Beware of Boise State
Unbeaten Broncos could be challenge for Big 12 champs

By John Helsley

Published: December 4, 2006

Sunday's BCS bowl pairings delivered Oklahomans all the delight and anticipation of a Griswald Christmas lighting.

There was the curiosity, followed swiftly by a realization that those favorite flashing strings of strobes just weren't coming on.

Oh boy, Boise State.

Go ahead, say it, if you haven't already.

You're allowed.

That's the downside of Oklahoma-Boise State.

And the danger.

These guys — they're the Broncos, by the way — just maybe can play.

Sure looks that way.

Unbeaten WAC champs. 12-0. A running back, sophomore Ian Johnson, who deserves All-America consideration with 1,613 yards and 24 touchdowns in 11 games. Senior quarterback Jared Zabransky's thrown for 2,325 yards and 20 touchdowns with seven interceptions.

Boise ranks sixth in rushing offense at 228.3 yards per game, 11th in total offense at 424.25 and second in scoring offense, averaging 39.42 points per outing.

Temper all that, of course, with the fact that it is the Western Athletic Conference. Can you name the league lineup?

How about if I spot you Idaho, New Mexico State and Louisiana Tech?

Louisiana Tech? In the Western Athletic Conference?

Exactly. It's a spillover league of leftovers and misfits (Fresno State).

"No, they're a great team," Sooner safety Reggie Smith said of the Broncos. "They've got a great running back. I watched them play a couple of times. And they've got a good quarterback.

"It's going to be a challenge."

Said wide receiver Malcolm Kelly: "The only thing I know is they're 12-0."

The Sooners sound sold.

But are OU fans buying?

Well, it is a trip offering sun and fun…

Beware, Sooners and Sooner fans.

This is serious business for Boise State.

"Bring 'em on," Boise wide receiver Jerard Rabb told the Idaho Statesman earlier in the week, when the opponent options were Oklahoma and Nebraska. "That's all I can say."

Broncos fans, too. Happen to catch the 5,000 or so who showed up on campus for a "watch party" to learn of a destination they already knew?

The Broncos are carrying the flag of every non-BCS school and the backing of underdogs everywhere in taking on the tradition-rich Sooners.

Because of an added BCS game and relaxed rules allowing schools like Boise a shot at crashing the party, the Broncos are only the second "outsider" to claim a bid in the championship series.

Utah made it in 2005 — and pounded Pittsburgh.

"I think it's great," said SEC commissioner Mike Slive, the BCS coordinator. "I think we've got a great team. It's a Cinderella team. They've met the criteria we set forward.

"They've played on the field and earned it."

And in the Fiesta Bowl, they'll play for the greatest stakes in the program's history.

"It helps take our program to the next level to be mentioned in the same breath with Oklahoma," Broncos coach Chris Petersen said. "Those guys are perennial football powers. For us to get a chance to compete in a bowl like this, it just shows where this program's headed."

Don't be mistaken, however. For Boise, it's about more than appearances.

"We need to show well," Petersen said. "We're going there to win the game. We're not going there to just show up.

"One thing I feel confident about our guys, I know they're not just going there for a fiesta party, they're going there to play a football game. And we need to do well."

The Sooners will insist the same. And they better mean it.

Oh man, Boise State.