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Tuesday, October 28, 2014.
Early on there was little pressure from Boise State on BYU quarterback Christian Stewart last Friday, but that changed as the game went. At the core was sophomore defensive end Kamalei Correa, who picked up two more sacks and 3.5 tackles-for-loss in the 55-30 win over the Cougars. For his efforts, Correa was named Mountain West Defensive Player of the Week, joining Donte Deayon last week in giving BSU back-to-back defensive honors. The 3.5 stops behind the line of scrimmage were the most by a Bronco since Demarcus Lawrence recorded the same number against Nevada one year ago.
Wittingly or unwittingly, Correa placed some healthy expectations upon himself by switching this year to No. 8, the same jersey worn by Lawrence the previous two seasons. If you compare Correa’s numbers this season with those of Lawrence through eight games as a sophomore in 2012, they’re almost identical. Lawrence had 33 tackles, eight tackles-for-loss and 6.5 sacks at this point two years ago. Correa has 34 tackles, 9.5 for loss, and 5.5 sacks. He has two more seasons to produce a year like Lawrence had in his final go-round as a Bronco. After eight games in 2013, Lawrence had 45 tackles, 12 for loss, and 7.5 sacks.
The Boise State offense has gained some considerable steam this month, going off for 637 yards on BYU. It was the Broncos' second 600-yard game of the season, joining the 676 they laid on Colorado State in September. Boise State hadn’t recorded so much as one 600-yarder since 2011, when they also had two during Kellen Moore’s senior year. And there are five games remaining this season (including a bowl game). The Broncos are averaging 504 yards per game.
Boise State wide receiver Thomas Sperbeck is still getting his feet wet as a sophomore. His numbers pale in comparison with those Matt Miller posted in his second year as a Bronco. But Sperbeck has definitively eased the pain of Miller’s loss, and he is in the flow now that he has his first touchdown and first 100-yard game. Sperbeck gained 148 yards on just six catches against BYU last Friday, just missing Boise State’s single-game top 15 with his 24.7 yards per catch. And he made plays. Sperbeck actually had to adjust his route on the 78-yard bomb that went for a TD, and he made a tremendous leaping 24-yard grab between two defenders to set up another touchdown (doing his best Donte Deayon impression).
Other receivers are making plays for Boise State, too. For the second time in three games, Chaz Anderson made a circus catch, hauling in a 48-yarder while being blanketed by a BYU receiver to set up a touchdown. Anderson had a magnificent grab for a 55-yard gain at Nevada, reminiscent of Titus Young’s legendary catch at the end of regulation in the 2010 game at Mackay Stadium—at about the same spot on the field. Troy Ware notched his first touchdown of the season on a beautiful 19-yard slant route against the Cougars. And the decision to burn Jeremy McNichols’ redshirt year this month has paid handsome dividends.
It looks like Utah State will be going with its No. 4 quarterback when it visits Hawaii this Saturday. The Aggies have been incredibly snakebitten at the position, losing Chuckie Keeton, Darell Garretson and—in a 34-20 win over UNLV Saturday—Craig Harrison. True freshman Kent Myers had to come in and finish the game, and he is expected to start against the Warriors. Myers was 3-of-5 for 45 yards against the Rebels. He also rushed three times for 28 more yards. At Fresno State, the Bulldogs used their bye week to replace starting quarterback Brian Burrell with redshirt freshman Zack Greenlee, who has attempted all of seven passes in his college career. But Fresno State coach Tim DeRuyter finally determined it wasn’t going to work with Burrell (nor Brandon Connette, for that matter). The ‘Dogs host Wyoming Saturday.
Things didn’t get any better for Doug Martin after a bye week. The former Boise State star rushed for only 27 yards on 10 carries behind Tampa Bay’s stuggling offensive line Sunday before leaving the game in the third quarter with an ankle injury in a 19-13 loss to Minnesota. The Buccaneers have reportedly been getting calls from other teams about a trade for Martin—the rumblings say New England. Maybe Martin needs a change of scenery. This will be an interesting day; the NFL trade deadline is 2 p.m. Mountain time.
Also of note, Shea McClellin had seven tackles, including one for loss, in Chicago’s 51-23 blowout defeat at the hands of New England. Kyle Wilson had his first career sack, but the Jets were rocked 43-23 by Buffalo. Jamar Taylor made three stops in Miami’s 27-13 win over Jacksonville. And former Idaho standout Benson Mayowa logged four tackles in Oakland’s 23-13 loss to Cleveland.
It was assumed former Boise State standouts Orlando Scandrick and Tyrone Crawford would be smiling when they walked off the field following Monday Night Football. They were not, as Dallas was upset by Washington in overtime last night, 20-17. Scandrick had four tackles and a pass deflection, and Crawford also notched four stops, with one for loss. Crawford, who has moved inside to defensive tackle this year, is still looking for his first NFL sack.
There were some Idaho Stampede fans fortunate enough to see the team’s first NBA assignee of the season last January. Portland’s CJ McCollum played just two games in his Stampede cameo, getting a combined 41 minutes and scoring 37 points in CenturyLink Arena. He would make his NBA debut with the Blazers about 10 days later. Portland has now picked up the third-year team option on McCollum. The 10th overall selection in the first round of the 2013 NBA Draft out of Lehigh, McCollum averaged 5.3 points and 12.5 minutes in 38 games during his rookie season. The Stampede are gearing up for the D-League Draft this Saturday—they’ll have eight picks.
Basketball stuff is going to start coming at you fast and furious over the next week. The College of Idaho men are already about to begin their 2014-15 season with a game Halloween night versus Walla Walla at the Quinn Classic in LaGrande. Tonight the C of I men and women host “Meet the Yotes Night” for fans and students at the J.A. Albertson Activities Center. The Coyote men are the unanimous pick to win the Cascade Conference championship. Boise State gets its first shot this Saturday night in an exhibition against La Verne in Taco Bell Arena.
This Day In Sports…brought to you by GROUND FX…the Treasure Valley mulch experts!
October 28, 2012: The San Francisco Giants complete a four-game sweep in the World Series with a 4-3 victory over the Detroit Tigers in 10 innings. It was the Giants’ second world championship in three years after having never won the Series in their first 52 seasons following their move to California from New York. The Giants had to win three straight elimination games at Cincinnati in the National League Divisional Series—then had to do the same thing against St. Louis in rallying from a three games-to-one deficit in the NLCS. But they dominated the Tigers in the World Series.
(Tom Scott hosts the Scott Slant segment Sunday nights at 10:30PM on KTVB’s Sunday Sports Extra and anchors five sports segments each weekday on 93.1 The Ticket. He also served as color commentator on KTVB’s telecasts of Boise State football for 14 seasons.)
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