Broncos Look For Some Positives
The Boise State Broncos have been badly beaten, barely beaten and spit on.
It’s made for an interesting two weeks for new head coach Houston Nutt.
The Broncos lost 63-23 to I-AA Cal State Northridge, then nearly pulled off the biggest upset in school history before falling to Ron Dayneless Wisconsin 28-24 last Saturday.
After the game, defensive lineman Chad Moore went into the stands after Wisconsin fans spit on him as he was leaving the field. He was restrained by a security officer.
“He made a poor decision,” said Nutt, who added that Moore will play Saturday against Central Michigan but not before enduring extra conditioning in practice. “We think we got his attention.”
The Moore incident aside, BSU’s rebound from the first week to the second was remarkable. Nutt said Wisconsin coach Barry Alvarez shook hands with him after the game and said, “‘Your players deserved to win and it’s a credit to the job you and your staff did.”’ “The thing that is sad is we did play well enough to win,” Nutt said. “Hopefully, we can build on that.”
Nutt faces a big rebuilding job. Only four seniors see significant time and the Broncos lack speed at the skill positions. BSU started practice this week with only five healthy offensive linemen.
“We’ve got a bunch of freshmen and sophomores, and all they’ve ever done the last couple years is lose,” Nutt said. “We live in a world today where everybody wants something yesterday. But the fans here have been good with us.”
Undoubtedly it’ll get more interesting for Nutt when BSU plays Central Michigan, which took home a $350,000 check and an 82-6 beating from Florida last Saturday.
New look
Idaho State, which plays host to Idaho on Saturday, will unveil a new logo. The Bengals wore plain black helmets in their 41-7 loss to Utah State last week. They were contractually obligated to reveal the new look at home.
The old logo was modeled after the emblem on the University of Miami helmet.
The Bengals might have a new look at quarterback, too. Starter Gary Anderson suffered a concussion in the second half against Utah State. He’s listed as probable. Freshman Seth Burford was 1 of 6 passing and rushed for 51 yards.
Color change
Utah State’s running back went from Brown to Blue last week. Demario Brown, one of the top players in the conference, underwent knee surgery to repair damaged cartilage. Melvin Blue stepped in and ran for 142 yards against Idaho State.
Brown is questionable for Saturday’s game against Colorado State.
Homers
Utah State won’t leave its home state for a game until Oct. 11. The Aggies opened with a win at Utah before returning home against Idaho State (another win), Colorado State and New Mexico. After a bye week, the Aggies visit Brigham Young in Provo.
Utah State finally crosses state lines for its sixth game, against Oregon State in Corvallis.
Dual nicknames
North Texas is using its historical “Mean Green” nickname as well as “Eagles” in press releases and media guides. The uniqueness of “Mean Green” might lead to added publicity and it is identifiable to North Texas’ older alums. It’s similar to Auburn being known as “War Eagles” and “Tigers.”
The origin of the nickname? Former North Texas star “Mean Joe” Greene.
Notes
Nevada quarterback John Dutton already has been invited to play in the Hula Bowl… . North Texas’ John Baker is second in the nation in punting at 49.4 per kick. He succeeded Toby Gowin, who is punting for the Dallas Cowboys. … Idaho quarterback Brian Brennan ranks 21st nationally in pass efficiency (152.5). He leads the Big West in pass efficiency and total offense (265 yards).
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