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Boise State overwhelmed by Washington in LA Bowl

Huskies rout Broncos, 38-10
Bob Lundeberg|
Washington Huskies running back Jonah Coleman.
Washington Huskies running back Jonah Coleman. | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

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Boise State’s quest for a 10th victory came up empty during Saturday’s LA Bowl against Washington. 

The Huskies (9-4) dominated the Broncos (9-5) in all three phases en route to a 38-10 victory at SoFi Stadium. 

Boise State, which captured the program’s third straight Mountain West title last week, tossed five interceptions in the blowout loss. 

The Broncos are leaving the MWC for the Pac-12 next summer alongside Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State. 

Read our LA Bowl recap with in-game analysis from start to finish.

Fourth quarter

Final: Washington 38, Boise State 10. Boise State ends the season with a 9-5 overall record. 

CFP status: Boise State’s performance has been so bad that the ESPN commentators are now wondering if the Group of Five should be guaranteed a berth in the College Football Playoff in the future. Tulane and James Madison both automatically qualified for the playoff while Notre Dame was left out. Meanwhile, Cutforth tosses his third interception. 

Quarterback room: After signing two prep quarterbacks earlier this month, Boise State head coach Spencer Danielson said this: “We feel really good about the (quarterback) room and where it’s growing to. For us, we’re always looking to see what is out there for this program. But for right now, we’re not going to recruit the transfer portal for a quarterback.” I wonder if Danielson will rethink that after today’s performance. 

Another interception: Max Cutforth leads a solid drive to the red zone, but the sophomore throws an ill-advised pick in the end zone. Boise State has scored exactly seven points in all four of its losses this season. The Broncos have three points in the fourth quarter with 12:38 remaining. 

Third quarter

End of quarter: Washington 31, Boise State 3. Not a whole lot to say about this one. The Broncos have 15 minutes remaining, and then they’re off to the Pac-12.

Offensive struggles: Boise State, trailing 31-3, punts it back to Washington. The Broncos must attack the wide receiver position during the winter transfer portal cycle. Madsen catches a lot of flak for his inconsistent play, but the receivers have been a bigger issue this season, in my opinion. 

Madsen out: Madsen is out for the rest of the game. He has a boot on his right foot. A brutal end to his junior season. Madsen finishes the day 7 of 16 for 51 yards with two interceptions. 

Second quarter

Halftime: Washington 24, Boise State 3. That was about as bad of an opening half as you could imagine for the Broncos and Maddux Madsen. It’s just a complete mismatch out there on both sides of the ball. 

What is Madsen doing?: Trying to make a play, Madsen throws up a desperation heave that results in an easy interception for Rahshawn Clark. Washington, leading 17-3, can add to its lead before the end of the half. 

BSU breakdown: Broncos go with a double cornerback blitz, and neither safety takes Boston on the post route. It goes for a 78-yard touchdown, giving Washington a 10-3 lead. 

BSU receiver struggles: While doing a segment in the TV booth, Rob Gronkowski notes how Chris Marshall failed to use his body correctly on a third-down play. BSU’s receivers have been a major letdown for most of the 2025 season. 

OL update: Roger Carreon was dinged up on the Madsen interception play. Jason Steele has replaced Carreon at right guard. The Broncos are now down three starters on the offensive line, not good. 

First quarter

End of quarter: Boise State 3, Washington 3. Marco Notarainni has been the player of the game for BSU so far with six total tackles (two for loss) and a sack. 

Madsen fooled: Boise State quarterback Maddux Madsen never sees linebacker Xe’ree Alexander in zone coverage and throws it right to him on third-and-five. Madsen played poorly in the Broncos’ road losses to South Florida and Notre Dame and tossed three interceptions in last year’s Fiesta Bowl loss to Penn State. If Boise State is going to take the next step in 2026, Madsen needs to be a lot better. 

UW offense: Washington’s offense is as advertised with quarterback Demond Williams Jr., running back Jonah Coleman and wide receiver Denzel Boston. The Huskies’ three stars all made big plays on the opening drive as Washington marched right down the field before stalling in the red zone. The Boise State defense will certainly be tested tonight. 3-3 tie midway through the opening quarter. 

Underway: Boise State gets the ball first in this one. The patchwork offensive line features left tackle Kyle Cox, left guard Mason Randolph, center Zach Holmes, right guard Roger Carreon and right tackle Jake Steele. Regular left tackle Kage Casey (opt-out) and right tackle Daylon Metoyer (injury) are both out. 

Pregame 

Attendance: It’s a sparse crowd at SoFi Stadium for this one. With the changing landscape of college football, I can understand why the LA Bowl is folding after this year’s edition. 

Heisman ceremony: While we wait for the LA Bowl to kick off, Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza is giving his Heisman Trophy acceptance speech. 

Distracted Huskies?: I’ll be curious to see how locked in Washington is tonight as head coach Jedd Fisch is rumored to be a candidate for the opening at Michigan. Fisch downplayed the rumors during Friday’s press conference, but his history of jumping from job to job suggests otherwise. 

OL concerns: Boise State will be without starting left tackle Kage Casey, who opted out of the LA Bowl to focus on preparing for the 2026 NFL Draft.

○ Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. 

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Bob Lundeberg
BOB LUNDEBERG

Bob Lundeberg is a reporter for Boise State Broncos On SI. An Oregon State graduate, Bob has lived in Idaho since 2019 and is an avid hiker and golfer.

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