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 If your favorite college football team is not from a BCS Conference then you can forget about placing a bet on its BCS national championship chances. That is unless you are backing the Boise State University Broncos. If that is the case, your school is the only mid-major (non BCS) program in the NCAA bowl sub-division whom oddsmakers consider worthy of installing with BCS championship odds. Not a bad choice considering the Bronco’s are the only school to win a BCS bowl, the 2006 Fiesta Bowl in Glendale, Ariz. But don’t get your hopes up of winning that crystal football in January of 2009 if you are Boise State. Installed at 100/1 odds by oddsmakers at online sportsbook Bodog (Bodoglife.com) , your chances of winning are somewhere between slim and none.
While betting odds on the Bronco’s chances of winning a Western Athletic Conference (WAC) championship are unavailable by any major online sportsbook, media representatives whom cover the WAC have made Boise State their choice as conference favorite. WAC coaches on the other hand have the Broncos as their second choice behind the Fresno State Bulldogs. The Broncos will be looking for a new quarterback in 2008 following the graduation of Taylor Tharp last year. While it’s not written in stone, Tharp’s replacement will probably be senior Bush Hamdan. Hamdan is the most experienced, but still has attempted just 16 passes in his three seasons at Boise State. As a junior, he was 4-of-6 passing for 98 yards and two touchdowns. During his career he has completed 8-of-16 passes for 161 yards and three touchdowns while throwing one interception. The top offensive weapon in the Bronco’s arsenal is senior Ian Johnson. Johnson is the top returning running back in the country with 3,417 career rushing yards and 46 touchdowns scored. He ran for 1,041 yards and 16 touchdowns last year after a sophomore season with 1,714 yards and 25 scores. The Bronco’s return a strong receiving corps led by junior Jeremy Childs and sophomore Titus Young. Childs returns as the most experienced receiver in a deep receiving corps for the Broncos. He put together a record-breaking year as a sophomore, catching a school-record 82 passes. Young should once again be Boise State’s big-play threat. As a true freshman last season, Young caught 44 passes for 639 yards and five touchdowns, while averaging a team-best 14.5 yards per catch. He also rushed for a pair of touchdowns and 58 yards. The defensive line is the most experienced group in a defense that returns seven starters from a year ago. They return both of their starting defensive ends and a pair of defensive tackles who saw extensive playing time. Senior Mike T. Williams and sophomore Ryan Winterswyk will hold down the end positions, giving Boise State a pair of solid pass rushers. Williams led the Broncos with six sacks last season while also finishing with 28 tackles and 7.5 tackles for loss. Winterswyk, who was named Boise State’s outstanding defensive lineman, was the team leader in tackles for loss with nine while also finishing seventh on the team in tackles with 43, including 5.5 sacks. The Broncos return four linebackers who saw significant action last season while also adding two redshirt freshmen, four true freshmen and a junior college transfer. The Broncos return a number of players with experience in the defensive backfield. Kyle Wilson is an All-America candidate and will anchor one of the cornerback positions. As a sophomore, Wilson was eighth on the team in tackles with 41 and had two interceptions and eight pass breakups. Sophomore Brandyn Thompson is the starter at the other corner position. Last year as a true freshman, Thompson served as Boise State’s third cornerback and had 16 tackles. 2008 Boise State Broncos football schedule Aug 30 Idaho State Sep 13 Bowling Green Sep 30 @ Oregon (PAC 10) Oct 01 Louisiana Tech Oct 11 @Southern Miss Oct 17 Hawaii Oct 24 @San Jose State Nov 01 @New Mexico State Nov 08 Utah State Nov 15 Idaho Nov 22 @Nevada Nov 28 Fresno State
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