Broncos Score 28 Unanswered in Comeback Win

Saturday, October 7

Boise, Idaho

6 p.m.

Boise State

3-3 , 2-0

San José State

1-5 , 0-2

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

San José State

Boise State

Photo by: Boise State University

10/7/2023 10:55:00 PM | Football

Box Score Photo Gallery

Boise State posts second-largest comeback in FBS era in front of second-largest crowd at Albertsons Stadium

BOISE, Idaho – Never count these Broncos out. Boise State rallied back from a 20-point deficit to stun San Jose State in front of a raucous crowd of 37,491 at Albertsons Stadium Saturday evening.

The Broncos (3-3, 2-0 Mountain West) trailed 27-7 before Maddux Madsen scored on an eight-yard designed run with 42 seconds in the first half as San Jose State (1-5, 0-2) took a two-score lead into halftime. It would not last long.

Boise State came out of the gate following intermission, holding the Spartans scoreless and limiting the visitors to a meager 110 yards over the final 30 minutes.

The team that came out of the South end zone locker room had the same blue helmets and black jerseys on, but they brought a completely different energy to the game.

It started slow as Taylen Green – one side of the two-headed quarterback monster deployed by Boise State Saturday – ran for a touchdown on a one-yard run with 5:34 remaining in the third quarter. Green would follow that up with an 11-yard run less than a minute into the fourth quarter to tie the game before Jonah Dalmas hit the fourth of his five points after touchdown to give Boise State its first lead of the game.

Meanwhile the defensive effort from the Broncos found its groove. After San Jose State scored on five consecutive possessions in the first half, the script was flipped in the second half. Twice the Spartans were stopped on downs while two punts and a critical interception by A'Marion McCoy stymied the previously successful Spartan offense.

Riley Smith, one of two team captains for the Broncos, put the cherry on top with a two-yard touchdown catch with 3:30 left in the game to give Boise State a 35-27 lead. That score preceded McCoy's interception and the second fourth down stop by the Bronco defense, which only left the victory formation standing between Boise State and yet another home win.

Eric McAlister initially got Boise State on the scoreboard in the second quarter with an 83-yard touchdown pass from Maddux Madsen. The Spartans responded with 10-straight points for the 27-7 lead.

Although he did not score, Ashton Jeanty ran for an impressive 167 yards on 24 carries and registered 16 receiving yards on a pair of catches. His final tally put him in rare company as he became just the third player in the FBS since 1996 to record over 1,000 yards from scrimmage in the first six games of the season, matching Tyrell Sutton (Northwestern) and Michael Crabtree (Texas Tech). No Mountain West player has ever achieved such a feat.

James Ferguson-Reynolds continued to impress as his 71-yard punt in the first quarter marked the 14^th-longest punt in the nation this year.

Top Broncos

Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Eric McAlister posted a career-high 170 receiving yards on seven receptions and scored on an 83-yard touchdown pass – the longest of his career.
Sophomore running back Ashton Jeanty totaled 183 yards from scrimmage – his fifth game eclipsing the 130-yard threshold this season. Jeanty ran for 167 yards on 24 carries and had 16 yards receiving.
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Taylen Green scored three total touchdowns – two rushing, one passing.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Maddux Madsen was 9-of-16 passing for 155 yards and added 39 yards on the ground. Madsen finished the night with a passing touchdown and a rushing touchdown.
Junior safety A'Marion McCoy had his first career interception to go along with a pair of tackles.
Junior defensive end Ahmed Hassanein had four tackles and 1.5 sacks.

Top Broncos

Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Eric McAlister posted a career-high 170 receiving yards on seven receptions and scored on an 83-yard touchdown pass – the longest of his career.
Sophomore running back Ashton Jeanty totaled 183 yards from scrimmage – his fifth game eclipsing the 130-yard threshold this season. Jeanty ran for 167 yards on 24 carries and had 16 yards receiving.
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Taylen Green scored three total touchdowns – two rushing, one passing.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Maddux Madsen was 9-of-16 passing for 155 yards and added 39 yards on the ground. Madsen finished the night with a passing touchdown and a rushing touchdown.
Junior safety A'Marion McCoy had his first career interception to go along with a pair of tackles.
Junior defensive end Ahmed Hassanein had four tackles and 1.5 sacks.

Notables

San Jose State won the coin toss and deferred...Boise State elected to receive...Spartans defended the south end zone.
Announced attendance of 37,491 is the second-most in Albertsons Stadium history. The all-time high of 37,663 was set last season against Fresno State (Oct. 8, 2022).
The Broncos scored 28 unanswered points to rally from a 7-27 (4:56, second quarter) deficit to a 35-27 win.
Boise State trailed 7-27 (-20 points) in the second quarter and overcame a 20-point deficit for only the third time in the FBS era. The previous 20-point comebacks were against Colorado State (-25 points, 3-28) on Nov. 11, 2017 and against San Diego State (-20 points, 0-20) on Nov. 15, 2014.
Boise State moved to 15-0 against the Spartans in regular season games, 15-1 in the all-time series and 8-0 against San Jose State at home.
With over 183 yards from scrimmage tonight, Boise State's Ashton Jeanty has surpassed 1,000 all-purpose yards this season in just six games (1,010). He becomes just the third player in the FBS since 1996 to record 1,000 yards from scrimmage in the first six games and just the 12th player to record 1,000 all-purpose yards in the first six games since 1996.
Jeanty becomes the first Mountain West player to record 1,000 yards from scrimmage in the first six games and just the second Mountain West player to record 1,000 all-purpose yards in the first six games.
Jeanty's 68-yard rush in the third quarter is the longest run of his career.
Jeanty eclipsed 130 yards of total offense for the third-straight game, fifth of the season.
The Broncos scored three rushing touchdowns from the quarterback position for the first time since Jared Zabransky did so on Sept. 21, 2005 against Bowling Green.
The last time two different Boise State quarterbacks ran for a touchdown in the same game was 2010 against Utah State (Dec. 4, 2010) when Kellen Moore and Mike Coughlin both had 1-yard touchdowns runs.
Redshirt sophomore Eric McAlister recorded 126 receiving yards in the first half, the most yards a Bronco has had in a conference game since Thomas Sperbeck had 198 against New Mexico (Oct. 7, 2016).
McAlister ended the night with a career-high 170 receiving yards…his previous career-high was 143 yards against North Dakota earlier this season…he tied his career-high with seven receptions.
McAlister scored on an 83-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter, the longest Bronco touchdown pass since Brett Rypien threw an 87-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Richardson against Air Force on Nov. 18, 2017…the reception was a career-long for McAlister.
McAlister's 83-yard score was also the longest Bronco touchdown since Taylen Green's 91-yard touchdown run against Utah State last season.
Boise State held the Spartans to only 110 yards of total offense in the second half…Broncos shut San Jose State out in the second half after allowing 27 points in the first half.
San Jose State completed 12-of-22 (54.5%) pass attempts in the second half compared to opening the game 11-of-16 (68.6%) in the first half.
Junior defensive end Ahmed Hassanein finished with 1.5 sacks in the game, tying his career-high that he set against North Dakota earlier this season.
A'Marion McCoy had his first career interception with 3:18 left in the game to help preserve an eight-point lead.
Redshirt sophomore safety Zion Washington had a career-high six tackles to tie for the team lead with Marco Notarainni.