Boise State Football: Winners and Losers from Broncos' Win vs. Colorado State

Boise State beat Colorado State 63-13 on Saturday in their inaugural game in the Mountain West Conference.

Virtually every player on Boise State’s team was a star. Almost everyone playing for Colorado State could have sat down on the turf for four quarters, and the outcome would not have been much different.

Boise State showed that they will own the MWC much like they dominated the Western Athletic Association. Colorado State wishes they played in the Pac-12.

Without further ado, here are the winners and losers from Boise State’s dismantling of Colorado State.

Winners: Kellen Moore's Passing

Kellen Moore threw for 338 yards and four touchdowns. He had only four incomplete passes out of 30. Not a bad stat line.

Moore controlled the game for three quarters (he didn’t play in the fourth or he would have controlled it then, too). 

After an off-game against Nevada in which Moore was picked off twice and threw for a career-low 142 yards, he has found his stride against Fresno State and Colorado State, looking more like the Heisman candidate who picks apart defenses at will.

Moore’s first game in the Mountain West Conference was exactly as everyone expected it to be: dominant and a sign of good things to come.

Losers: Kellen Moore’s Conditioning

Will Kellen Moore ever play a complete game? Sure, it’s nice to know that Boise State is beating opponents so badly that Moore can don a baseball cap and clipboard instead of a helmet and football. However, he must get pretty bored standing on the sideline for 15-plus minutes, watching his successor play at the level he played J.V. high school football. 

The last full game Moore played was the season opener against Georgia. He played for four quarters in that one as the Broncos eked out a 35-21 win.

The burning question then becomes, how good is Moore’s conditioning? Can he withstand the fatigue caused by throwing five touchdown passes in a game instead of three? How will his legs hold up when he can shift around in an empty backfield for four quarters? We might have to wait until Nov. 12 when Moore and Boise State take on TCU for the answers to those questions.

Winners: Doug Martin

Doug Marin is establishing himself as a viable second threat in this loaded Boise State offense.

On Saturday, he carried the ball 20 times for 200 yards and three touchdowns. The 200 yards was a season high, as was his average of 10 yards per carry.

It seems ridiculous to say that if Martin can continue to run the ball with so much success, it will open up more passing lanes for Kellen Moore. Instead, let’s say that since Moore’s passing has gotten back on track; it has opened up the running lanes for Martin.

Either way, Martin’s rushing will be needed when the Broncos reach a BCS game at the end of the season. 

Losers: Mountain West Conference

What a lovely welcome mat the Mountain West Conference laid out for its newest members. Too bad the Boise State Broncos subsequently trampled all over it.

If the game against Colorado State is any indication, it seems as if Boise State’s time in the MWC will be exactly like life in the Western Athletic Conference—the Broncos will be trouncing teams week in and week out; the only difference will be the uniforms.

Winners: Western Athletic Conference

The WAC has passed the torch. No longer will their conference mainstays like New Mexico State and Idaho have to endure crushing defeats against a team far too talented to play in a non-BCS automatic qualifying conference.

Now, that burden is on the Mountain West Conference, slightly better than the WAC, but still no match for the Broncos. 

The WAC is breathing a heavy sigh of relief. The teams can continue peacefully in their mediocrity, playing one another, winning some games losing others, with no fear of that looming giant next week, coming to crush them by 40-plus points.

Losers: Defense Getting Tricked

After building up a 35-0 lead, Boise State let Colorado State get dangerously close when they scored two touchdowns to end the first half and pull within 35-13.

Both of Colorado State’s touchdowns came on trick plays. One touchdown pass was thrown by a tight end. The next was thrown by a wide receiver following a Boise State fumble. 

The plays brought back memories of former offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin, now at Texas, who used to employ a number of trick plays to spark the Broncos’ offense. Boise State probably much preferred being on the other side of those plays.

Winners: Tyler Shoemaker

The senior wide receiver is trying to make a name for himself in his last season with the Broncos. His nine catches for 180 yards against Colorado State will do just that. He also had a 36-yard run on a fake punt.

Shoemaker’s 401 yards receiving so far this season indicate that he will surpass last season’s totals of 32 receptions for 582 yards. His addition will help out Kellen Moore’s passing game, giving him more targets so he can spread out those touchdown passes a bit. 

The competition in the Mountain West Conference will be light enough to allow Shoemaker and other players on the Broncos’ roster to gain confidence and playing time so that by the end of the season, they will be ready to play anyone.

Losers/Winners: Colorado State’s Defense/742 Yards

742. That is quite a lot of yards. It is a school record for Boise State, a team that is definitely not lacking on the offensive side of the ball. It also came in less than three quarters because Kellen Moore and many of the other offensive starters rested at the end of the game.

Colorado State is not a very good team, but giving up 742 yards to anyone is laughable. Boise State scored three touchdowns in the first quarter, two in the second quarter and four in the third quarter. None of those touchdowns were scored by Boise State’s defense, meaning that the Colorado State defense gave up nine offensive touchdowns to the Broncos. 

For Boise State, a positive should be that the yardage was evenly distributed. Kellen Moore and one pass by sophomore quarterback Joe Southwick accounted for 349 yards. Boise’s running game racked up 393 yards. It’s hard to find fault in such a complete performance.