Boise State faces off tonight against its top rival in the
Western Athletic Conference, Fresno State in a nationally-televised WAC showdown
beginning at 7 p.m. Mountain time.
Eight
starters return on the
Fresno
State
defense including end
Chris Carter, linebacker Ben Jacobs and safety Moses Harris.
New
defensive line coach Will Plemons has instilled aggressive play into the unit.
Eight of the nine linemen have experience and six have started games in
their career. Carter had 88 tackles
to lead the group last fall. Sophomore
Kenny Borg will also start at end. Borg
had 2.5 sacks as a true freshman in 2007 and has gained 25 pounds since then.
Borg has a great motor and comes off the ball well.
Sophomores Chase McEntee (6-3, 285) and Logan Harrell (6-2, 275) will
start in the middle of the “Dawg” defense.
The
entire Bulldog linebacking unit returns intact.
Jacobs (6-5, 250, Jr.) had 113 tackles last season and has started every
game since being called upon against #23
Texas
A & M his freshman
year. Jacobs is a hard-hitter that
reads offenses and swarms to the ball. Kyle Knox is explosive and requires constant attention from opposing offenses.
Knox had eight tackles for losses last season.
Nico Herron also has great playmaking ability.
Harris
is in his fourth year as a fixture in the
Fresno
secondary.
Lorne Bell is his safety mate, but a knee injury has jeopardized his
status. Freshman Phillip Thomas is
Bell
’s backup, but Hill
believes Thomas is the best safety he’s ever coached.
The Bulldog coaches have high hopes for cornerback A.J. Jefferson, who had 31
tackles and four pass deflections last season.
Desia Dunn and Damion Owens also have starting experience.
Offensively,
Fresno
State
comes into the game as the
top scoring team in the WAC, averaging 41 points per game.
Fresno
ranks right behind
Hawai’i
in total offense with a
whopping 489.5 yards per game.
Fresno
State
is averaging 244.5 yards a
game on the ground, which beats
Boise
State
’s production by over 100
yards per game. What has Bulldog
fans excited is the fact that their passing (245 yards per game) is less than 10
yards a game behind mighty Kellen Moore of
Boise
State
.
The
Bulldogs have four linemen with starting experience and all of their skill
players return with the exception of quarterback Tom Brandstater.
Ryan Matthews, Lonyae Miller and Anthony Harding combined for over 2,000
yards and 19 touchdowns last season and form a potent running game.
Matthews
already ranks 21st in the nation with 213 yards and a touchdown and
will be by far the best running back the Broncos have faced this season.
Miller has good speed and ability to hit a hole while Harding is a
bruising back who blocks well and can play slot receiver as well.
All shifty Robbie Rouse (5-7, 185) has done is carry 16 times for 121
yards (7.6 avg.) and a touchdown as a true freshman.
Rouse was ninth in the state of
California
high school ranks in
rushing last season.
The
Bulldogs feature speed and experience at the receiver spots with three seniors
who have led the team in receiving the last three years.
Seyi Ajirotutu (6-4, 210) topped the Bulldogs last fall with 47
receptions for 795 yards (16.9 average) and five touchdowns.
Ajirotutu is a deep threat but also is dangerous with his height and the
ability to go up and get the ball.
Fresno
likes to use him over the
middle. Ajirotutu is off to a good
start--nine receptions for 220 yards and two touchdowns this season, making some
tough catches vs.
Wisconsin
last week.
Marlon Moore (6-0, 190) led the team in receiving in 2007 (48 for 694 and
five TD’s) but missed five games last year with injuries, when he had 20
catches for 233 yards.
Moore
did set a career-high
against
Boise
State
last season with nine
catches.
Chastin West (6-1, 215), meanwhile, led
Fresno
State
with 33 catches for 365
yards and three touchdowns in ’06. West
has also battled back from injuries and is a big, fast receiver that will also
return punts (he has two for touchdowns in his career.)
Devon Wylie (5-9, 170, Jr.) stepped in last year for the Bulldogs and
performed well (21-271 and two touchdowns).
Wylie set a school record of 4.25 in the 40 during the summer.
The
Fresno
State
receivers got open in the
Wisconsin
secondary often, and deep
pass plays stretched the Badger defense.
Junior
quarterback Ryan Colburn (6-3, 220) is intelligent, poised and works hard in the
weight room. Colburn is 27-45 (60%) for
450 yards and five scores in the young season but has four interceptions.
Colburn’s passing efficiency (162.9) is right behind
Moore
’s (170.1) for third in the WAC.
All-Western
Athletic Conference guard Andrew Jackson returns (6-5, 295, Jr.), along with
center Joe Bernardi (6-2, 280, Jr.) and Devan Cunningham (6-6, 350, Jr.), who
moves from guard to right tackle. Kenny Wiggins (6-7, 310) has emerged as the force at right tackle, however.
Bryce Harris (6-6, 295, So.) gets the nod at left tackle and freshman
Matt Hunt (6-2, 315) has earned the starting job at left guard.
The Bulldogs ranked in the top 25 in the country last year for the fewest
sacks allowed and will have to provide protection for Colburn if they are to
avoid the heavy rush of the Broncos.
As
improved as
Fresno
State
is on both sides of the
ball, they excel at special teams.
Jefferson
is the NCAA active leader in kickoff return average at just
under 30 yards per return. Rashad Evans, West and Moore all averaged more than 13 yards per punt return.
Fresno
State
leads the nation with the
most blocks since 2002 and they’ll be looking for every opportunity.
Junior
Robert Malone was second in the WAC and ranked in the top 20 in the country with
a 42.8 punting average. Malone had
12 punts of over 50 yards last year. Sophomore
Kevin Goessling led the conference in field goals and drilled a game-winning
58-yard field goal against
Utah
State last year.
Fresno State presents a formidable challenge for Boise State and one of their
biggest road tests of the year. The
Bulldogs are quick, talented and hungry. It
will take nothing less than the Broncos’ best effort to pull off the win in Fresno.