NEVADA WOLF PACK (8-3, 5-2 WAC) vs. No. 12 BOISE STATE BRONCOS (11-0, 7-0 WAC)
Saturday, Nov. 25, 2006 - 1:15 p.m. PT - Mackay Stadium (29,993) - Reno, Nev.
TELEVISION: ESPN2 with Ron Franklin (play-by-play), Ed Cunningham (analyst) and Dr. Jerry Punch (sidelines) calling the game.
RADIO: Wolf Pack Sports Network (Flagship: ESPN Radio 630 AM, Reno)
Don Marchand (play-by-play) & Bill Daniel (analyst)
SERIES HISTORY: Boise State leads 20-12
LAST MEETING: Boise State scored a 49-14 victory on Oct. 29, 2005 at Bronco Stadium in Boise, Idaho.
STORYLINES
Nevada, co-champions of the Western Athletic Conference last season, is looking for its sixth consecutive WAC win as it returns home for a showdown with No. 12 Boise State...Nevada is riding a 10-game home winning streak and is coming off back-to-back 42-0 shutouts over Utah State and Louisiana Tech...The Wolf Pack has won five in a row and eight of its last nine games...Nevada does not have any players from Idaho, though one assistant coach, Barry Sacks, previously spent time at Boise State (1993-96)...Nevada is looking to secure a third-place finish in the WAC while Boise State is searching for an outright championship after sharing the title with Nevada a year ago...A Nevada victory would mean the WAC title would be split between Boise State and Hawaii...Boise State is the highest-ranked team to ever play at Mackay Stadium.
IN THE SERIES WITH BOISE STATE
Nevada’s battles with the Broncos go back to 1971 and the teams have played every year but one since 1996. Nevada has lost six straight to Boise State and has never beaten the Broncos as a member of the WAC. However, Nevada is 10-7 all-time against Boise State in games played at Mackay.
THE SEASON SO FAR
Nevada has won five in a row since its bye week after last week’s 42-0 victory at Joe Aillet Stadium in Ruston, La. The Wolf Pack built a 35-0 halftime lead and its defense secured its second-straight shutout, marking the first time since 1977 that Nevada recorded back-to-back blankings. Luke Lippincott rushed for 122 yards and three touchdowns while Joshua Mauga picked off a pass and recovered a fumble. De'Angelo Wilson had 125 yards in punt returns.
The first shutout of the year came on Nov. 11 against Utah State as Nevada built a 14-0 halftime lead and never looked back. That win was on the heels of a 45-7 victory at Idaho. Nevada jumped out to a 31-0 lead at halftime as quarterback Jeff Rowe threw for three first-half scores and ran the fourth touchdown in himself. The Wolf Pack defense was stellar again, holding the Vandals to a mere 22 total yards in the first half and just 209 yards for the game.
Prior to the road trip, Nevada won twice at home with victories over New Mexico State and San Jose State. Nevada set a season high for points and rushing yards (236) in its 48-21 victory over New Mexic State and held the nation’s top passing attack (at the time) to 143 yards below its average.
Before that, Nevada scored its first WAC victory of the season with a 23-7 victory over San Jose State at Mackay Stadium on Oct. 21, marking Nevada’s third straight Homecoming victory. Senior quarterback Travis Moore made his first career start in place of Jeff Rowe (hamstring) and completed 20-of-28 for 178 yards and a touchdown. The Wolf Pack defense stymied San Jose State, holding the Spartans to just 239 total yards and just 77 passing yards.
Before its bye week, Nevada fell 41-34 at Hawaii despite a strong fourth-quarter comeback attempt. Nevada trailed by 20 points in the fourth quarter but got within a touchdown of the Warriors. The loss snapped the Wolf Pack’s three-game win streak, the last of which was a 31-3 routing of in-state rival UNLV that allowed Nevada to retain possession of the Fremont Cannon. It was Nevada’s first victory in Las Vegas since 1998.
After dropping its first two games against Fresno State and Arizona State - both on the road - to open the season, the Wolf Pack rebounded at home. Nevada made history at Mackay Stadium, beating Colorado State for the first time in school history before claiming its first-ever win over a Big Ten school with a 10-point victory over Northwestern. Those two victories gave Nevada momentum for its road victory at UNLV.
With 38 returning letterwinners and 14 returning starters, 22nd-year head coach Chris Ault and the Wolf Pack is coming off the team’s best season in nine years after turning in a 9-3 overall record and earning a share of the school’s first WAC title as well as an invitation to the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl last season. Nevada was picked to finish third in the WAC in this year’s preseason polls.
TEAM CAPTAINS
Senior quarterback Jeff Rowe, senior tight end Anthony Pudewell, junior defensive tackle Matt Hines and senior cornerback Joe Garcia will serve as Nevada’s team captains this season as voted on by their teammates. Pudewell and Garcia are Nevada’s field captains for the coin toss.
SHUTOUT STREAK
Nevada has never been shutout as a member of Division I-A and has not been shutout since Sept. 27, 1980, a streak of 315 games that is the longest in the nation. The last time Nevada was blanked was at Weber State, a 10-0 loss. That is the only shutout loss ever suffered by Hall of Fame coach Chris Ault. During the streak, Nevada has shutout eight opponents, the last being a 42-0 win over Louisiana Tech last week in Ruston, La. Nevada nearly shutout UNLV earlier this year but the Rebels kicked a field goal late in the game to avoid the blanking. Nevada has held five opponents to just one score or fewer this year (UNLV, San Jose State, Idaho, Utah State and Louisiana Tech).
MACKAY IS BACK
The Wolf Pack’s 42-0 victory over Utah State on Nov. 11 marked Nevada’s 10th consecutive win at Mackay Stadium. Nevada is 5-0 this year and turned in a 5-1 record at Mackay Stadium last year, winning its last five home games after opening the season with a loss to Washington State. Since then-quarterback Chris Ault led the the Pack to a 17-13 victory over UC Santa Barbara on Oct. 1, 1966 in Nevada’s first game in the facility, the Wolf Pack has turned in a 159-45-2 (.777) record at Mackay Stadium.
In his 21-plus years as Nevada’s head coach, Ault has led the team to a 126-25-1 record at Mackay Stadium (.832), including a 15-2 mark over the last two-plus years since returning to the helm for the third time in 2004. He has guided the Wolf Pack to 16 seasons with one loss or less at home, including four undefeated campaigns at Mackay Stadium (1976, 1985, 1990, 1994).
STREAKING
Nevada’s 10-game home winning streak is the Wolf Pack’s longest since an 11-game streak from 1995 to 1997. The current streak is tied for the seventh longest in the country.
Speaking of streaks, Nevada’s five-game overall winning streak is tied for the 10th-best in the country and its five-game conference winning streak is also tied for 10th in the nation.
For the complete weekly release, please click on the PDF link at the top of this story.
