Derek Carr and Boise State may meet again soon. (Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports)
Fresno State and Boise State remained on track for a rematch in the inaugural Mountain West championship game on Dec. 7 with convincing victories on Saturday night, but it was a costly one for the Broncos.
Starting quarterback Joe Southwick broke his right ankle when he was dragged down from behind on Boise State’s first offensive play from scrimmage during a 34-17 victory over Nevada. Coach Chris Petersen said there was no timetable for his return and left the door open that Southwick could be back at the end of the season.
The Broncos may not need him. Backup quarterback Grant Hedrick was outstanding, completing 18-of-21 passes for 150 yards and also rushing for 115 yards and two touchdowns while helping rally the Broncos from a 17-7 halftime deficit.
“He gave us confidence that we can still do some really good things,” Petersen told the Idaho Statesman.
The Broncos (5-2, 3-1) are in a tie for first place in the Mountain Division with Utah State (4-4, 3-1), whom they defeated earlier and own the head-to-head tiebreaker against, and a half-game ahead of Wyoming (4-3, 2-1), which was stunned by Colorado State, 52-22, and appears to have major defensive problems. Boise State plays at Wyoming on Nov. 16.
Fresno State (6-0, 3-0) knocked UNLV (4-3, 2-1) out of a share of first place in the West Division with a convincing 38-14 victory. The Bulldogs travel to the only other undefeated team in the division, San Diego State (3-3, 2-0), on Saturday.
AIR FORCE (1-6, 0-5)
Game: Idle
Next: vs. Notre Dame, Oct. 26
BOISE STATE (5-2, 3-1)
Game: Boise State 34, Nevada 17. Jay Ajayi rushed for a career-high 222 yards on 24 carries and scored three touchdowns and backup quarterback Grant Hedrick threw for 150 yards and ran for 115 more as the Broncos rallied a 17-7 halftime deficit to win going away. Boise State finished with 557 total yards, including 407 rushing.
Takeaway: The bad news is that starting quarterback Joe Southwick broke his right ankle after getting dragged down from behind on a scramble on the first play from scrimmage and is likely done for the season. But Hedrick was impressive off the bench, completing 10-of-11 passes in the second half and becoming the first Broncos QB to rush for 100 yards in a game since Jared Zabransky in 2004.
Next: at BYU, Oct. 25
COLORADO STATE (3-4, 1-1)
Game: Colorado State 52, Wyoming 22. Sophomore Kapri Bibbs rushed for a career-high 201 yards and scored three touchdowns as the Rams snapped a four-game losing streak to the Cowboys in the annual Battle for the Bronze Boot. CSU dominated from the start, taking a 21-0 lead and increasing it to 31-7 in the third quarter before cruising home.
Takeaway: A huge confidence-boosting win for second-year head coach Jim McElwain’s Rams who bounced back from a disappointing 34-27 home loss to San Jose State to win the Border War. CSU’s pass defense, which yielded 431 passing yards and three touchdowns to David Fales a week earlier, was much improved, limiting Brett Smith and the Cowboys to 246 yards and a touchdown through the air while also intercepting two passes.
Next: at Hawaii, Oct. 26
FRESNO STATE (6-0, 3-0)
Game: Fresno State 38, UNLV 14. It was a record night for both quarterback Derek Carr, who threw for 412 yards, and wide receiver Davante Adams, who had eight catches for 221 yards and four touchdowns, which tied the school single-game record for TD catches in a game. Carr, who completed 33-of-46 passes, broke Paul Pinegar’s school career records for completions (849) and touchdowns (85) and also surpassed the 10,000 career passing yards mark.
Takeaway: The unbeaten Bulldogs remain on course for the inaugural Mountain West championship game with a dominating performance of the Rebels. Fresno State finished with 641 total yards and 33 first downs and converted 11-of-16 third down tries.
Next: at San Diego State, Oct. 26
HAWAII (0-6, 0-4)
Game: Idle
Next: vs. Colorado State, Oct. 26
NEVADA (3-4, 2-2
Game: Boise State 34, Nevada 17. The Wolf Pack wasn’t half bad against the Broncos, rolling up 246 yards en route to a 17-7 halftime lead. But Boise State, behind backup quarterback Grant Hedrick, outscored Nevada, 27-0, in the second half to win for the 12th time in the last 13 meetings between the two schools.
Takeaway: The third quarter continues to be a nightmare for Nevada. The Wolf Pack was outscored 20-0 in the third quarter by Boise State and has now been outscored, 106-33, in the third quarter this season. QB Cody Fajardo completed 22-of-29 passes for 208 yards but was sacked six times.
Next: vs. UNLV, Oct. 26
NEW MEXICO (2-5, 0-3)
Game: Utah State 45, New Mexico 10. The Lobos, who came into the game ranked No. 2 in the nation in rushing with an average of 349 yards per game, were stymied by what many believe is the Mountain West’s top defense and finished with just 300 total yards, 160 on the ground. Utah State led 38-3 early in the third quarter and finished with 492 yards in total offense.
Takeaway: It’s going to be an uphill climb to bowl eligibility for Bob Davie’s squad which plays three of its final five games on the road against San Diego State, Fresno State and Boise State.
Next: at San Diego State, Nov. 2
SAN DIEGO STATE (3-3, 2-0)
Game: Idle
Next: vs. Fresno State, Oct. 26
SAN JOSE STATE (3-3, 2-1)
Game: Idle
Next: vs. Wyoming, Oct. 26
UNLV (4-3, 2-1)
Game: Fresno State 38, UNLV 14. The Rebels’ four-game winning streak, the teams’ longest since 2000, came to an end as expected at Fresno State. Caleb Herring was solid again completing 27-of-42 passes for 161 yards and a touchdown and senior Tim Cornett ran for 49 yards to break the school career rushing mark with 3,158 yards before leaving in the third quarter with a right knee injury.
Takeaway: The Rebels hung with the Bulldogs for a half, trailing just 28-14 at halftime, but couldn’t find a way to slow down Carr and Adams, who hooked up for a 75-yard touchdown on the first offensive play of the game. All eyes will be on Cornett, who hopped off the field with what looked like a bad knee injury and didn’t return.
Next: at Nevada, Oct. 26
UTAH STATE (4-4, 3-1)
Game: Utah State 45, New Mexico 10. True freshman Darell Garretson, making his first college start, completed 14-of-22 passes for 141 yards and a touchdown while Joey DeMartino ran for a career-high 144 yards and scored four touchdowns in the rout of the host Lobos.
Takeaway: A huge bounce-back win for the Aggies who remain in a three-way tie for first place in the Mountain Division and need to just split their final four games, three of which are at home, to become bowl eligible. That would be quite an accomplishment after the loss of standout QB Chuckie Keeton to a season-ending knee injury.
Next: vs. Hawaii, Nov. 2
WYOMING (4-3, 2-1)
Game: Colorado State 52, Wyoming 22. The Cowboys fell out of sole possession of first place in the Mountain Division with the upset loss to the visiting Rams. Wyoming allowed a season-high 52 points and suffered its worst loss to the Rams since 1925.
Takeaway: Quarterback Brett Smith surprisingly struggled against one of the nation’s worst pass defenses coming in, throwing two interceptions in a game for the first time in 15 games. Both miscues were converted into TDs by the Rams. Wyoming’s defense gave up 509 yards, including 290 on the ground.
Next: at San Jose State, Oct. 26
