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The No. 7 Boise State Broncos finished their inaugural campaign in the Mountain West with an 11-1 regular season record, including a 6-1 mark in the Conference. Boise State will face Arizona State in the MAACO Bowl Las Vegas on Thursday, Dec. 22 at 5 p.m. on ESPN. The Sun Devils posted an over record of 6-6 this year and went 4-5 in the Pac-12.
Did you know?
Boise State boasts a three-game win streak against teams from the Pac-12, defeating a ranked Oregon squad in both 2008 (37-32) and 2009 (19-8), and defeating No. 24 Oregon State in 2010 (37-24).
The Series - Arizona State leads 1-0
The Sun Devils, then ranked No. 5 in the country, beat the Broncos 56-7 in Tempe, Ariz., on Oct. 5, 1996.
Difference Makers (Boise State - 11-1 Overall, 6-1 MW)
Offense: Senior Kellen Moore, the MW Offensive Player of the Year and the winningest quarterback in NCCA history (49), is the first player in the history of the NCAA to record four seasons with both 3,000 yards of total offense and 3,000 passing yards. Moore has thrown multiple touchdown passes in every game the last two seasons, a streak of 25-consecutive games - the longest active streak in the country. He has also thrown multiple touchdowns in 45 of 52 career games. He currently ranks as the nation's active career leader in passing efficiency (169.24), completion percentage (69.64) and is second in passing yards (14,374), passing touchdowns (140) and completions (1,131).
Defense: Senior defensive end Shea McClellin's 19.5 career sacks are tied for 17th among the nation's active career leaders. The total ranks seventh all-time on Boise State's career list. McClellin has two of the Broncos' seven non-offensive touchdowns over the course of the past two seasons.
Special Teams: Junior wide receiver Mitch Burroughs ranks first in the MW and seventh in the nation with an average of 13.28 yards per punt return.
Quote of Note
"Everybody is just very tired of the BCS. I think that's the bottom line. Everybody is frustrated. Everybody doesn't really know what to do anymore. It doesn't make sense to anybody. I don't think anybody is happy anywhere." --- Boise State coach Chris Petersen, after the Broncos were snubbed for a spot in a BCS bowl for the fourth time in eight years
Difference Makers (Arizona State - 6-6 Overall, 4-5 Pac-12)
Offense: Sun Devil RB Cameron Marshall has posted 29 career rushing touchdowns, making him one of only 11 Arizona State players all time to score at least 20 touchdowns on the ground. The 29 TDs put him in fourth place all-time in ASU history. Marshall, who rushed for 1,038 yards this season, is the first Sun Devil to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark since Ryan Torain (1,229) in 2006.
Defense: Senior safety Clint Floyd, a second-team all-Pac-12 selection, led the Sun Devils in total takeaways, forcing two fumbles and intercepting three passes. Floyd is also fourth on the team in total tackles with 62.
Special Teams: As if ending the season on a four-game skid weren't enough, the Sun Devils are expected to be without one of their top players in return specialist Jamal Miles, a second-team all-Pac-12 selection who did not make the trip because of personal reasons. Miles had 1,020 return yards for ASU during the regular season, returning two kickoffs and one punt for touchdowns.
Quote of Note
"It hurts a lot, just because we as a team worked so hard this off-season. I mean, there was a group of guys who didn't even go home for Christmas (last year) to stay here, to make sure that this stuff didn't happen ever again in this program, and to have that happen, it hurts." --- Quarterback Brock Osweiler on the team starting 6-2 before losing its final four games.
Mick McGrane has covered the Mountain West since the league's inception in 1999. He spent 12 years at the San Diego Union-Tribune, where he served as the beat writer for San Diego State football and men's basketball. He currently represents the MW as a member of the Football Writers Association of America All-America Committee and is a member of the U.S. Basketball Writers Association. McGrane serves as senior writer to the Mountain West, providing readers with exclusive, in-depth information about the Conference by highlighting its 10 member institutions and contributing feature stories on student-athletes that participate in the league's 18 sponsored sports.
Mark Knudson is a Colorado State journalism school graduate and a 12-year veteran of professional baseball. During his playing career, Mark pitched for three major league teams, including the Colorado Rockies, where he was the first Colorado native to play for the hometown team. He recorded wins over three of the four legendary pitchers who make up the 4,000 strikeout club: Nolan Ryan, Randy Johnson and Roger Clemens. His win over Ryan came for the Milwaukee Brewers on Opening Day in 1991.
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