Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1539887
BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM OCT. 4, 2025 35 GAME PREVIEW: BOISE STATE home, though, is that this is a program that, in any given year, is going to be much more than just one player. It took more than just Jeanty to win all of those games and come within three points of beating Oregon, the top team for most of the season, and posting an unde- feated record entering the playoff. On the flip side of that, though, the Broncos were rudely introduced to life after Jeanty in Week 1 of this year. They lost 34-7 to South Florida. Nobody car- ried the ball more than 11 times or had a 5.0 rushing yards per carry average for Boise State against the Bulls, a big-time departure from who the Broncos were when Jeanty was on the roster. It takes time to find an identity when the heart and soul of a team moves on. Against Air Force, Danielson believes Boise State found it. "We learned that we can respond to adversity," he said. "Doesn't mean we're perfect at it yet. We had a Game 1 where we didn't. Game 3, we did a much bet- ter job." 'PURE BELIEF' Defensively, Boise State needs to do a much better job as well. Responding to adversity is admirable, but facing that situation each and every week is daunting. And, often times, too much to overcome. Through Week 4, Boise State ranked No. 98 in the FBS in total defense, al- lowing 393.0 yards per game. The Bron- cos actually outgained South Florida, 378 to 372 in total yards, in their Week 1 loss. But they turned the ball over 3 times and didn't take it away once. That's been an issue for Boise State as much as allowing opponents to roll down the field, forcing only 3 turnovers in the first three games. The Broncos' turnover margin of minus-1 ranked tied for 93rd nationally through Week 4. Plain and simple, it's the Boise State defense that needs to be better to have a chance to beat teams like Notre Dame on the road. "There's definitely, obviously, clearly things to fix back there," Boise State de- fensive coordinator Erik Chinander said. Ironically, after three games, the formula for winning for the Broncos, if nothing changed from what was al- ready put on tape, became very similar to that of Notre Dame. Outscore your problems. Because in addition to Riley, Boise State has two other running backs in redshirt freshman Sire Gaines and sixth-year senior Malik Sherrod who consistently carry the ball. They were both between 6.0 and 7.0 yards per carry on 26 and 25 rushing attempts, respectively, through three games. All three of Boise State's top ball carriers had a gain of at least 40 yards in the first trio of games, too; Riley topped the chart with his long of 77. "We got a really good problem on our hands to continue to figure out the touches and who we're going to give the ball to because all three of them have done a really good job," Danielson said. Then there's veteran quarterback Maddux Madsen, a redshirt junior who was there every step of the way dur- ing the CFP run last season. He threw for 3,018 yards with 23 touchdowns and 6 interceptions in that campaign. His yards per attempt of 8.5 and passer rat- ing of 143.5 were both improved from his 2024 marks in those categories through three games of this season, but his completion percentage of 56.8 was way down. There's been good and bad Facts & Figures BOISE STATE AT NOTRE DAME Date: Oct. 4, 2025 Site (Capacity): Notre Dame Stadium (77,622) Kickoff: 3:30 p.m. ET Television: NBC/Peacock Radio: This game can be heard on Notre Dame IMG affiliates. Series Facts: First meeting. Head coaches: Boise State — Spencer Danielson (18-4, 3rd season); Notre Dame — Marcus Freeman (35-12, 4th season). Noting Boise State: The Broncos have the second-highest winning percentage (.807) amongst all FBS teams since 2000 … Only 11 FBS programs retained their entire full-time coaching staff from 2024 to 2025, and Boise State is one of them … Boise State returned 14 starters from a team that went 12-2 in 2024 … The Broncos had two preseason All-Americans in offensive tackle Kage Casey and defensive end Jayden Virgin-Morgan … The Broncos have the nation's longest current streak of consecutive win- ning seasons with 27. Redshirt junior quarterback Maddux Madsen is in his second full season as the starter. Since taking the job in 2024, he's thrown 28 touchdown passes and 7 interceptions through Week 4 of this season. PHOTO COURTESY BOISE STATE ATHLETICS