BOISE – All Boise State can do now is wait.
The Broncos did their part with a 27-19 win over Air Force Friday on The Blue at Albertsons Stadium. They now just need UNLV to take care of business against San Jose State Saturday to ensure themselves a spot in next week’s Mountain West Championship game.
If not, four different computer rankings will be used to break the three-way tie Sunday morning. And the rankings will likely favor Boise State.
So the Broncos (7-5 overall, 6-2 MW) are already planning on packing their bags for Las Vegas.
“Before I leave, I’m downloading UNLV film. I can promise you that,” Boise State interim head coach Spencer Danielson said. “We’re playing in that game. We did everything we should have these past two weeks and that’s happening. So let’s get ready to go to work.”
It’s a position few outside of their locker room would have ever envisioned.
They had seemingly been eliminated from contention following a 37-30 loss to Fresno State on Nov. 4. But a lot’s happened since then.
Former head coach Andy Avalos was fired the morning after a 42-14 win over New Mexico on Nov. 11.
And then both Air Force and Fresno State, suffered back-to-back losses to the likes of conference bottom dwellers Hawaii and New Mexico.
All of it led to a second chance for the Broncos, who’ve lost in every way imaginable this season, to suddenly make everything right.
And they weren’t about to waste it.
“It’s something special. It’s something that we’re happy about,” Boise State sophomore linebacker Andrew Simpson said. “But Coach D (Danielson) told us, ‘It can be a cool story or we can put it into place. We’re the dudes who are going to make it happen.’”
They certainly were, leading from start to finish in a memorable Senior Day on The Blue.
The Broncos went up 10-0 after a 12-yard touchdown run from Taylen Green about midway through the second quarter. The sophomore quarterback’s score came after an ill-advised throw over the middle resulted in an interception at the Air Force 1-yard line on the previous possession. He ended the game going 13-of-17 for 228 yards, one touchdown and a pair of interceptions.
“I’m not surprised,” sophomore running back Ashton Jeanty said. “This whole year has been a crazy year for him. He gives me motivation to go through all that he’s been through this year.
“He takes advantage of every opportunity thrown his way. He doesn’t let the mistakes hold him back.”
Jeanty had quite the performance himself.
He became just the sixth Bronco all-time, and the first since Jeremy McNichols in 2016, to have both 100 yards rushing and receiving in the same game. The 5-foot-9-inch, 210-pounder racked up 225 all-purpose yards and a pair of touchdowns to go with it.
Jeanty got his memorable day started by hauling in a simple screen pass. Only he turned it into anything but. Jeanty dashed down the sideline before cutting back untouched right past the rest of the Air Force defense for a 75-yard touchdown catch.
His career-long reception extended the lead to 17-3 with five minutes and seven seconds remaining in the first half.
But Jeanty wasn’t done yet.
He barreled through the heart of the Air Force defense to break free for a 50-yard touchdown run just four minutes into the second half. It put Boise State back up by double digits at 24-12 after the Falcons had cut the deficit to five on their first drive of the third quarter.
Jeanty’s day ended with 104 yards on the ground and 118 receiving – a career high.
“I don’t know how much more I can talk about Ashton Jeanty because I’m going to start crying again because of what he does,” Danielson said. “Everybody sees the plays on the field and you can’t miss him. And he deserves the recognition he’s getting across the board. But watch him at practice, watch him when he’s in these meeting rooms, watch him when he walks in, he’s got a smile on his face. He loves his brothers. He’s a young man I’m very proud of.”
Not to get lost in the fold was the defense, especially in the fourth quarter.
Three times the Falcons (8-4, 5-3), who were trailing 24-19, had a chance to take the lead. But each time a unit that’s really struggled at times this season, held firm. A Simpson sack and a forced fumble by sophomore defensive end Braxton Felt each resulted in Air Force punts. The Falcons drove the ball all the way to the Bronco 34, but quarterback John Busha sailed a ball out of the back of the endzone for a turnover on downs.
Down 27-19, the Falcons got one last crack at it with 26 seconds to go and the ball at their own 32. But junior defensive back Kaonohi Kaniho picked off Busha to secure the once unlikely spot in the Mountain West title game.
“I haven’t tried to look forward too much. But I do know, and I’m a firm believer of you handle one moment at a time,” Danielson said. “These two wins are a byproduct of our players and our staff taking it one moment at a time, one practice at a time, one day at a time. And then little by little here we are at 2-0 and got a shot to go play for a championship.”
NOTES: Junior defensive end Ahmed Hassanein notched a sack for the eighth straight game – the longest active streak in the country right now. … Jonah Dalmas became the first Boise State kicker since 2009 to hit two 50-yard plus field goals in one game and the first since at least 2002 to connect on three for a season.
