Boise State
2-0
Marshall
1-1
Defense Stifles Marshall In 14-7 Win
9/6/2019 11:10:00 PM | Football
Boise State won despite the lack of explosive offense shown in its opener last week in a 36-31 victory at Florida State. The Broncos snapped Marshall's streak of 19 victories when the Thundering Herd score first.
"Our defense played great, and our offense did just enough to take care of the football at the end of the game so we could run the clock out," Boise State coach Bryan Harsin said. "It's hard to be 1-0 every week. Like everybody, you like to dominate on all phases of the game, but it doesn't always work out like that. It's nice to be able to learn with a win."
The Broncos' running game came to life in the second half after starting running back Robert Mahone left in the first half with an apparent right shoulder injury. George Holani finished with 103 yards on 22 carries, the first running back to eclipse the 100-yard mark against Marshall since Southern Miss's Ito Smith had 150 on Nov. 25, 2017.
In his second start as a true freshman, Bachmeier was 22 of 34 with an interception and a rushing touchdown.
Brenden Knox rushed for 71 yards on 10 carries to lead the Thundering Herd (1-1). They finished with 172 total yards.
"Our defense played well, but our offense needs to make more plays," Marshall coach Doc Holliday said. "I'm proud of the way we played, but not proud that we didn't win the game."
THE TAKEAWAY
Marshall: While the Thundering Herd had their streak of 15 games without a 100-yard rusher snapped, the secondary needs the most immediate attention. Marshall allowed five pass plays of 20 yards or more, igniting Boise State's first two scoring drives.
Boise State: After last week's opener, one area of emphasis for the offensive line was getting better protection for its quarterback. The Broncos still have work to do there as Bachmeier was under duress all night long and was strip-sacked once, resulting in a takeaway for Marshall.
Team Stats
MAR 7, BSU 0
MAR - KNOX, Brenden 13 yd run (ROHRWASSER, J. kick), 5 plays, 68 yards, TOP 1:55
MAR 7, BSU 7
BSU - BACHMEIER, Hank 1 yd run (SACHSE, Eric kick), 9 plays, 88 yards, TOP 3:43
MAR 7, BSU 14
BSU - HIGHTOWER, John 47 yd pass from BACHMEIER, Hank (SACHSE, Eric kick) 4 plays, 72 yards, TOP 1:26
