LAS VEGAS - BYU's 32-7 loss to TCU essentially left two teams - Boise State and fellow unbeaten Utah from the Mountain West Conference - looking to crash the BCS party.

If either runs the table, it would have a decent chance to play in a BCS game. If both go undefeated, it likely would come down to which team is higher ranked. Utah currently is ranked 12th.

Boise State, which also is seeking its sixth WAC title in the last seven years, posted its 17th straight home victory with a 27-7 victory over Hawaii last Friday. The Broncos failed to cover as 23-point home favorites, lowering their pointspread mark to 3-2 in five lined games.

The combined 34 points went well ‘under’ the 51 ½-point closing total. It was Boise State’s third straight ‘under’ game and enabled the ‘under’ to go 4-1 in the school’s five board games this season.

The Broncos’ victory against Hawaii was especially rewarding because it was Hawaii that ended their five-year run atop the WAC last year.

However, Boise State has just two games remaining this season on the blue turf - November 8 against Utah State and November 28 against Fresno State.

Offensively, the Broncos are not as strong as the 2006 team that went 13-0 and defeated Oklahoma, 43-42, in the Fiesta Bowl.

But this year's club might be better defensively. Last week marked the fifth time the Broncos have held an opponent under 10 points this season.

Freshman quarterback Kellen Moore continued his steady play with three touchdowns, while cornerback Brandyn Thompson led the defensive effort with three interceptions, tying a school record.

Moore, who completed 25-of-34 passes for 256 yards in last week’s win, has thrown 16 TDs this year, including 11 in the last four contests.

Boise State will not want to look past a San Jose State Spartans team that is actually one-half game ahead of the Broncos atop the WAC standings.

The Spartans are coming off a 31-14 victory over New Mexico State as one-point road favorites. It was the Spartans’ third consecutive win and cover, and raised their pointspread mark to 5-1 in six board games.

The combined 45 points ducked ‘under’ the 51 ½-point closing total, enabling the ‘under’ to improve to 5-1. The ‘under’ has cashed in the Spartans’ last four outings.

Though San Jose State has dropped eight straight to the Broncos, including a 42-7 loss last season as a 25 ½-point road underdog, the Spartans are 4-3 ATS versus the Broncos in the last seven series meetings.

The combined 49 points went ‘under’ the 57 ½-point closing total, enabling the ‘under’ to cash in the last three head-to-head meetings.

Boise State is outscoring its opponents this season by an average of 32.5 to 10.5, while San Jose State is outscoring the opposition by an average of 21.6 to 16.6.

TRENDS: The ‘under’ is 8-2 in Boise State’s last 10 games on grass. The ‘under’ is 22-4-1 in San Jose State’s last 27 conference games.

October 24, 2008