Washington State has hung around through a first half that started with Boise State punching first, then saw the Cougars answer with a methodical march to level things up before the Broncos grabbed the lead back just before the break.
The first-ever Pac-12 meeting between the schools opened with WSU electing to defer after winning the coin toss. Jack Stevens booted the kickoff out of the back of the end zone, and Maddux Madsen took over for Boise State. The Broncos’ opening possession never got off the ground, though, after a 15-yard low-block penalty helped stall the drive and let the Cougar defense get off the field quickly.
Washington State’s first series under quarterback Owen Eshelman showed some promise right away. His opening snap at Martin Stadium was a keeper for no gain, but he followed that with an 8-yard run and then a 14-yard completion to Branden Ganashamoorthy for a first down. That drive, which looked encouraging for an offense trying to clean up third-down issues, eventually bogged down when Eshelman was sacked by Sanusi Lopez.
Boise State nearly gave the ball right back moments later when Max Dean’s punt was lost in the sun and Jeremyah Lane couldn’t get a clean read on it. The ball hit the turf at Gesa field turf, but the Cougars couldn’t recover it.
The Broncos then struck for the game’s first points on the next sequence that mattered. Facing 3rd and 7 at the Boise State 44-yard line, Trent Bray sent DJ Warner on a blitz, but Madsen got the throw away in time and hit Rasean Jones for 14 yards. One play later, Madsen found Jones again for 33 yards to set up first and goal, and Sire Gaines finished it by running through the middle of the WSU defense and shaking off a would-be tackler for the touchdown.
Down 7-0, the Cougars kept leaning on Eshelman’s legs and short-game toughness. The next drive opened with no push on first down and a hurried incompletion on second, but Eshelman and TE Jack Pedersen connected for 11 yards on third down to avoid a quick punt.
Another possession later, Washington State faced 3rd and 9 after an incompletion and a 1-yard run, and Eshelman escaped the pocket, got to the edge and dove for the first down. The drive still ended without points when a 10-yard sack on the next play proved too much to overcome, sending Dean back out to punt.
Boise State tried to stretch the lead from deep in its own territory, starting a drive at the 7-yard line and working out to the 38 with four straight runs. That ground game helped set up play action, and Madsen hit Akeem Wright for another first down on a wide-open throw.
But the Cougar defense tightened from there, stopping Dylan Riley in the backfield and then getting enough pressure on third down to force an errant throw. The Broncos eventually lined up for what looked like a 4th-and-7 attempt from the WSU 47, but after the Cougars stayed disciplined and didn’t jump, Spencer Danielson called timeout and changed course, sending out the punt team.
Washington State finally pieced together its best possession of the half with a chance to tie. Backed up at its own 1-yard line after the Broncos pinned them deep, Boise State’s defense forced another punt on the Cougars’ first series from that field position.
But when WSU got the ball back, Eshelman led a drive that included a fourth-down conversion to Trey Leckner, a QB keeper to keep another short-yardage situation alive, and then a pass interference call on a heavily defended Ganashamoorthy target that moved the Cougars into the red zone. From there, Eshelman dropped a back-shoulder throw to Daniel Blood down to the half-yard line, and Kirby Vorhees stretched across the goal line on first and goal to tie it 7-7 with 46 seconds left in the half.
Boise State still had time to answer. Stevens kicked the ensuing kickoff out of bounds, handing the Broncos the ball at the 35.
They pushed all the way to the WSU 11 before the half expired, then sent the field goal unit out. The kick was good, and the Cougars headed to the locker room trailing 10-7.
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The drive that tied the game was as revealing as anything else on the scoreboard, stretching 73 yards over 16 plays before Kirby Vorhees finished it off in the end zone. Even after Boise State nudged back in front with a field goal before halftime, the Cougars had already made it clear they were willing to drag this game into a slower, more physical script and force the Broncos to earn every bit of separation. [Read more 🡒]