Hawai’i may
have won the Western Athletic Conference last year but the road to the
conference title goes through San Jose
this year. The Spartans have already
traveled to Honolulu and come away
with a victory. As winners of 15 of
their last 17 home games, the Spartans lie in waiting for Boise State. The Broncos and San Jose State meet
Friday night in an ESPN nationally-televised contest.
San Jose State
served notice on its fellow members of the WAC that the Spartans are going to
be the team to beat this fall when they shut down New
Mexico State last
week 31-14. The tough Spartan defense
held the Aggies to a season-low 280 yards in the road victory.
That
defense is a major reason why San Jose
State sits all alone in first place
in the WAC with a perfect 3-0 record.
The Spartans are ranked in the top 25 in the nation in four categories—interceptions
(4th), pass defense efficiency (7th), rushing defense (11th)
and total defense (13th).
Here is a key statistic to watch:
San Jose State
has held four opponents to under 300 yards of total offense—they have won all
four of those games. If Boise
State can generate more than 300
yards Friday night, their chances go up considerably.
Boise
State is averaging 421.17 yards
this season.
The
Spartan defense hits hard and tries to pry the ball loose from opposing ball
carriers, something the Bronco runners will have to be aware of. Combine that hunger for popping the ball
loose with the 13 interceptions and it’s easy to see why San
Jose State leads
the WAC and is ninth nationally in turnover margin. The defense also has 16 sacks in the past
three games and 25 on the season.
San
Jose State is
looking for its first win over a nationally-ranked opponent since 2000—the
victim that year? #9 TCU, whose
conference is trying to claim they are better than the WAC. TCU again this year has been elevated all the
way to the top 15 despite an embarrassing loss to Oklahoma.
The
Broncos and Spartans meet Friday night—it should be a whale of a game!