Boise State Climbs to No. 21 in Coaches Poll After Thrilling Win

Boise State climbs to No. 21 in Coaches Poll following Texas State thriller

With about eight minutes remaining in Saturday’s home matchup against Texas State, Boise State was in serious danger of falling out of the Coaches Poll. The Broncos squandered a 28-3 halftime lead and trailed 39-28 following a Maddux Madsen pick-six. Yet out of that late-night chaos, the team clawed its way back to secure a 46-45 victory over the Bobcats.

That Pac-12 After Dark classic directly shaped the latest national rankings. Boise State climbed one spot to No. 21 in the US LBM Coaches Poll following the one-point win. Meanwhile, the Broncos held steady at No. 20 in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll for the sixth consecutive week, earning 451 points up from 422 the previous week. In the Coaches Poll, the program collected 445 points, improving from 396.

Backup heroics and freshman records drive the comeback

The dramatic turnaround required an unexpected spark when starting quarterback Maddux Madsen left the game with an apparent knee injury in the fourth quarter. Enter backup quarterback Max Cutforth, who made three starts for an injured Madsen last season. Cutforth completed 8 of his 13 passes for 131 yards, throwing three touchdowns in the final quarter alone to engineer the comeback.

Broncos have entered the Coaches Poll 📈#BleedBlue | #BuiltDifferent pic.twitter.com/26FQN9mp5O

— https://x.com/BroncoSportsFB/status/2109347121585606812

Boise State head coach Spencer Danielson pointed to that prior experience as the foundation for the backup’s poise under pressure:

Experience is the biggest teacher. Max being able to go through what he did last season, I knew that had led to a lot of confidence. He’s always one play away. That’s the reality of every backup, but especially the starting quarterback. You don’t roll them in. You’re not up until you’re up. Max learned a lot last season, he’s grown a ton, and we have full trust in him.

Freshman wide receiver Rasean Jones joined the offensive surge by becoming just the second freshman in the program’s FBS era to score three touchdowns in a single game. The victory marks the seventh straight win for Boise State, with the team scoring 30 or more points in each contest—a feat the program has not achieved since 2014.

Conference positioning and the broader poll landscape

Boise State stands as the only undefeated team in the Pac-12, sitting at 7-1 overall and 4-0 in conference play for the third consecutive season. Across the broader Group of Six landscape, the Broncos are joined in the Coaches Poll by Mountain West leader New Mexico, which cracked the rankings at No. 25. Miami remains atop the Week 9 Coaches Poll, followed by Georgia, Indiana, Utah, and UCLA.

Boise State Climbs to No. 21 in Coaches Poll After Thrilling Win — Photo: si.com

Looking ahead, the schedule offers no rest. Boise State will travel to Fort Collins, Colorado, to face Colorado State on Nov. 7, with kickoff set for 4 p.m. MT and a national broadcast scheduled on USA Sports. Madsen’s status moving forward remains unknown as the Broncos prepare for the next leg of their conference schedule.