November 23, 2025

Article By Nick Wade

BOISE, Idaho – Boise State walked into Senior Night carrying the weight of an uneven season, the noise of outside doubt, and the math of a Mountain West race that seemed all but closed only a week ago. Then the lights came up on The Blue, and the entire paradigm shifted. A 49–21 win over Colorado State didn’t just push the Broncos to 7–4 and 5–2 in conference play. It reignited something deeper, something harder to quantify. There was urgency in the air, and an unmistakable sense that the program with college football’s longest active streak of winning seasons—now extended to 28—refuses to go quietly into any night.

Colorado State arrived fighting for its pride; Boise State arrived fighting to keep a door open. And with Fresno State collapsing 28–17 to Utah State later in the night, that door swung wide enough to make the next six days feel like the epilogue to a plot twist nobody saw coming. The Broncos needed a spark, a reason to believe the season still had meaning beyond record books or streaks. They got that, and more, behind a performance that blended invention, toughness, heart, and the kind of efficiency that has been elusive this fall.

It started with a new offensive rhythm that finally felt intentional. There was movement, misdirection, and a willingness to push beyond the familiar. The turning point came on a beautifully designed gadget play that showed the staff’s trust in its players and a recognition that creativity was overdue. Max Cutforth fired a lateral to Cam Bates, who transitioned seamlessly into a passer and dropped a perfect ball to tight end Matt Wagner for fifteen yards and a first down. It wasn’t just a play; it was a message. Boise State can stretch the field without abandoning its identity. It can be both disciplined and daring. And if the coaches continue to open the playbook like this, the offense will only become more difficult to scheme against.

The foundation of the night, though, was the run game. Sire Gaines put together the finest performance of his career, running with a composed smoothness that made every carry feel like a statement. He totaled 149 yards on twenty-two rushes with two touchdowns, his vision and patience turning ordinary holes into explosive gains. Malik Sherrod added fifty-six yards on seven carries, scoring twice with the same suddenness that made him a preseason breakout candidate. And Dylan Riley, ever steady and increasingly vital, hammered out seventy-two yards on fourteen carries, including the team’s longest run of the night at thirty-five yards. With that burst he inched closer to a thousand-yard season, now only 104 yards away from the milestone. Together the trio didn’t just complement each other; they controlled the game in a way that forced Colorado State to defend every inch of the field.

Through the air, Max Cutforth played within himself. He finished twenty-two of thirty-four for 239 yards, distributing the ball rhythmically and navigating pressure with a confidence that has grown each week. His connection with Latrell Caples felt as steady as ever, with Caples pulling in seven catches for seventy yards on his final regular-season game on The Blue. That moment took an emotional turn when Caples absorbed a hit late in the game and remained motionless on the turf. For a few minutes the stadium went quiet, the gravity of the moment sent through the stands like cold air. When he was helped off the field, hope followed him—hope that he clears concussion protocol, hope that he is healthy enough for Friday, and hope that Senior Night wasn’t the final time Bronco Nation sees him run routes under the lights.

Across the other side of the ball, the defensive line delivered one of its clearest and most aggressive performances of the season.  The line attacked gaps with conviction, linebackers filled lanes with clean eyes, and the secondary refused to give up space without a fight. Even without the presence of A’Marion McCoy, whose absence was deeply felt in the secondary, the unit found its anchor in raw urgency.  No one embodied that resolve more than Jeremiah Erby, who stepped into the void left by his best friend and delivered a defining performance. Erby finished with three tackles, two interceptions, and a fumble recovery—a trio of game-changing plays that suffocated Colorado State drives before they ever had a chance to breathe. His instincts were sharp, his breaks were precise, and his leadership radiated through every defensive huddle.

Zion Washington, the defensive player of the game, was a force of nature. With ten tackles, nine of them solo, paired with two sacks and an interception, he was everywhere Colorado State didn’t want him to be. His timing was impeccable, especially on pressures where he closed space like it was collapsing under his feet. The edge of the defense sharpened every time he entered a play, his presence a constant problem for Colorado State protections. Buck Benefield added six more tackles to round out a showing that sparked the crowd and broke the rhythm of an offense that had been picking up steam in recent weeks.

From start to finish, this was a complete game, the kind Boise State has been seeking since early September. It wasn’t perfection. It wasn’t without its emotional moments. But it was authoritative, balanced, and anchored by an energy that suggested something meaningful is happening behind the curtains. Boise State dominated time of possession at nearly thirty-seven minutes, controlled the ground game with 279 rushing yards, and leaned on a defense that forced four turnovers and held the Rams to just thirty-nine rushing yards on the night. Those numbers tell a story of clarity—one where Boise State dictated tempo, imposed its will, and never broke stride.

But the final whistle didn’t just close Senior Night. It cracked open the Mountain West race in a way that feels surreal, even by this season’s unpredictable standard. Yes, Boise State can still make the championship. Yes, Boise State can still host the championship. And yes, they can do it by taking the long way—the back door, as it always seems to be when this conference turns chaotic in November.

With Fresno State’s loss, the road is straightforward and complicated all at once. Boise State must beat Utah State next Friday, and they are in. They hold head-to-head wins over both UNLV and New Mexico. But the real noise begins if San Diego State loses to New Mexico. That outcome would create a three-way logjam at 6–2 between SDSU, Boise State, and New Mexico. Because each team would have beaten one and lost to the other, the league moves to CFP rankings, and because none of these teams will be ranked, the tiebreaker shifts to composite analytics.

Those analytics—SP+, Strength of Record, KPI, and SportSource—slot SDSU at an average of 44 after Week 12, Boise State at 56, and New Mexico at 60. But the margins are close enough for movement. A decisive New Mexico win could drop SDSU behind Boise State. A decisive Boise State win could push them closer to SDSU. And because only the highest-ranked team hosts, the permutations become wild. Boise State could travel, host, or miss the championship entirely depending on how those numbers fall.

There is a path where SDSU holds firm and hosts. There is another where SDSU collapses statistically and Boise State hosts while New Mexico travels. There is even a scenario—however unlikely—where New Mexico beats SDSU so convincingly that they leapfrog everyone, host the title game, SDSU travels, and Boise State slips out of the picture entirely. It’s chaos. Beautiful, mathematical, late-November Mountain West chaos. And Boise State is right at the heart of it again.

But all of those paths share one truth. None of them matter if the Broncos don’t win in Logan. The emotional high of Senior Night only becomes meaningful if it turns into momentum, if the team carries this confidence into a road environment that has historically given them trouble. Utah State just knocked off Fresno State, and their offense is playing with a level of confidence that demands discipline, gap integrity, and clean tackling. Boise State will need the same ferocity they showed tonight, the same balance, the same creativity, and the same connection between offense and defense.

Bronco Nation has seen this before—seasons that felt finished only to surge late, fueled by pride, resilience, and a belief that the door is never truly shut. This team has played through injuries, coaching adjustments, adversity, and pressure. And now, for the first time since early October, the season feels alive again.

This is a team that just honored its seniors with a performance worthy of their legacy. A team that just reminded its conference that blue turf doesn’t fade in November. A team that extended one of the most remarkable streaks in college football. And a team that now stands one game away from playing for a Mountain West title in its final year in the conference.

If you can travel to Logan, do it. If you can make noise, make it. If you can show your support in one of the biggest weeks of the season, this is the time. Boise State’s path may come through the back door, but the opportunity to three-peat and leave the Mountain West on a high is real, alive, and right within reach. The Broncos have kept themselves breathing into the final week of the season.

Now it’s time to finish the job.