Boise State football coach Dan Hawkins asks the leaders on his team their opinions before accepting schedule changes to accommodate ESPN.
Their answer is some variation of this:
"If we can get on national TV again, we'll play at 6 (a.m.) if we have to," junior left tackle Daryn Colledge said.
The No. 13 Broncos put their 8-0 record and Division I-A-best 19-game winning streak on the line Saturday at San Jose State.
Kickoff is 9:02 a.m. PT on ESPN2, the earliest local-time kickoff ever for a college football game, according to former CBS and Turner official Kevin O'Malley.
The Broncos will be sequestered in their hotel rooms at 9 p.m. Friday (two hours earlier than usual), wake up at 5 a.m. Saturday, eat a heavy breakfast at 5:30 and load onto buses at 6:35.
The sun rises at 6:45.
"Our guys are just so flexible and amenable to stuff that when I brought it up, they were like, 'Sure,' " Hawkins said. "I said, 'Guys, we'll have to get up at 5 o'clock.' They said, 'Yeah, whatever.'
"I said, 'We're going to get you up (early) all week.' They said, 'Yeah, whatever.' "
It's not like the Broncos are accustomed to 1 p.m. Saturday kickoffs anyway.
Five of their last 13 regular-season games have been on a Thursday or Friday night. In 2002 they played Iowa State in the Humanitarian Bowl in Boise. Kickoff was 10:06 a.m. MT.
In fact, the Broncos thrive on these changes. They're 13-0 on ESPN or ESPN2.
"Once you've played in every kind of spectrum, on all kinds of weird days, you don't get yourself into a rhythm," Colledge said. "If we were a team that always plays at 1 o'clock on Saturday afternoon, that stuff would get to you.
"We're used to having to play whenever ESPN wants to cover it."
The Broncos (5-0 Western Athletic Conference) prepared this week with conditioning at 5:30 a.m. Monday, weight training at 5:30 a.m. Tuesday or Wednesday and a meeting set for 6 a.m. Friday.
The Spartans (2-6, 1-4 WAC) also changed their routine. They lifted weights at 6 a.m. Thursday and were to have a meeting at 6 a.m. Friday.
While many Boise-area bars are planning early game-day specials for fans, veritable "eggs-and-kegs" events, the Broncos players will not be allowed to drink coffee or other beverages with caffeine Saturday morning. They must "get their own mojo," Hawkins said.
"Our guys have had good energy when they've been here in the morning," Hawkins said. "You expect them to come out all droopy, and they really haven't been."
The other challenging prospect for the Broncos is what could be one of the smallest crowds in Top 25 history. The Spartans draw 6,949 fans a game. The early start and forecast for rain could lower that.
BSU will gain some inspiration from the 500 or so of its fans expected to attend.
Hawkins addressed the issue of the crowd with the team before practice Tuesday inside an empty Bronco Stadium.
"Hey, guys, this is it," he said. "This is Saturday morning right here. There's your mom, there's your dad — let's go."
Chadd Cripe The (Boise) Idaho Statesman
