Boise State Broncos find new ways to win

BOISE, Idaho - Even though Boise State no longer has a pass-happy, high-scoring offense, the Broncos still are finding ways to win.

Gone are the days when the offense put up 40 points or more on the arms of quarterbacks throwing for 400 yards and a fistful of touchdowns - at least for now.

On Saturday, the No. 24 Broncos rushed for 215 yards, and their defense forced two turnovers, notched three sacks and didn't allow a touchdown until the final minutes in a 20-10 victory over Fresno State.

For the Broncos (5-1, 2-0 Mountain West), it doesn't matter how the wins come.

"It starts with our defense. Those guys are playing really hard, and to hold Fresno to 10 points is really impressive," said coach Chris Petersen, who beat Fresno State for the seventh straight time.

Senior D.J. Harper led the offense, rushing for 122 yards on 21 carries - his third game this year topping the 100-yard mark - and he put the Broncos up 17-0 two minutes before the half with a nifty 28-yard touchdown run. After breaking through the Fresno State line, Harper spun away from a linebacker, raced down the sideline, dived and stretched the ball just enough to break the plane of the goal line.

Jay Ajayi added 82 yards on 14 carries and the Broncos amassed 335 yards of offense.

Boise State quarterback Joe Southwick was 11 of 22 for 113 yards passing and one interception. Southwick put the Broncos up in the first quarter when he fired a 10-yard touchdown to wide receiver Geraldo Boldewijn. Southwick didn't make any big mistakes, but he struggled again to turn some promising drives into touchdowns.

Another impressive performance by Boise State's defense masked Southwick's struggles.

Fresno State (4-3, 2-1) was held scoreless in the first half, the fourth straight game the Broncos have held a foe scoreless in the first two quarters, and mustered 56 yards rushing.

Boise State's defense also squelched a Bulldogs scoring drive in the third quarter's opening minutes when cornerback Dextrell Simmons jumped a route in front of wide receiver Rashad Evans and picked off Derek Carr's pass deep in Boise State territory.

Then, midway through the fourth quarter, Broncos defensive end Demarcus Lawrence chased down Carr and stripped the ball, which nose tackle Mike Atkinson recovered on the Bulldogs' 21. Michael Frisina, who hit a pair of 19-yard field goals, missed a chance to tack on more points when his 37-yard field-goal attempt sailed wide right.

Fresno State finally got on the board late in the third quarter when Quentin Breshears nailed a 39-yard field goal. Then, late in the game, Carr engineered a nine-play, 80-yard drive capped by a 3-yard touchdown pass to Evans.

Carr was 29 of 43 for 266 yards as the Bulldogs amassed 322 yards of offense.

■ Air Force 28, Wyoming 27 - At Laramie, Wyo., backup quarterback Kale Pearson scored on a 5-yard run in the fourth quarter on his only play of the game to lift the Falcons (3-3, 2-1).

Connor Dietz, who left the game for one play because of an injury, passed for 141 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 92 yards.

The Cowboys (1-5, 0-2) played without starting quarterback Brett Smith, who was scratched just before the game because of an undisclosed injury. Entering the weekend, Smith was ranked ninth in the nation in total offense, averaging 336 yards a game.

Smith was replaced by freshman Jason Thompson, who passed for 195 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 75 yards.

For the second straight week, Wyoming faced and held in check the nation's leading rusher.

Air Force running back Cody Getz, who entered averaging 177.4 yards a game, had 41 yards on 10 carries. He left the game late in the third quarter with a lower left leg injury. The previous week, Wyoming held UNR's Stefphon Jefferson, who was averaging 175.4 yards a game, to 78 yards.

Wyoming outgained Air Force 447-371 and had an 11-minute advantage in time of possession, but the Cowboys failed to score in the final quarter.

■ San Diego State 38, Colorado State 14 - At San Diego, Adam Muema rushed for two touchdowns, and Ryan Katz passed for two scores and ran for another to lift the Aztecs (4-3, 2-1).

Muema had 105 yards on 14 attempts, and Katz was 16 of 22 passing for 181 yards. San Diego State was not penalized in a game for the first time since 1973.

Conner Smith was 18 of 22 for 165 yards and an interception for the Rams (1-6, 0-3).

SDSU converted all three of Colorado State's turnovers into touchdowns. Aztecs linebacker Derek Largent had two interceptions and two sacks.