Barstool Sports Arizona Bowl: Boise State

George Holani

Boise State Broncos

By Ron Sanzone

After finishing the season 7-5, Mountain West powerhouse Boise State is heading to Tucson.

First-year head coach Andy Avalos played linebacker at Boise State from 2000 to 2004 and served as an assistant coach from 2012 to 2018. He inherited a program that has been a national brand for a decade and a half.

Boise State’s seminal moment in entering the national consciousness of college football came in Arizona. It stunned the powerful Oklahoma Sooners in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl with a Statue of Liberty trick play that is now regarded as one of the most iconic moments in college football.

Avalos brought his squad into its final matchup of the 2021 season, a road game against San Diego State on November 26, in a position to the win the Mountain Division and advance to the conference championship game the following week. Boise State needed to win and have UNLV beat Air Force (Air Force won the game later in the day).

After jumping out to a 16-3 lead in the second quarter, the Broncos seemed to be in command of the game. But San Diego State proceeded to score 24 unanswered points to advance to the Mountain West Championship Game with a 27-16 victory.

The defeat might have been a tough end to the regular season, but there were plenty of high moments that also defined 2021 for the Broncos. Among them were a 27-3 win against Utah State on September 25, a 26-17 win against BYU on October 9, and a 40-14 win against Fresno State on November 6.

Boise State’s offensive was productive throughout 2021, averaging 29.2 points per game. Junior quarterback Hank Bachmeier racked up 3,079 yards in the air throwing for 20 touchdowns. His favorite target was senior wide receiver Khalil Shakir. The First Team All-Mountain West wideout hauled in 77 receptions for 1,177 yards

Redshirt sophomore running back George Holani averaged 4.8 yards per run and led the team in rushing with 569 yards, despite losing three games to injury. He ran behind an offensive line featuring First Team AllMountain West John Ojukwu and second team all-conference Ben Dooley. Sophomore kicker Jonah Dalmas was also named first team all-conference after converting 26 of 28 field goal attempts and hitting 38 of his 39 extrapoint tries.

On the other side of the ball, Second Team All-Mountain West selections Scott Matlock and JL Skinner are standouts on a unit that led the conference and finished 12th nationally in scoring defense by allowing just 19 points per game. Redshirt junior Matlock led the team with seven sacks. A junior, Skinner had a team-best 92 tackles. Ninety-two tackles were a team best. Redshirt junior cornerback Tyric LeBeauf’s three interceptions was a team high.

Season at a Glance Boise State Broncos (7-5)

Sept. 2 @ UCF L 36-31 Sept. 10 vs. UTEP W 54-13 Sept. 18 vs. Oklahoma St. L 21-20 Sept. 25 @ Utah State W 27-3 Oct. 2 vs. Nevada L 41-31 Oct. 9 @ BYU W 26-17 Oct. 16 vs. Air Force L 24-17 Oct. 30 @ CO State W 28-19 Nov. 6 @ Fresno State W 40-14 Nov. 12 vs. Wyoming W 23-13 Nov. 20 vs. New Mexico W 37-0 Nov. 26 @ San Diego St. L 27-16