% + .60% + 17.00 = 20.11
29.  Baylor 6.10% + 12.40% + 1.00 = 19.50
30.  Houston 6.58% + 4.53% + 6.00 = 17.11
31.  North Carolina .68% + .00% + 8.50 = 9.18
32.  South Florida 3.32% + 1.47% + 1.50 = 6.29
33.  Notre Dame .88% + 1.60% + 2.50 = 4.98
34.  Pittsburgh .75% + .07% + 00 = .82

Coaches Football Rankings, Week Five

Coaches Poll
No.	School	Record	Points	Prev
1	Oklahoma (27)	4-0	1421	1
2	LSU (21)	5-0	1410	2
3	Alabama (10)	5-0	1408	2
4	Stanford	4-0	1237	4
5	Wisconsin (1)	5-0	1236	7
6	Boise State	4-0	1186	5
7	Oklahoma State	4-0	1162	6
8	Clemson	5-0	1028	15
9	Oregon	3-1	1017	11
10	Texas	4-0	879	17
11	Michigan	5-0	808	19
12	Arkansas	4-1	788	18
13	Georgia Tech	5-0	728	21
14	South Carolina	4-1	559	9
15	Nebraska	4-1	557	8
16	Illinois	5-0	541	22
17	Virginia Tech	4-1	470	10
18	Florida	4-1	456	12
19	West Virginia	4-1	436	23
20	Michigan State	4-1	366	25
21	Kansas State	4-0	264	31
22	Florida State	2-2	229	24
23	Auburn	4-1	217	38
24	Arizona State	4-1	177	28
25	Texas A&M	2-2	160	13
Others Receiving Votes: Houston(5-0) 97; Baylor(3-1) 90; Texas Tech(4-0) 68; South Florida(4-1) 49; Penn State(4-1) 37; Washington(4-1) 30; Notre Dame(3-2) 13; Pittsburgh(3-2) 11; North Carolina(4-1) 10; Southern Methodist(4-1) 10; Tennessee(3-1) 6; Iowa(3-1) 5; Air Force(3-1) 3; Southern Mississippi(4-1) 3; Duke(3-2) 1; Ohio State(3-2) 1; Cincinnati(4-1) 1