Boise State is about to open a new era in the revived Pac-12, and the Broncos will carry a pretty stubborn bit of history with them: since moving into a new conference in 1970, they have never won the regular-season title in their first year.
That doesn’t mean the debut seasons have all gone badly. Some were strong, some were messy, and one featured a team good enough to win 12 games and still miss the league crown. Here’s how Boise State has handled each first crack at a new conference.
The Broncos’ first step came in the Big Sky in 1970, when they had just become a four-year college two years earlier under Tony Knap. Boise State had spent its first two seasons as an NAIA independent before joining its first NCAA conference.
That team opened 4-0 and got a conference-opening win at Montana State. The streak ended with a 27-14 loss at Long Beach State, a game that counted in the conference standings even though Long Beach was in the Pacific Coast Athletic Association.
Boise State also beat College of Idaho 41-7 in another game that counted toward the league record, since the move to the NCAA happened so quickly that Big Sky teams did not have room to fit the Broncos into their schedules. Boise State finished 2-2 in conference play and tied for third at 8-3 overall.
Defensive tackle Faddie Tillman later became a 10th-round pick of the Atlanta Falcons in the 1971 NFL Draft and played one NFL game for the New Orleans Saints in 1972.
The Big West debut in 1996 was a rougher story. Boise State went 1-4 in the league and 2-10 overall under Pokey Allen and interim coach Tom Mason, who took over while Allen underwent surgery for aggressive muscle cancer, rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS), before the season.
The Broncos split their first two games, losing 42-21 to Central Michigan and then beating Portland State 33-22, before dropping eight straight. Allen returned for the final two games, and Boise State beat New Mexico State 33-32 before closing with a 64-19 loss to Idaho.
Allen’s condition worsened after the season, and he died in December 1996. On the field, quarterback Tony Hilde threw for 2,473 yards and 21 touchdowns with 17 interceptions.
Ryan Ikebe led the receivers with 959 yards and nine touchdowns, while Reggie Etheridge paced the run game with 811 yards and five scores.
Boise State’s first season in the Western Athletic Conference came in 2001, and this one looked more like a contender. Dan Hawkins’ team went 6-2 in league play and 8-4 overall, but still finished second behind Louisiana Tech.
The Broncos opened 0-2 with a 32-13 loss at No. 21 South Carolina and a 41-20 home loss to Washington State, which would be their last loss on The Blue for more than a decade until the 36-35 defeat to TCU in 2011.
The signature win came against No. 8 Fresno State, a 35-30 upset on ESPN with Ryan Dinwiddie at quarterback, a game that arguably helped ignite the now 25-year rivalry.
Boise State then lost 48-42 at Louisiana Tech, which sealed the title race for the Bulldogs. The Broncos did not get a bowl bid because the WAC had more bowl-eligible teams than bowl tie-ins.
Dinwiddie finished with 3,043 passing yards and 29 touchdowns. Jay Swillie had 48 catches, but Jeb Putzier led the team with 824 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns.
Meridian native Brock Forsey ran for 1,207 yards and 13 touchdowns.
Then came the Mountain West in 2011, and Boise State was loaded. Chris Petersen’s team, led by senior quarterback and Heisman Trophy candidate Kellen Moore, started the year ranked No. 5 and climbed to No. 4 after an 8-0 start.
That run included a 35-21 win over No. 19 Georgia in Atlanta.
Still, the conference title slipped away on Nov. 12, when TCU came to Boise and escaped with a 36-35 win. Boise State freshman kicker Dan Goodale missed the potential winning 39-yard field goal wide right as time expired, handing the Broncos their first loss on The Blue in over a decade.
TCU finished 7-0 in the league and 11-2 overall. Boise State won its final four games, capped by a 56-24 win over Arizona State in the Maaco Bowl, and finished 12-1.
Moore threw for 3,800 yards, 43 touchdowns and nine interceptions, and placed No. 8 in Heisman voting. Tyler Shoemaker caught 62 passes for 994 yards and 16 touchdowns, while Doug Martin ran for 1,299 yards and 16 scores and added two receiving touchdowns.
Six Broncos were selected in the 2012 NFL Draft, a program record: Shea McClellin, Doug Martin, Tyrone Crawford, George Iloka, Billy Winn and Nate Potter, who is now the team’s offensive coordinator. Moore went undrafted but later signed with the Detroit Lions as an undrafted free agent.
So when Boise State steps into the Pac-12, the program is chasing something it has never done in a debut league season: finish first right away.
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