The Sports Xchange
Sep 19, 2015
Sophomore running back Jeremy McNichols rushed for three touchdowns and the Boise State Broncos overcame the loss of sophomore starting quarterback Ryan Finley while rolling to a 52-0 victory over the visiting Idaho State Bengals at Boise, Idaho.
McNichols scored on runs of 6, 4 and 16 yards as the Broncos (2-1) racked up 598 yards of offense and recorded their 16th consecutive home victory. Fifth-year senior running back Kelsey Young added two rushing scores and true freshman quarterback Brett Rypien sparked the Broncos by going 8 of 9 passing for 126 yards in the second half.
Idaho State (1-2) suffered its 23rd consecutive loss to an FBS program. Junior quarterback Michael Sanders passed for 169 yards and one interception for the FCS Bengals.
Finley was injured in the first quarter when his right ankle got caught under an Idaho State defender as he was being tackled. The severity wasn't immediately revealed but Finley departed the field to undergo X-rays and was later seen sporting crutches.
The Broncos led 21-0 at halftime and scored 28 third-quarter points with the last three drives led by Rypien, the nephew of former Washington Redskins quarterback Mark Rypien. He immediately led the Broncos on an eight-play, 80-yard excursion capped by McNichols' 4-yard run to make it 35-0, and followed with drives in which McNichols and Young scored rushing touchdowns.
Sophomore quarterback Thomas Stuart initially replaced Finley and finished an 11-play, 95-yard first-quarter drive in which junior running back Devan Demas scored on a 13-yard run to give the Broncos a 14-0 lead. Stuart tossed a 9-yard scoring pass to senior tight end Holden Huff with 3:42 left in the first half.