It’s another year and things are mostly the same at Boise State. Despite not having an elite squad, the Broncos tore through the MWC last season en route to a 12-2 record, albeit a season-ending blowout against Washington in the Las Vegas Bowl.
This year should be fairly similar with another double-digit win campaign in sight, though a National Championship remains a long shot with 500 to 1 early preseason odds, equal to that of teams like Baylor and South Carolina. (available at 5 dimes)
Hank Bachmeier Leads the Offense
The Broncos should be fine offensively because of quarterback Hank Bachmeier, who should grow as a sophomore. While his numbers weren’t great last year, completing 8.6 yards per attempt for nine touchdowns and six picks, that’s sometimes all that’s needed in the MWC.
While John Hightower is gone, Bachmeier still gets to work with receivers Khalil Shakir (872 yards, 6 TDs) and CT Thomas (522 yards, 5 TDs), as well as upcoming speedster Stefan Cobbs.
The backfield is in an even better situation with both George Holani (1,014 yards, 7 TDs) and Robert Mahone (425 yards, 6 TDs) returning to their roles. Despite all this talent, the line could be an issue with just one player having starting experience. This isn’t often an issue for Boise, but without a regular preseason, gelling the line won’t be easy.
Business as Usual for the Defense
It should be business as usual on the defensive side after allowing 20.6 points per game last year. They weren’t dominant, but they did enough to go undefeated in conference play. The question is if new playmakers can step up in the front seven.
Outside of nose tackle Scale Igiehon, there are questions on the edges and who will get to the quarterback. That could be Demitri Washington coming from the outside, though another option is needed on the other side.
The bonus is that linebacker Ezekiel Noah is back after going down with an injury early last year. Corners Jalen Walker and Avery Williams could give the Broncos the best one-two combo in the conference, while safety loses some studs, yet still has experience to work with. Similar to last year, Boise isn’t going to be dominant defensively, but it’ll be enough to lead the conference.
Bryan Harsin’s teams are usually all about consistency and there’s no reason this year will be different. That said, the schedule isn’t overly easy, which doesn’t help coming off a limited offseason.
The early trips to Air Force and Marshall with a home game against FSU in the middle could all be losses if they aren’t careful. Sure, they could be favored in every other game, including the MWC Championship, but another mediocre campaign by Bachmeier won’t get the job done.
If the ground game doesn’t lose a step with a new offensive line, Boise will be in business, but it may be a little harder for them to go undefeated in MWC play again.
2020 Boise State Broncos Schedule
Sept. 5 vs. Georgia Southern
Sept. 12 at Air Force
Sept. 19 vs. Florida State (early preseason line BSU -1)
Sept. 25 at Marshall
Oct. 3 vs. San Jose State
Oct. 17 vs. Utah State
Oct. 24 at Hawai’i
Oct. 31 vs. UNLV
Nov. 6 vs. BYU
Nov. 14 at New Mexico
Nov. 21 at Wyoming
Nov. 28 vs. Colorado State