A month ago the Boise State football team came down from Idaho and stunned Utah 31-28 at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Since then, however, the Broncos haven't been the same.
They followed up the win over the Utes with a 63-28 thumping at the hands of Louisiana Tech and a 21-13 home loss to North Texas, which was picked for last place in the Big West. Then last week, the Broncos won a lackluster 24-13 contest over Weber State.Utah State is next up on the Broncos' schedule Saturday at 7 p.m. at Bronco Stadium. The Aggies will be trying to bounce back from last week's disappointing 26-14 home loss to Idaho.
The game is crucial to both team's chances of winning the Big West title and earning a trip to the Humanitarian Bowl Dec. 30 at Bronco Stadium. The last time the Aggies came to Bronco Stadium, they lost 35-19 to Cincinnati in the bowl game.
The Broncos figured they might succeed Utah State as the Big West representative in their hometown bowl game, when they were picked to finish second in the league with 22 starters back from last year. They started 3-1, but have struggled ever since for a variety of reasons.
Quarterback Bart Hendricks was injured two weeks ago and replaced by senior Nate Sparks, who started most of last year's games before being replaced by Hendricks. Sparks is known as a better runner than Hendricks, who made his first start a year ago against USU and nearly led an upset of the Aggies in Logan.
Eron Hurley is the top Bronco runner, averaging 91.7 yards per game on 150 carries. Sophomore Shaunard Harts has only carried the ball 57 times, but averages 5.0 yards per carry.
Rodney Smith is the top receiver with 31 catches for 391 yards, while Corey Nelson has 22 catches for 286 yards.
Defensively, linebacker Bryan Johnson is the top tackler with 58 tackles, followed by another linebacker Ty Dalton with 54. Defensive tackle Bobby Setzer leads the team with seven quarterback sacks and six tackles for losses.
One glaring weakness of the Boise State team has been its secondary, which has allowed 18 touchdown passes and come up with only one interception all season.
GAME NOTES: Coach Dave Arslanian announced that freshman Jeff Crosbie will be the starting quarterback Saturday even though senior Riley Jensen is healthy again after suffering a concussion against Washington . . . Also expected back is free safety Johndale Carty, who has missed two straight games with a shoulder injury. . . . Rather than fly, the Aggies were to bus up to Boise Friday afternoon.