Game recap, analysis: No. 25 Boise State blasts Colorado State for eighth straight win

There was no second-half drama on Saturday as No. 25 Boise State blasted Colorado State in a Pac-12 game at Canvas Stadium, 64-38.

The Broncos (8-1, 5-0), who squandered a 28-3 halftime lead last week against Texas State, scored touchdowns on their first four drives against the Rams (3-6, 1-4) to build a 29-10 advantage at the break. The onslaught continued in the second half.

Filling in for an injured Maddux Madsen, Max Cutforth completed 16 of 19 passes for 317 yards with five total touchdowns and no turnovers.

Dylan Riley had 192 yards rushing, 88 yards receiving and three total touchdowns as Boise State picked up its eighth straight win.

The Broncos finished the game with 669 yards of total offense.

Read our game recap, with in-game analysis and big play highlights from start to finish.

Fourth quarter recap

Final: Boise State 64, Colorado State 38. The Broncos pick up their eighth straight win ahead of a critical home showdown with Oregon State.

Colorado State goes over 500 yards of offense with a late touchdown. Another poor, poor, poor defensive outing for the Broncos.

Stewart III gets another rushing touchdown from six yards out to put a bow on this one. Boise State 64, Colorado State 31, 2:56 remaining.

True freshman quarterback Cash Herrera is getting his first action in a Boise State uniform.

Harry Stewart III adds to the damage with a 43-yard touchdown run, his first TD as a Bronco. Boise State 57, Colorado State 31, 7:11 remaining. The Broncos are sitting at 606 yards of total offense.

More of the same from the Boise State defense. Two more explosive plays lead to a Hejny touchdown throw. The Broncos have now surrendered 63 second-half points over the last two weeks. Not good. On the positive side, Boise State leads this game 50-31.

Cutforth finishes off another solid Boise State drive with his first career rushing touchdown, a one-yard sneak. Boise State 50, Colorado State 24, 12:55 of garbage time remaining in this one.

Third quarter recap

End of quarter: Boise State 43, Colorado State 24.

Hauss Hejny breaks about five tackles on a nine-yard touchdown run. The Broncos are just a flat-out bad defensive team, but the offense is elite. Boise State leads 43-24 late in the third quarter.

Terrific answer by Boise State. Cutforth completes a key third-and-long and Riley explodes for a 31-yard rushing touchdown. Riley also had a nice Heisman pose in the end zone. Boise State 43, Colorado State 17, 6:11 remaining in the third quarter.

Well, Boise State’s defense remains a huge question mark. The Broncos allow a sloppy 65-yard catch-and-run and then get hit by a 13-yard Tommy Maher touchdown reception. Boise State 36, Colorado State 17.

Terrious Favors houses a 29-yard carry to finish off an impressive drive. It appears there will be no repeat of last week. Boise State 36, Colorado State 10, 9:37 left in the third quarter.

Dylan Riley has surpassed the 100-yard rushing mark for the sixth time this season. And two plays later, Rasean Jones goes over 100 yards receiving for the second straight game.

Play has resumed at Canvas Stadium. Colorado State, trailing 29-10, will get the ball first.

Halftime updates

The Broncos led 28-3 at halftime last week against Texas State. We all know how that turned out. I expect a much, much better second half today against the helpless Rams.

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Boise State outgained Colorado State 332-207 in the first half. Cutforth completed 12 of 14 passes for 236 yards with three touchdowns and no turnovers.

Second quarter recap

Halftime: Boise State 29, Colorado State 10.

The Boise State defense does its job and gets a stop. Colorado State played it very conservatively facing a 19-point deficit. Not sure about that one.

Big moment here for the Boise State defense. Colorado State takes over at its own 8 with 1:53 to play. The Broncos need a stop here to go into halftime with the momentum.

Cutforth is now 10 for 11 passing for 210 yards with three touchdowns. He has six touchdowns and no turnovers in two-plus quarters of play since taking over for Maddux Madsen. With how Cutforth is playing right now, do the Broncos really want to trot out a limited Madsen next week? Just food for thought.

Max Cutforth is dialed in. On third-and-two, Cutforth delivers a strike to Rasean Jones for a 35-yard touchdown. Four drives, four TDs for the Broncos, who now lead 29-10.

Dylan Riley is back on the field for the Broncos’ fourth drive of the game.

Boise State’s embattled defense comes through with a big goal-line stand to force a field goal. Boise State 22, Colorado State 10, 12:40 left in the second quarter.

First quarter recap

End of quarter: Boise State 22, Colorado State 7. Rams will have it first-and-goal from the 9 when play resumes.

It’s a clown show in Boise State’s secondary at times. Kyle Hall gets totally lost on a jump ball, which goes for a 31-yard gain. Just poor, poor defensive fundamentals for the Broncos.

Will be curious to see how much more run Dylan Riley gets today. It looked like he may have tweaked his left knee earlier in the game and was not on the field for that last drive. It should be noted that he was fiddling with his knee before the 42-yard touchdown run, so it doesn’t appear to be anything serious.

Max Cutforth is dialed in. The backup quarterback hits Rasean Jones for a 33-yard gain and finishes off the drive with a dart to Matt Wagner for a 15-yard touchdown. Will the Broncos score 70 points today? Boise State 22, Colorado State 7, still 5:12 left in the opening quarter.

On fourth-and-one, Dylan Riley explodes through the middle for a 42-yard touchdown. The Broncos may score a TD on every drive today. Boise State 15, Colorado State 7.

Woof. Colorado State gashes the Boise State defense with two explosive runs, and Oliver Lundberg finishes off the drive with a nine-yard touchdown run. I hope you bet the over today. Boise State 8, Colorado State 7, 11:47 remaining in the opening quarter.

Well that was fast. On the second play from scrimmage, Dylan Riley catches a swing pass around the left side and outruns the defense for a 73-yard touchdown. As Ryan Leaf said, Colorado State is “138th out of 138 (FBS teams) for a reason.” The two-point conversion is also good, and Boise State is already up 8-0.

Canvas Stadium has been packed all season, but it’s a dead environment today. Tons of empty seats as Boise State receives the opening kickoff.

Pregame recap

The Broncos are 13-1 all-time against Colorado State, but the one loss came in Boise State’s last trip to Fort Collins. The Rams erased a 20-point fourth-quarter deficit in a 31-30 win. Spencer Danielson was Boise State’s defensive coordinator for that game.

Max Cutforth will make his fourth career start behind center today. Cutforth kept the Broncos afloat last year and will attempt to do the same against Colorado State. I expect to see a heavy dose of Dylan Riley against the Rams’ weak run defense.

It’s a perfect day for football in Fort Collins, which might be my favorite town in the new Pac-12. The sun is out with a temperature in the low 60s just before kickoff. Both teams have balanced offenses with defenses that are vulnerable to explosive plays, so there could be plenty of points in today’s game.

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