Fiesta On the Blue: Broncos Beat Aggies, Fresno State Up Next
October 6, 2026
Article By Josh Fife
Twenty years.
Hard to believe it’s been that long.
We probably all remember where we were on “that night”. The word “memorable” would be the understatement of the century, but this last week was HEAVY on nostalgia. I won’t lie; I probably rewatched the big three plays via various reels and tweets close to 100 times over the last seven days. It never gets old.
And neither does beating the Aggies, as the Broncos improved to 26-5 against Utah State all time by beating USU 37-18 on Saturday. And as incredible as the nostalgia has been the last seven days, it’s once again time to put it aside, move on, and get ready for the next game.
1-0 Mentality, always.
Another thing I remember after that ’07 Fiesta Bowl win was the 2nd game of the next season, when the Huskies of Washington laid the smack down on Boise State, beating the Broncos 24-10 in Washington. There was a sense of humility that set in. Ian Johnson was held to just 81 yards, and QB Taylor Tharp threw three picks and lost a fumble as well.
Brutal humility call. (I hate to say it, but a humility call that may be needed at times, as miserable as they are.)
Now, another reminder of humility. Boise State faces a fiercely competitive Fresno State team this weekend, who are on their own four game winning streak. Along with it comes a three-game streak against Boise State. Last season’s tail-kicking of 30-7 should be fresh in everyone’s memories.
Buckle up Bronco Fam, I’ve got a lot of numbers to throw at you.
Fresno holds a 4-1 record, their only loss a 39-0 drubbing against USC. But we all know first games are, possibly, the biggest learning moment a team has all year, and it seems Fresno has learned a lot as they’ve put up a lot of points and given up very few since. Their defense has allowed only 43 points in the last four games, and their offense has scored 139. That’s an average of 34 to 10 in that span. The stats in those games may not astound, but there is zero doubt the Bulldogs are on a roll.
Last year’s 30-7 Fresno W on The Blue still stings (maybe “burns” is more apt). As a BSU die-hard, nothing is worse than watching our boys lose on The Blue, especially in that fashion. I don’t care if it’s backup QB’s, RB’s, WR’s, TE’s or backup waterboys. Taking that kind of L on The BLUE? Ugh. Still ugh. Massive UGH.
I’m posting that score front-and-center.
30-7.
Prior to that, the ’23 Fresno loss was really the start of a chain of events that made that season (for better or worse) one of the most memorable seasons in Boise State history. The week after the ’23 Fresno State loss (37-30), we beat New Mexico 42-14, a sound win. One night later, however, we learned that interim head coach Spencer Danielson would be taking over, as Andy Avalos was fired following the victory over UNM.
And in ’22, perhaps the worst of ‘em all. While last year’s 30-7 painful memory is still with us, the Mountain West Championship game loss sucks THE MOST.
That’s TWO in a row on The Blue to Fresno State, along with the ’23 loss at their house.
Three. In. A. Row.
Trivia time. Since 2000, only three teams have won three consecutive games against the Broncos. Any guesses? (Take a second, don’t look ahead.)
Answer: This current Fresno State team, the Washington Huskies (’19, ’23, ‘25), and Air Force (’14, ’15 and ’16). Since 2000? No four game losing streaks to any team, period. NONE.
In fact, the last team we’ve lost four in a row against? Our “rival” from up north, the Idaho Vandals (and, terribly enough, it was 12 in a row from 1982 to 1993. On a separate note – shout out to the Vandals for the last-second W over #1 Montana State! Big time for that program during a ROUGH start to the year.) Moreover, U of I is the only team since BSU joined the world of four-year schools in 1968 to win four or more consecutive games against the Broncos.
All that to say: Bronco Nation…if you’re going to “The Valley” this weekend, PLEASE make them hear you. PLEASE show up and be the most obnoxious (albeit kind), noisy, scream-until-you-can’t-anymore fan base they’ve ever heard. And if you’re watching from home, scream-until-you-can’t-anymore as well. Send the vibes through the TV-sphere.
So how do the Broncos finally get these Bulldogs off their back? Let’s dive in.
Statistically speaking, defense is the strength of this Bulldog team, although some categories are definitely lacking in sheer numbers. One scary place Fresno stands out? Turnover Margin, where they are 4th in the nation (+8). They are also tied for 4th in the nation in Turnovers Gained (11). Coach Spencer Danielson even hinted in his press conference that if we weren’t playing them this year, he’d be picking the FSU staff’s brain on what they’re doing to create said turnovers.
On rush defense, it’s a bit of a mixed bag. FSU did hold San Jose State and Washington State to under 100 yards rushing each (91 and 30…yes, 30…respectively). But their game against Rice? The Owls ran for 344 yards. Granted, Rice put up 46 rushing attempts, but they still averaged 7.5 yards per rush. Rice is only one of 19 teams ranked ahead of BSU in rushing offense. Most of that top-20 rushing offense came from their game against Fresno, however. With BSU’s O-Line playing at the elite level they are, I could see the Broncos putting up well over 200 rushing yards, especially if Sire Gaines is back in the mix. Even if he’s not, watch for BSU to continue pounding the rock on the ground.
Over on the passing defense side of things, Fresno has a similar ranking to where Western Michigan stood when they played BSU. WMU entered as 60th in passing defensive efficiency, while Fresno State comes in at 55th. We won’t get into nuances of each team’s coverage and schemes, but statistically speaking, they are on similar grounds. And how’d Maddog fare there? He went 16 for 23 with 204 yards, 3 TD’s, no picks, and a QBR of 96.6 (aka, ELITE level game). Let’s hope for more of the same here. One thing to watch for – the Bulldogs are tied for 6th in the nation with 7 picks. This may be Madsen’s biggest test since the Oregon game as far as defenses are concerned.
Just a few other stats to throw your way. Fresno ranks 77th in rush defense, giving up 140+ yards a game, as well as 74th in total defense yards per game (358 ypg). While Boise State falls below that (87th, 372 ypg), we all know the vast majority of yards against BSU’s defense has come off of explosive plays. Everyone under the sun has expounded on that, so we’ll avoid that topic here. We know it, we see it, it MUST get better or the Broncos are in MASSIVE trouble.
So, stats abound, where does Boise State win this game? Let’s investigate the Three Big Things against the Bulldogs this coming Saturday.
The Three Big Things
1. Bully the Bulldogs on First Downs
This will be crucial against Fresno State this week, and maybe BSU’s biggest advantage as far as current statistical categories goes. BSU’s First-Down-Offense is tied for 24th in the nation, while Fresno’s First-Down-Defense is tied for 62nd. On the flip side, FSU’s First-Down-Offense ranks 100th in the nation, while BSU’s First-Down-Defense ranks 24th. Getting those six-to-eight-yard plays on first down will be massively important. Keeping the FSU defense guessing through play action, getting the continued up-front push from the O-Line, and letting Maddog do what he’s done best this season – that is, picking defenses apart methodically – is a must. It starts here for me. If we can win first downs on both offense and defense the whole game, Fresno may be in for a long game.
2. Keep the Momentum on the Road – No Fumbles, No Picks
On the road, hostile environment, a team that would LOVE to be that first one to get four W’s against us since we joined the ranks of four-year-schools in 1968? We’ve GOT to keep the ball out of their defensive hands.
Maddog has proven absolutely elite in this area this year (some comparisons are even giving him Kellen-like praise through the first five games of the season), but he hasn’t faced a defense like this since week one. Maddog has also given us every reason to believe his senior campaign IS different than previous seasons. Heady/Brilliant, quick decisions when under pressure, run when needed, and a couple of absolute DIMES against Utah State. (Maddux’s pass to Nitro Wright on 1st down with just under 9 ½ minutes left in the 4th quarter was unbelievable, go back and watch it.) Also worth noting, the fourth-quarter three-play drive that led to the Ben Ford TD? All three plays were on play-action passes. Get the run game going early, make that FSU defense second guess everything, get the Bulldogs on their heels, and take the crowd out of it as early as possible. (One more thing. Maddog is one of four QB’s this year with 10+ TD’s and no picks, AND is the only BSU QB in the FBS era to go the first five games of a season with zero interceptions thrown. Absolutely incredible.)
3. PLEASE, At the Very Least, LIMIT Explosives
FSU has an incredibly speedy and smart receiver in Josiah Freeman (comes in at 65th in the nation in receiving yards). Is he worth doubling in coverage for most of the game? Possibly.
We all know the explosives are what’s kept teams “close” (I use that term loosely). Coach D has said it in multiple press conferences now. And, you know that staff is doing everything it can to help their players improve in this area, but at some point, it IS on the players to fix this. Heads on swivels when a receiver gets a step or two on them could (hopefully) lead to pass break ups, at the very least, and maybe another pick or two at best. We’ve GOT to try something different, otherwise it’s looking like Einstein’s insanity. And while Utah State didn’t have the deep threat going, it is the thing on defense that has hurt us the most this year. (*Note: The Aggies did have run plays of 64,46, 15, and 10, along with passes of 22, 25, 31, and 27.) A little better on not getting beat deep on the passing plays, but 64 and 46 yard runs aren’t great to see. Those plays will generate an insane amount of momentum for the Bulldogs if they can get them, something we cannot afford this week. Explosives happen from time to time, yes. But they shouldn’t be happening time and time again. Let’s hope another week of fine-tuning in practice keeps these to a minimum against a VERY motivated Bulldog team.
Bonus Big Thing – Broncos Are Money on Money Downs
Boise State leads the nation on “Money Down” defense, where opponents are only converting on 22% on third and fourth downs. This, again, is a momentum keeper and killer, especially on fourth downs, where BSU has given up just one of 12 attempts. If BSU can dominate in this area again, I just can’t see a world where Fresno gets out of this game with a W.
Bronco Fam, we are (and should be) SO jacked for this team this year. I’m going to say it again, as it bears repeating, but this TEAM feels far more TEAM than other teams in the past. We will all live on the Jeanty-high for years to come. That was such an incredibly special season, especially with the CFP appearance. And no doubt, the team had to be successful to allow Jeanty to do his thing.
But this one’s different. I am starting to think last year’s group had several/alot “Me-Me-Me” guys, even if it wasn’t super “out loud”. I don’t get ANY sense of that this year. The vibe I get (hold your breath, hot take coming) is WAY more of those early Fiesta Bowl teams than the ’24 CFP team, and light years above last year’s MWC ‘ship team.
And THAT makes me more excited than anything.
Because we know the best versions of our Broncos in the last three decades have come when the TEAM comes first. When the staff, the players, the support and the community coalesce around the idea that The BLUE is OURS, the players are ONE, the fans support through EVERYTHING, and that ANYTHING is possible.
THAT is when Boise State is at its most dangerous. If BSU brings in that 1-0 Mentality to Fresno this weekend, and they get the “little things” fixed (or at least worked on) I could see Boise getting out of the Valley with a 10 to 15 point victory. But again, this team cannot take anything for granted. Every week, 1-0. Us too, fans.
Bronco Fam, we’re back to ELITE status as a fan base, once again. Let’s stay here for a while, huh? Win or lose, we LOVE this team. And if you’re at FSU’s stadium on Saturday, make sure all those red-wearing Bulldogs fans remember The BLUE of Boise State.
Go Broncos!
Teams To Watch This Weekend
#20 Iowa @ Washington (Friday)
#21 UCLA @ #13 Oregon
#22 Houston @ Kansas State
North Carolina @ #25 Pittsburgh
#10 LSU @ #26 Kentucky
#34 James Madison @ Georgia Southern
#35 North Dakota State @ UNLV