Boise State Returns to Albertsons Stadium to Host App State

BOISE, Idaho – Boise State will return to the Treasure Valley for a home matchup against App State on Saturday, Sept. 27. Kickoff is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. MT on with Noah Reed (play-by-play) and Robert Smith (analyst) calling the action on FS1. Bronco Nation can tune in to hear Bob Behler (play-by-play) and Pete Cavender call the action on the Bronco Radio Network (Flagship: KBOI 93.1 FM/670 AM) and on SiriusXM Channel 385.

OPENING KICKOFF

1.) Saturday's matchup consists of two of the most prolific G5 programs in the country. Boise State and App State are the only G5 representatives ranked in the top 20 in all-time winning percentage among FBS programs, with the Broncos ranked first (76.7%) and the Mountaineers ranked 20th (60.4%). Since 2000, Boise State boasts the second-highest winning percentage (80.7%) amongst FBS programs, while App State holds the ninth (70.8%).

2.) Running back Dylan Riley is coming off a career-performance against Air Force on Saturday, scoring five total touchdowns (four rushing, one receiving) and tallying a career-high 255 all-purpose yards. The sophomore became the first player in program history to tally four rushing touchdowns and one receiving touchdown in a game and is the first FBS player to do so this year. The sophomore was named the Old Trapper Mountain West Offensive Player of the Week for his performance.

3.) Boise State's offense generated 592 total yards of offense against the Falcons, marking the second consecutive game the squad has recorded over 500 yards of offense. The Broncos haven't done so in back-to-back games since doing so against UNLV (Oct. 5) and Hawaii (Oct. 12) in 2019. Boise State has also totaled over 100 combined points in its last two contests, marking the second consecutive season the Broncos have scored 100+ points in a two-game span.

4.) Boise State will debut its "Front Porch of Idaho" hand-painted helmet against the Mountaineers. The helmet, crafted by artist Armando Villareal, highlights several key icons of the Boise community, including the Idaho State Capital and Albertsons Stadium overlooking the Boise River.

5.) Boise State is searching for its 14th consecutive victory at Albertsons Stadium. During that win streak, Boise State is averaging 40.8 points and 461.5 yards per game. The Broncos have the third-best all-time home winning percentage (89.87%) of any team in the nation, trailing Oklahoma (90.4%) and Ohio State (89.94%).

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

Finally Saturday
Boise State will play its first Saturday home game of the season when App State visits. This ties the second-latest date the Broncos have hosted their first Saturday game, excluding the 2020 season, which began in October. On Sept. 27, 1969, the Broncos routed Linfield, 66-7. The latest Boise State has played its first Saturday game at home was Oct. 3, 2015, when the Broncos beat Hawai'i, 55-0. Since 2000, Boise State is 22-3 (.880) in its first Saturday game on The Blue.

Unfamiliar Foes
Since elevating to the FBS level in 1996, Boise State has hosted 70 nonconference contests in the regular season. The Broncos hold an impressive 59-11 (.843) record, boosted by a 36-game win streak from Nov. 24, 2001 (26-10 over Central Michigan) to Sept. 2, 2017 (24-13 over Troy). Boise State has a 49-6 (.891) record when hosting nonconference opponents this century and a 118-26 (.819) mark since 1968. The Broncos enter Saturday on a five-game win streak, which began on Sept. 16, 2023, when they defeated North Dakota, 42-18. Since then, Boise State has beat Portland State (56-14), Washington State (45-24), Oregon State (34-18) and Eastern Washington (51-14).

Always Sunny
Saturday marks Boise State's 10th contest against a Sun Belt opponent. The Broncos enter with a 9-0 record against the conference, including a 4-0 clip at home. Boise State beat Idaho each season from 2001-04 before taking two games apiece against Louisiana (2014 and 2016) and Troy (2017-18). Last season, the Broncos opened the season with a 56-45 win at Georgia Southern.

The Jet
Dylan Riley notched 171 rushing yards, 84 receiving yards, four rushing touchdowns and one receiving touchdown at Air Force. The only other FBS player to have a game reaching those four stats over the last 30 years is North Carolina's Omarion Hampton last season at Florida State. Riley is the first player in Boise State history to tally four rushing touchdowns and one receiving touchdown in a game and first FBS player to do so this year. He is also the first Mountain West player to achieve this feat in nearly 10 years, with the most recent occurrence happening on Oct. 24, 2015 by Air Force's Karson Roberts.

Running Back U
Dylan Riley's five touchdown performance marks the second consecutive season a Boise State running back has scored five or more touchdowns in a game. Ashton Jeanty rushed for a program-record six touchdowns in the season-opener last year against Georgia Southern on Aug. 31, 2024. Riley's performance is also the 20th time in program history a Bronco has scored four or more rushing touchdowns, and the first time since Jeanty accomplished the feat against Washington State on Sept. 28, 2024.

Doubled Up
Dylan Riley entered the game against Air Force with four career touchdowns. He finished the game with nine. It was the second multi-touchdown game in Riley's career, having scored a pair of rushing touchdowns in his Bronco debut against Portland State on Sept. 21, 2024. Riley's four rushing touchdowns in the game are more than 20 FBS teams have scored from the ground all season.

It's Truly A Stable
Boise State registered five rushing touchdowns in the game against Air Force on Sept. 20, marking the fourth consecutive season the Broncos have had multiple games in a season with 4+ rushing touchdowns. Boise State has recorded 4+ rushing scores in a game 75 times since 1998.

Elite Company
Dylan Riley's historic performance against Air Force marks the 20th time in program history a Bronco has scored four or more rushing touchdowns. Riley is the first Bronco to do so since Ashton Jeanty accomplished the feat against Washington State on Sept. 28, 2024.

The 70-Club
Dylan Riley scored a 75-yard receiving touchdown off a screen pass in the third quarter against Air Force, marking the sophomore's first career touchdown reception. The reception came a game after Riley recorded a 77-yard touchdown rush against Eastern Washington on Sept. 5, becoming the third Bronco since 2010 to score a rushing and receiving touchdown of at least 70 yards in the same season. Jeremy McNichols accomplished the feat in 2016 while Doug Martin did so in 2010.With his 75-yard receiving touchdown at Air Force, Riley now has touchdowns of 70+ yards as a rusher, receiver and returner in his career. Last season, he returned a kick 96 yards for a score against Utah State. He joins Doug Martin (2007-11) and John Hightower (2018-19) as the only Broncos to accomplish this feat in the program's FBS era.

Ground and Pound
Boise State ran the ball 31 times for 282 yards at Air Force, averaging 9.1 yards per carry. This is the fourth time since 1996 the Broncos have averaged at least 9.0 yards per rush, with three of the occurrences happening in the last 17 games. Boise State averaged a school-record 10.6 yards per carry at Georgia Southern in the 2024 season opener, then notched 9.0 yards per rush two games later against Portland State. The first occasion was Sept. 18, 2009, when the Broncos gained 10.3 yards per carry at Fresno State.

On The Offensive
The Broncos recorded 592 yards of total offense, marking the first time the program has recorded two consecutive games with 500+ yards of total offense since doing so on Oct. 5 and 12 against UNLV and Hawaii, respectively, in 2019. The Broncos also finished with over 300 yards passing and 200 yards rushing in back-to-back games for the first time since games against BYU (Oct. 24) and New Mexico (Nov. 8) in 2014.

Finding Paydirt
Boise State has recorded over five rushing touchdowns in back-to-back games, marking the first time the program has done so since a pair of games against Fresno State (Oct. 7) and Colorado State (Oct. 15) in 2011. The accomplishment also marks the second consecutive season the program has rushed for five touchdowns twice in a season, having done so against Georgia Southern (Aug. 31) and Portland State (Sept. 21) a year ago. Boise State has rushed for five touchdowns in a game 33 times since 1998.

Offensive Efficiency
Boise State's offense fired on all cylinders at Air Force as the Broncos gained 592 yards on 58 plays, averaging 10.2 yards per play, 19.4 yards per completion and 9.1 yards per rush. It was the second time in the program's FBS era that the unit has averaged over 10.0 yards per play, following the 2018 team that averaged 10.5 yards per play against Connecticut (Sept. 8, 2018). It was the first time a MW team has averaged over 10 yards per play since New Mexico netted 10.5 yards per play against Tennessee Tech on Sept. 9, 2023. This season, the Broncos are one of six teams to achieve the accomplishment against an FBS opponent.

Lighting Up The Scoreboard
In its last two contests, Boise State has combined for 100 points, marking the second consecutive season the Broncos have scored 100+ points in a two-game span. Last season, the Broncos scored 45 points against Washington State and 62 against Utah State in back-to-back weeks. The last time Boise State had back-to-back seasons with that feat was 2017-18, with both years featuring high-scoring efforts against Colorado State and Air Force.

Aerial Attack
Maddux Madsen completed 13 passes for 276 yards and two touchdowns at Air Force, averaging a career-high 21.2 yards per completion. This is the 15th time in Boise State's FBS era a quarterback has completed at least 10 passes and averaged at least 20 yards per completion, with Madsen's effort ranking sixth on the list. He is the first player to achieve this feat since Hank Bachmaier completed 17 passes for 340 yards against UTEP on Sept. 10, 2021. Boise State recorded 310 passing yards against Air Force on Sept. 20, marking the first time since 2019 the Broncos have tallied back-to-back 300-yard passing efforts (Oct. 12 and Oct. 19).

Moving Up The Ranks
Maddux Madsen moved up in the program record book in several career categories. Madsen threw two touchdown passes to move his career total to 37, passing Hazsen Choates (1983-86) for 10th place all-time. He also became the 10th Bronco to surpass 5,000 career yards, finishing the game with 5,060. Madsen has 385 career completions, ranking 10th in program history. He also threw for over 200 yards for the 12th time in his career, passing Mike Virden (1989-90) and Joe Southwick (2010-13) for 10th place in program history. Madsen has thrown for over 200 yards in all three games this season, including a game against Eastern Washington where he matched his career-high with 307 passing yards.

Protect The Quarterback
Quarterback Maddux Madsen has been well-protected in Boise State's first three games. In 110 dropbacks, the Bronco offensive line has allowed only one sack and six quarterback hits. This marks the first time since 2012 the Broncos have allowed one sack in the first three games of a season. In 2024, Boise State ranked 12th in the nation in sacks allowed (1.07 per game) and 14th in tackles for loss allowed (4.14 per game).

All Over The Field
Ty Benefield was everywhere at Air Force, finishing with a career-high 11 tackles (8 solo) and adding 2.0 tackles for loss and a game-sealing interception. He is the third player in Boise State's FBS era to record 10+ tackles, 2+ TFLs and one interception in a game, joining Tanner Vallejo and Korey Hall. Vallejo led Boise State to the conference title on Dec. 2, 2014, recording 13 tackles, 3.0 TFLs and one interception, which he returned 63 yards for a touchdown. Hall tallied 10 tackles, 2.0 TFLs and an interception against Oregon State on Sept. 7, 2006. Benefield is the only Mountain West player and one of three FBS defenders to reach those numbers this season.

Benefield in the Backfield
Ty Benefield registered 2.0 TFLs in the contest against Air Force, giving him five over his previous two contests. The junior safety is the first Bronco defensive back to tally at least five TFLs in a two-game span since the program joined the FBS ranks in 1996. He is the first Bronco to accomplish the feat since Andrew Simpson did so against Utah State (Nov. 18, 2023) and Air Force (Nov. 24, 2023). Benefield has recorded six games with two or more TFLs, including in three of his last five.