Was Saturday’s Pac-12 thriller one of Boise State’s greatest comebacks or one of its most alarming performances?

‘I don’t know if I’ll ever forget this game,’ Broncos head coach Spencer Danielson said

Boise State's Maddux Madsen. | Photo courtesy of Boise State Athletics

It’s going to take a minute to fully process No. 20 Boise State’s wild 46-45 Pac-12 After Dark victory over Texas State on Halloween.

The Broncos (7-1, 4-0) scored touchdowns on all four first-half possessions en route to a 28-3 halftime lead in the rain. Boise State followed up a near-perfect opening half with 22 minutes of football that will give head coach Spencer Danielson nightmares for the foreseeable future. 

“I don’t know if I’ll ever forget this game,” Danielson said in his postgame press conference. “Just so many lessons that we’re going to be able to learn from it, so many lessons for myself to be able to learn from it.”

Texas State (4-4, 2-2) outgained Boise State 177-21 in the third quarter and won the scoreboard 22-0. Twenty-two points for the Bobcats, 21 yards for the Broncos. 

The onslaught continued early in the fourth as Texas State connected on a 44-yard touchdown pass followed by a Jayden Bradley 20-yard pick-six of Maddux Madsen, putting the Bobcats up 39-28 with 8:58 remaining. It was a 36-0 scoring run for Texas State. 

Madsen was then lost to an apparent knee injury midway through the final quarter. Entering an impossible situation, backup quarterback Max Cutforth was about to deliver the performance of a lifetime. 

Cutforth hit on his first four passes, including a nine-yard touchdown strike to Rasean Jones. Following an ill-advised Texas State trick play that resulted in an interception—which could’ve been negated due to targeting—Cutforth completed a miracle fourth-and-10 throw for an 11-yard touchdown and a 45-40 lead. 

Texas State came right back with a 72-yard touchdown pass, but Cutforth opened the ensuing Boise State drive with a 44-yard bomb to Jones. He later found Akeem Wright in the end zone for an 18-yard touchdown with 2:40 remaining.

It should also be noted that the teams went a combined 0 for 4 on two-point conversion attempts in the fourth quarter. 

The beleaguered Boise State defense managed to get a four-and-out after Wright’s touchdown, and Dylan Riley moved the chains on third-and-three to end the game. 

When asked about the rollercoaster performance, Danielson said he lives in two worlds. 

“So proud of our guys finding a way to win; it’s hard to win in college football. No one wants to maybe hear that, but it is,” Danielson said. “But on the flip side, how did we get here? How do we get in a situation where you’re up that many points—against a really explosive team—but we didn’t execute, we didn’t do what we should do.”

Danielson said he’ll have to evaluate the film to see what happened to the Broncos after halftime. 

“Especially in the third quarter, it wasn’t like one side of the ball wasn’t executing. We weren’t executing whatsoever as a team,” Danielson said. “We were bleeding out, and that’s on me to figure out how that happened and make sure we have better answers to fix it next time. 

“I know when we watch it, I’m sure (Texas State made) some adjustments. But watching it live, there was nothing new that we had not seen. … We didn’t execute. We didn’t make our plays in any phase, and that’s how you give up a 28-3 lead and you’re down 11 (in) the fourth quarter.”

Danielson praised Cutforth for his flawless execution of the offense down the stretch.

Cutforth made several big-time throws, including the fourth-down touchdown to Jones. 

“When you’re down the way we were down and playing the way we were playing, we had (zero) margin for error at that point,” Danielson said. “I’m super proud of Max, man. Especially in a backup quarterback role, it’s tough. I mean, he’s been in this role and he’s done a really good job, but you never know until you get out there.”

The late-game heroics rescued what could’ve been a disastrous loss for the Broncos. 

Madsen, tight end Matt Wagner and several defensive players sustained injuries during the game. 

Boise State’s explosive play issues resurfaced as Bobcats quarterback Brad Jackson had touchdown throws of 44, 67 and 72 yards with a 35-yard TD run. 

“Giving up explosive plays on defense is something we’ve got to tighten up,” Danielson said. “A week ago, we gave up two. So we know we can do it. Tonight, I couldn’t even stinking tell you the number. … It’s going to come down to fundamentals and technique, and we’ve got to figure out why it showed up in that second half.”

So how should Boise State fans feel after Saturday’s rollercoaster?

The Broncos played a spectacular opening half and forged a memorable comeback with a backup quarterback to stay in the College Football Playoff hunt. 

The rally was necessary because Boise State coughed up a 28-3 lead by surrendering 42 points after the break. The Broncos opened the second half with four punts, a lost fumble and a pick-six. 

“Hats off to the leadership in that locker room,” Danielson said. “Because when everything was going sideways … they never flinched. But we’ve got to find ways to execute and create momentum, and we didn’t do that tonight throughout the game.”