Boise State (10-2) vs. East Carolina (7-5)
Dec. 23, 8:00 p.m. ET, ESPN
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 |
|
National
Rankings |
|
East
Carolina |
Boise
State |
|
Total Offense |
|
71st 377.92 ypg |
10th 475.67 ypg |
|
Total Defense |
|
98th 436.42 ypg |
21st 326.50 ypg |
|
Scoring Offense |
|
47th 30.17 ppg |
5th 42.75 ppg |
|
Scoring Defense |
|
80th 29.75 ppg |
21st 20 ppg |
|
Run Offense |
|
38th 171.33 ypg |
29th 192.17 ypg |
|
Run Defense |
|
53rd 29.75 ypg |
24th 114.92 ypg |
|
Pass Offense |
|
75th 206.58 ypg |
22nd 283.50 ypg |
|
Pass Defense |
|
115th 290.58 ypg |
37th 211.58 |
|
Turnover Margin |
|
6th 1.17 |
32nd 0.33 |
|
East
Carolina
at
Va Tech L 17-7
No Carolina W 34-21
So Miss
L 28-21
at
West Va L 48-7
at Houston W 37-35
UCF
W 52-38
at UTEP
W 45-42 OT
NC
State L 34-20
UAB
W 41-6
at Memphis
W 56-40
at
Marshall L 26-7
Tulane
W 35-12 |
Boise State
Weber St
W 56-7
at Wash L 24-10
Wyoming
W 24-14
So Miss
W 38-16
NMSU
W 58-0
Nevada
W 69-67 4OT
at La Tech
W 45-31
at Fres St
W 34-21
SJSU
W 42-7
at Utah St
W 52-0
Idaho
W 58-14
at
Hawaii L 39-27 |
|
Position
Ratings
relative to each
other |
|
ECU |
5
highest
1 lowest |
BSU |
|
3 |
Quarterbacks |
3.5 |
|
4 |
RBs |
4.5 |
|
3 |
Receivers |
3.5 |
|
3.5 |
O
Line |
4 |
|
4 |
D
Line |
3.5 |
|
4 |
Linebackers |
3.5 |
|
1.5 |
Secondary |
4 |
|
3 |
Spec
Teams |
4 |
|
4 |
Coaching |
5 |
|
About a month ago, Boise State was thinking about a
return trip to a BCS bowl game, while East Carolina had its sights
fixed on the Liberty Bowl and a Conference USA championship.
Instead, they’ll meet in Honolulu with an opportunity to soak in one
of the prettiest bowl venues, and end the season on a high note.
Last year’s postseason darlings for beating Oklahoma in the Fiesta
Bowl, Boise State passed on a chance to host Georgia Tech in the
Humanitarian Bowl, opting instead to take its product off the
mainland. Ironically, the Broncos will be returning to the scene of
a Nov. 23 loss to Hawaii that ended any dreams of a repeat
appearance in a big-money, January bowl game.
Considering the turnover at some key spots from last season’s
perfect squad, Boise State has done well to get back to 10 wins for
the seventh time in the last nine years. A lot of the credit
belongs to senior QB Taylor Tharp, who’s proven to be a solid
successor to Jared Zabransky, and a fine one-year solution in a
system that requires the quarterback to distribute the ball without
making mistakes. After starting slowly, Tharp carried a program
that was without star RB Ian Johnson for a time, throwing for more
than 3,000 yards and 28 touchdowns, getting picked just nine times.
Long before kickoff, the school got its first big win of December
when coveted head coach Chris Peterson made it clear he plans on
staying at Boise State for the foreseeable future.
The East Division of Conference USA was there for the taking before
East Carolina squandered control of its own destiny with an
inexcusable loss to 1-8 Marshall. The same UCF team that ECU
throttled in October went on to win the division and the league,
leaving the Pirates to make the longest trek of any of this year’s
64 bowl participants. On a more positive note, the school is
playing in back-to-back bowl games, a sign that it’s making progress
under third-year head coach Skip Holtz. East Carolina has a
game-breaking Johnson of its own, RB Chris Johnson, the nation’s
leader in all-purpose yards, and one of the fastest players in the
country. Whether he’s taking a handoff, catching a pass, or
fielding a kick, the senior is a threat to go the distance with even
a hint of daylight.
Both schools fully expected to be playing in higher
profile games this postseason, meaning whichever one can maintain
its focus with paradise in the backdrop is likely to leave the
islands with a well-deserved victory.
Players to watch: Holtz has had success using two
quarterbacks, strong-armed Rob Kass and the more athletic
Patrick Pinkney. Combined, they’ve tossed 19 touchdown passes,
despite having access to a pedestrian corps of receivers.
Success through the air, however, won’t be easy against a WAC-best
pass defense that’s built around two of the league’s premier
defensive backs, safety Marty Tadman and corner Kyle
Wilson. Tadman and Wilson rate a huge edge over any receiver
that’ll run patterns for East Carolina, meaning it’ll again be up to
Johnson to shoulder the load, even though everyone in blue and
orange has been instructed to not let No. 5 beat them with big
plays.
The best game within a game, by far, pits a talented Boise State
offensive line versus an East Carolina defensive line that boasts
the size and depth of some ACC programs. The Broncos are determined
to reestablish Johnson and a running game that’s slipped
considerably from last year, when the run set up the pass. Paving
the way will be LT Ryan Clady, a 6-6, 320-pound All-American,
who makes NFL scouts gush about his quick feet and agility from a
kid that’s so enormous. Clady, G Tad Miller, C Jeff
Cavender will get a challenge up front from a unit that’s been
stout all year. The headliners are ends C.J. Wilson and
Zack Slate, who’ve combined for 21 tackles for loss and 10.5
sacks.
Boise State will win if... it controls the line of scrimmage.
If the Broncos create seams for Johnson to get to the second level,
they’ll destroy an East Carolina defense that’s thin and weak in the
back seven. If Johnson reverts back to his sophomore form,
Tharp, even without WR Jeremy Childs, who will miss the game after
violating team rules, will have a field day against a Pirate pass
defense that ranks 115th nationally, and has given up 24 touchdown
passes. While the Broncos only scored 27 points the last time we
saw them, don’t forget that in the previous seven games, they
reached 40 points six times.
East Carolina will win if...
dominates the turnover battle. Other than Johnson completely taking
over the game, the Pirates’ best chance for the upset is to generate
takeaways, something they’ve been good at all year. East Carolina
is No. 6 in the country in turnover margin, and when it’s successful
in this area, it usually picks up a win. In a game against a
decidedly better opponent, the Pirates need their defensive backs to
end drives, and their defense to create as many short field
opportunities as possible. If East Carolina isn’t +2 or better in
turnovers, it’ll lose this game by double digits.
What will happen:
Count on there to be plenty of points and plenty of big plays from
backs named Johnson. Playing the hunter instead of the hunted this
postseason, it might take a quarter or even a half before Boise
State realizes it’s a substantially better football team than East
Carolina. The Pirates’ season-long struggles with good offenses
will continue, with Tharp connecting with Childs on a couple of
touchdown passes, and Ian Johnson deliveing his best production
since the Oct. 14 marathon win over Nevada.
Line: Boise State -10.5 ... CFN Prediction: Boise
State 38 ... East Carolina 24
2007 Hawaii Bowl
History, Each Team's Best Bowl Moments, & More