Boise blues continue for Bulldogs in 24-17 loss

BOISE, Idaho – No. 16/17 Fresno State fell to Boise State 24-17, losing its first Mountain West game of the season on Friday night at Albertsons Stadium after a furious second half comeback by the Broncos who registered 21 unanswered points. The Bulldogs (8-2, 5-1 MW) totaled 390 yards of offense, passing for 283 yards while Boise State (8-2, 5-1 MW) finished the game with 448 yards of offense, the most allowed by Fresno State this season.

Senior quarterback Marcus McMaryion threw for one touchdown and connected on 24-of-35 passes for 283 yards. Senior wide receiver KeeSean Johnson matched his season-high of eight receptions and finished with a team-high 95 yards. Johnson scored the Bulldogs' first touchdown of the night, a three-yard reception. On the ground, sophomore running back Ronnie Rivers had 33 yards on seven carries and scored the Bulldogs' lone rushing touchdown which gave the 'Dogs a 17-3 lead early in the third quarter.

Junior linebacker Jeff Allison led the team on defense with 14 tackles, seven solo. The 'Dogs grabbed their 16th interception of the season as junior free safety Juju Hughes had the only turnover of the game. It was his fourth career interception and third of the season. The Bulldog defense has forced 22 turnovers on the season while surrendering just seven.

How It Happened
Brett Rypien opened the game with a 41-yard pass to Sean Modster on the first play from scrimmage to put Boise State on the Fresno State 30-yard line. After that, the Bulldogs defense tightened up and the Broncos settled for a Haden Hoggarth 50-yard field goal attempt that sailed wide left.

After the Broncos forced a punt on the Bulldogs' first offensive drive, they moved the ball down inside the red zone. But again, BSU settled for a field goal attempt but this attempt was true, connecting on a 35-yard attempt for a 3-0 lead and 6:37 left on the clock in the first quarter.

Late in the first quarter, Fresno State's offense got things going, using just four plays to flip the field and get the ball into the red zone following a 38-yard reception by Johnson. Two plays later, McMaryion found Johnson for a three-yard score to give the 'Dogs a 7-3 lead with 14:12 remaining in the second quarter.

With Boise State methodically marching down the field, the Bulldogs' defense stood tall inside the red zone, on the 15th play of the Broncos' drive, they lined up for a field goal on fourth-and-3 at the 12-yard line, but the Broncos opted for trickery. On the fake, James Bailey sniffed it out and wrapped the legs of Hoggarth to stop them short and turn the ball over on downs. On Fresno State's ensuring possession, the 'Dogs moved the ball 66 yards on 10 plays, but missed a 38-yard field goal attempt.

With the Broncos looking to take advantage of the missed field goal before the half, Juju Hughes picked off Rypien in the end zone to end the threat and left the offense with 1:14 to capitalize. The 'Dogs drove it 37 yards and gave Asa Fuller an attempt of 47 yards that he snuck inside the right upright to give the Bulldogs a 10-3 lead as time expired on the first half.

Fresno State opened up the second half with the ball, and as they did they did the previous three games, they manufactured points. The 'Dogs went 75 yards on seven plays and extended its lead to 14 with Rivers capping the drive with a one-yard touchdown plunge on fourth down.

From that point on, it was all Boise State. Down 17-3, the Broncos answered the Bulldogs first possession score with a TD of their own using a 12-play drive to pull their deficit back to seven, 17-10. The linchpin of the drive was registering 15 yards on third-and-16 from the FS 47-yard line that was followed by a fourth down conversion. Alex Mattison capped the drive with a seven-yard run. It was the first score for a Bulldog opponent on their opening possession of the second half this season.

At the 14:57 mark in the fourth quarter, Boise State tied the game 17-17. The Broncos moved the ball 58 yards down to the one-yard line at the close of the third quarter and Mattison knotted the game with a one-yard score to start the fourth. The Broncos struck again with 9:22 remaining in the game for the go-ahead score, 24-17, as they moved the ball 34 yards before Rypien found Khalil Shakir down the middle for a 49-yard touchdown on third-and-8 to take the lead.

Fresno State moved the ball into Boise State territory on their final two possessions. The first try fell short as a 50-yard field attempt was blocked on fourth-and-10 from the 30-yard line. The 'Dogs forced a three-and out and got the ball back for once last chance with 5:11 on the clack. The 'Dogs made it as far as the Boise State 29-yard line, but on fourth-and-11 McMaryion's pass attempt down the middle for Johnson was broken up to seal the game for Boise State.

Quotable
Tedford on how the game changed in the second half…
"They made a lot of plays in the second half and you have to give them credit for that. It was a hard-fought game offensively. They kept the chains moving and made some big plays.

Tedford on Boise State's offense moving the ball against the Bulldogs' defense in the second half...
"I thought they moved the ball fairly effectively most of the game. They have a great offense, with a lot of playmakers. They have a good running back and their quarterback killed us a bit when we would have the coverage but then he'd run the ball to make a play. They played well tonight and we made too many mistakes."

Tedford on if the team lacked experience in close games…
"No, our guys played hard all the way until to the end. It had nothing to do with that. This was two good football teams. We played at their place. We give them credit for what they did tonight."

Tedford on moving past this game…
"We will bounce back. I have a lot of confidence in this team. The guys competed hard, we just came up short tonight. Next week is a new week. We will stay together and work hard and get ready for the next game."

Notables

Fresno State's seven-game win streak was snapped at Boise State.
Fresno State dropped to 8-1 in games when holding a first half lead.
Fresno State has won 17 of its last 21 games overall.
Fresno State owns the nation's lead in consecutive games (21) of limiting opponents under 30 points.
The Bulldogs dropped to 8-1 in 2018 and 16-2 under Jeff Tedford when leading after three quarters. Both loses are to Boise State.
Fresno State suffered its first regular season Mountain West road loss under Jeff Tedford (7-1).
Fresno State has not won at Boise State since its first trip to Boise before it was the blue turf on Sept. 8, 1984 under Jim Sweeney. The 'Dogs have dropped 10-straight since.
KeeSean Johnson surpassed 3,000 yards receiving, becoming the fourth player in program history to do so.
KeeSean Johnson extended his nation-leading streak of consecutive games with at least one catch to 46.
Boise State became the first defense to record multiple sacks in a game. The three sacks allowed were the most in a single game by an opponent since allowing four to San Jose State on Nov. 26, 2016.
Alex Mattison's 144 yards rushing were the most allowed by a Bulldog team since Alabama's Jalen Hurts rushed for 154 on Sept. 9, 2017.
Jeff Allison led the team in tackles with 14. Allison has led the team in tackles 15 times in 23 career starts. He has collected 10 or tackles on 11 occasions.

Up Next
Fresno State returns home on Nov. 17 to host San Diego State. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. PT and will broadcast on CBS Sports Network.

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Fresno State Athletics

Boise blues continue for Bulldogs in 24-17 loss

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Players Mentioned

Jeff Allison

James Bailey

Asa Fuller

Juju Hughes

KeeSean Johnson

Marcus McMaryion

Ronnie Rivers

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