The Aztecs suffered a 56-24 loss to No. 15 Boise State – San Diego Union-Tribune

San Diego State went heads in the coin toss before Friday night's Mountain West game at Boise State.

They were cocks.

Things got worse for the Aztecs from there.

SDSU entered the game with the goal of stopping Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty, the country's leading rusher, but it was quarterback Maddux Madsen who resembled the Heisman Trophy favorite.

Madsen threw four touchdown passes in the first half, three of them to wide receiver Latrell Caples, and completed 24 of 32 passes for 307 yards. The 15th-ranked Broncos also intercepted SDSU quarterback Danny O'Neil twice on three passes in the first quarter – one of which he returned for a touchdown – en route to a 56-24 victory in front of a sellout crowd of 36,838 at Albertsons Stadium at Boise State.

Boise State (7-1, 4-0 MW) entered the game against the Aztecs (3-5, 2-1) as a 23 1/2-point favorite. The Broncos had a 28-0 lead 3 1/2 minutes into the second quarter.

“Any time you put a really good football team on points like that early on, you're putting yourself in a pretty big hole that's going to be very difficult to overcome,” SDSU coach Sean Lewis said in an interview with San Diego Sports after Game 760. “They are a very complete team with a lot of offensive weapons that burden you in many ways. Of course, going into it, you know who the main workhorse (Jeanty) is, which deserves all sorts of attention.

“Then obviously you have to do a great job in the throwing game… We have to do a better job of putting our kids in the best position to be successful.”

Madsen threw 18- and 19-yard TD passes to Caples on the Broncos' first two drives. The Broncos made it 21-0 with 1:31 left in the opening period when cornerback A'Marion McCoy stepped in front of an O'Neil pass intended for Louis Brown IV and didn't stop until he reached the end zone 35 yards later.

O'Neil (14 of 30, 155 yards, 2 TDs/2 INTs), who began his career this season with 127 passes without an interception, was intercepted again two passes later.

Boise State converted the second turnover into a 14-yard touchdown pass from Madsen to wide receiver Prince Strachan that made it 28-0.

SDSU finally got something going in the second quarter with a 27-yard field goal by Gabriel Plascencia and a 6-yard touchdown run by Marquez Cooper that made it 28-10. Cooper (16 carries, 94 yards) set up the score with a 42-yard run that was the longest play from scrimmage of the game.

SDSU's hopes of a comeback were dashed with 22 seconds left in the second quarter when Madsen and Caples scored on a 14-yard score that gave the Broncos a 35-10 halftime lead.

Jeanty averaged 196.6 rushing yards per game and was limited to 37 yards on 15 carries in the first half. He appeared sore several times while playing with a brace on his left elbow, which was injured last week against UNLV.

Jeanty persevered, perhaps to improve the statistics of his Heisman campaign. He scored six times on the first drive of the second half and reached the end zone on a 4-yard run that gave Boise State a 42-10 lead with 10 minutes left in the third quarter.

Jeanty wore it 10 more times after that. Despite a 32-point lead, he stayed in the game into the fourth quarter and added another 4-yard touchdown run two minutes into the final period, making it a 49-10 lead. Jeanty finished the game with 31 carries for 149 yards, increasing his NCAA-leading rushing totals to 1,525 yards and 20 touchdowns.

SDSU was 6-for-6 on fourth-down plays, including four on a fourth-quarter drive. That included a fourth-and-5 in which O'Neil threw a 30-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Jordan Napier (eight catches, 79 yards) that made the score 49-17 midway through the fourth quarter.

After another Boise State touchdown, O'Neil hit wide receiver Mekhi Shaw with a 30-yard TD pass with 30 seconds left to complete the score.

Remarkable

• SDSU returns to Snapdragon Stadium for its next game, Friday night against New Mexico. The Lobos (3-5, 2-2) scored 50 points in three straight games before losing 17-6 at Colorado State last week. They host Wyoming on Saturday.

• Just before noon, Odds Shark tweeted a “Big Bet Alert,” announcing that a bettor had bet $38,056 on the Aztecs, securing the 23 1/2 points that came with betting on the underdog. Boise State won by 32 points.

• SDSU right guard Tyler McMahon and right tackle Nate Williams Both started despite a left ankle injury that prevented them from training earlier in the week. Seipale Fuimaono replaced McMahon later in the game.

The Aztecs' weakened offensive line suffered another blow in the fourth quarter at center Brayden Bryant ejected after a Boise State defender stepped on his right ankle.

• The Aztecs Cody Moon started as a linebacker instead of Owen Chamblisswho missed training during the week due to an injury.

• SDSU linebacker Tano Letuli had a game-high 10 tackles for the second straight game. Edge rusher Trey White failed to reach the quarterback for the first time in six games, leaving his nation-leading sack total at 11 1/2.

• Aztecs punter Tyler Pastula returned a 79-yard punt in the third quarter, surpassing the 75-yard punt he had at Wyoming. The 79-yarder completed the sixth-longest punt in school history.

• Boise State outscored SDSU in total offense 541-256 and had 33 first downs to the Aztecs' 12. The Broncos also had the ball in the game for virtually twice as long — 39:32 to 20:28 — as SDSU.

• SDSU, ranked 113th nationally in third-down conversions (33.6 percent), went 2-for-14 on third downs against the Broncos.

• SDSU fell to 1-7 in coin tosses this season.

Originally published: November 1, 2024 at 8:34 pm PDT