2011 Boise State Broncos football team
The 2011 Boise State Broncos football team represented Boise State University in the 2011 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Broncos were led by head coach Chris Petersen, winner of the 2010 Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award, and played their home games at Bronco Stadium. This season was Boise State's first in the Mountain West Conference after spending the previous ten years in the Western Athletic Conference. They finished the season 12–1, 6–1 Mountain West play to finish in second place. They were invited the Maaco Bowl Las Vegas for  the second consecutive year where they defeated Arizona State 56–24. Between 2008 and 2011, the Broncos went 50–3 to become the first team in FBS history to win 50 games in four years. With the 50–3 record, quarterback Kellen Moore set a new record for the most wins by a starting quarterback in FBS history, passing former Texas quarterback Colt McCoy (45 wins). Previous season. The Broncos opened the season ranked #3 and #5 in the AP and coaches polls, respectively, by far the highest season starting ranking in school history and the highest starting position for a non-BCS  team. They opened the season against #6/#10 Virginia Tech at FedExField in one of the nation's premier games of the opening weekend. They defeated the eventual ACC champions 33–30 on a game-winning touchdown drive with less than two minutes to play. The Broncos would win their next nine games and climbed to #2 in the coaches, AP and Harris polls and #3 in the BCS poll for their highest ranking ever in all four polls. On November 26, #3 Boise State lost to their rival #19 Nevada in overtime after two missed field goals by Kyle Brotzman. The  Broncos would repeat as conference champions, shared with Nevada and Hawaii with a 7–1 conference record. The conference title was the Broncos third straight and eighth in their ten-year history in the WAC. They were invited to the Maaco Bowl Las Vegas where they defeated Utah 26–3 to finish the season 12–1 and ranked #7/#9 in the coaches/AP polls. Preseason. Award watch lists. Listed in the order that they were released. Maxwell Award – Sr. QB Kellen Moore, Sr. RB Doug Martin. Chuck Bednarik Award – Sr. DT Billy Winn. John Mackey Award – Sr. TE Kyle Efaw. Fred Biletnikoff Award  – Sr. WR Tyler Shoemaker. Bronko Nagurski Trophy – Sr. DT Billy Winn. Outland Trophy – Sr. DT Billy Winn, Sr. OT Nate Potter. Jim Thorpe Award – Sr. S George Iloka Lombardi Award – Sr. C Thomas Byrd, Sr. DE Shae McClellin, Sr. OT Nate Potter, Sr. DT Billy Winn. Rimington Trophy – Sr. C Thomas Byrd. Davey O'Brien Award – Sr. QB Kellen Moore. Doak Walker Award – Sr. RB Doug Martin. Walter Camp Award – Sr. QB Kellen Moore. Ted Hendricks Award – Sr. DE Shea McClellin. Manning Award – Sr. QB Kellen Moore. Kellen Moore also won the Anson Mount Scholar/Athlete award on the Playboy Preseason  All-America Team. Playboy also ranked Boise State #2 to start the season. Mountain West media days. During the Mountain West media days held on July 26–27 at the Red Rock Resort in Las Vegas, Boise State was picked as the overwhelming favorite to win the conference, garnering 28 of 31 first place votes. Sr. QB Kellen Moore was selected as the preseason offensive player of the year and thus was the QB on the preseason All–Conference team. Joining him on the All–Conference team were Sr. RB Doug Martin, Sr. OL Thomas Bryd, Sr. OL Nate Potter, Sr . DL Billy Winn, Sr. DL Shea McClellin, and Sr. S George Iloka. All-blue uniform ban. Boise State was banned by the Mountain West Conference from wearing their traditional all-blue uniforms during conference home games. MW commissioner Craig Thompson's reason for the rule was that coaches had stated that the Broncos received a "competitive advantage" when wearing all blue on the blue turf of Bronco Stadium. Boise State head coach Chris Petersen was quoted that he thought the ban was "ridiculous". Preseason polls. On August 3, Boise State was ranked #7 in the preseason USA Today Coaches' Poll , receiving 1,065 points. Their season opening opponent, Georgia, started the year ranked #22 making this the third straight season Boise State opened the year against a ranked team from a BCS conference. Boise State won the previous two (Oregon and Virginia Tech). On August 20, Boise State was ranked #5 in the preseason AP Poll, receiving 1,200 points including 2 first place votes. Schedule. Boise State was set to play Utah in Boise in 2011, with games in 2012 and 2013 also scheduled. However, due to their move to the Pac-12, where they will play nine conference games, and their  desire to continue their rivalry with former conference member and newly independent BYU, Utah bought their way out of the series. Boise State replaced Utah with Fresno State and Nevada as both schools were also looking for another game due to having one less conference game due to Boise State's departure from the WAC. Fresno State and Nevada will become conference games again in 2012 as they will join the Mountain West. Locations for Mountain West Conference games were announced on November 4, 2010. Boise State was scheduled to open the 2011 season at Mississippi, however, on November 20 , 2010 they announced they would open the season against Georgia in the 2011 Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game in Atlanta. Their meeting with Mississippi will be pushed back to 2014 also in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game. On January 25, Boise State's conference game with TCU, which was originally scheduled to be played in Fort Worth, was moved to Boise. The move was due in part to TCU announcing they would be leaving for the Big East Conference in 2012 (they ultimately went to the Big 12 instead). To accommodate the change, the Broncos played San Diego State  in San Diego instead of Boise. The Mountain West released dates for conference games on March 3, 2011. On March 21, as part of the WAC's TV contract with ESPN, it was announced that the game at Fresno State would be moved to Friday, October 7 to be broadcast on ESPN. This was the 11th straight year the Battle for the Milk Can that was broadcast on the ESPN family of networks. On April 7, the Mountain West announced times and TV for all conference and home MW games. For the first time in 40 years, Boise State did  not play their in-state rival Idaho and currently have no future matchups scheduled. Game summaries. vs. Georgia–Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game. Boise State opened the season with a win against a top 20 (AP poll) team from a BCS conference for the third straight year with their 35–21 win in the fourth annual Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game. Georgia got on the board first with an 80-yard touchdown run by Brandon Boykin, which was his first career offensive play. Boise State tie the game up later in the first quarter when Kellen Moore found freshman wide receiver  Matt Miller for a 17-yard touchdown. The TD pass was Moore's 100th career touchdown pass. 48 seconds before halftime, Boise State would take the lead when Moore connected on his second touchdown pass, this time from 12 yards out to tight end Kyle Efaw to give the Broncos a 14–7 halftime lead. Boise State increased their lead in the third quarter with a 7-yard touchdown run by Doug Martin and Moore's third touchdown pass of 3 yards to Tyler Shoemaker for a 28–7 lead. After Boise State was penalized for being offsides on a fourth and  seven during a punt, Georgia went for it on fourth and two and scored on a 36-yard touchdown to Orson Charles from Aaron Murray to cut into the lead at the end of the third quarter. The Broncos drove the ball 76 yards on their last scoring drive, capped off by a 1-yard D.J. Harper touchdown run. Another long Georgia touchdown from 51 yards out brought the scoring to an end and the Broncos would leave Atlanta with their first ever win against a team from the SEC (previously 0–4). Kellen Moore is now 5–0 in his career  against BCS teams. The Bronco defense finished with six sacks, 2.5 by Shea McClellin, and one interception by Jerrell Gavins. On September 5, Kellen Moore was named the Mountain West offensive player of the week, becoming the first Bronco to win the award in their first game as a conference member. This was the second straight year Moore won a player of the week award after the season opening game. The Broncos moved up one spot in the AP poll to #4 with 2 first place votes and moved up 2 spots in the coaches poll to #5. Following their  bye week, they moved up to #4 in the coaches. at Toledo. "2nd meeting. 1–0 all time. Last meeting 2010, 57–14 Broncos win in Boise." Kellen Moore completed a career-high 32 passes to nine different receivers for 455 yards and five touchdowns as the Broncos rolled to a 40–15 win over preseason MAC favorite Toledo. After forcing the Broncos to punt on their first possession, Toledo took and early lead on a 24-yard touchdown pass to go up 6–0 (pat failed). The Broncos would answer on Moore's first TD pass of the night from 26 yards out  to Tyler Shoemaker. His second TD pass of the night came on the Broncos next possession when Doug Martin took a screen pass 71 yards for a 13–6 Bronco lead at the end of the first quarter. After trading punts throughout the second quarter, the Broncos would put together a 7-play, 64-yard drive in only 1:05, capped off with a 1-yard TD pass from Moore to Shoemaker, to score with 17 seconds before halftime. A kickoff out of bounds gave the Rockets great field possession and managed a 35-yard field goal and cut the Bronco lead  to 20–9 at the half. In the third quarter, Toledo looked like they were going to keep the game close as they drove to the Bronco's 11-yard line. However, Shae McClellin tipped a Rocket pass that was intercepted by Chase Baker to end the Toledo hopes. The Broncos followed by marching 88 yards, capped off with Moore's fourth TD pass to Kyle Efaw, to take a 27–9 lead. Toledo's last chance to get back into the game came when Moore was intercepted and the Rockets drove to the six-yard line. However, the Broncos forced a  fumble that was recovered by J.C. Percy. Moore would add another TD pass to Shoemaker for 17 yards later in the 4th to put the Broncos up 33–9. Toledo would score quick to make it 33–15 but the Broncos would milk the clock with their second string and add a final touchdown by Drew Wright for a final score of 40–15. "1st Quarter" "2nd Quarter" "3rd Quarter" "4th Quarter" On September 19, Kellen Moore was named the Mountain West Offensive player of the week for the second time, this week shared with San Diego State running back Ronnie Hillman. Moore  was also named the Davey O'Brien Quarterback of the Week. The Broncos remained at #4 in both polls and did retain their two first place votes in the AP poll. Tulsa. Boise State dominated Tulsa in rout to their 350th regular season win in school history. After stalling inside the 5-yard line on the first drive of the game, the Broncos would control the rest of the first half with three Kellen Moore touchdown passes, two to Tyler Shoemaker, and a 33-yard Doug Martin touchdown run to give the Broncos a 27–0 lead at halftime. Kellen Moore would  only play one series in the second half, but it was long enough to add a fourth touchdown pass, this time to Mitch Burroughs. The Tulsa offense was able to drive the field on the Bronco defense pretty consistently in the second half, scoring three touchdowns. But backup quarterback Joe Southwick was able to keep the Broncos lead out of reach with a touchdown pass to Gabe Linehan, the Broncos fifth touchdown threw the air on the night. The Bronco defense recorded four interceptions of Tulsa quarterback G.J. Kinnie, two by Jerrell Gavins. "1st Quarter" "2nd Quarter" "3rd Quarter" "4th  Quarter" Despite winning and #5 Stanford not playing this week, the Broncos would be jumped by the Cardinal and are now ranked #5 in the coaches poll. The Broncos remained at #4 in the AP poll but did lose a first place vote to now only have one. Nevada. Boise State avenged their only loss from the 2010 season in dominating fashion with a 30–10 win over their rival Nevada. Kellen Moore had one of his worst days of his career statistically with only 142 yards and two interceptions, but he also managed two touchdowns on 19 completions. Doug Martin  did the rest of the damage running the ball 21 times for 126 yards and two touchdowns. His second touchdown was a 43 yarder at the beginning of the 3rd quarter to put the Broncos up 27–0. The Bronco defense completely shut down the powerful pistol attack of the Wolf Pack, holding Nevada to only 59 yards rushing. 53 of Nevada's 182 total yards came on a late touchdown with less than one minute to play. Boise State attempted and made their first field goal of the season, a 31 yarder from freshman Dan Goodale. "1st Quarter" "2nd Quarter  3rd Quarter" "4th Quarter" For the second consecutive week, despite winning, the Broncos would fall in the rankings, this time in both polls. They fell one spot in both polls to now be ranked #6 in the coaches poll and #5 in the AP poll. They did still receive one first place vote in the AP poll. at Fresno State–Battle for the Milk Can. Boise State scored over 50 points against their rivals Fresno State for the fourth straight game en route to retaining the Milk Can for the sixth straight year with a 57–7 win. Kellen Moore threw  3 first half touchdowns, one to Matt Miller and two to Geraldo Boldewijn who was returning from a 4-game suspension for receiving impermissible benefits. Rushing touchdowns by Mitch Burroughs and D.J. Harper and a 32-yard Dan Goodale field goal gave the Broncos a lead of 37–0 at halftime. Boise State added three more rushing touchdowns in the second half by Harper, Doug Martin, and Grant Hedrick (first career TD) and gave up a punt return touchdown for Fresno State's only score. The Bronco defense forced four turnovers, including interceptions by Jamar Taylor and Jonathan Brown. Hunter White  also blocked a punt. "1st Quarter" "2nd Quarter" "3rd Quarter" "4th Quarter" Boise State remained the same in both the AP and Coaches poll, #5 and #6 respectively, and debuted at #5 in the Harris Interactive poll with one first place vote. On October 10, Kellen Moore was named the Mountain West Offensive Player of the Week for the third time this season. at Colorado State. In their first conference game as a member of the Mountain West, Boise State took no time announcing their presence by setting a school record for total yards in a blowout win over Colorado  State. Doug Martin would start the scoring for the Broncos with rushing touchdowns from 26 and 65 yards. Kellen Moore kept the long touchdowns coming with a 52-yard TD pass to Tyler Shoemaker for a 21–0 lead at the end of the 1st quarter. D.J. Harper scored on a 36-yard run and Kellen Moore found his brother Kirby from 9 yards out to extend the lead to 35–0. Colorado State went to their bag of tricks and scored on two touchdown passes by a wide receiver and a running back to cut into the lead 35–13 at the  half. The Rams looked to seize momentum by holding the Broncos to a 3-and-out on their first possession. However, the Broncos would fake the punt with a 37-yard run by Tyler Shoemaker and score on Doug Martin's 3rd TD run from 14 yards just three plays later. Boise State would add three more 3rd-quarter touchdowns with 2 Kellen Moore TD passes, including one to Shoemaker of 62 yards, and a D.J. Harpter TD run. Boise State set a school record with 742 total yards and outgained the Rams by 511 yards. The Bronco defense recorded  seven tackles for loss with three sacks, two by Tyrone Crawford who also recovered a fumble. Shae McClellin had an interception. "1st Quarter" "2nd Quarter" "3rd Quarter" The Broncos remained the same in the AP and Harris polls, including still receiving one first place vote, and despite gaining two total points they would fall to #7 in the Coaches poll. Boise State debuted at #5 in the first BCS standings of the season. Doug Martin and Tyrone Crawford were named the Mountain West offensive and defensive players of the week. Martin's award was shared with San Diego State running  back Ronnie Hillman. Air Force. Boise State's first ever meeting with a service academy had a record attendance crowd of 34,196 on the edge of their seats as the Broncos were able to hold on to beat the Falcons 37–26 for Boise State's first ever home win in Mountain West play. Boise State got on the board early with a 24-yard touchdown pass from Kellen Moore to Tyler Shoemaker. Air Force's triple option attack answered midway through the second quarter with a 1-yard touchdown run for a 7–7 tie. Three minutes later Kellen Moore found  Matt Miller for a 19-yard touchdown and a 13–7 lead. The Broncos next score came on a fake punt attempt by Air Force. The Broncos were able to strip the ball during the fake punt and Hunter White returned the fumble for a 16-yard touchdown and a 20–7 lead. Air Force drove the field quick to add a field goal for a halftime score of 20–10. Air Force opened the second half with another field goal before Doug Martin broke a 15-yard touchdown to put the Broncos up 27–13 at the end of the third quarter. Air  Force's next drive would span 80 yards on 18 plays, including a rushing first down on 3rd and 21, culminating in a 3-yard touchdown run and a score of 27–20. The Broncos followed with their own 10 play, 68-yard drive ending with Moore's third touchdown pass, this time a 2 yarder to Doug Martin and a 34–20 Bronco lead. Air Force would not go away and would score in just 5 plays, including a 51-yard pass, for a score of 34–26 after a blocked extra point. Boise State would finally put the game out of  reach by eating up most of the clock on their way to a 25-yard Dan Goodale field goal for the 37–26 Bronco win. The Bronco defense gave up 264 yards rushing and linebacker Byron Hout finished with 18 tackles. "1st Quarter" "2nd Quarter" "3rd Quarter" "4th Quarter" Boise State would remain the same in the AP and Harris polls but rise to #5 in the coache's and #4 in the BCS polls. With Oklahoma's home loss to Texas Tech, Boise State now holds the nations longest overall home winning streak at 35, but also have a home  regular season home winning streak of 65. Kellen Moore and Byron Hout were named the Mountain West offensive and defensive players of the week. The award was the fourth of the season for Moore. Following the bye week, the Broncos would fall to #5 in the BCS poll and are now #5 in all four major polls. at UNLV. Boise State shook off a slow first half and pulled away with four second half touchdowns for their 10th straight win with a 48–21 victory over the Rebels of UNLV. Kellen Moore threw three first half touchdowns, two to Matt Miller , but UNLV was able to match the Broncos first two scores for a 21–14 Boise State lead at halftime. Boise State extended the lead with Moore's fourth touchdown pass from 51 yards out to Tyler Shoemaker for a 28–14 lead at the end of the third quarter. The Broncos opened the fourth quarter by finishing off a 14-play, 64-yard drive, which included a fake punt, with Moore's fifth touchdown off a tipped pass to Shoemaker. D.J. Harper, replacing injured starting running back Doug Martin, went 49 yards on two plays and scored on a 15-yard  rush to give the Broncos a 41–14 lead. Both teams traded touchdowns by the second teamers for a final of 48–21. This was Kellen Moore's 46th win, setting a new record for most wins by an NCAA quarterback and surpassing the previous mark set by former Texas quarterback Colt McCoy. "1st Quarter" "2nd Quarter" "3rd Quarter" "4th Quarter" Boise State would remain at #5 in all three major polls. TCU. For the second year in a row Boise State's BCS fate was decided by a field goal as #24 TCU knocked off the Broncos when Dan Goodale's  final second field goal sailed wide right to give the Horned Frogs a 36–35 win. The Broncos came out fast scoring just four minutes into the game when Kellen Moore found Matt Miller for a 22-yard touchdown. TCU would answer by going deep, first with a 74-yard touchdown pass from Casey Pachall to Josh Boyce, then Pachall found Brandon Carter for a 75-yard touchdown. D.J. Harper would tie the game with a 17-yard touchdown run before Pachall went deep again to Boyce, this time from 69 yards out (PAT failed) for a 20–14 TCU lead at  the half. It was the first time the Broncos had trailed at halftime since the 2007 Hawaii Bowl. The lead for TCU did not last for long as Bronco defensive end Tyrone Crawford returned a fumble for a touchdown on the Horned Frogs first play of the second half. Seven minutes later D.J. Harper added his second touchdown run, this time from three yards out for a 28–20 Bronco lead. TCU marched 86 yards, capped off with a Josh Boyce 3-yard touchdown reception, and tied the game after a two-point conversion when Pachall dove for the endzone, just  barely breaking the plane. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Kellen Moore connected with Dallas Burroughs for a 54-yard touchdown to put the Broncos up 35–28. Both teams traded punts throughout the fourth before the Broncos got the ball back with 5:37 left. The Broncos ran the clock down to 2:26 before backup running back Drew Wright, playing due to injuries to both Doug Martin and D.J. Harper, fumbled giving TCU the ball at the 27-yard line. Casey Pachall methodically marched the Horned Frogs down the field and found Brandon Carter for a 25-yard touchdown . TCU chose to go for two where Pachall found Boyce on a pass toward the sideline. The Bronco defender went for the interception and missed letting Boyce walk in for the 36–35 lead. After a kickoff out of bounds and a TCU holding penalty, the Broncos where on the 50 with 1:05 to play. After 3 straight incompletions, TCU was controversially flagged for pass interference on fourth down. Two Kellen Moore completions moved the Broncos to the 22-yard line with 21 seconds to play and they had a timeout. They chose to move the ball to the middle of  the field to set up a 39-yard field goal which Dan Goodale pushed right. The loss ended the Broncos 65 game regular season home winning streak and 47 game conference home winning streak. Both streaks were the longest ever streaks in the FBS era (since 1978). The loss also ended the longest overall home winning streak at 35. "1st Quarter" "2nd Quarter" "3rd Quarter" "4th Quarter" Following the loss, the Broncos fell to #10 in the BCS and AP polls and #11 in the Coaches and Harris polls. at San Diego State. "1st Quarter" "2nd Quarter" "3rd Quarter" "4th  Quarter" Wyoming. "1st Quarter" "2nd Quarter" "3rd Quarter" "4th Quarter" New Mexico. "1st Quarter" "2nd Quarter" "3rd Quarter" "4th Quarter" Arizona State–Maaco Bowl Las Vegas. "2nd meeting. 0–1 all time. Last meeting 1996, 56–7 Sun Devils win in Tempe." NFL Draft. 2011 Boise State set a team record for number of players taken in one draft with six. The previous record was held by the 2006 team that had four players taken in the 2007 NFL Draft. For the first time in school history, the Broncos had two players selected in the first round of the NFL Draft. They  had only had two previous players ever selected in the first round (Ryan Clady in 2008 and Kyle Wilson in 2010). 1st Round, 19th Overall Pick by the Chicago Bears—Sr. DL Shea McClellin 1st Round, 31st Overall Pick by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers—Sr. RB Doug Martin 3rd Round, 81st Overall Pick by the Dallas Cowboys—Sr. DL Tyrone Crawford 5th Round, 167th Overall Pick by the Cincinnati Bengals—Sr. S George Iloka 6th Round, 202nd Overall Pick by the Cleveland Browns—Sr. DL Billy Winn 7th Round, 221st Overall Pick by the Arizona Cardinals—Sr. OL Nate Potter