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| TCU's Josh Boyce pulls away from a Bronco defender to score a two point conversion. |
The latest evidence happened Saturday, when the TCU Horned Frogs walked out of Bronco Stadium with a rare, dramatic come-from-behind win.
TCU converted a successful two-point play late in the third quarter to draw even with Boise 28-28.
Then with Boise State seemingly in firm control 35-28 late in the fourth quarter, Broncos backup running back Drew Wright fumbled.
Horned Frogs quarterback Casey Pachall torched the Broncos secondary, marching his team down the field, before firing a 25-yard touchdown pass with 1:05 left in the game.
Again TCU coach Gary Patterson made a gusty call and it worked. Pachall tossed a short pass to Josh Boyce, who fought his way into the end zone for two-points putting TCU up 36-35.
Any victory by a road team on the blue turf is basically unprecedented. And there's a reason: the refs.
Boise State got bailed out by the officials on a phantom pass interference call after a fourth down incompletion on its final drive. But, redshirt freshman kicker Dan Goodale badly missed a 39-yard field goal attempt a few plays later.
The Horned Frogs win ended Boise State's 65-game regular season home winning streak and 47-game home conference streak.
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| The Vandals celebrate after Joel Thomas scored on a two-point conversion to win in overtime (1998). |
The Vandals also won the 2009 Humanitarian Bowl on the blue field, by making a successful two-point conversion with just four seconds left in the game.
And while it wasn't in Boise, who can forget the Broncos signature Fiesta Bowl win using the Statue of Liberty to beat an average Oklahoma squad in 2006?
The magic of two-point conversions has been woven into that ugly blue field.
2 comments:
I think it’s interesting that BSU’s greatest triumph and most recent “oops” moment both involved two point conversions. For those of us still upset by the “it worked on Idaho” statue of liberty play that defeated OU half a decade ago in overtime, last Saturday’s game provided some closure and signaled the beginning of the not-so-good days that lie ahead for the Broncos.
While I wouldn’t go so far as to say that last Saturday requires an obituary, the future isn’t so bright in Boise. Think for a moment about the things that helped propel the Broncos to the blue and orange headed stepchildren that they are. A perfect storm of unique geography and climate, conference affiliation, scheduling, and trendy “underdog” non-AQ status allowed an otherwise forgettable school to be catapulted into the national spotlight.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, they did “all of that winning,” too. Congratulations. They’ve had a couple of strong teams and some high quality NFL-level talent has come through Boise. However, being close to California, playing in a pathetic conference, scheduling one to two games a year against opponents with a pulse (almost all in the first or second games of the season), and the charm of a blue field (not actually charming…) let a team that’d be lucky to compete in the Pac-10 live at the top of the polls.
Oh how things change. Now that they’re in the Mountain West things are different. Repeating a worn out script, BSU scheduled Georgia in week 1 and defeated them. It’d be a sexy win if they played now, but week 1 Georgia wasn’t playing at near the level of the 8-2 version that the suddenly motivated SEC squad is now. Call it a good win if you want. They’ve since struggled at home v Air Force and lost to a rebuilding TCU team.
Good luck when you reach the Big East. You know who isn’t in the Big East? Teams like the Lobos, Rebels, Cowboys, or any of the mostly pathetic schools from the WAC. If they can dominate in the Big East then I’ll start to believe. Until then, they’re just a trendy team that fits in the underdog narrative that everyone loves…except those that know football and like its feted teams to be worthy of the praise.
Nich, as much as I want to write the obit on this program, I wouldn't go so far as to bury the Broncos just yet. Especially when considering AP voters elevate teams in the polls based solely on win-loss record. But I like what TCU linebacker Tank Carder wrote after the Horned Frogs 36-35 win: "We didn't shock the world. We just reminded them."
What TCU reminded everyone of is that Boise State is a fraudulent top 10 team. Boise's success as you pointed out is based largely on beating a "quality" opponent in the first month of the season, and racking up wins on lesser D-I competition. That's about to get harder if they join the Big East, albeit it's about half the football conference it was just a few years ago.
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