In the waiting game for the 2017 football season to start, we’re definitely in the the Dog Days. To bide the time, ESPN.com’s Mark Schlabach and Mark McGee have “100 reasons we can’t wait for college football to come back.” About halfway through, Schlabach says, “The Oregon game I’m most interested in early in the season is a trip to Wyoming, but that’s because I want to see if there’s anything to the hype surrounding QB Josh Allen.” (There’s Josh Allen again…get used to it.)
McGee counters with this: “The Mountain West is still all about Brett Rypien back on the blue turf at Boise State. The Broncos were 10-3 last year. This is Bryan Harsin’s fourth year as head coach. They have a couple of Power 5 games and key conference games at home, including Wyoming. Can the Broncos get back to their old New Year’s party-crashing ways? You know me, I’m a Group of Five underdog junkie. I can never wait to see who might pull a Houston-ish run and force themselves into the big bowl game talk.” The best reason, though, might be No. 100 from Schlabach: “I can’t wait for the college football season to start so we can stop listening to Lavar Ball.”
We had a little debate going in our household after my blurb yesterday hoping Boise State retires its gray jerseys. I noted the gray tops (with blue pants) debuted in the Air Force game on the blue turf in 2011. My son Ricky said au contraire—they were first worn in the Kickoff In The Capitol game on ABC against Virginia Tech in 2010. I maintain those were one-time-only Nike Combat uniforms created especially for that game (the Hokies had their own special Nike Combat design). But, good catch, Ricky. Just to make sure, I YouTubed highlights of that contest at FedEx Field. You should do that, too, just to refresh your memory on how jaw-droppingly good the Broncos were then.
There was one sport that unveiled uniforms yesterday, even if it isn’t a sport yet. There’s no date for a stadium groundbreaking, much less a first pitch, for the planned Boise State baseball program. But the Broncos do have a wardrobe. There were six different jerseys unveiled in a press release—a set of white pinstriped home and gray away jerseys designed for Fridays, an alternate set with a blue top and an orange top, a throwback uniform saluting the 1968 look (simple with a large “BRONCOS” across the chest), and a cream-tinted uni featuring “Broncos” in script. The announcement creates some buzz, expect perhaps in the wrestling community.
Four weeks ago former Air Force wide receiver Jalen Robinette endured a rather agonizing turn of events when he was informed after the NFL Draft began that he wasn’t going to be allowed to go directly to the NFL after all. Instead, he’d have to serve his required two years of active duty. Robinette received another gut-punch yesterday when he did not graduate with his classmates—the Academy released a statement that said Academy leadership became aware of information that “called into question” Robinette’s eligibility, and it’s investigating his credentials for graduation and commission. Robinette, the Falcons’ career receiving leader, went undrafted following that earlier bombshell.
It used to be commonly known as “The Colonial”—now it’s the Dean & DeLuca Invitational on the PGA Tour. Either way, it tees off in Fort Worth today, with former Boise State star Graham DeLaet in the field. DeLaet could use a good week. After two top 25 finishes in April, including a tie for sixth at the RBC Heritage, he has missed two cuts and has shot 10-over par in his last four rounds.
The NCAA West Preliminary Outdoor Track and Field Championships get underway today in Austin, TX, and six of Boise State’s 14 entrants will be competing on Day 1. Most prominent is the Broncos’ 800-meters star, sophomore Sadi Henderson, the school record-holder in the event and a second-team All-American from the indoor season. Boise State has seven men and seven women at the meet, representing entries in 17 events. Athletes with the top 12 times and marks along with the best 12 relay teams at both the East and West Preliminary Championships will qualify for the NCAA Championships in Eugene June 7-10.
Idaho men’s hoops will have its scoring machine back for the 2017-18 season. Victor Sanders had declared for the NBA Draft last month but hadn’t hired an agent, and he announced yesterday he’s returning to the Vandals for his senior year. Sanders led Idaho to a 19-14 season that included a victory in the first round of the CIT as he averaged 20.9 points per game and shot 44 percent from three-point range. Sanders posted four 30-point games, topped by a 40-point performance in an 89-72 win over Portland State in February.
This Day In Sports…May 25, 2014:
Josh Beckett becomes the first Los Angeles Dodger to throw a no-hitter in 18 years when he blanks the Philadelphia Phillies on the road, 6-0. Beckett’s gem carried another footnote—it was the first no-hitter thrown by an opposing pitcher in Philadelphia since Montreal’s Bill Stoneman did it at old Connie Mack Stadium in 1969. Stoneman was the former University of Idaho pitcher who led the Vandals to two Big Sky championships and was later spent eight years as the general manager of the Angels.
(Tom Scott hosts the Scott Slant segment during the football season on KTVB’s Sunday Sports Extra and anchors five sports segments each weekday on 93.1 FM KTIK. He also served as color commentator on KTVB’s telecasts of Boise State football for 14 seasons.)
