Season End Awards

It's over. Boise State football has moved from the dawn of a new season to the dusk of imminent darkness that now surrounds us and signifies the end of the 2010-2011 Broncos. That means no more games on The Blue, Kellen to Pettis or Kellen to Young, and Muscle Hamsters trucking Vandals on their way into the end zone. The good part is that we can bid farewell to images of "missed" field goals sailing at or near the shorter-than-standard Reno goal posts. All in all, Bronco football has upped the ante and, naturally, the expectations for future athletes that will play for one of the best, most exciting teams in the nation.

A 12-1 season is something that teams all around the country would kill to have. Bronco Nation has become accustomed to undefeated teams, but expecting that yearly is unwise and as was seen in some fans after the loss to Nevada, unhealthy. With that said, there is plenty to be excited about in Bronco Nation with new players getting ready to make a name for themselves, the move to a new conference, and of course, the all-important annual quest for a BCS bid.

The proper thing to do is give out (fake) awards to Boise State players who exemplified out-of-this-world heart, drive, competitiveness, will, strength, intensity, and excitement all in the face of sheer adversity and conflict. It is important to recognize these athletes, the outstanding plays they made, and the excitement and joy that they provided for their fans. It's Bronco Chase's way of saying "thank you," even if they have no idea who Bronco Chase is... Without further delay:




Biggest Story
Boise State in the National Championship Game.
This was all the rage and debate for the entire season. It even found it's way to the front page of Sports Illustrated.

Best Coaching Job
Pete Kwiatkowski.
He went from a question mark (after Justin Wilcox left for Tennessee) to one of the most important cogs in the Boise State clock. The defense was ferocious and improved from last year, which is really saying something.

Best Freshman
Ricky Tjong-A-Tjoe.
Hailing from the Netherlands by way of Boise High School, not only does he have the best name on the team, but he contributed a lot as part of the Bronco defensive line that shut down opponents. He was a key back-up and enjoyed sacking quarterbacks.

Best Catch of the Year
Tommy Gallarda vs. Virginia Tech.
The catch in itself was sweet, but that wouldn't have been enough to push it to the top of a list that includes some amazing grabs by Austin "Sticky-Hands" Pettis and Titus Young. The stage on which it was made and what was at stake make it the best catch of the year. Check it out for yourself on YouTube right here.



Break out Star of the Year
Shea McClellin.
He went from a solid contributor on the D-line to a candidate for WAC Defensive Player of the Year. Whether he was sacking the quarterback, running a beautiful interception in for a touchdown, or stealing Ryan Winterswyk's fumble recovery in the end zone, he was amazing this year. It seemed to have come out of nowhere. McClellin's athleticism, heart, and intelligence make him this season's break out star.

Best Play of the Year
Moore to Pettis for the win.
Again, could it have been anything else? The big stage came for Kellen again and he was more than ready. The catch set up the win and set the table for the rest of a dominating year for the Broncos. Tears of joy are still shed when this play is shown on ESPN.

Biggest Hit of the Year
Jamar Taylor sack vs. Oregon State.
A lot of fans do not remember this one, but it was gorgeous. Taylor came in from the blind side and rocked Ryan Katz' world! The fool didn't know what hit him. It was comparable to the Kyle Wilson sack on Andy Dalton in the Fiesta Bowl.

Game of the Year
Labor Day vs. Virginia Tech
For so many reasons this was the game of the year. The stage, the stakes, the atmosphere, and what transpired on the field were a perfect storm of awesomeness. Bronco Chase still likes to watch replays of the masterful 2-minute drill by Kellen Moore.

Special Teams MVP
Cedric Febis
Febis is another import from the Netherlands. A cornerback by trade, he was out there for every special teams snap, knocking people out and making plays. Bronco fans hope to see him doing much of the same next year.

Defensive MVP
Byron Hout
This was a hard one to pick as there were many qualified candidates. The reason why beautiful neck-roll wearing Hout gets the nod is because of what was missed when he went down with a foot fracture. The defense really needed him and his ferocious, man-devouring self for the Nevada game. He will be back, ready to clean house and light up some more chumps.

Offensive MVP
Kellen Moore
This was easier than hardcore fans would have thought. As the orchestrator of a fluid, seamless, high scoring offense, you get a lot of credit. Kellen continued to improve after a stellar sophomore season and found himself sitting in the front row for the Heisman Trophy presentation in December. While he did not win and finished 4th, the fact that he was there was a milestone for the Boise State program and the culmination of an outstanding 3 years at the helm for Kellen. The only thing that didn't go well for Moore this year was having to share the WAC Player of the Year award with Colin Kaepernick, of which the league copped out. How could a Heisman Trophy finalist not win the conference award outright? Anyway, Kellen will be back next year. Opposing defenses, watch out!

That's it! Bronco Chase has handed out imaginary trophies and trinkets to those deserving of much more credit than he can give them. The seniors on this list will be missed. But Boise State fans everywhere are ecstatic for the years of football that will follow. Go Broncos!

Broncos Take Down Hapless Aggies

In what may have appeared like there was only one team on the field, the Boise State Broncos completely dismantled the New Mexico State Aggies at their home stadium, winning 59-0. The game was over after the Aggies' second possession, when Ryan Winterswyk (that's right, a defensive lineman) intercepted a Matt Christian pass. The game was even more lopsided than the final score indicated, if that is even possible. Let's take a look at some stats to start off and go from there.

Yardage:

.........Broncos......Aggies
Rushing...299.......118
Passing...309.......90
Total......608.......208

First Downs:
......Broncos......Aggies
.........26............11

Turnovers:

......Broncos......Aggies
..........0.............3

Average Gain Per Play:

......Broncos......Aggies
........9.7...........3.3

I think the one that stand out to me the most is the average gain per play stat. Boise State was averaging almost a first down on every single play that they ran. You will always win if you can do that. Granted, New Mexico State is one of the worst teams in the nation, but those are still some impressive stats. The Broncos were giving up an average of just over 60 yards per game on the ground, but the Aggies were able to eat up 118. Some of you may ask why. The answer is this; of the 63 total plays they ran, 41 of them were rushing calls. When it takes a team 41 attempts to gain only 118 yards, the defense has done their job. Besides, it's not like they were getting anywhere throwing the ball anyway. When you beat a team so badly, there are not many story lines to follow, get all excited, and blog about, but let's see what my little brain comes up with...

What We Learned:

The Broncos defensive line is amazing. I believe that they are a bunch of man-yeti's out there mauling opposing offensive lines and quarterbacks. It is seriously amazing what Chase Baker, Billy Winn, Ryan Winterswyk, Shea McClellin, and all of their back ups have been able to do thus far this season. They only got one recorded sack last night, but that gives them 12 on the year so far. What they were able to do very well was bottle up the rushing attack and force turnovers. Ricky Tjong-a-tjoe stripped the quarterback twice (Boise State recovered both fumbles) and McClellin was able to bat a pass into the waiting arms of Winterswyk (actually, Swyk swooped in and took the INT from McClellin!). Giving your offense a short field to score with is great a sign of a successful program.

Michael Couglin and Joe Southwick are capable back ups: First of all, Coughlin can run and he scored the first 6 points of the game with his legs. It was great to see him have some success after what could only be considered a disappointing 5 years at Boise State (remember, he won scout player of the year when he was a gray shirt freshman. He was supposed to be the next great Bronco QB). When it was announced that Coughlin and Southwick were going to get a few more snaps per game during crunch time, I was excited to see what the heir-appearant to Kellen Moore could do. Southwick can do a lot with his legs, but when I saw that pass that he zipped to Chris Potter for a 78 yard TD, I almost peed my pants! It was a beautiful sight! Now if Moore goes down injured (please no! It won't happen, it can't!), I feel comfortable with who we have to replace him. Plus we know that Boise State will be set at quarterback for years to come.

The WAC Sports Network Sucks Really Bad: I thought Altitude Sports Network was bad! Listening to that verbal diarrhea spewing from the two commentators' mouths was enough to force me to change the channel (which I did frequently. That or mute the TV). Dick Tomey (the more annoying, less knowledgeable of the pair), I understand you coached at San Jose State and that means you have sub par intelligence and wit, but holy heck you are terrible! I have no idea how half the stuff they were talking about related to football, much less the Broncos or Aggies. Sadly and shockingly, it made me long for the days of KTVB broadcasting the games and Mark Johnson slaughtering the names of every player on the field, as well as screwing up the action on most plays. I would also prefer the muscle hamster guy from CBS CS over that garbage. Seriously, I am not looking forward to next week when they get to disgrace broadcasting again as the Broncos take on Toledo at home. Kill me now...


Coach Pete is a Master at Mental Preparation: The Broncos had made it through the toughest part of their early season schedule unscathed. Now they face a long line of cupcakes and crappy teams before finally getting to play Fresno State and Nevada. How many teams and players in the nation would have taken time off, plays off, or even games off (mentally, of course)? The answer is a lot. But from the beginning of time, Chris Petersen has preached the "one game at a time" attitude and it has never been more appearant than it was last night. Boise State never let up, never quit, never eased-up, and never even thought about doing anything but playing their best. Petersen wouldn't have it any other way. All coaches' attitude, morals, beliefs, and mentality are reflected in their players and how they perform on the field. There are few (if any) better than Coach Pete at instilling an attitude of preparedness in his players. Do not expect the Broncos to slow down at all. It will not happen.


New Mexico State Has a Long Way to Go, but They are Getting There: Coach DeWayne Walker is trying to pound toughness into his players, starting with a decent rushing attack. I have already mentioned that the Aggies gained 118 yards on 41 attempts. It is a long and hard road when the offense that was put onto the field before he got there averaged about 75 passes per game. It takes time to get your own style of players in there and install the offense and defense that you want. Like I said, there is a lot of work to do, but I think Walker is a good coach and the Aggies will be good with him as their leader, eventually.

Areas of Concern:

It gets pretty difficult to find any problems when we played such an overwhelming and complete game. Looking at the stats on si.com here, the Broncos were only 3 of 9 on third down conversions. That is 33%. They can definitely get better at that, although a few of them were towards the end of the game when they were running the ball and not even thinking about passing it. Special teams; they did not play as bad on special teams as they did against Oregon State, but there are some kick off issues that need to be ironed out. It seems that Boise State has not gotten a touch back after their first kick off in any games so far. It's either really short or they don't cover very well and it goes for a good return. There is a lot of work to do there. Penalties; I hate sounding like a broken record, but we had some mistakes that took back some points and gave the Aggies some extra yardage. A Jason Robinson late hit out of bounds added fifteen. I know it was his first game back and he was excited to play, but chill out dude. A facemask by an offensive lineman brought back a sweet touchdown pass from Moore. Again, it's getting better, but the Broncos need to cut down on the yellow flags.

Favorite Play:

It has to be the Shea McClellin batted ball for an interception. McClellin got some air when he went up to swat the Matt Christian pass. It was a very athletic play for which he deserves all the credit. The best part was when Ryan Winterswyk swooped in and stole the interception. It was great. Idahostatesman.com tells us that they are equal now, since McClellin jumped on a fumble in the end zone against Wyoming that Winterswyk had "gifted" him. Anyway, the play was great and showed the versatility and athleticism of the Bronco D-line.

Thoughts and Tidbits:

The touchdown pass from Southwick to Potter was Southwick's first TD pass as a Bronco and Potter's first TD catch as a Bronco. Ricky Tjong-a-tjoe (again, freaking awesome name) is a beast and will be for years to come. Jason Robinson played in his first game since pleading guilty to a misdemeanor battery charge. He was suspended for the first 3 games. Also coming back from suspension was Daron Mackey.

My player NOT to watch was Brandyn Thompson. He didn't do anything during the game. In fact, I don't remember his name being mentioned at all. I guess that means that he did another good job of taking care of the wide receiver he was on and took him out of the game. He did not have any interceptions, which is kind of disappointing, but the season is long and there are a lot of games yet to play. At least I did not get him injured! My player to watch, Boyblue Aoelua, got his name dropped quite a few times. It turns out he was starting as a linebacker and made some tackles. Good job Boyblue!

This game will do nothing to harm the national perception of the Boise State Broncos. They problem is nobody was able to watch it. A 59-0 victory on the road is a good thing, but will it be enough to keep them at number 3 in the polls? Oregon took control of their game against Stanford late and pulled away to win. The battle between two top ten teams was watched by a lot of people and the victory will go far for the Ducks. I don't know if they pass the Broncos this week, but if they keep winning like they are now, which is by scoring a lot of points, then I think it will eventually happen. Like I said, hopefully and probably not this week, but it's just a matter of time, unless Oregon loses, which isn't looking very likely right now. Just as I type this, I look and Oregon has jumped Boise State in the AP poll. The Broncos are now 4th. So I was wrong. I didn't think it would happen this early but it has. Oh well, let's go Broncos!

Photos:

Like always, I get my pictures from idahostatesman.com, mainly because they have some really good ones! Enjoy!

Here is a video on youtube that shows highlights from the game. I tried to embed it in the post but the loser who uploaded it disabled the feature.

Check in tomorrow for my WAC weekend recap. There is a lot to talk about!