Mountain West Conference Championship: Fresno State 28, Boise State 16
By JASON CHATRAW
Associated Press
BOISE, Idaho - Jake Haener threw for 184 yards and a touchdown, Nikko Remigio returned a punt 70 yards for a score, and Fresno State defeated Boise State 28-16 to win the Mountain West Conference championship.
Fresno State (9-4) overcame a 1-4 start to the season and a rash of injuries to win its final eight games, claiming the program's third Mountain West crown.
Boise State (9-4), which won 40-20 in the regular-season match-up between the teams, fell to 3-3 in Mountain West title games.
Boise State controlled the game early but struggled to find the end zone, clinging to a 3-0 lead late in the first half. But that all changed when Fresno State scored two touchdowns in a span of 2:36 right before halftime.
Remigio's electric return snaking back and forth across the field sparked Fresno State before Cameron Lockridge intercepted the first of two passes, returning it 25 yards to the Broncos' 17-yard line. Three plays later, Jordan Mims scored on a 2-yard run to put the Bulldogs up 14-3. They never relinquished the lead.
After Boise State edged within 14-9 in the third quarter, Fresno State tacked on two more touchdowns in the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach.
Jordan Mims rushed for 83 yards and a pair of scores for Fresno State.
Boise State's Taylen Green was 17-of-38 passing for 175 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.
THE TAKEAWAY
Boise State: While Broncos quarterback Green made his initial splash on the team with his legs, it's his arm that turned the season around. However, Green was often off-target against Fresno State.
Fresno State: The Bulldogs' 10-3 campaign a year ago served as a springboard for sustained success in 2022. However, Fresno State coach Jeff Tedford, who has now won two Mountain West titles, will have his work cut out for him in 2023 as his talented team is losing eight seniors on offense and five more on defense. If he chooses to utilize the transfer portal, he could shore up the team's short-term needs and keep Fresno State in contention for another conference title.
December 3, 2022
| Scoring Summary |
| Second Quarter |
Fres | Boise |
| Boise |
FG |
10:16 |
Jonah Dalmas 26 yard field goal |
0 |
3 |
| Fres |
TD |
3:54 |
Nikko Remigio 70 yard punt return for TD (Abraham Montano Extra Point) |
7 |
3 |
| Fres |
TD |
1:18 |
Jordan Mims 2 yard TD run (Abraham Montano Extra Point) |
14 |
3 |
| Boise |
FG |
0:02 |
Jonah Dalmas 47 yard field goal |
14 |
6 |
| Third Quarter |
Fres | Boise |
| Boise |
FG |
10:04 |
Jonah Dalmas 44 yard field goal |
14 |
9 |
| Fourth Quarter |
Fres | Boise |
| Fres |
TD |
14:49 |
Zane Pope 22 yard TD pass from Jake Haener (Abraham Montano Extra Point) |
21 |
9 |
| Fres |
TD |
9:47 |
Jordan Mims 3 yard TD run (Abraham Montano Extra Point) |
28 |
9 |
| Boise |
TD |
5:17 |
Davis Koetter 52 yard TD pass from Taylen Green (Jonah Dalmas Extra Point) |
28 |
16 |
| Team Stats |
| |
Fresno State |
Boise State |
| First downs |
14 |
15 |
| Rushing |
7 |
7 |
| Passing |
6 |
8 |
| Penalty |
1 |
0 |
| 3rd Down Efficiency |
5-15, 33% |
5-16, 31% |
| 4th down efficiency |
1-1, 100% |
0-1, 0% |
| Rushes-Yards |
35-61 |
29-146 |
| Passing Yards |
184 |
175 |
| Return Yards |
190 |
43 |
| Completions-Attempts-Int |
17-27-0 |
17-38-2 |
| Sacks-Yards Lost |
3-26 |
0-0 |
| Punts |
7 |
6 |
| Fumbles Lost |
1-0 |
1-0 |
| Penalties - Yards |
2-20 |
5-40 |
| Fresno State Passing |
| Player |
Cmp |
Att |
Yds |
TDs |
Int |
| J. Haener |
17 |
27 |
184 |
1 |
0 |
| Boise State Passing |
| Player |
Cmp |
Att |
Yds |
TDs |
Int |
| T. Green |
17 |
38 |
175 |
1 |
2 |
| Fresno State Rushing |
| Player |
Carries |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
| J. Mims |
26 |
83 |
3.2 |
2 |
| M. Sherrod |
2 |
6 |
3.0 |
0 |
| J. Haener |
5 |
-17 |
-3.4 |
0 |
| Boise State Rushing |
| Player |
Carries |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
| G. Holani |
13 |
74 |
5.7 |
0 |
| A. Jeanty |
6 |
32 |
5.3 |
0 |
| T. Green |
8 |
30 |
3.8 |
0 |
| E. Noa |
2 |
10 |
5.0 |
0 |
| Fresno State Receiving |
| Player |
Rec |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
| N. Remigio |
5 |
68 |
13.6 |
0 |
| J. Moreno-Cropper |
5 |
60 |
12.0 |
0 |
| Z. Pope |
4 |
51 |
12.8 |
1 |
| J. Mims |
3 |
5 |
1.7 |
0 |
| Boise State Receiving |
| Player |
Rec |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
| D. Koetter |
5 |
93 |
18.6 |
1 |
| R. Smith |
4 |
41 |
10.3 |
0 |
| L. Caples |
4 |
24 |
6.0 |
0 |
| B. Bowens |
3 |
20 |
6.7 |
0 |
| A. Jeanty |
1 |
-3 |
-3.0 |
0 |
| Fresno State Interceptions |
| Player |
Int |
Yards |
| C. Lockridge |
2 |
46 |
| Boise State Interceptions |
| Player |
Int |
Yards |
| Fresno State Punting |
| Player |
Punts |
Yards |
Avg |
| C. King |
7 |
285 |
40.7 |
| Boise State Punting |
| Player |
Punts |
Yards |
Avg |
| J. Ferguson-Reynolds |
6 |
248 |
41.3 |
| Fresno State Punt Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| N. Remigio |
3 |
82 |
27.3 |
| Boise State Punt Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| L. Caples |
2 |
11 |
5.5 |
| Fresno State Kick Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| N. Remigio |
2 |
62 |
31.0 |
| M. Dalena |
1 |
0 |
0 |
| Boise State Kick Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| K. Dudley |
1 |
32 |
32.0 |
| Fresno State Missed FG |
| Player |
Length |
| A. Montano |
35 |
| Boise State Missed FG |
| Player |
Length |
