Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty scored the first of his three touchdowns on his first touch en route to his fifth straight 100-yard game, carrying the No. 21 Broncos to a conference-opening 62-30 blowout of the Utah State Aggies on Saturday in Boise, Idaho.
Playing in only the first half, Jeanty, a junior, totaled 186 yards on 13 carries, eclipsing 1,000 yards this season (1,031) and increasing his NCAA lead in TDs to 16.
His scoring runs were 63, 75 and 6 yards. This season, Jeanty has seven scoring runs of 59 or more yards and has a non-scoring run of 68 yards.
Almost a four-touchdown favorite, the Broncos (4-1, 1-0 in Mountain West Conference) also won for the third straight time behind a strong start from quarterback Maddux Madsen.
He completed 21 of 25 passes for 256 yards and three scores, two to Austin Bolt and one to Cameron Camper.
Entering the game with the 115th-ranked rushing defense (196.8 yards per game), the Aggies (1-4, 0-1) fell behind by 32 points at halftime and dropped their fourth straight game.
In his second consecutive start, Utah State quarterback Spencer Petras went 27 of 41 for a career-high 372 yards and three TDs. Jalen Royals caught nine passes for 211 yards and two scores. Rahsul Faison rushed for 109 yards on 26 carries with one score.
On his initial carry, Jeanty slipped around the right side, shed a couple of tacklers and scampered 63 yards for a 7-0 lead just 1:59 into the matchup.
The Aggies scored at 7:07 when Tanner Cragun booted a 36-yard field goal, and each side connected on a passing score soon after.
Madsen finished a seven-play, 75-yard drive with a 6-yard throw to Camper. But Utah State’s Petras struck for a 59-yard tally to Royals early in the second quarter.
After having few carries after his opening 63-yarder, Jeanty raced 75 on his sixth rush for a 21-6 lead 12 seconds after Royals’ score. The lead stretched to 28-10 on Madsen’s 3-yard toss to Bolt. Jeanty then found paydirt for the third time with 6:04 left.
Royals’ 75-yard TD reception cut into the deficit, but Dylan Riley went 96 yards on the ensuing kickoff to make it 42-17. Then Bolts’ second TD reception put the halftime score at 49-17.
In the third quarter, Boise State’s Jonah Dalmas hit field goals of 48 and 42 yards, but the Aggies’ Otto Tia made it 55-24 with a short TD catch.
Faison scored from 8 yards early in the fourth, and Jambres Dubar scored the Broncos’ only TD of the second half on a short run to cap the scoring.
–Field Level Media
