BOISE, Idaho — Boise State and BYU will play for the 12th time this Saturday in Provo at 1:30 p.m. with the game airing on ABC.
The Broncos lead the all-time series 7-4, but BYU has won the last two games including handing Boise State their only loss in the 2019 season, now the Broncos have a chance to get revenge on the Cougars who are ranked 10th in the country and haven't lost a game.
"There is no question it has been an unbelievable game," said Boise State head coach Andy Avalos. "A lot of the games have come down to the last minute, it has been an unbelievable series it has gone back to the early 2000s since it’s been that way."
Boise State won the first two meetings in 2003 and 2004, then in 2012, the two schools agreed to play twelve years in a row alternating between Boise and Provo here is the first game of that series.
The teams aren't scheduled to play in 2024, but the schools have another ten-year agreement that would keep this rivalry going.
The embodiment of the 𝗕𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗦𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗶𝘁 ⚒@king_khalil2 will lead the Broncos with the 𝗗𝗮𝗻 𝗣𝗮𝘂𝗹 𝗛𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿 in Game 6!#BleedBlue pic.twitter.com/7I2VeFhK7c
— Boise State Football (@BroncoSportsFB) October 7, 2021
“Regionally it is a huge rivalry game it is always a physical game they have an unbelievable physical team year in and year out," said Avalos. "Kalani has done a tremendous job now that he’s been there for a while and building a foundation within that program."
Questions have emerged on whether the series will continue with BYU joining the Big 12 Conference, the latest agreement has a stipulation that allows either team to opt-out if they join a power five conference, the media asked BYU coach Kalani Sitake but he responded that question should be directed at the BYU athletic director.
“I really appreciate the consistency of playing Boise every year and I appreciate their fan base and their program just the way they do things they are a first-class organization," said Sitake. "This is a rivalry game for us and something we are familiar with."
The look for @BYUfootball this week.#uniswag pic.twitter.com/pH4o9p3PUZ
— UNISWAG (@UNISWAG) October 4, 2021
BYU won the last game in this rivalry 51-17 on the blue last November in a game that didn't feature fans, kickoff on Saturday is 1:30 on ABC.
Boise State will have to play much better than they did last week as the Broncos made several mistakes and had a hard time protecting Hank Bachmeier in a 41-31 loss at home against Nevada. Boise State is 2-3 on the season and 1-1 in the Mountain West as the team looks to gain momentum in this non-conference tilt at BYU.
