OBNUG Blog Bet, Boise State Previews

Once again, we have a rival blog bet with OBNUG, an excellent Boise State fan blog. The bet is this -- if UH wins, I get to write a post on their blog. If BSU wins, they get to write a post here. We did this back in 2008 and Kevan of OBNUG was classy with his winning post, so if anyone has any ideas for this year's post let me know. I also participated in a short Q&A about this weekend's matchup.

Hawaii News Now finally has this week's Coach Mack Show up on their site. The Call of the Warrior segment is a profile of Nick Rolovich.

The Sports Network has a UH-Boise State preview.

KTVB.com has a news story previewing the game.

Tom Scott of KTVB.com previews the game and writes about Bryant Moniz.

So will he have a once-and-for-all coming out party Saturday at Bronco Stadium? Moniz has deep-rooted feelings about what all he’s playing for this week. He brandishes the Hawaiian flag when the Warriors run onto the field before games. "I take a lot of pride being from the Islands, being Hawaiian," Moniz said.

Kirk Bell of The Arbiter Online has a game preview.

A battle between Boise State (7-0, 3-0 Western Athletic Conference) and Hawai’i (7-2, 5-0 WAC) has shaped into the ultimate test remaining for the Broncos this season. This could be the de facto WAC championship with the victor controlling its own conference destiny.

“You don’t take the number one (passing) offense in the country and the defense getting that many turnovers for things to just go great,” head coach Chris Petersen said. “We’re excited. This is going to be a tough, hard-nosed, WAC Championship type of game.”

Jason Kaneshiro highlights Boise State's special teams.

"With Boise State you know there's going to be a fake coming, you can't let your guard down at all," said UH safety Richard Torres, who also plays on the punt return and kickoff coverage teams. "It's going to be a great challenge for us discipline-wise."

Boise State bedeviled the Warriors with blocked kicks over the past decade and successfully executed a fake punt in its win over Hawaii last year with punter/kicker Kyle Brotzman completing a pass to tight end Jason Robinson to extend a drive. The Broncos later pulled off the same play at a pivotal moment in their win over TCU in the Fiesta Bowl.

Stephen Tsai has news and notes about the Warriors practicing in the rain, Kealoha Pilares recovering from his hamstring injury, and Alex Green bringing the team some good luck!

The UH coaches were happy to learn that running back Alex Green's mother would be attending the Boise State game. In the two UH games Phyllis Smith has attended this season, Green has rushed for a combined 279 yards and seven touchdowns.

Smith averaged 10.33 yards per carry in those games.

"She'll be there," Green said, smiling.

Dave Southorn of the Idaho Press-Tribune takes a look at the Warriors' offense.

For starters, the Broncos will line up against a healthy, more experienced Bryant Moniz. The junior quarterback walked on prior to last season, began the year fifth on the depth chart and rose to starter. He was knocked out of last year’s game against Boise State in the first quarter with a concussion.

So far in 2010, Moniz has hit 238-of-362 passes for 3,247 yards, throwing 25 touchdowns to seven interceptions.

“I was definitely far from prepared last year,” Moniz said. “I had just walked on to the team. I was struggling to get a spot, then I ended up starting. It was like getting thrown into the fire.

“It made me better for this year, game experience is something you can’t simulate in practice.”

Andrea Adelson of ESPN.com's College Football Nation Blog has a post about Boise's defense.

So what is the key to slowing down such a high-powered offense?

“You have to make sure the quarterback doesn’t have time to throw,” Iloka said. “If he can’t throw the ball, the receivers won’t get the ball. But we have to play sound football in the secondary -- keep everything in front of us, make tackles when you’re supposed to. As long as you don’t give up the deep ball, you’re somewhat fine. But if the D-line gets back there, that would be awesome.”

The Boise State front has been called one of the best in the nation. The Broncos are No. 4 in sacks, averaging 3.4 in a game with 24 total on the season. They also rank No. 3 in tackles for loss with 8.4 a game.

Trent Lootens of the Arbiter Online writes about the Boise State players and coaches trying to ignore the BCS talk.

“To be honest with you, I could care less about any of that (BCS hype). We went undefeated last year, went to a BCS bowl game. Barely got in there, whatever,” Iloka said. “It doesn’t really faze me anymore. The only thing we can control is the WAC. If we lose this game (versus Hawai’i) then what do have to show for this season? We don’t have a WAC championship and we’re definitely not going to a BCS bowl game.”

Dave Reardon is in Boise and takes in his surroundings. He also talks to some fans of both teams who grew up in Hawaii but now live in Boise:

Steve Somers, a 1974 Kalani High grad who grew up in Nuuanu and lives in Boise, is not among them. But his children are.

"I grew up a Hawaii fan, but I went to Boise State," the retired travel agent says. "I can't help (being a Broncos fan), it's in my blood."

His wife, Tresa, was a track and field athlete at Boise State and that makes her a Bronco For Life.

But Steve's friend, Idaho state economist Derek Santos, has remained loyal to UH despite living in Boise following four years at Manoa and postgrad work at Washington State. The 1977 Aiea grad never stopped bleeding green.

Ferd Lewis writes that some UH fans actually would like to see UH lose to Boise State.... for the money.

But somehow the absurd notion that UH needs the BCS check an unbeaten Boise State might deliver more than a milestone victory has gained a foothold judging from e-mails and online posts.

"Because the WAC champion is not an automatic qualifier to the BCS Bowls, it would behoove Hawaii to lose to Boise Saturday to allow Boise State to collect the ... payday," writes one well-meaning but short-sighted fan.

Suggestions the Warriors can't afford the price of victory should make you shake your head.

And Lewis writes that Oceanic cable will make the UH-Boise game available for all its PPV subscribers.