Boise State kept charging Saturday, while a pair of Pac-12 contenders took hits that tightened the race behind the Broncos.
No. 25 Boise State moved to 8-1 overall and 5-0 in conference play with a 64-38 road win over Colorado State, its eighth straight victory.
The Broncos got a huge day from backup quarterback Max Cutforth, who made his first start of the season and threw for 317 yards and four touchdowns on 16-of-19 passing. He also ran for a score.
Dylan Riley was the engine of the offense. He piled up 192 rushing yards and two touchdowns, then added two catches for 88 yards and another score.
That gave him 300 all-purpose yards, leaving him one yard short of Doug Martin’s school record of 301 set in the 2011 Maaco Bowl Las Vegas. After his 31-yard touchdown run in the second half, Riley flashed the Heisman pose in the end zone.
“I mean, everything is on tape, for real,” Riley said of his Heisman candidacy after the game. “There’s nothing too much I can say.
You just have to put the film on. At that point, it’s just everybody else’s thing.”
Riley now leads the nation in rushing with 184 carries for 1,241 yards and 11 touchdowns. He has also caught 17 passes for 218 yards and two scores.
Boise State head coach Spencer Danielson said after the game that he expects starting quarterback Maddux Madsen to be back next week against Oregon State, which has now hit a rough patch after a five-game winning streak. The Broncos will close conference play with home games against Oregon State and San Diego State.
Texas State made sure the standings stayed crowded, too. After last week’s heartbreaking 46-45 loss at Boise State, the Bobcats responded with a 42-21 road win over Oregon State. Texas State rolled up 600 yards of total offense and held Braden Atkinson, the nation’s leading passer, to 192 yards, no touchdowns and an interception.
“Huge win on the road versus a really quality opponent,” Texas State head coach G.J. Kinne said.
“Super proud of the defense. Backs against the wall, they had a great game plan.
Defensive staff did an unbelievable job.”
Utah State also stayed in the mix, beating Fresno State 17-10 at home Saturday night. The Aggies led 14-0 at halftime and stretched the margin to 17-3 on a Kian Afrookhteh field goal with 4:54 left.
“Not many teams are playing team football,” Utah State head coach Bronco Mendenhall said. “Fresno couldn’t score, and that just built the confidence.
And as part of the plan, we were hopeful to have Fresno play from behind. So that worked according to plan.”
With two conference games left, Boise State sits two games clear of Oregon State, Texas State, Utah State and San Diego State, which was idle over the weekend.
In Other News...
Oregon State Has A Bigger Problem Than One Ugly Loss
The loss to Texas State was ugly enough on its own, but the bigger concern for Oregon State was how thoroughly the defense was carved up in a 42-21 defeat. The Beavers gave up 600 yards of offense, the most they have allowed since 2019, as Texas State controlled the game with balance and tempo behind Brad Jackson and Davian Jackson.
Oregon State did move the ball some, finishing with 356 yards, but the offense never did enough to keep pace after Braden Atkinson threw an interception and later gave way to Maalik Murphy in the fourth quarter. It left the Beavers with more questions than answers after a game that exposed issues on both sides of the ball, and the kind of defensive performance that tends to linger well beyond one September night. [Read more 🡒]
Oregon State Suddenly Has A Run Defense Problem Fans Cant Ignore
Oregon States loss to Texas State was ugly for a lot of reasons, but the most alarming part was what happened on the ground. The Beavers were gashed for 386 rushing yards in a 42-21 defeat, a number that stood out not just because of the score but because it exposed a defense that had no answer for the way Texas State wanted to play. The Bobcats kept leaning on their run game, and Oregon State kept coming up short in the same places.
JaMarcus Shephard did not sugarcoat the performance afterward, acknowledging that the defense has to be better against the run. For Oregon State, the concern is bigger than one bad afternoon, because a game like this can linger if it turns into a pattern. The Beavers now have to show that this was a breakdown they can fix, not a warning sign that opponents will keep targeting. [Read more 🡒]
Oregon State Just Walked Into Boises Biggest Game In Years
Saturday in Boise already had the feel of a major moment, and the spotlight only got brighter when ESPNs College GameDay chose the matchup between Boise State and Oregon State. It is the first time the show has come to the city since 2010, a sign of how much is riding on a game that has turned into one of the biggest on the Pac-12 calendar.
Boise State brings an eight-game winning streak into the matchup, with running back Dylan Riley powering the ground game, while Oregon State counters with quarterback Braden Atkinson, who has been one of the nations most productive passers. For the Beavers, it is the kind of road setting that can tell you plenty about where a team stands, even before the final whistle settles the bigger questions hanging over the night. [Read more 🡒]