Joe Southwick's passing keyed a big day for the Broncos offense. (Brian Losness-US PRESSWIRE)
BOISE, Idaho — The Boise State defense has provided plenty of room for the offense to find its groove.
The No. 24 Broncos shut out their opponent in the first half Saturday at Bronco Stadium for the fifth straight game and rolled to a 32-7 victory over UNLV.
The Rebels’ only points came off a fourth-quarter fumble by backup quarterback Grant Hedrick that was returned for a touchdown.
“It’s fun to watch — loving their effort,” Boise State quarterback Joe Southwick said of the defense. “They’re doing a good job of getting the ball for us, getting us good field position. It’s three phases — defense is holding up their end and special teams did a good job
tonight and offense did a good job tonight.”
Southwick was 22-of-30 passing for 243 yards with several drops. His only interception was a Hail Mary on the final play of the first half.
The Broncos (6-1, 3-0 Mountain West) added 137 rushing yards and addressed previous problems at the goal line by scoring on both plays they ran inside the 5-yard line.
“It was a little more rhythm,” Boise State coach Chris Petersen said. “I think Joe did a nice job. He’s getting better and progressing. … On offense, we’re making progress. We’re certainly not there. You can feel it — it’s just some details. We’ve got to get some things cleaned up.”
The closest UNLV came to scoring was a 20-play, 66-yard drive that bridged the third and fourth quarters. The Rebels decided on a field-goal attempt to break up the shutout and the usually reliable Nolan Kohorst yanked the 22-yarder wide left.
The Rebels (1-7, 1-2) finished with 210 yards, including just 71 passing yards. They were averaging 253 passing yards per game.
“They whipped our tail today,” UNLV coach Bobby Hauck said. “They came out and they played very well. I was impressed with the way they played.”
Boise State took an 8-0 lead with 5:47 left in the first quarter. The Broncos got the ball at the UNLV 42-yard line after a series of mistakes forced the Rebels into a fourth-and-39 at their own 4.
The scoring drive was keyed by a 20-yard pass from Southwick to wide receiver Matt Miller. Tailback D.J. Harper capitalized, going untouched on a 10-yard touchdown run. Harper added the two-point conversion on a swinging-gate play.
The Broncos made it 11-0 early in the second quarter. Harper’s 35-yard run set up Michael Frisina’s 30-yard field goal.
The Rebels looked like they might crack the end zone midway through the second quarter. A pass interference penalty helped them reach the 26. On third down, quarterback Nick Sherry lofted a pass to the front corner of the end zone. Cornerback Jerrell Gavins reached up — he
didn’t appear to look at the ball — and intercepted the pass at the goal line.
Boise State’s offense responded with a quick 80-yard touchdown drive. Southwick hit sophomore wide receiver Dallas Burroughs on a post route for 47 yards and tailback Jay Ajayi crashed into the end zone from 4 yards for an 18-0 lead with 4:09 left in the half.
Moments later, UNLV wide receiver Marcus Sullivan fought for a first down but was stripped by cornerback Jamar Taylor. The ball popped right into the hands of Gavins, who ran 16 yards for the touchdown and a 25-0 lead.
Boise State missed a field-goal attempt early in the second half but added a touchdown on Harper’s 1-yard run with 9:22 left in the third quarter for a 32-0 lead.
Cornerback Kenneth Penny scored the Rebels’ TD. He scooped up Hedrick’s fumble and returned it 30 yards.
Notes: Boise State starting defensive end Demarcus Lawrence sat out the game because of a violation of team rules. … UNLV starting safety Peni Vea didn’t make the trip because of an arm injury. Freshman Kenny Keys replaced him. … UNLV left tackle Brett Boyko did not play. …
Boise State wore all-black uniforms for the first time. … Boise State tailback Drew Wright played for the first time in four games. … Sherry was injured late in the game, but Hauck said he expects him to play next week.
