BOISE, Idaho — The first half of Friday night's game was rocky to say the least. The Broncos weren't able to score any points, Taylen Green threw an interception, and San Diego State blocked a punt and returned it for a touchdown. The start of the game started to reflect the turmoil of the last week for the Boise State football team.
That was until the first drive of the second half when bronco defensive back, Tyreque Jones, got an interception.
The Broncos didn't look back after that.
"It wasn’t like we went in there and had some Space Jam water and just all of the sudden started to get some juices." Jones said about what happened during half time. "I mean I feel like a lot of it just came, like BJ said, off of that pick that I got like it was just a momentum swing. It kind of got guys going, it woke guys up.”
The Broncos went on to score 35 unanswered points. They totaled 273 rushing yards in the second half. All five of their touchdowns came on the ground. Two from new starting quarterback Taylen Green, two from veteran back George Holani, and one coming from back Ashton Jeanty.
The win was something head coach Andy Avalos said was a pay off for the team's hard work, after having to shift gears in five days with a new offensive coordinator.
“We’re just really excited for the players," Said Avalos. "They saw a return on investment today in what they invested in this week and what they committed to and that’s what we’re most proud of.”
The BSU defense did what they have been doing all year. If you take away the blocked punt that was returned for a touchdown, the defense only let up six points.
If the defense stays consistent, and the offense turns around, Holani thinks the team could be a force.
“Thirty five unanswered points in the second half, as an offense that’s really scary," Said Holani, "Especially just running the ball. We really ran the ball, we were really aggressive in the run game. Later on down the road we’re going to get the receivers open and thats going to be even scarier.”
The team will have a long week as they play Fresno State on Saturday at Albertsons Stadium. The game starts at 7:45 and will be broadcast on FS1.
