# 2019 Boise State Broncos football team

The 2019 Boise State Broncos football team represented Boise State University during the 2019 NCAA Division I FBS football season. This was the Broncos' 83rd season overall, sixth under head coach Bryan Harsin, ninth as a member of the Mountain West Conference and seventh within the Mountain Division. The Broncos played their home games at Albertsons Stadium in Boise, Idaho. They finished the season 12–2, 8–0 in Mountain West play to be champions of the Mountain Division. This was the first time since joining the Mountain West in 2011 that they went undefeated in conference play. They represented the Mountain Division in the Mountain West Championship Game where they defeated Hawaii to become Mountain West champions for the fourth time. This was Boise State's 20th overall conference championship since they first joined a conference in 1970. They were invited to the Las Vegas Bowl where they lost to Washington. Boise State finished ranked in the final polls for the 13th time since 2002.

## Preseason
### Mountain West media days

The Mountain West media days will be held in July 2019 at the Cosmopolitan on the Las Vegas Strip.

### Media poll

The preseason poll was released at the Mountain West media days on July 23, 2019. The Broncos were predicted to finish in first place in the MW Mountain Division.
Mountain Division :
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
| 1 | Boise State | 120 (15) |
| 2 | Utah State | 108 (6) |
| 3 | Air Force | 73 |
| 4 | Wyoming | 66 |
| 5 | Colorado State | 52 |
| 6 | New Mexico | 22 |

#### Preseason All-Mountain West Team

The Preseason All-Mountain West Team will be chosen following the Mountain West media days in July 2019.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 31 | 10:00 a.m. | at Florida State* | | Doak Campbell StadiumTallahassee, FL | ESPNews | W 36–31 | 50,917 |
| September 6 | 7:00 p.m. | Marshall* | No. 24 | Albertsons StadiumBoise, ID | ESPN2 | W 14–7 | 31,951 |
| September 14 | 8:30 p.m. | Portland State* | No. 22 | Albertsons StadiumBoise, ID | ESPN2 | W 45–10 | 31,068 |
| September 20 | 7:00 p.m. | Air Force | No. 20 | Albertsons StadiumBoise, ID | ESPN2 | W 30–19 | 36,498 |
| October 5 | 8:30 p.m. | at UNLV | No. 16 | Sam Boyd StadiumWhitney, NV | CBSSN | W 38–13 | 24,681 |
| October 12 | 8:15 p.m. | Hawaii | No. 14 | Albertsons StadiumBoise, ID | ESPN2 | W 59–37 | 36,902 |
| October 19 | 8:15 p.m. | at BYU* | No. 14 | LaVell Edwards StadiumProvo, UT | ESPN2 | L 25–28 | 58,930 |
| November 2 | 8:30 p.m. | at San Jose State | No. 21 | CEFCU StadiumSan Jose, CA | CBSSN | W 52–42 | 19,184 |
| November 9 | 8:15 p.m. | Wyoming | No. 22 | Albertsons StadiumBoise, ID | ESPN | W 20–17 $^{OT}$ | 33,018 |
| November 16 | 8:15 p.m. | New Mexico | No. 21 | Albertsons StadiumBoise, ID | ESPN2 | W 42–9 | 31,492 |
| November 23 | 8:30 p.m. | at Utah State | No. 20 | Maverik StadiumLogan, UT | CBSSN | W 56–21 | 18,315 |
| November 29 | 1:30 p.m. | at Colorado State | No. 20 | Canvas StadiumFort Collins, CO | CBSSN | W 31–24 | 12,324 |
| December 7 | 2:00 p.m. | Hawaii | No. 19 | Albertsons StadiumBoise, ID (MW Championship Game) | ESPN | W 31–10 | 23,561 |
| December 21 | 5:30 p.m. | vs. Washington* | No. 19 | Sam Boyd StadiumWhitney, NV (Las Vegas Bowl) | ABC | L 7–38 | 34,197 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll and CFP Rankings after November 5 released prior to gameAll times are in Mountain time ||||||||
    Schedule Source:
* ↑ The game against Florida State was originally scheduled for 5:00 p.m. MDT at TIAA Bank Stadium in Jacksonville, but was relocated and moved to an earlier time because of safety concerns related to Hurricane Dorian.
* ↑ Largest attendance in Albertsons Stadium history. The previous record was 36,864 set in 2012.

## Game summaries
### At Florida State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Broncos | 6 | 13 | 7 | 10 | 36 |
| Seminoles | 21 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 31 |
Uniform Combination :
| Helmet | Jersey | Pants |
* Passing leaders: Hank Bachmeier (BSU): 30–51, 407 YDS, 1 TD, 1 INT; James Blackman (FSU): 23–33, 327 YDS, 3 TD.
* Rushing leaders: Robert Mahone (BSU): 24 CAR, 142 YDS, 2 TD; Cam Akers (FSU): 15 CAR, 116 YDS, 1 TD.
* Receiving leaders: Khalil Shakir (BSU): 8 REC, 78 YDS, 1 TD; Tamorrion Terry (FSU): 4 REC, 99 YDS, 1 TD.
| Statistics | Boise State | Florida State |
| First downs | 38 | 19 |
| Plays–yards | 108–621 | 62–426 |
| Rushes–yards | 214 | 99 |
| Passing yards | 407 | 327 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 30–51–1 | 23–34–0 |
| Time of possession | 40:03 | 19:57 |
Senior kicker Eric Sachse was named the Mountain West Special Teams Co-Player of the Week (shared with Nevada kicker Brandon Talton) after going 5–5 on field goals (36, 36, 41, 26, 30) and 3–3 on PAT's to score half of Boise State's points. Sachse was also named a Lou Groza Award Star of the Week for week one. Freshman quarterback Hank Bachmeier was named the as one of the Manning Award's Stars of the Week after going 30–51 for 407, 1 TD and 1 INT in his first career start. Junior running back Robert Mahone was named to the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award Honorable Mention list after gaining 142 yards and 2 TDs on 24 carries.

### Marshall

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Thundering Herd | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| • No. 24 Broncos | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
Uniform Combination :
| Helmet | Jersey | Pants |
* Passing leaders: Hank Bachmeier (BSU): 22–34, 282 YDS, 1 TD, 1 INT; Isaiah Green (MAR): 10–17, 56 YDS, 1 INT.
* Rushing leaders: George Holani (BSU): 22 CAR, 103 YDS; Brenden Knox (MAR): 10 CAR, 71 YDS, 1 TD.
* Receiving leaders: Khalil Shakir (BSU): 5 REC, 95 YDS; Xavier Gaines (MAR): 3 REC, 26 YDS.
| Statistics | Marshall | Boise State |
| First downs | 9 | 22 |
| Plays–yards | 43–172 | 81–437 |
| Rushes–yards | 25–155 | 47–116 |
| Passing yards | 56 | 282 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 10–18–1 | 22–34–1 |
| Time of possession | 20:48 | 39:12 |

### Portland State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Vikings | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| • No. 22 Broncos | 14 | 14 | 10 | 7 | 45 |
Uniform Combination :
| Helmet | Jersey | Pants |
* Passing leaders: Hank Bachmeier (BSU): 16–25, 238 YDS, 2 TD, 1 INT; Davis Alexander (PSU): 11–23, 56 YDS, 1 TD.
* Rushing leaders: Robert Mahone (BSU): 6 CAR, 59 YDS; Davis Alexander (PSU): 12 CAR, 21 YDS.
* Receiving leaders: John Hightower (BSU): 4 REC, 79 YDS, 1 TD; Mataio Talalemotu (PSU): 5 REC, 78 YDS, 1 TD.
| Statistics | Portland State | Boise State |
| First downs | 12 | 21 |
| Plays–yards | 63–244 | 68–491 |
| Rushes–yards | 111 | 161 |
| Passing yards | 133 | 330 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 11–24–0 | 20–36–1 |
| Time of possession | 32:25 | 27:35 |

### Air Force

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Falcons | 0 | 10 | 3 | 6 | 19 |
| • No. 20 Broncos | 0 | 10 | 7 | 13 | 30 |
Uniform Combination :
| Helmet | Jersey | Pants |
* Passing leaders: Hank Bachmeier (BSU): 19–26, 263 YDS, 2 TD; Donald Hammond III (AFA): 6–11, 83 YDS, 1 TD, 1 INT.
* Rushing leaders: Robert Mahone (BSU): 13 CAR, 73 YDS, 2 TD; Taven Birdow (AFA): 18 CAR, 67 YDS.
* Receiving leaders: CT Thomas (BSU): 5 REC, 119 YDS, 1 TD; Geraud Sanders (AFA): 5 REC, 86 YDS, 1 TD.
| Statistics | Air Force | Boise State |
| First downs | 19 | 17 |
| Plays–yards | 64–355 | 57–355 |
| Rushes–yards | 242 | 95 |
| Passing yards | 113 | 260 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 8–13–1 | 20–28–0 |
| Time of possession | 34:12 | 25:48 |

### At UNLV

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • No. 16 Broncos | 7 | 10 | 7 | 14 | 38 |
| Rebels | 0 | 0 | 7 | 6 | 13 |
Uniform Combination :
| Helmet | Jersey | Pants |
* Passing leaders: Hank Bachmeier (BSU): 19–30, 299 YDS, 2 TD; Kenyon Oblad (UNLV): 24–55, 262 YDS, 2 TD, 1 INT.
* Rushing leaders: George Holani (BSU): 9 CAR, 80 YDS; Charles Williams (UNLV): 11 CAR, 57 YDS.
* Receiving leaders: Khalil Shakir (BSU): 7 REC, 111 YDS, 1 TD; Darren Woods Jr. (UNLV): 5 REC, 93 YDS, 1 TD.
| Statistics | Boise State | UNLV |
| First downs | 21 | 22 |
| Plays–yards | 64–507 | 86–331 |
| Rushes–yards | 182 | 69 |
| Passing yards | 325 | 262 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 22–26–0 | 24–55–1 |
| Time of possession | 25:21 | 34:39 |

### Hawaii

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Rainbow Warriors | 7 | 7 | 7 | 16 | 37 |
| • No. 14 Broncos | 14 | 17 | 21 | 7 | 59 |
Uniform Combination :
| Helmet | Jersey | Pants |
* Passing leaders: Chase Cord (BSU): 12–18, 175 YDS, 3 TD; Cole McDonald (HAW): 23–41, 251 YDS, 3 TD.
* Rushing leaders: Robert Mahone (BSU): 18 CAR, 74 YDS, 1 TD; Cole McDonald (HAW): 8 CAR, 54 YDS, 1 TD.
* Receiving leaders: John Hightower (BSU): 7 REC, 141 YDS, 2 TD; Melquise Stovall (HAW): 8 REC, 114 YDS, 2 TD.
| Statistics | Hawaii | Boise State |
| First downs | 24 | 29 |
| Plays–yards | 69–438 | 76–518 |
| Rushes–yards | 19–113 | 39–203 |
| Passing yards | 325 | 315 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 26–50–1 | 21–37–0 |
| Time of possession | 27:11 | 32:42 |

### At BYU

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 14 Broncos | 7 | 3 | 0 | 15 | 25 |
| • Cougars | 7 | 0 | 21 | 0 | 28 |
Uniform Combination :
| Helmet | Jersey | Pants |
* Passing leaders: Chase Cord (BSU): 18–30, 185 YDS, 2 TD, 2 INT; Baylor Romney (BYU) 15–26, 221 YDS, 2 TD.
* Rushing leaders: George Holani (BSU): 20 CAR, 97 YDS; Sione Finau (BYU) 11 CAR, 89 YDS, 1 TD.
* Receiving leaders: Octavius Evans (BSU) 5 REC, 77 YDS, 1 TD; Matt Bushman (BYU) 5 REC, 101 YDS, 2 TD.
| Statistics | Boise State | BYU |
| First downs | 25 | 16 |
| Plays–yards | 72–359 | 61–342 |
| Rushes–yards | 40–174 | 35–121 |
| Passing yards | 185 | 221 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 18–32–2 | 15–26–0 |
| Time of possession | 30:26 | 29:34 |

### At San Jose State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • No. 21 Broncos | 7 | 10 | 14 | 21 | 52 |
| Spartans | 14 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 42 |
Uniform Combination :
| Helmet | Jersey | Pants |
* Passing leaders: Hank Bachmeier (BSU): 13–17, 299 YDS, 1 INT; Josh Love (SJSU): 29–53, 438 YDS, 2 TD, 1 INT.
* Rushing leaders: George Holani (BSU): 28 CAR, 134 YDS, 4 TD; Kaire Robinson (SJSU): 9 CAR, 46 YDS.
* Receiving leaders: John Hightower (BSU): 5 REC, 129 YDS; Tre Walker (SJSU): 9 REC, 193 YDS.
| Statistics | Boise State | San Jose State |
| First downs | 23 | 28 |
| Plays–yards | 68–466 | 75–497 |
| Rushes–yards | 253 | 59 |
| Passing yards | 213 | 438 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 13–17–1 | 29–53–1 |
| Time of possession | 32:08 | 27:52 |

### Wyoming

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
| Cowboys | 0 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
| • No. 21 Broncos | 7 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 20 |
Uniform Combination :
| Helmet | Jersey | Pants |
* Passing leaders: Chase Cord (BSU): 19–30, 190 YDS, 1 TD, 1 INT; Tyler Vander Waal (WYO): 15–23, 160 YDS.
* Rushing leaders: George Holani (BSU): 11 CAR, 30 YDS; Xazavian Valladay (WYO): 37 CAR, 124 YDS, 1 TD.
* Receiving leaders: Khalil Shakir (BSU): 7 REC, 70 YDS; Josh Harshman (WYO): 6 REC, 48 YDS.
| Statistics | Wyoming | Boise State |
| First downs | 15 | 15 |
| Plays–yards | 67–283 | 59–285 |
| Rushes–yards | 44–123 | 28–91 |
| Passing yards | 160 | 194 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 15–23–1 | 20–31–1 |
| Time of possession | 32:28 | 27:32 |

### New Mexico

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Lobos | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 9 |
| • No. 19 Broncos | 28 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 42 |
Uniform Combination :
| Helmet | Jersey | Pants |
* Passing leaders: Jaylon Henderson (BSU): 15–28, 292 YDS, 3 TD, 1 INT; Tevaka Tuioti (UNM): 14–21, 175 YDS.
* Rushing leaders: George Holani (BSU): 7 CAR, 73 YDS; Kentrail Moran (UNM): 10 CAR, 30 YDS.
* Receiving leaders: John Hightower (BSU): 4 REC, 124 YDS, 1 TD; Emmanuel Logan-Greene (UNM): 6 REC, 60 YDS.
| Statistics | New Mexico | Boise State |
| First downs | 16 | 23 |
| Plays–yards | 67–292 | 66–509 |
| Rushes–yards | 45–117 | 37–215 |
| Passing yards | 175 | 294 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 14–22–0 | 16–29–1 |
| Time of possession | 31:51 | 28:09 |

### At Utah State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • No. 20 Broncos | 21 | 21 | 14 | 0 | 56 |
| Aggies | 7 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
Uniform Combination :
| Helmet | Jersey | Pants |
* Passing leaders: Jaylon Henderson (BSU): 16–28, 187 YDS, 3 TD; Jordan Love (USU): 21–36, 229 YDS, 1 TD, 1 INT.
* Rushing leaders: George Holani (BSU): 16 CAR, 178 YDS, 2 TD; Gerold Bright (USU): 10 CAR, 44 YDS, 1 TD.
* Receiving leaders: John Hightower (BSU): 3 REC, 56 YDS, 1 TD; Siaosi Mariner (USU): 4 REC, 66 YDS.
| Statistics | Boise State | Utah State |
| First downs | 27 | 20 |
| Plays–yards | 75–484 | 81–428 |
| Rushes–yards | 46–297 | 34–121 |
| Passing yards | 187 | 307 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 16–29–0 | 27–47–2 |
| Time of possession | 33:26 | 26:34 |

### At Colorado State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • No. 20 Broncos | 7 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 31 |
| Rams | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 24 |
Uniform Combination :
| Helmet | Jersey | Pants |
* Passing leaders: Jaylon Henderson (BSU): 26–36, 253 YDS, 2 TD; Patrick O'Brien (CSU): 26–40, 175 YDS.
* Rushing leaders: George Holani (BSU): 18 CAR, 42 YDS; Kentrail Moran (CSU): 9 CAR, 36 YDS, 1 TD.
* Receiving leaders: John Hightower (BSU): 7 REC, 103 YDS; Trey McBride (CSU): 9 REC, 101 YDS, 1 TD.
| Statistics | Boise State | Colorado State |
| First downs | 20 | 20 |
| Plays–yards | 73–344 | 60–379 |
| Rushes–yards | 37–91 | 20–90 |
| Passing yards | 253 | 289 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 26–36–0 | 26–40–2 |
| Time of possession | 36:24 | 23:36 |
    Source:

### Hawaii (Mountain West Championship game)

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Rainbow Warriors | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
| • No. 19 Broncos | 3 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 31 |
Uniform Combination :
| Helmet | Jersey | Pants |
* Passing leaders: Jaylon Henderson (BSU): 20–29, 212 YDS, 2 TD, 1 INT; Cole McDonald (HAW): 20–36, 241 YDS, 1 INT.
* Rushing leaders: George Holani (BSU): 16 CAR, 67 YDS; Miles Reed (HAW): 12 CAR, 87 YDS, 1 TD.
* Receiving leaders: Khalil Shakir (BSU): 7 REC, 89 YDS, 1 TD; Jason-Matthew Sharsh (HAW): 7 REC, 74 YDS.
| Statistics | Hawaii | Boise State |
| First downs | 16 | 20 |
| Plays–yards | 62–320 | 68–364 |
| Rushes–yards | 26–79 | 37–144 |
| Passing yards | 241 | 220 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 20–36–1 | 21–31–1 |
| Time of possession | 27:53 | 32:07 |

### Vs. Washington (Las Vegas Bowl)

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 19 Broncos | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| • Huskies | 7 | 10 | 7 | 14 | 38 |
Uniform Combination :
| Helmet | Jersey | Pants |
* Passing leaders: Hank Bachmeier (BSU): 15–26, 119 YDS, 2 INT; Jacob Eason (WASH): 23–33, 210 YDS, 1 TD.
* Rushing leaders: George Holani (BSU): 11 CAR, 35 YDS; Richard Newton (WASH): 15 CAR, 69 YDS, 1 TD.
* Receiving leaders: Khalil Shakir (BSU): 3 REC, 38 YDS; Terrell Bynum (WASH): 5 REC, 67 YDS, 1 TD.
| Statistics | Boise State | Washington |
| First downs | 16 | 22 |
| Plays–yards | 59–266 | 68–341 |
| Rushes–yards | 78 | 118 |
| Passing yards | 188 | 223 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 21–37–2 | 23–33–0 |
| Time of possession | 25:54 | 34:06 |

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | Final |
| AP | RV | 24 | 22 | 20 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 22 | 21 | 21 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 19 | 18 | 23 |
| Coaches | RV | 24 | 22 | 20 | 15 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 17 | 18 | 22 |
| CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 22 | 21 | 20 | 20 | 19 | 19 | Not released |

## Players drafted into the NFL

| Round | Pick | Player | Position | NFL club |
| 2 | 58 | Ezra Cleveland | OT | Minnesota Vikings |
| 5 | 164 | Curtis Weaver | DE | Miami Dolphins |
| 5 | 168 | John Hightower | WR | Philadelphia Eagles |