Broncos and Wildcats collide in Fiesta Bowl

Dec 27, 2014 - 5:52 PM Glendale, AZ (SportsNetwork.com) - New Year's Eve comes alive with three key bowl games, one of which is the Fiesta Bowl which featured 21st-ranked Boise State and the 12th-ranked Arizona Wildcats at University of Phoenix Stadium.

The Wildcats, who are essentially playing in their own backyard, are led by coach Rich Rodriguez who is in his third year with the program. They finished atop the South Division of the Pac-12 Conference standings with a record of 7-2. The team lost just two games during the regular season, both in league action, versus USC and UCLA by a combined 12 points. Following the setback to the Bruins, the program ripped off four straight wins in order to capture the division crown.

However, in the Pac-12 title game Arizona was thoroughly dominated by Oregon earlier this month, 51-13. Needless to say, the 51 points allowed were by far the most this season by the Wildcats.

As for the Broncos, under new head coach Bryan Harsin who is both a former assistant coach and player for Boise State, the program got off to a bumpy start in late August as it kicked off the 2014 campaign with a 35-13 loss to Ole Miss in Atlanta. At the time the decision appeared detrimental to BSU's postseason pursuits, but the Rebels turned into one of the top programs in the nation and the Broncos more than responded in the weeks following.

Under new leadership, the Broncos won 10 of their next 11 outings, the lone setback being a stunning loss at Air Force (28-14). Still, once the regular season wrapped up in late November, Boise State was still at the top of the Mountain Division standings of the Mountain West Conference, at 7-1, as it prepared for the MWC title game versus Fresno State.

In a weakened West Division, the Bulldogs were just 6-6 entering the meeting with BSU and were lucky to stay within a pair of touchdowns (28-14) on Dec. 6 at Albertsons Stadium in Idaho.

"The goal from when we set out this season was to be in this game - and when we got into this game, the goal was to win this game," said Harsin after the win over FSU. "To accomplish that goal is a credit to our approach to the game each and every week."

As the top-ranked team residing outside of the power conferences, Boise State is back in the Fiesta Bowl for the first time since 2007 when the team stunned Oklahoma and the football world with a 43-42 overtime thriller in which the Broncos ran a successful hook-and-lateral play as well as a Statue of Liberty play in order to earn the unexpected victory. Boise State has a record of 9-5 in bowl games dating back to just 1999, although the Broncos did bow to Oregon State in the 2013 Hawaii Bowl, 38-23, snapping a four-game bowl win streak.

Meanwhile, the Wildcats are back in this particular event for the first time since posting a 29-0 victory over Miami in 1994, and for the third time overall. Arizona, which is 8-9-1 in bowl outings -- starting with a 38-0 loss to Centre in the 1921 Christmas Classic -- has won two straight bowl contests, the latest being a 42-19 triumph over Boston College in the 2013 Advocare V100 Bowl.

Somewhat surprisingly, this is actually the first-ever meeting between these two institutions on the football field.

Harsin, one of five finalists for the Paul "Bear" Bryant National Coach of the Year Award in just his first year at his alma mater, had his offense clicking on all cylinders almost the entire season, save for the two defeats in which the unit scored a combined 27 points. As of Christmas Day, the Broncos ranked ninth in the country in scoring with 39.8 ppg, thanks to an offense that produced a shade under 500 yards per contest.

Grant Hedrick was tasked with handling the offense as he completed a stellar 70.9 percent of his pass attempts for 3,387 yards, but his 22 touchdowns were tempered by 13 interceptions on 381 tries. Shane Williams-Rhodes, a starter in nine of his 13 appearances, was responsible for a team-best 68 catches and led the unit with seven TDs, yet he averaged a mere 8.6 yards per grab. Thomas Sperbeck, who picked up some of the slack left when Matt Miller (28 receptions for 461 yards and three touchdowns) went on the shelf after just five games, finished with 39 catches for 678 yards and three TDs.

But as well as some of those guys played, the main attraction for the Broncos on offense continues to be running back Jay Ajayi. The All-American was simply phenomenal as he took the ball a staggering 325 times in order to net 1,689 yards and 25 touchdowns on the ground. As if that were not enough, Ajayi also made himself available for 45 receptions for 536 yards and another four TDs, making him one of the most accomplished offensive players in program history.

With Ajayi as the not-so-secret weapon on offense, the Boise State defense didn't have to be as stout this time around, and while there were times when the unit struggled, it was again a very solid group that ranked 39th in the country with 366.5 ypg allowed. One of the biggest hitters for the Broncos was Tanner Vallejo who led the program with 86 tackles, of which 15 came behind the line of scrimmage. He also paced the program with three recovered fumbles.

Just a sophomore, Kamalei Correa made a major impact with his 17 tackles for loss, including a team-best 10 sacks. Another all-conference performer was safety Darian Thompson who recorded seven interceptions, one of which he returned for a touchdown against Wyoming. Because of the efforts of Thompson, BSU has a turnover margin of plus-0.54 per game, which is 32nd in the nation.

From a numbers perspective, the Broncos certainly appear stronger on paper than Arizona, but the Wildcats might just have better personnel overall. One of the top players on the defensive side of the ball for Arizona is linebacker Scooby Wright III who was not only named a Unanimous All-American, he was also named the winner of the Bronko Nagurski Trophy which recognizes the nation's top defensive player.

Wright was all over the field for the Wildcats, making an incredible 153 tackles, of which 89 were solo efforts (more than all but one of his teammates had in all). But more than just a tackling machine, Wright made several stops in key situations, registering 28 TFLs and 14 sacks, both of which easily paced the program. Add to that six forced fumbles and one recovery and it is difficult to find another defender who exerted as much influence on games this season.

Wright was also selected as the 2014 recipient of the Rotary Lombardi Award which honors the top linebacker or lineman in the nation. The Chuck Bednarik Award, presented annually to the nation's most outstanding defensive player by the Maxwell Football Club, was also handed to Wright.

Jared Tevis accounted for another 119 tackles, nine TFL and four sacks for a unit that still somehow surrendered 449.5 ypg to rank 103rd in the nation. The UA secondary was especially suspect as it gave up 279.1 ypg (117th nationally), the main reason why the program allowed 27.5 ppg.

While Wright was standing in the spotlight the entire season for the Arizona defense, the other side of the ball saw the Wildcats gambling on a youngster at quarterback in Anu Solomon. The gunslinger lit up the air with 58.0 percent completions, en route to 3,458 yards and 27 touchdowns, against just seven interceptions on close to 500 attempts.

Cayleb Jones was the primary target down the field for Solomon, as he caught 65 balls for 902 yards and nine touchdowns, although Austin Hill and Samajie Grant also served as key outlets as they combined for 86 grabs for 1,254 yards and nine scores.

As one of the more productive running backs in the Pac-12, Nick Wilson churned out 1,289 yards and 15 TDs on 217 carries in order to take some of the pressure off Solomon from time to time for a unit that placed 25th nationally with 461.5 ypg.