Boise State scrimmages tonight; celebrate with Dustin Lapray's inspiring foreword

The first and only public Boise State scrimmage of the fall takes place tonight at 7:00 p.m. MT at Bronco Stadium. It is free to attend and free to draw wild speculation from. I plan on doing both.

In honor of the release of Bronco football news into the wild of public opinion, I thought it would be appropriate to celebrate with the words of Boise State's last, great reporter of detail, Dustin Lapray. Here is his foreword from the Bronco Football Almanac - a book I wrote and a book that you can still buy if you'd like. Enjoy.

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First came a child with something rudimentary clenched in his fist: a rock or branch, or something of his own making. For sake of competition, to prove dominance, that child challenged another to a game. Games evolved, players chose teams, and men became coaches. Brutal games, like football, gained popularity. Crowds formed to cheer in dedicated unions. Colors and Alma Maters, with blue boasts and beers, the game grew bigger.

Be glad, good Broncos. Your future is bright under God. Your Nation is Strong. And still, you are not vindicated. Two schools have a better all-time winning record than Boise State's 0.720: Michigan 0.736 and Notre Dame 0.731. You still feel slighted, as if we are far from the mountaintop. Keep climbing ye stately steeds!

I own season tickets, and I reside one block from campus. Bronco Stadium towers in my skyline. Stueckle reflects the growth beneath the Boise sun. I saw the hole dug to anchor the new North End Zone, saw the river seep in under the table. The school is building two new fields: Dona Larsen Park and the new Student Recreation field on Lincoln and Belmont. Dona Larsen is for track and field and high school football. The second field is for the lacrosse and soccer clubs and many other student groups, intramural participants, and Frisbee friends campus wide.

This is a matter of faith. It is your duty to heap praise. I remember that game against Oregon, when the decibel reached heaven with ease. Your Blue God demands equal bombast on all six occasions. Give it to him, or don't dare call yourself a citizen of the nation.

Make sure you get a fresh roster. You need to get to know some sparkling new names. The 2012 Boise State Broncos play six home games. Here's the lineup: Miami (Ohio), Brigham Young, Fresno State, UNLV, San Diego State, and Colorado State. Be there, every blessed seat. Be there, and beat your chests. Never cede your position. Don't give an inch.

If you relinquish one inch to the opponent, he will never be satisfied with one inch. He will fight for another, and another. That is the nature of the game. Two teams, engaged in contest, wrought with physical desire to be named victor. Teams, and their loyal fanatics, contaminated by such rabid desires entwine their fates. This symbiotic connection cannot waver, especially in hard times. If it does, if the horde turns its back against the squad, the fissure could cause irreparable damage.

Rather, this Idaho country poet begs you stand and face the season ahead, a season that may sadly be blemished by moments of loss, hardship and defeat. But, if our collateral courage runs its course, we will ultimately discover victory, glory, and gain.

We pray for faith and brotherhood, passion and prestige, domination and deliverance. Dear God, grant us strength in blue rags and orange banners. Remind us why children choose to play the game, and why we chose to cheer ... why we win.

(ed's note: Go Broncos!)