Game balls and player ratings for Boise State vs. UC Davis
by Kevan Lee on Oct 5, 2009 8:11 AM PDT
in Boise State football
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PrintI recognize that most Bronco fans are ready to move past the UC Davis game just as fast as they possibly can. And for good reason. That sucker was pretty depressing.
But before we look ahead to next weekend in college football and next Wednesday's matchup against Tulsa, let's look back at a night gone meh for the Broncos. After the jump, check out what players and performances got my attention, and feel free to share yours in the comments.
Warning: Incredibly lame highlight video with emo synth background music
Reader Choice Award Player of the Game
By a large margin, Pettis was chosen by you readers as the Broncos' POG, proving that, if nothing else, you all can read a box score. Pettis' stat line was one of the only ones to stand out among a sea of averageness: 10 catches, 129 yards, 2 TDs. Good call, everyone.
There was plenty not to like on Saturday, but Pettis' performance was not it. I wrote after the game that Pettis may have taken the jump from really good receiver to game-changing receiver over the course of the UC Davis game. Was I getting ahead of myself? It's hard to tell. I am probably out of place to make bold assertions like that following a game against an FCS team, but Pettis was the player most responsible for keeping Boise State's offense moving on Saturday night. And FCS team or not, that's pretty good.
Best performance by a Top 5 team in a mid-level WAC team role
Boise State
After the game, the comments section quickly filled up with vitriol and disappointment.
From MooreWalksOnWater:
I’m sorry, but that game was embarrassing.
From our very own FFBSU:
Boise State is a team that prides itself on execution and they looked pathetic at times tonight.
From that one BYU guy in his inflammatory FanPost:
Blip bloop blop bleep blorp
The Broncos did not play up to their potential, which was great cause for weeping and gnashing of teeth. My question to you all today is: Feeling any better? Did the sting of playing down to an FCS school subside?
Most important factor for Boise State not falling further in the polls
No one who has a vote watched the game
Except, of course, Chadd Cripe, and I'm not even sure he was at the game considering that he left the Broncos at No. 4 in his poll.
OBNUG's Nick was right, and so were the OBNUG commenters who echoed his sentiments:
I think it's safe to say we Bronco fans are going to be the most critical.
We watched the whole game and were aware of who we were playing. I’m betting most of the other voters aren’t as aware. They’ll take a look at the final score, maybe peek at the box score, but I don’t think they’ll see any highlights.
Also, I'm pretty sure that a bunch of Harris Poll voters think UC Davis plays in the Pac-10.
Least dominating performance
(tie) Boise State offensive and defensive lines
Out of all the fallout from Boise State's win (win fallout? I thought that was supposed to be a good thing), I find the most surprising to be how poorly the Broncos played on both sides of the line. What a departure from the first four weeks of the season. If you consider the D-line play against Oregon on September 3 and compare that to the D-line play against UC Davis on October 3, the difference is night and day in a very bad way. Same can be said of the offensive line, which looked leaps and bounds better in recent weeks, especially against a Fresno defensive line that worked over UCD last month.
Are the Broncos regressing? I don't buy it. Out of all the reasons given for the poor performance on Saturday, the one that might hold the most truth is Boise State's failure to execute. Coaches harped on it after the game, and it was something that hadn't really come up in previous weeks. Boise State's lines will be fine going forward if they can execute properly. There are no more FCS teams on the schedule, right?
Greg Denham's favorite target
Whoever Brandyn Thompson was covering
As Loque reminded me, Thompson was not the only Bronco cornerback being picked on by Greg Denham Manning on Saturday night. Jerrell Gavins had his fair share of balls thrown in his direction, which is the main reason why he led the team in tackles.
However, I think Thompson's night stood out more to me because he was supposed to be the Broncos' No. 1 corner against UC Davis, and he hardly looked the part. Granted, those were some good receivers he was going up against and Denham threw some very good balls. Still, Thompson did nothing to force the Aggies to throw away from him. With Kyle Wilson back on the field, I expect teams to target Thompson more.
Newest Winston Venable attack position
Linebacker
You asked for it, Bronco fans, and you got it. On several occasions on Saturday night, Venable was lined up at outside linebacker in what looked for all intents and purposes to be a 4-3 Bronco defense. I assume that the changed alignment was a result of a UC Davis formation (probably a 2WR look as opposed to 3WR or spread) and that Venable is allowed to switch seamlessly between hybrid nickelback and traditional linebacker. Still, it warmed my heart. Maybe Justin Wilcox reads this blog.
Best dehabilitating block
I bet Richie Brockel wishes he could block FCS opponents every day. Brockel had a pancake feed on Saturday night, flattening UCD defenders like they were Bowling Green defenders. The one that stands out most in my mind happened on a sweep left where Brockel absolutely laid out his man. Ironically, the play only gained two yards.
Player most missed due to injury
(tie) Kyle Wilson, Kevin Sapien
Neither the Bronco defense nor the Bronco offense looked itself on Saturday night, and I believe that a big part of it was due to the absence of these two starters. Wilson could have played if necessary, although he would not have been 100 percent. He should be back healthy for Tulsa. Sapien's neck injury (a chronic neck injury? Isn't that a eupemism for paralysis?) sounds more serious as the Broncos sat the starting OG in hopes that he could make it through the whole year.
Most important stat of the game
5-0
The Broncos are undefeated heading into their semi-bye week. Has it been perfect? No. Are Bronco fans happy? Sort of. But you can't complain about a 5-0 start. Or at least you can't complain too much.
Player ratings
Offense
Austin Pettis - 8 - What more could Pettis have done on Saturday night? OK, besides block Mike Morales on inside running plays.
Titus Young - 7 - Did well to break past the defense on his TD catch, but didn't have many other opportunities to shine. Credit TY for quietly racking up six catches on the night. Credit UC Davis for kicking away from him.
Tyler Shoemaker - 5 - Well, at least he didn't get shut out as is the norm on odd-numbered games. Still, 1 catch for 8 yards is blah.
Kyle Efaw - 6 - Throwing to the tight end is fun, especially on Efaw's slick 22-yard catch. Hopefully he is a bigger part of gameplans going forward.
Tommy Gallarda - 5 - Didn't hear much from Gallarda on Saturday night.
Garrett Pendergast - 6 - Played well enough not to be noticed.
Brenel Myers - 4 - Missed numerous assignments and was spelled in the fourth quarter by Joe Kellogg.
Thomas Byrd - 4 - Still struggling with center-QB exchanges for some reason.
Will Lawrence - 6 - A decent game, but nothing special. Could take some blame (along with the rest of the interior line) for the Broncos' failures in short yardage near the goalline.
Matt Slater - 5 - Got beat on a Kellen Moore sack (though the guy who beat him whiffed). Quiet otherwise.
Richie Brockel - 7 - Several crushing blocks but also lost technique down near the goalline once.
Kellen Moore - 7 - Solid for long stretches, sprinkled in with curious decisions and poor throws (blame the wet ball, if you must).
Doug Martin - 5 - Ran hard but broke far fewer tackles. Looked excellent catching balls out of the backfield.
Jeremy Avery - 6 - Few big plays from Avery. Never really had much room to breathe.
Defense
Ryan Winterswyk - 7 - A big FG block before the half and another sack. His solid play is starting to show up in the stat book.
Chase Baker - 7 - Disruptive in the Aggie backfield but not much push in the pass rush.
Billy Winn - 6 - Made a couple plays but didn't flash the dominance of weeks past.
Shea McClellin - 5 - Never had his name called on Saturday night.
Daron Mackey - 6 - Had one or two solid plays but was pretty much a nonfactor once UCD took to the air.
Aaron Tevis - 7 - Led the team with two TFLs and flew to the ball very well.
Jerrell Gavins - 5 - Completely lost his man on a deep bomb that should have been a TD and gave up big cushion on several other short throws.
Brandyn Thompson - 5 - Too many penalties and too few plays.
Winston Venable - 7 - Amazing how he closes on receivers so fast.
Jeron Johnson - 7 - Came up with the big hits he is known for.
George Iloka - 6 - Another quiet night for Iloka.
Special Teams
Kyle Brotzman - 7 - Brotzman missed
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D-line was the strongest point.
I didn’t feel like the D-Line was any less dominating. They held Davis to 30 or 40 yards rushing and every throw was a quick pass.
Also, I saw Bacon in the game. Does anyone know how he did?!
Bacon was a nonfactor
Good points, BigBadJohn. Am I being too harsh on the defensive line? The lack of QB pressure was what stood out most to me, as they got to the passer a lot faster (even on quick drops) in previous games. I’d buy an argument for them playing better than I remember, though. Anyone else?
"I eat success for breakfast - with skim milk!" - Tony Perkis
Frusterated at lack of pressure
During the game I was so annoyed that the D-Line wasn’t getting to the QB. The corners were picked but in my opinion it wouldn’t have been as bad if the D would have pressured their quarterback more.
"Hell, I can get you a toe by 3 o'clock this afternoon... with nail polish."
From my perspective from the SEZ
I saw very little pressure until late in the 4th quarter. Although it seemed like most of the game took place on the other side of the field, still seemed like that QB had all the time he wanted. Cold doesn’t cause that.
Catch me on the BroncoNation Podcast!
by OBNUG Intern on Oct 5, 2009 11:17 AM PDT up reply actions
munson'd!
Boise State - The best in all the land (The "land" being Idaho, and large parts of California, Oregon, and Nevada.)
Where's the intern with my Munson'd picture?
My reply deserves it!!
"Hell, I can get you a toe by 3 o'clock this afternoon... with nail polish."
Here you go
Catch me on the BroncoNation Podcast!
by OBNUG Intern on Oct 5, 2009 12:30 PM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
Most important factor for Boise State not falling further in the polls
No one who has a vote watched the game
More than likely it was this. Or maybe this.
Neither team on either side of the Broncos in the polls played particularly well. Hence only slipping one spot. Keep in mind they were static in the Harris Poll.
Another thing to keep in mind. Despite the apparent poor execution and playing down to an FCS opponent, it was still an 18-point win. And according to most online accounts of the game, the Broncos were never really in a position to lose the game. It might not have been what we’re used to seeing out of the Broncos, but they are 5-0.
Most important stat of the game
5-0
The Broncos are undefeated heading into their semi-bye week. Has it been perfect? No. Are Bronco fans happy? Sort of. But you can’t complain about a 5-0 start. Or at least you can’t complain too much.
Boise State - The best in all the land (The "land" being Idaho, and large parts of California, Oregon, and Nevada.)
Spoken like a rational person, Mikrino.
You’re right. A little perspective helps in situations like this. Three weeks from now, no one outside of a couple Boiseans will remember how this game went down. They’ll all just see a 34-16 win and think nothing of it. Time heals all wounds, wouldn’t you say?
"I eat success for breakfast - with skim milk!" - Tony Perkis
I just think this was still an 18-point win.
Which is generally a fairly good win by all accounts. The apparent sloppy play detracts from that, warranted or not.
The spread seems to have gotten into our heads. Realistically though, it was near impossible to beat no matter what your ranked. Even if they’d shut out UCD, they wouldn’t have beat the spread. We all thought it was possible.
Except for you Kevan. I suppose you probably won the prediction with your 45-10 score, huh? Nice job. At least somebody remained level-headed.
Boise State - The best in all the land (The "land" being Idaho, and large parts of California, Oregon, and Nevada.)
It really was embarrassing
After that performance I’d rank the Boise State one spot in front of the Ducks, no higher.
Boise State still got a vote at number 2
Craig James also moved them up from 9 last week to 7 this week.
I think he’s becoming a believer.
Boise State - The best in all the land (The "land" being Idaho, and large parts of California, Oregon, and Nevada.)
Was it though???
I don’t think I can say it was really that embarrassing of a game. Ultimately, we won the game with absolutely the plainest offense you’ve ever seen. There was ZERO momentum on our sideline for the entire game, and nothing even remotely creative. Had they wanted to, I really think we could have opened the playbook and thrown down 75 points on these guys, but that wasn’t the game plan. We won that game without showing a thing to any future opponents.
Someday I hope to look in a mirror and see something special... something like a coach pete protoge'.
But is that the right way to play?
I don’t necessarily have an answer. I’m just curious what you think.
"I eat success for breakfast - with skim milk!" - Tony Perkis
The offense was plain but
I think the frustrating part is our guys didn’t dominate in the trenches like we expect against an FCS school.
"Hell, I can get you a toe by 3 o'clock this afternoon... with nail polish."
Agreed
And no, I personally don’t think that’s the right way to play. We can always use what we’ve already shown. Shoot, give Coughlin a chance to try some real plays! However, if I’ve learned anything over the past few years, it’s to not second guess the Bronco coaches. They really know what they’re doing.
Someday I hope to look in a mirror and see something special... something like a coach pete protoge'.
the only game i thought was pathetic was the va tech / duke game.
i live in reno/tahoe area and saw some of that game. duke could have won that game. va tech will definitely lose at least once if not twice more this season. the acc is a mess again. i hope florida puts the beatdown on lsu. the line just came out. florida is giving 10 and 1/2 points. i sure hope tebow is cleared to play.
by wolfmanshowlforever on Oct 5, 2009 10:45 AM PDT reply actions
Could it be
that we just had one of those “off” games? The rain, the temperature and even lack of fan support all seemed to combine for one big FUBAR of a performance. Should we be worried at all? Nah, not really. Even the big-time teams have off-games. We always seem to have at least one game each year that we should win by a lot, but only wind up winning by far fewer points than was anticipated. Mainly I see this as playing down to the competition. I really don’t blame them, per se’; look at the turdiness of the rest of the schedule.
My one big worry for the year, though, is the play calling. It seems Coach Pete is getting too conservative. That’s not what helped BSU get to where it is or the reputation it has. I’ve seen prevent D start in the 3rd quarter and a “run, run, run and run some more and if the run game isn’t go so hot, we’ll keep running til it works” mentality with the play calling. And is it me, or does BSU not shift as much as they used to. Don’t get me wrong, they still shift, but it’s not anywhere like I seem to recall. And the conservative, “take the foot off the throat”, play calling needs to stop. Look at how the gap between us and TCU has closed. BSU seriously needs to beat the rest of the teams on the schedule like the proverbial red-headed stepchild.
I hate everyone equally...especially Vandals!
by BSUFlyboy on Oct 5, 2009 11:38 AM PDT reply actions 2 recs
rec'd for using FUBAR and turdiness in the same paragraph
RE: playcalling, I sit on the fence between “conservative” and “cautious so as to not show too much against bad teams that good teams could find out on film.” There was a long moment during the UCD game where Boise State seemed to abandon the pass altogether in favor of the run, even though the pass was what had been working best.
Keep in mind: BSU typically scripts the first 15 or so plays. Not sure if that helps you out or not.
"I eat success for breakfast - with skim milk!" - Tony Perkis
Agreed
There was much more movement and varied play selection against Oregon and Fresno State. Everyone else has seen a very vanilla offense. Except for the crazy PAT formations, everybody gets to see those.
Interesting though, even though the constant motion wasn’t used all that much against Bowling Green. Everytime the Broncos did it, the Falcons had no idea how to play defense against it. How long before some defensive coordinator is able to pick it apart?
Boise State - The best in all the land (The "land" being Idaho, and large parts of California, Oregon, and Nevada.)
Agreed as well...
It was not only the offensive playcalling that was vanilla. Defensively we didn’t seem to blitz much, adding to the problem of no QB pressure. The way our d-line has played maybe the coaching staff didn’t think they would need to show that part of the defensive gameplan.
The most concerning of our offensive woes continues to be the red zone. Leaving points on the board will haunt the Broncos at some point this season. Every trip to the red zone should include a heavy dose of the corner fade to Pettis with a side of Bacon on 3rd & goal.
"...east and west is the problem, north and south the solution."
George Iloka...
I wonder if his previous injury is still nagging him. Last year he was EVERYWHERE and it just seems like he’s not in on very many plays. With him and johnson heathy back there it changes everything.
"dont talk about it, be about it"
I have been trying to process all of the events of yesterdays game and how I feel about the results. The bottom line: Winning ugly is better than losing. I am sure there will be much teaching, correction, butt chewing, and other such motivational techniques employed by the coaching staff over the next 10 days as they prepare for the Tulsa Golden Hurricanes. I fully believe that we will see a far different, freshly energized team take the field when that game comes around and I fully anticipate a dominate, convincing victory will be the result. In the end this might turn out to be a blessing in disguise as it will quell the majority of the distraction going on with the media outlets over the last week. Onward and upward. I don’t think it is going to be a good time to be a Tulsa fan.
What?!
Did I miss a BSU game played on Sunday? Man… I really hate having have had to move to Eastern Idaho. They don’t show ANYthing over here.
"You know where i'm from, a little suspicion about one's true identity and motives is considered good manners."
-- Nale
Ok, ok…..I lost a day in there due to my dispair over the events of that game. I have been trying to process the events of “Saturday’s game”. Is that better?
by Mountngrown on Oct 5, 2009 4:09 PM PDT up reply actions 2 recs
One Good Thing
You know what was good about this game?
The fact that we’ve already played and beaten Fresno. Otherwise, all of their fans would have totally used this as ammo and we’d have to hear all about it for the next month or so until we played.
Can’t you hear it now? “We killed Davis 50 to 0! You guys struggled to say the least! Boise Sucks! Overrated! We are going to murder Boise!” (note: typical Fresno misspellings were left out on purpose).
Thank God for small favors.
I have attended every home Boise State football game since 1992.
by JasonHaberman on Oct 5, 2009 2:17 PM PDT reply actions 3 recs
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2012 Boise State Football Schedule
@ Michigan State  |
Fri 08/31 | 6:00 p.m. MT |
| Miami (OH) | Sat 09/15 | 2:00 p.m. MT |
| BYU |
Thu 09/20 | TBA |
| @ New Mexico | Sat 09/29 | TBA |
| @ Southern Miss | Sat 10/06 | TBA |
| Fresno State | Sat 10/13 | 1:30 p.m. MT |
| UNLV | Sat 10/20 | 1:30 p.m. MT |
| @ Wyoming |
Sat 10/27 | 1:30 p.m. MT |
| San Diego State | Sat 11/03 | 8:30 p.m. MT |
| @ Hawaii | Sat 11/10 | 5:00 p.m. MT |
| Colorado St. | Sat 11/17 | 1:30 p.m. MT |
| @ Nevada | Sat 12/1 | TBA |
