Boise State survived a wild one on The Blue, outlasting Texas State 46-45 in a Halloween thriller that gave the Broncos their 300th win at the FBS level.
What looked like a comfortable night for Boise State turned into a full-on scramble. The Broncos built a 28-3 lead, then watched the Bobcats rip off 36 unanswered points midway through the fourth quarter before finding just enough late to escape with the win. Injuries piled up along the way, too, leaving Boise State without starting quarterback Maddux Madsen and tight end Matt Wagner.
Head coach Spencer Danielson didn’t sugarcoat the collapse.
“In the third quarter, it wasn’t like one side of the ball wasn’t executing,” head coach Spencer Danielson said. “We weren’t executing whatsoever as a team and we were bleeding out. And that’s on me to figure out how that happened and make sure we find better answers to fix it next time.”
Boise State set the tone early after winning the coin toss and deferring to the second half. Texas State went three-and-out on the opening possession, and when Cam Bates muffed the punt, offensive lineman Sully Burns jumped on it to keep the Broncos on offense.
From there, Madsen got Boise State rolling with a 6-yard rushing touchdown to finish a 13-play, 83-yard drive and make it 7-0. Dylan Riley followed in the second quarter with a 5-yard scoring run, pushing the lead to 14-0 and later moving past 1,000 rushing yards on the season.
After Jacob Bonilla hit a 31-yard field goal for Texas State, Boise State answered again. Madsen capped an 8-play, 75-yard march with a 1-yard touchdown run for a 21-3 advantage, then found Rasean Jones for a 12-yard touchdown pass to stretch it to 28-3.
“I’m not a big believer in momentum. I’m a big believer in executing. I don’t care how many points they scored unanswered, go out there and execute,” defensive back Jaden Mickey said.
Then the game flipped.
Tymere Jackson sacked Madsen to force a punt, and Texas State turned that into a 67-yard touchdown catch by Chris Dawn Jr. A fumble recovery helped set up a 3-yard Ty Stamey receiving touchdown, and Beau Sparks added the two-point conversion. Brad Jackson then scored on a 35-yard run, and after Boise State stalled again, Sparks hauled in a 44-yard touchdown to put Texas State ahead 32-28.
The Bobcats weren’t done. Jayden Bradley picked off Madsen, ending his season-long streak without an interception, and Texas State pushed the margin to 39-28.
“Hats off to the leadership in that locker room because when everything was going sideways, and we had some hard conversations on the sideline, they never flinched,” Danielson said.
Boise State needed a spark, and it got one when Madsen, before leaving with a game-ending injury, completed a 22-yard pass to Akeem Wright. Backup quarterback Max Cutforth then stepped in and immediately gave the offense life, hitting Jones for a 9-yard touchdown. The Broncos missed the two-point try, but the comeback was on at 39-34.
“Playing last year, I got a lot of experience,” Cutforth said. “I felt comfortable, the game slows down and I took big steps in learning how to be a backup, so I’m always ready to go.”
The defense helped set up the next swing when Mana Tuioti intercepted a pass at the Texas State 11-yard line. Cutforth turned that into another touchdown, connecting with Jones on a toe-tapping 6-yard score to put Boise State back in front 40-39.
Texas State answered almost immediately. On the second play of the drive, Brad Jackson hit Zechariah Sample for a 72-yard touchdown, putting the Bobcats ahead 45-40.
Boise State had one last response. Cutforth led a one-minute, 6-play drive and finished it with an 18-yard diving touchdown pass to Wright, flipping the lead back to the Broncos at 46-45.
“It’s not over till it’s over, right? Eight minutes is a long time and we saw that,” Cutforth said.
“There was plenty of time, that’s what we said. One play at a time, make your play, win your one on one, then it works out.”
Kickoff is set for at 4 p.m.
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Boise State Survived A Fourth Quarter Broncos Fans Wont Believe
Boise State spent most of the night looking like it had the game under control against Texas State, carrying a 28-3 halftime lead and appearing headed for a comfortable finish. Instead, the fourth quarter turned into a wild, back-and-forth shootout, with the Broncos suddenly trailing 32-28 early in the period before the game kept swinging from one side to the other.
The finish only added to the drama for Boise State, which had to navigate the closing stretch without quarterback Maddux Madsen after he was hurt late. Max Cutforth stepped in and helped steady the offense as the Broncos kept answering in a final quarter that felt anything but routine, before Boise State finally escaped with a 46-45 win. [Read more 🡒]
Boise State Escaped Disaster But Now Faces A Huge QB Question
Boise State got the kind of win that can make a season feel both exhilarating and unsettling at the same time, surviving Texas State 46-45 in a Pac-12 game at Albertsons Stadium. The Broncos also spent halftime honoring one of their most iconic quarterbacks, unveiling a bronze statue of Kellen Moore, a reminder of the standard Boise State has long tried to match at the position.
The celebration was tempered by what happened on the field, where the Broncos had to rally through a second-half surge and lean on backup quarterback Max Cutforth to finish the job. With the offense suddenly in a different hands, Boise State is now left sorting through the immediate aftermath of a game it escaped, but one that may have changed the conversation around the most important spot on the roster. [Read more 🡒]
Boise State Escaped One Disaster But A Bigger Concern Just Emerged
Boise State spent Saturday night surviving one crisis after another, and somehow still walked away with a 46-45 win over Texas State after staring at a 36-point deficit. The Broncos also had to navigate the loss of starting quarterback Maddux Madsen to a knee injury, a setback that could have easily buried a team already reeling on the scoreboard.
Backup Max Cutforth steadied the offense in the fourth quarter and helped fuel the rally, giving Boise State a much-needed escape hatch when the game seemed lost. But the bigger concern now is Madsens status, and head coach Spencer Danielson said the injury is still being evaluated while indicating the starter is expected to miss the next game, leaving the Broncos to sort out the fallout from a wild finish. [Read more 🡒]