Boise State spring report card

Now that spring practice is over, we find ourselves needing to quantify the Broncos' progress. And what better way to do that than an arbitrary grading system. Of course, being the homers that we are, every grade is significantly weighted with our own personal biases. As you can see, we were pretty happy with what we saw this spring.

Offense:

• Quarterbacks: B+
  The added dimension of mobile quarterbacks really gave the offense a scary look.
• Running backs: B+
  Even with little running room, all of the backs ran hard and did not go down easily. Good to see.
• Receivers: A
  Titus Young looks like a star, and the group as a whole looked fast and dangerous.
• Linemen: B-
  This group proved to be the weak link in the Bronco offense, but they still showed signs that they could get the job done come fall.

Defense:

• Linemen: A+
  The biggest surprise of spring ball by far. Even with several key contributors injured, this unit absolutely dominated at times. We can't wait to see what they do in the fall.
• Linebackers: A
  This group was much improved over last year. They would have got a higher grade had they continued to force turnovers as they did in the first scrimmage.
• Defensive backs: A
  Safety play is definitely a strength, and there are enough smart, quick players at corner to make the secondary solid.

Special Teams:

• Return: A+
  Doug Martin. Ian Johnson. Jeremy Avery. Titus Young. Running back kicks has never been so exciting.
• Coverage: D
  Every kick was a potential TD thanks to this group.
• Punts: B-
  Elkin had more good kicks in the spring than he did all of last year. Still room for improvement, though.
• Field goals: B-
  We'll be the first to say it: Kyle Brotzman was surprisingly inaccurate this spring.

Augusto out; competency in

Changes just keep coming from Boise State media coverage.

The latest casualty in the war of Bronco broadcasts is play-by-play man David Augusto, who had called Bronco football games for the past three seasons. He will be replaced by Mark Johnson, a sports reporter turned news reporter with KTVB. Johnson called Bronco football games in 1987 and 1988.

But you can't get rid of Augusto that easily!

Augusto will remain on the broadcasts as a sideline reporter.

Although, he will be replaced for non-conference games by the Carl's Jr. star mascot.

Johnson takes over lead role... [Idaho Statesman]
Johnson to announce Johnson [Fight, Fight, BSU]

Everyone has a take on spring practice

The Blue-Orange game has everybody talking, which is usually not a good thing. In between bold QB predictions and semi-optimistic slants, it is hard to separate the wheat from the chaff. Here's a hint: OBNUG=wheat, Murph Turf=chaff. We've compiled a list of links below in case you have two-and-a-half hours to kill.

We'll have much more analysis throughout the week, mostly because we no longer have anything exciting to talk about.

Final stats from Friday's Blue-Orange game can be found here.

Links:

KTVB video highlights [KTVB.com]
Photo journals galore [Statue Left]
Spring breakdown [Fight, Fight, BSU]
Statesman recap and photos [Idaho Statesman]
IPT recap and photos [Press-Tribune]
Broncosports.com recap [Broncosports.com]
Phil Dailey still on the Bush Hamdan bandwagon [Broncos blog]
Dave Southorn, IPT reporter, getting in the mix [Dave's blog]
IPT nostalgia [Press-Tribune]
Chadd Cripe's roster analysis [Idaho Statesman]
Brian Murphy's shotgun analysis [Idaho Statesman]

Bold predictions for the week ahead

As tax day approaches, we are pretty glad that we did our taxes back in February instead of waiting until the last minute. The stress of taxes coupled with the depression of no Bronco football until August might have done us in. But now with the taxes out of the way, we can focus solely on that gaping hole in our hearts that can only be filled by endless re-watchings of the 2007 Fiesta Bowl DVD. Hurry up, August!

Here's what we see happening over the next few days.

• Shake-ups will continue in Bronco media coverage when the KTVB telelvision booth adds two local personalities in boxer Kenny Keene and 99-year-old J.R. Simplot and the Idaho Press-Tribune gives a sports column to that Caldwell teen who pulled a kid out of a burning car. Mr. Combs from Combs Car Corral will wait patiently by the phone.
  
  
• OBNUG will file income taxes for the amount of $4.73, earned via a donation from someone who thought we were a non-profit charity.
  
  
• Wanting to be more like Kellen Moore, hundreds of members of Bronco Nation will spend the next four months becoming left-handed.