Boise State gives Idaho a beating on its way out
Boise State's Dan Paul tried to put the ball over the goal line in the Broncos' win over the Vandals yesterday.
MOSCOW, Idaho » Kellen Moore holds a soft spot for Idaho because the Vandals were the only other Football Bowl Subdivision team to offer the Boise State star a scholarship.
That doesn’t mean he, or his fourth-ranked Broncos, gave the Vandals any breaks last night.
Moore threw two touchdown passes in the first half, Chris Potter broke three tackles on his way to a 76-yard punt return for a score the first time Boise State touched the ball, and the Broncos routed Idaho 52-14.
Boise State coach Chris Petersen always preaches fast starts. But this was a blitz that impressed even him and kept the nation’s longest win streak going at 23 games.
"Certainly when you’re on the road, especially, to get a fast start and settle our guys down and keep the crowd a little bit quiet is very important," Petersen said.
While Potter was the kick start for the rout, Moore was also at the center of the Vandals’ misery.
The junior threw a 58-yard touchdown strike to Titus Young late in the first quarter to give Boise State (9-0, 5-0 WAC) a 28-0 lead and added a 17-yard TD pass to running back Jeremy Avery in the final minute of the first half to make it 38-0 at halftime.
By then, a 12th straight win over the Vandals was a given. About the only moment that didn’t go perfectly for the Broncos in the first half was Moore’s throw to Austin Pettis that bounced from the receiver’s hands as he hit the end zone turf while Moore had his hands in the air, ready to celebrate.
"Every game presents different challenges, different things take place and we were able to take advantage of some short fields, score points quickly," Moore said.
When these teams might play again remains a question. Boise State’s victory put an emphatic lid on the 40th and potentially final meeting between the in-state rivals.
The future between the Vandals (4-6, 1-4) and Broncos is in doubt because of the Broncos’ pending move to the Mountain West Conference and their desire not to make the trip every other year to Moscow. Boise State president Bob Kustra, who did not attend yesterday’s game, only fueled the disconnect between the schools by calling the culture in Moscow "nasty" and "inebriated" last summer.
Many of the fans last night bailed at halftime.
The nastiness? That came from the Broncos, who started a string of three straight Friday night games on national television with complete domination.
After being off-limits to reporters all week, Broncos players said they’ll miss seeing the Vandals.
"I’ve got to be a little bit sympathetic — they were my only other offer," Moore said. "Down the road I’m sure they’ll make arrangements and figure it out. I’ve always enjoyed playing them."
No. 4 BOISE ST. 52, IDAHO 14
| Boise St. | 28 | 10 | 14 | 0 | — | 52 |
| Idaho | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | — | 14 |
Boi–C.Potter 76 punt return (Brotzman kick).
Boi–Martin 8 run (Brotzman kick).
Boi–Avery 1 run (Brotzman kick).
Boi–Young 58 pass from Ke.Moore (Brotzman kick).
Boi–FG Brotzman 41.
Boi–Avery 17 pass from Ke.Moore (Brotzman kick).
Boi–Martin 39 run (Brotzman kick).
Id–Greenwood 17 pass from Enderle (Farquhar kick).
Boi–Linehan 21 pass from Ke.Moore (Brotzman kick).
Id–Lavarias recovered fumble in end zone (Farquhar kick).
A–16,453.
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING–Boise St., Martin 16-117, Hodge 8-52, Avery 5-25, Coughlin 2-10, C.Potter 1-5, Kaiserman 1-2, Ke.Moore 1-1, Southwick 2-(minus 13). Idaho, Bailey 7-92, McCarty 10-32, Veltung 1-5, Team 1-0, Reader 1-(minus 5), Enderle 5-(minus 23).
PASSING–Boise St., Ke.Moore 19-26-0-216, Southwick 3-4-0-9, Coughlin 0-2-0-0, Team 0-1-0-0. Idaho, Enderle 16-34-2-118, Reader 12-20-1-97.
RECEIVING–Boise St., Young 5-75, Avery 3-34, Hiwat 3-24, Pettis 2-31, Efaw 2-13, Martin 2-3, Linehan 1-21, Burroughs 1-10, Shoemaker 1-9, D.Paul 1-5, Burks 1-0. Idaho, Greenwood 6-50, McCarty 5-34, LaGrone 3-33, P.Davis 3-18, Bailey 3-17, A.Johnson 2-26, Roberson 2-19, Vital 2-9, Homme 1-6, Weaver 1-3.
