Boise State botches BCS bid

BOISE, Idaho -- Boise State's quests for perfection and BCS glory were dashed again by a missed field goal.

The fifth-ranked Broncos had a chance to win a last-second thriller against Texas Christian on Saturday, but freshman kicker Dan Goodale's 39-yard kick sailed wide right as time expired to give the Horned Frogs a 36-35 victory.

TCU now has a clear path to the Mountain West Conference crown.

For the Broncos, losing this way should seem all too familiar. Last year, Boise State's unbeaten season and BCS hopes were spoiled when senior Kyle Brotzman missed from short range in regulation and overtime, enabling UNR to claim a 34-31 win.

Kellen Moore, who drove the Broncos into scoring range in the final 55 seconds Saturday, deflected any postgame parallels to the last season's misery in Reno, arguing instead that losses in big games rarely come down to one play or one player.

"We missed opportunities. I don't think it's just one play, it's a variety of plays," said Moore, who threw for 320 yards and two touchdowns but lost for the first time at home in his career. "It's a loss, so it feels similar, but there's not great feelings."

The Broncos (8-1, 3-1) clearly had their chances to avoid any field-goal dramatics in a back-and-forth battle between two perennial BCS-busting teams.

Leading 35-28, Boise State got the ball at its 32 with 5:37 remaining. Moore then engineered a methodical drive and got the Broncos in scoring position before a fumble by backup running back Drew Wright was recovered by TCU (8-2, 5-0) with 2:26 remaining.

Then Casey Pachall took over -- and that was bad news for Boise State.

The sophomore was 24 of 37 for a career-best 473 yards and five touchdown passes, including scores of 75, 74 and 69 yards in the first half.

Pachall calmly marched the Horned Frogs before firing a 25-yard TD pass to Brandon Carter, who leaped over Quaylon Ewing-Burton to make the grab in the end zone and pull TCU within 35-34 with 1:05 remaining.

TCU coach Gary Patterson made a gutsy call for a 2-point conversion, opting to put the game in Pachall's hands and go for the lead instead of the tie. It worked. Pachall tossed a short pass to Josh Boyce, who fought his way into the end zone, putting TCU up 36-35 and quieting a raucous Bronco Stadium crowd.

Patterson said the decision to go for two was easy considering the circumstances.

"We're not going to win this if this keeps going," Patterson said. "So the only way we're going to be able to do it is to steal it. We were able to get the play and get the points, and we were fortunate that they missed a field goal. It's just as simple as that."

The Horned Frogs rolled up 506 total yards, carving up a Boise State secondary riddled with injuries and forced to use backups at the corners.

The victory also gave TCU 22 straight wins against conference foes and set an MWC record of 12 straight conference road wins.

The loss snapped the Broncos' 35-game home winning streak, which had been the nation's longest. But it also forces Boise State to recalibrate its postseason plans again. No longer a contender for the big-money BCS bowls, the Broncos now look to lesser bowls such as the Poinsettia Bowl and the Maaco Bowl Las Vegas.

■ San Diego State 18, Colorado State 15 -- At Fort Collins, Colo., Abelardo Perez kicked a 37-yard field goal with 5:49 left, and Ryan Lindley threw for 154 yards and a touchdown on a record-setting night as the Aztecs (6-3, 3-2) edged the Rams.

Lindley improved to 11,494 career passing yards to pass former Brigham Young quarterback Max Hall's 11,365 for the Mountain West record and Todd Santos' 11,425 for the San Diego State mark.

Chris Nwoke rushed for 232 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries for Colorado State (3-6, 1-3).

■ Wyoming 25, Air Force 17 -- At Air Force Academy, Colo., freshman quarterback Brett Smith ran for two touchdowns and threw for another, lifting the Cowboys (6-3, 3-1) over the Falcons in a howling wind gusting up to 60 mph.

Air Force (5-5, 1-4) lost starting quarterback Tim Jefferson to a concussion in the first quarter.

Wyoming defensive back Marqueston Huff sealed the win when he scooped up a fumble in the waning seconds and raced 48 yards for a score.