An open letter to the Blue and Orange game

Dear Blue and Orange game,

Boy, are we looking forward to watching you on Friday. We'll be the ones wearing Ian Johnson jerseys and giggling like little girls every time Kellen Moore rolls out of the pocket. You can't miss us.

Our excitement, however, has been tempered by your $6.00 admission. We had assumed that you would be free, considering we did not have to pay a dime for the other spring scrimmages. Obviously, we cannot put a price on being a Boise State fan. That said, paying six dollars for two hours of glorified practice seems a little shady.

We don't mind paying the mini-ransom, mostly because this will be the last chance we get until August to see Bronco football. However, charging for a spring game has the strange feel of extortion. Boise State has kept its fans out of everyday practices and has limited our access to the team. Now, when BSU does open the doors to the public, the university looks to make a profit off of us? Isn't that what the 2007 Bronco football DVD was for?

If we are shelling out hard-earned cash for a practice with a scoreboard, then you, Blue and Orange game, better be spectacular. We expect the following things at the very least:

• Rosters
• PA announcer
• Concessions
• Cheerleaders
• ESPN coverage
• Being allowed on the field
• 17 Doug Martin touchdowns
• Marty Tadman autograph session
• A decision on the starting quarterback

We're willing to give the Broncos our undying allegiance and to dip into our Dairy Queen fund to pay for admission. The least you could do for us, Blue and Orange game, is provide some fireworks.

Literally.

We want big fireworks.

Sincerely,
OBNUG team

OBNUG Roster Update: Kickers

Spring football gets OBNUG in the mood to speculate, so over the next few weeks, we will be making blind guesses as to who will be starting for the Broncos in the fall. We’ll do it position-by-position. Today: Kickers.

Kickers

Ideal candidate: Pele


Worst candidate: a member of the Gramatica family


Actual candidates: Kyle Brotzman, Brock Jaramillo, Brad Elkin

OBNUG's pick: Brotzman for field goals, Elkin for punts. Brotzman could be up for Lou Groza consideration this season, and he was one of the most important players on the Bronco team last year. His value to the 2007 squad was magnified due to the lack of an effective Elkin, leaving all kicking duties in Brotzman's hands. We think Elkin will step it up this year, mostly because there is really no other place to step it. He was pretty bad.

Broncos ranked and pronunciated

The college football preview at nationalchamps.net has Boise State ranked #25, but of greater importance is its semi-comprehensive pronunciation guide for 2007 Boise State players.

PLAYERS
#13 Mike Altieri -- Al-teer-E
#19 Vinny Perretta -- Pear-et-uh
#21 Toshi Franklin -- Toe-she
#26 Ia Falo -- E-uh Fall-O
#29 Cedric Febis -- Fay-bis
#30 Michael Lose -- Low-say
#36 Aaron Tevis -- Tev-iss
#48 Kopono Rawlins-Crivello -- Ka-poe-no Rawlins-Kri-vell-O
#52 Derrell Acree -- A-cree
#61 Jeff Biedermann -- Bee-der-man
#62 Kevin Sapien -- Say-pee-n
#67 Joe Bozikovich -- Buh-zick-uh-vich
#71 Cory Yriarte -- Y-are-tee
#77 Ben Iannacchione -- On-uh-key-own-E
#78 Paul Lucariello -- Luke-uh-rill-O
#79 Ryan Clady -- Clay-dee
#80 Kyle Efaw -- E-faw
#86 Sherm Blaser -- Blah-zer
#95 Sione Tavake -- See-own-ay Tuh-vok-Ay
#97 Nick Schlekeway -- Schlek-uh-way
#99 Steven Reveles -- Rev-el-is

Thanks, nationalchamps.net. We eagerly await the 2008 iteration and your assistance on Van Drumgoole and George Iloka.

Boise State Broncos' 2007 Pronunciation Guide [Nationalchamps.net]
Boise State ranked [Fight, Fight, BSU]

Spring game's scoring system gets complicated

Break out your abacus. The annual Blue and Orange game (Friday at 6:00pm) has a futuristic scoring system based on NFL Blitz and algebra, and God help the poor scoreboard operator.

Offense: Touchdown (6 points), PAT (1 point), run of 12-plus yards or pass of 16-plus yards (1 point), third and subsequent first downs on a single drive (1 point), field goal (3 points).

Defense: Touchdown (6 points), PAT (1 point), Turnover that isn’t a TD (3 points), three-and-out (1 point), sack (2 points), PAT/FG block (1 point), offense starts inside 30-yard line and doesn’t score a TD (4 points), fourth-down stop on drive that started outside the 35-yard line (3 points).

500 points to the coach who declares a starter in the QB race!

We're anxiously awaiting Friday's scrimmage (although the $6.00 ticket price is a bummer), even though we will certainly have a hard time remembering who gets how many points for what. We had hoped we were done with math after high school.

Bronco Beat blog [Idaho Statesman]

Did Bleymaier want Paul J. out?

A few days ago, Idaho Radio News uncovered details from the contract negotiations for Boise State's radio rights, and all signs point to a conspiracy theory to have Paul J. Schneider removed.

If Citadel were to win the contract, it would have only kept legendary host Paul J. Schneider for one year of the two year agreement, and has hired Dan Karcher, who is scheduled to start work for KBOI in September. If Citadel had won the agreement, Karcher would have been involved with pre- and post-game shows “to become acclimated.”

According to notes of a March 7th meeting, BSU athletic director Gene Bleymaier asked Citadel executives “If we want to make a change immediately, is that an option?” Citadel bosses said they “would do it,” and said that they would have to have someone hired in two to three months.

Also, Bleymaier put a hit out on David Augusto.

Conspicuously absent from the radio story posted on the Bronco website was any mention of Paul J., who had been a part of Boise State radio for 35 years. Was Bleymaier out to get Paul J.? What did the Boise State AD have against the voice of the Broncos? Was there pressure from an outside source? Blackmail? Nepotism? And most importantly, where is Brian Murphy during all of this? His silence is deafening.

Draw your own conclusions about Bleymaier v. Schneider. Personally, we're taking Todd Miles' side.

Peak...demonstrated a true enthusiasm [Idaho Radio News]
Peak broadcasting awarded radio rights [Broncosports.com]

New coordinator brings fun to SoMiss offense

Change is in the air for the Southern Miss offense.

New offensive coordinator Larry Fedora, previously at Oklahoma State and Florida, has installed an up-tempo, spread attack that puts a premium on freewheeling and a kibosh on fullbacks.

It’s not that Fedora’s system is totally alien. It’s built on concepts that are becoming more familiar. Even the New England Patriots ran a version of the spread offense last season. But there are new assignments, new ways of thinking and everything has to be done at a fast pace and with no huddle.

Sounds like WAC football.

The departure from the Golden Eagle's staid approach to offense is expected to revitalize a program that has seen its support dwindle in recent years. While the new run 'n gun might be fun to watch, we don't expect any of the bells and whistles to throw the Broncos off when they visit Hattiesburg in the fall. It won't be anything they haven't seen before.

Fedora to unveil new So. Miss attack [SI.com]

Coach Pete lost, scholarships won

The inaugural Beat Coach Pete 5k on Saturday was a smashing success, raising $15,000 for student scholarships. The Idaho Press-Tribune reports that Coach Pete finished the race with a time of 25 minutes and 52 seconds, which was good enough for 323rd.

The goal of the race was to generate as much money as possible for the general student scholarship fund at Boise State while also challenging participants to beat the third-year football coach. Petersen was beat by 322 runners in the race and pledged $5 of his money to the scholarship fund for each person who was faster.

At five dollars per person, Coach Pete had to pony up $1,610, which is only slightly less than the Utah State football budget.

Beat Pete run raises $15,000 [Press-Tribune]