BY MIKE PRATER
@KTIK.COM
Boise State started its football season with Brett Rypien at quarterback.
The junior will finish the season there as well.
And that’s a good thing.
The Broncos don’t have a quarterback controversy, they have a quarterback conversation that’s been going on behind the scenes for a couple of months. For the rest of us, that conversation started with a curious performance Saturday afternoon in Albertsons Stadium.
Rypien absolutely looked rattled against Troy, which isn’t ideal after an offseason commitment to improve the mental side of his game. Put much of the blame on an extremely young offensive line, which looked slow, inconsistent and soft after a fall camp that pushed, preached and promoted physicality.
Rypien was sacked four times, including three in the first half. He panicked, lost focus and was replaced by Kansas transfer Montell Cozart, who played nearly the entire fourth quarter. Head coach Bryan Harsin, himself a former Boise State quarterback, masterfully juggled both QBs as Boise State won 24-13.
After the game, Harsin said there are no QB issues or controversies. He reiterated that in another meeting with the media Thursday, when KTIK made a reference to a quarterback battle: “There’s no battling. I think we’ve made that very clear,” he said.
Yes, without a doubt, Rypien gives the Broncos their best chance to win games. Right now and for the long-term. The two-time all-conference player is 18-6 as a starter, and improved statistically last season in passing yards, passing TDs and efficiency.
He was getting better until he panicked Saturday.
No need for everyone else to panic.
Cozart has flashy feet and gives the Broncos a spark off the bench, but the truth lies in his resume: He played 27 games at Kansas, threw more interceptions than touchdowns and lost more games than he won.
That’s not the Boise State way.
Rypien will continue to start, he’ll continue to get better, and Cozart will continue to give this offense another dimension, an exciting and sometimes-needed dimension. Harsin said Thursday that both had a strong week of practice.
Rypien hits his comfort zone Saturday in Pullman: A prime-time game on ESPN. That’s where the Broncos typically thrive, and I can’t see Rypien having two bad games in a row. Washington State should win a close game at home after getting embarrassed in Boise last season, but Rypien will play well enough that Cozart’s snaps will be limited to pre-determined times and specialized situations.
Moving forward, that will be the new norm.
And by the end of the season, we may not even remember this controversy/conversation.
BRONCOS IN THE NFL THIS WEEKEND: Training camps opened with 25 former Broncos looking for jobs, and 13 made opening 53-man rosters. Three made practice squads, one is on the suspended list, four were cut and four were placed on injured reserve.
Quick thoughts on three running backs:
- Doug Martin (Bucs), of course, is on the suspension list for three games after violating the NFL drug policy last season. He saved his job and will fight back with a strong 1,000-yard plus season. Dude looks determined.
- Jeremy McNichols (Bucs/49ers) blew his first impression by showing up in camp without focus and attention. A talented fifth-round draft pick this year, he’s already on his second team and the season hasn’t even started yet. And Hard Knocks was there to film it all.
- Jay Ajayi (Dolphins) will establish himself as an elite back and a fantasy superstar. He’ll even make Jay Cutler look good.
Click here to see the entire list of Idaho connections in the NFL.
Click here to see a video of Ajayi’s top 10 plays from the 2016 season.
VANDALS STILL ON A ROLL: Don’t look now, but Idaho has won six in a row, and 9-of-11. They should beat UNLV this weekend in the Kibbie Dome (the same UNLV team that lost to Howard at home last week). “We know how to win,’’ Idaho coach Paul Petrino said after beating Sacramento State. He takes the Vandals to a second straight appearance in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. Then leaves.
MOUNTAIN WEST OFF TO POOR START: The conference is 10-6 overall, but only 1-4 against Power 5 teams, including four losses last weekend by a combined score of 131-36. Five more chances this weekend, if Fresno State at Alabama really is a chance. The best shots to win: Boise State at Washington State (could happen) and San Diego State at Arizona State (should happen). San Jose State (Texas) and Hawaii (UCLA) are weekend punching bags against angry opponents.
STAR-STUDDED … STUPOR: The Mountain West’s two quarterback “stars” will be entertaining to watch this season, but that wasn’t the case last week for NFL prodigy Josh Allen (Wyoming) and Nick Stevens (Colorado State).
Allen threw for 174 yards, no TDs and two picks at Iowa (he had five interceptions vs. Nebraska last year), while Stevens had two picks of his own against Colorado. The QBs completed a combined 54 percent of their passes, and each team scored one field goal.
Meanwhile, New Mexico quarterback Lamar Jordan (who passed for 57 yards a game last season) threw for 213 yards and a touchdown in his opener (OK, against Abilene Christian). Jordan leads the Mountain West in passing efficiency and the NFL prodigy is last … which is the last time that sentence will ever be typed.
Now Stevens gets to beat up on Abilene Christian, and Allen plays Gardner-Webb as both QBs start the entertainment portion of their seasons.
NATIONAL FLIP FLOP: Last week, I was prepared to say Alabama was poised for a Florida State loss and a hiccup season. Not going to happen. Can’t imagine those monsters losing, unless they get bored. The has-beens who will join them in the College Football Playoffs are Ohio State, Clemson and the winner of Saturday’s USC/Stanford game (sorry Pete). Auburn makes things interesting.
Mike Prater, editor of The Opinionator, co-hosts Idaho Sports Talk with Caves & Prater weekdays from 3-6 p.m. on KTIK 93.1 FM The Ticket. He can be reached at [email protected], and found @CavesandPrater (Facebook) and @MikeFPrater (Twitter).
