Fresno State (7-4, 4-3 WAC) at Boise St. (11-0, 7-0)
Friday night’s Fresno State-Boise State looked like a possible BCS bowl eliminator when the 2008 college football schedule was released, and Boise State has kept up its end of the bargain.
But Friday’s game is somewhat worthless to the Broncos, who are 21-point favorites on WagerWeb.com, as they already have clinched the WAC and are probably going to be locked out of a BCS bowl regardless of the result – thanks to Utah being ahead of them in the BCS standings.
Still, it’s hard to see BSU not putting forth a good effort. It has won 48 consecutive regular-season games at home and has scored more than 40 points in the past four games overall. The Broncos have been so dominant that they’ve been challenged only twice this season: a 41-34 win at Nevada last weekend and a 37-32 victory at then- No. 17 Oregon in September.
Fresno State coach Pat Hill stressed the importance of starting fast to have a chance against the Broncos.
“They get off to those quick leads then people have to scrap their game plan,” Hill said. “We have to make plays … make plays early.”
Fresno has rediscovered its rush defense the past two weeks, allowing a total of minus-14 yards. However, the Bulldogs still are seventh in the conference and 101st in the nation with 192.9 ypg allowed on the ground.
That could mean a big day for Boise’s Ian Johnson. In addition, Boise QB Kellen Moore, despite being a freshman, leads the WAC with a 160.3 passing efficiency and is second with an average of 277.4 yards and 23 passing touchdowns. On the other hand, Fresno QB Tom Brandstater is coming off a game where he had just five completions for 71 yards and an interception. Boise State is second in the nation in pass efficiency defense.
The Broncos have won six of seven against Fresno State since joining the WAC in 2001, including all three meetings in Boise by an average of 29.0 points.
By the way, officials from the Western Athletic Conference and the Mid-American Conference are considering pairing No. 9 Boise State against No. 15 Ball State to create a potential matchup of undefeated teams in the Humanitarian Bowl, should Boise win on Friday and Ball State win the MAC title game, as expected. It will take some juggling and a concession from the ACC, but what a matchup that would be.
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