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Senior Day Tribute: #13 Brandyn Thompson

OBNUG is honoring each Boise State senior this week with a favorite memory. Got one to share? Sign up.

Okay, I admit I'm a little biased when it comes to the Sacramento-area athletes playing for the Broncos. The River City has always been underrated when compared to the other blue-chip recruiting areas in California. While the Sac-Joaquin section is earning more respect these days, these recruits bring a blue-collar mentality with them when they arrive in Boise, and it serves them well.  Where would we be during this Golden Era of Bronco football without the likes Ryan Dinwiddie (Elk Grove HS), David Mikell (Natomas HS), Lawrence Bady (Will C. Wood HS & Sacramento CC), Mike T. Williams (Natomas HS), and the great one, Chris Petersen (Yuba City HS & UC Davis)? 

Add Brandyn Thompson (Franklin HS) to this list .

Thompson played as a true freshman in 2007, mainly on special teams and as a back-up DB.  The 5-10 177 pound corner earned a starting position his sophomore year, something he never relinquished.  Often playing in the shadow of teammate and future first round NFL pick Kyle Wilson, Thompson saw plenty of action as teams often attacked his side of the field.  He currently has 12 career interceptions, good for 9th all time at Boise State.  Incredibly, three of those INTs came in the 2008 Hawaii game, including a highlight reel over-the-shoulder-grab while keeping both feet inbounds.   See :29, :43, 2:14 in the video below for the interceptions.

The four-year letter winner will forever be remembered by Bronco Nation for his play during the 2010 Fiesta Bowl.  Number 13's efforts that day earned him the game's Defensive MVP honors.  His 51-yard interception return off of TCU QB Andy Dalton in the first quarter, the only pick-6 of Thompson's career, set the tone for an epic defensive battle eventually won by the Broncos.  Thompson's touchdown, his greatest play as a Bronco, proved decisive. He finished the game with seven tackles and two interceptions.  While he also gave up TCU's only touchdown, when asked on national television afterward about his play, Thompson said, "They tell you to have a short memory.  I'm gonna lose just a little sleep over giving up that touchdown, but I'll take the win any day of the week."  The quote exemplifies the team-over-self mentality of Bronco football.

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Entering his senior year, a lot was expected of Thompson (HT: Kevan Lee).  He appeared on the regional Sports Illustrated cover of the 2010 CFB preview issue with Ryan Winterswyk and Jeron Johnson, something proudly noted by his hometown newspaper, the Elk Grove Citizen.  Thompson has played well in a position that demands so much, not only physically but mentally.  He joins the ranks of Boise's long line of excellent defensive backs.

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From all of us in Bronco Nation, thank you, Brandyn, for representing the Blue and Orange so well. 

This content was not created by OBNUG and therefore may not meet our standards. On the contrary, it probably exceeds them.

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