BOISE ST. (8-4, 6-2 IN THE MOUNTAIN WEST)

BOISE STATE OFFENSE

Being back in Hawaii for a bowl game brings back some memories for Boise State quarterback coach Jonathan Smith — not all of them pleasant.

“Some bad memories when I played here because we didn’t play that well,” said Smith, Oregon State’s starter in a loss to Hawaii in the 1999 Oahu Bowl. Even so, “it was a good time in my life for me.”

Smith’s return as a coach has been a bit rocky. Senior quarterback Joe Southwick was sent home on Friday, suspended for allegedly urinating off a hotel balcony, according to a report by Boise’s KTVB. Southwick disputed the claim in the interview with the television station and took a polygraph test after arriving in Boise in a bid to prove his innocence.

Amid the turmoil, Smith will guide junior Grant Hedrick through today’s game. Hedrick played most of the last six games after Southwick suffered an ankle injury and completed 68.2 percent of his attempts with 15 touchdowns and five interceptions in the regular season.

An offensive line that starts three seniors and two sophomores opened the way for running back Jay Ajayi to average 5.9 yards per carry on his way to finishing the regular season with 1,328 yards (the second highest MWC total) and 17 touchdowns. The sophomore ran for a career-high 222 yards in a win over Nevada. He also caught 16 passes for 189 yards and a score.

Matt Miller gives Hedrick a big target, and the 6-foot-3 junior set career highs this season with 77 catches for 934 yards and 11 touchdowns. The Broncos won’t have Shane Williams-Rhodes, who tied Miller for the team lead in receptions but will miss the game due to an ankle injury.

BOISE STATE DEFENSE 

While keeping track of a friend’s progress, Donte Deayon familiarized himself with one of Oregon State’s primary weapons.

Deayon, a sophomore cornerback and friend of OSU receiver Victor Bolden, regularly watched Beavers games this season and couldn’t help but take notice of Brandin Cooks, this year’s Biletnikoff Award winner.

“He’s always moving at a different speed than the rest of the people on the field when you put on the film,” Deayon said. “He’s elusive, fast, very explosive and when he has the ball in his hands he’s a playmaker.”

Deayon was one of the most productive members of the Broncos secondary with five of Boise State’s 15 interceptions and another nine passes broken up. Containing the combination of Cooks and quarterback Sean Mannion will test a unit with just two seniors in the starting lineup. Freshman linebacker Ben Weaver leads the team with 86 tackles.

“The hard part is they have a bunch of different ways to get Cooks the ball,” Boise State defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski said. “He’s going to have his touches. We just have to do a good job of leveraging him and running to the football, so it’s not all on one guy to make the play.”

Putting pressure on Mannion with a defensive front led by first-team All-Mountain West Conference linemen Demarcus Lawrence (191⁄2 tackles for loss, 101⁄2 sacks) and Ricky Tjong-A-Tjoe figures to be a key to slowing the nation’s third ranked passing offense. But the Broncos are also leery of a Beavers ground game that generated 231 yards in a 36-35 loss to Oregon in the regular-season finale.

BOISE STATE SPECIAL TEAMS

Along with taking a productive receiver out of the game plan, the loss of Shane Williams-Rhodes leaves the Broncos without their primary punt returner. Williams-Rhodes had been averaging a conference-high 14.6 yards on his 16 returns this season. Cornerback Donte Deayon picked up 59 yards on four returns with Williams-Rhodes out against New Mexico. Kicker Dan Goodale connected on 14 of 16 field-goal attempts and is 55-for-58 on PATs.
 

OREGON ST. (6-6, 4-5 IN THE PAC-12)

OREGON STATE OFFENSE

The Beavers throw the ball all over the field with the third-best passing offense in the country at 382.1 yards per game.

Surprisingly, OSU also led the Pac-12 in time of possession. Quarterback Sean Mannion, who was locked in a tight quarterback battle  right up to the start of the season, needs 56 passing yards to set the Pac-12 record for yards in a season. His 36 touchdown passes are tied for third in the country and he’s second in passing yards with 4,403.

Brandin Cooks won the Biletnikoff Award with an NCAA-record 120 receptions, 1,670 yards and 15 touchdowns.

“When you combine hard work and talent, you usually get good results. He’s been one of the hardest workers we’ve ever had … and one of the best talents we’ve ever had,” head coach Mike Riley said.

“This is not an accident, this is a culmination of a lot of great work.

“Him and (Mannion) basically throw the football around all year.”

Michael Philipp and Josh Andrews have started every game this season on the offensive line, with Isaac Seumalo — son of former University of Hawaii standout and Oregon State defensive line coach Joe Seumalo — moving from right tackle to center to allow Harlow to start as a freshman.

Oregon State ranked 11th in the Pac-12 and 118th nationally in rushing with 86 yards per game. But Terron Ward closed the regular season by running for 145 yards on 17 carries against Oregon. The Beavers have had 17 scoring drives this season of more than four minutes, which was third in the Pac-12.

OREGON STATE DEFENSE

The Beavers defense has been up and down this year. They held Stanford to 20 points and a potent Arizona State team to 31. But they gave up 69 to Washington, 48 to Utah and 46 to Eastern Washington.

They rank in the bottom three in the conference in scoring defense, rushing defense, third-down conversions and in the red zone, where they have been dreadful, ranking 120th in the country.

Cornerbacks Steven Nelson and Rashaad Reynolds are tied for fifth in the country with six interceptions, with Nelson one of three Beavers to return a pick for a touchdown. The Beavers’ 19 picks ranked second in the conference.

Defensive end Scott Crichton was a repeat All-Pac-12 performer this year with 16 tackles for loss, 61⁄2 sacks and two forced fumbles. He’s third in Oregon State history with 211⁄2 sacks but is projected as a first-round NFL Draft pick and likely won’t return for his senior season.

“We’ll try to be more physical than (Boise State). They’re going to have their trick plays and we have to be aware of those,” Crichton said. “They’re a solid offense and a good all-around great team.”

Strong safety Tyrequek Zimmerman leads the Beavers with 93 total tackles, followed by outside linebacker Jabral Johnson’s 82. Ryan Murphy posted seven tackles for loss — trailing only Crichton on the team —  and three interceptions from his free safety spot.

Baldwin graduate Mana Rosa starts next to Crichton at defensive tackle and enters the game with 49 tackles with 31⁄2 sacks and blocked two kicks.

OREGON STATE SPECIAL TEAMS

Cooks splits time at punt returner with senior Rashaad Reynolds, combining to average just 5.7 yards a return.

Keith Kostol was named to the Ray Guy Award watch list, averaging over 40 yards a punt. Victor Bolden has a 98-yard kick return for a touchdown this season and had 305 return yards in a game this season.

The Beavers finished between sixth and ninth in the conference in every major special teams stat category.