Young Boise State receivers, offense shine as Broncos stay in Mountain West title hunt

Boise State has been waiting all season for a wide receiver not named Eric McAlister to give defenses something to worry about. It turns out all it took was his departure.

McAlister was leading the Broncos with 47 catches for 873 yards when he informed the team earlier this week that he plans to sit out the rest of the season and transfer when the portal opens on Dec. 4.

His absence opened the door for unproven receivers Austin Bolt and Prince Strachan, and the duo put on a show Saturday. They combined for five catches for 185 yards and two long touchdowns to help lead Boise State past New Mexico 42-14 at Albertsons Stadium.

Bolt and Strachan went into the game with a combined five career catches.

“It was exciting to see Prince and Austin seize the moment,” Boise State coach Andy Avalos said. “They took advantage of the opportunity and came up with some big-time catches.”

Strachan, a freshman from the Bahamas, led the Broncos with 128 yards on just three catches. His first catch of the night covered 30 yards and set up a touchdown. He scored on a career-long 74 yard pass that gave Boise State a 22-14 lead in the second quarter.

“With Prince being so young and his role being increased, I was really impressed with his preparation,” quarterback Taylen Green said. “A lot of people don’t see what he does in the shadows, but I think everybody saw it today.”

Bolt scored the game’s first points on a 42-yard pass from Maddux Madsen. It was the first touchdown catch of his career. The redshirt junior caught the first pass of his career last week.

Avalos said Bolt’s long journey back from the broken leg he suffered in last season’s opener at Oregon State made his first touchdown even more special. He finished Saturday’s game with two catches for 57 yards.

“I think everybody was trying our best not to get a penalty for being out on the field celebrating with him,” Avalos said.

Bolt and Strachan stretched the field vertically Saturday, filling McAlister’s role as the team’s deep threat. He averaged 18.57 yards per catch this season. Strachan averaged 42.6 against New Mexico. Bolt averaged 28.5.

“That puts defenses in conflict,” Avalos said. “That’s going to make people decide how many numbers to put in the box to stop the run game.”

Boise State’s offense got plenty of help from running backs George Holani and Jambres Dubar.

The Broncos (5-5, 4-2 Mountain West) were without leading rusher Ashton Jeanty for the second game in a row because of a lower body injury, but Holani led the team with 96 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Dubar, a freshman, finished with a career-high 91 rushing yards.

Boise State’s defense gave up 254 yards in the first half but limited New Mexico to 69 yards in the second half, leading to the rout.

The Broncos led 15-14 in the second quarter after New Mexico running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt scored his second rushing touchdown of the day. Boise State pulled away with 27 unanswered points and kept the Lobos (3-7, 1-4 MW) off the scoreboard after halftime.

Safety Alexander Teubner said the defense didn’t change anything schematically.

“It was simple technique and fundamentals, like tackling on the perimeter and staying on top of the deep ball,” he said. “It’s all competitive, and we know we just have to come out on top when our number is called.”

Boise State also did a nice job pressuring New Mexico freshman quarterback Devon Dampier, who was making the first start of his career. The Broncos sacked him three times. Edge rusher Ahmed Hassanein was credited with two, giving him nine on the season. Boise State hasn’t had a player finish a season with at least 10 sacks since Curtis Weaver posted 13.5 in 2019.

“He was chasing the quarterback quite a bit tonight,” Avalos said. “That’s a piece of it. We have to continue to improve our pass defense, but it’s not just coverage. It’s being able to apply pressure on the quarterback.”

The Broncos were also led by a quarterback making his first career start, though he was hardly a rookie. Avalos named Madsen, a redshirt freshman, the starter on Friday. He replaced Green, who started the previous 19 games.

Madsen had the offense cooking in the first half. He completed 6-of-11 passes for 202 yards and threw the passes Bolt and Strachan hauled in for touchdowns, but disaster struck in the closing seconds of the half. He went down with a knee injury and did not return. That left Green to run the offense after halftime, and he didn’t disappoint.

He led two scoring drives, both of which ended with field goals by Jonah Dalmas, and completed 5-of-6 passes for 63 yards. He also scored on a 19-yard touchdown run in the first half.

Green said he was playing for his injured teammate.

“It was definitely an electric first half, and I just wanted to pick up where he started,” Green said. “It’s a team game, so I know he has my back and I know I have his back, too.”

Instant analysis: Boise State’s offense explodes vs. Lobos despite absence of playmakers

Saturday’s win ensured that the Broncos will finish the season with a winning record at Albertsons Stadium. They improved to 4-1 at home. Suddenly struggling Air Force comes to town Nov. 24 for the regular season finale.

More importantly, Saturday’s win and some improbable scores from around the conference kept Boise State alive in the Mountain West title game hunt.

The Broncos entered the weekend needing Fresno State, UNLV and Air Force to lose multiple games if they’re going to make the championship game for the fourth time in the past five years. Fresno State and Air Force both lost on Saturday. The Bulldogs (8-2, 4-2) fell to San Jose State 42-18, and the Falcons (8-2, 5-1) inexplicably lost to Hawaii 27-13.

Air Force has lost two games in a row, having dropped a nonconference game to Army last weekend.

UNLV (8-2, 5-1) beat Wyoming this week, but the Rebels play at Air Force next and close with San Jose State at home.

Making the championship game seemed highly unlikely two days ago, but now Boise State is back in the hunt.

“Some crazy things have to happen,” Teubner said. “But we’re going to continue playing for each other and the love of the game.”

The Broncos hit the road Saturday for another conference game at Utah State (5 p.m., CBS Sports Network). Boise State is just 1-4 away from Albertsons Stadium this season. The Aggies (5-5, 3-3) defeated Nevada on Saturday.