By Chadd Cripe
ccripe@idahostatesman.com
I caught up with Boise State coach Chris Petersen today. Here's some of what he had to say:
Impressions of the win: "It was awesome that we got the win, no doubt about it. I thought the kids played super, super hard and never stopped fighting the entire game. Maybe even more good news is we think we can get better."
What jumped out on film: "The first thing that jumps out at me is how hard the guys played. They played very, very hard. On defense, they were running to the ball. They were relentless. They didn't quit. They didn't let up. ... We've got to make plays on offense when we need to down the stretch a little more."
On Jeron Johnson's penalty and ejection: "They're trying to protect the head. He didn't go helmet to helmet. He hit with the shoulder pad in (the receiver's) sternum. If you watch the tape of Jeron, he's just driving on the ball. He's bee-lining on that. You can see why they throw the flag, but to throw him out of the game is kind of interesting — especially when one of their guys speared (Brandyn Thompson) late."
On the polls: "It means nothing to me. Our record is 0-0."
On the hype that's coming: “It’s game three, and we’ve got so many things to work on that if we don’t clean them up, we’re going to get beat next week. It’s that simple. I think our guys understand that. We’ve got to keep improving.”
On whether the players are buying into the message of getting better: “I do think we need to practice a little bit more efficiently. If we do that, I think it will show up in games. It’s one thing to get it. It’s another thing to get it done.”
On a recruiting impact: “It’s great for the program. To play a team like Oregon and be able to win — a lot of people didn’t expect that. Now maybe some guys will think maybe (Boise State) is the same type of program.”
Other notes:
-- Johnson does not face any further disciplinary action, Petersen said.
-- Wide receiver Vinny Perretta, who was knocked out in the second half, should be OK. Petersen didn't know of any serious injuries from the Oregon game, but he didn't have a full report yet.
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Johnson SHOULD have been ejected..
he tried to maim a player when the ball was no where near the play..other then that..GO BRONCOS.
agreed
I agree with your entire statement! It was classless!
Are you guys serious...you
Are you guys serious...you are clueless. The whole second half he was throwing the ball high to his recievers and they were jumping up and catching the ball. We were playing prevent, which gives them catches in front of our secondary. They caught a lot of passes that way. So Johnson is running at the guy full speed and the guy jumps up in the air to catch the ball (just like they had been doing on their other scoring drives), and goes to hit him when the ball gets there. At the last minute it goes over his hands, and he's supposed to what...just disappear or something?! If it was so uncatchable why did he jump in the air and try to catch it...and if he comes down with it and Johnson doesn't hit him he lookes like an idiot. He made the right play, in the speed of the game running full speed to put a hit on him he couldn't tell he wasn't going to catch or touch the ball, and the only thing classless is people who have never played or understand the play or situation to call it classless! The refs made a mistake...(oh wait, what about our defenseless receivers when they go up after a ball?). He could have just as easily caught that ball...
Tivo
I agree with you Redhed. Watched it over and over today on TiVo. From one angle you could see it was way overthrown. From another angle it looked close. It’s hard to know what angle Johnson had. Was it a late hit, yes, should he have gotten a personal foul, maybe, should he have been ejected, no, should this be a big deal, no.
There are lots of worse hits than this all the time and some during this game. There is no doubt in my mind that Johnson was just doing his job and defiantly did not mean to hurt anyone.
Get Real
It's football not ballet. Should he have gotten a penalty? Maybe. Ejected? NO. Keep putting the big hits on people Jeron.
I disagree...
I guess your statement is correct however I don't think he had any idea where the ball was. His head was down and he was just going for the hard hit. He shouldn't have been ejected. To eject they have to believe that his intent was to hurt a defenseless player and he was trying to punish a receiver who , what it looks like to me, he thought might catch the ball. On that same subject, a lot of players were going for the hard hits with their head down and thus not wrapping up. Some really bad tackling in the game.
Did you see
the Oregon channel that was broadcasting the game started showing clips of the helmet to helmet hit from the Bowling Green game as if to say "there's a pattern of misbehavior"...
From Hero to Heel
He was a hero last week against Bowling Green, and one mistake makes him the premier bad guy. Give hime a break. I am sure he has been made aware of his error.
you have to be...
pretty clueless to call Johnson's hit a 'cheap shot'. No one goes out with intent to hurt anyone playing football and I don't care what program or what coach. The personal foul penalty was good enough. It was a mental mistake, no more or less.
Interesting how the officials called the Oregon player 'defenseless' though. That was hilarious.
first three comments
Boy if that does not sound like some Vadal cry babis. Oh no he was trying to hurt some one. Hey Vandals just win more than 2 games and then comment on BSU. We actully play tackle ball down here. Stay good at your powder puff all of Idaho is proud of your championship. Or the 3 comments were from transplant Cali's who vote Bama maybe he should be president of U of I they need big Change quick. Dont get hurt playing football. Are you for real??
Play calling?
Did anyone else notice a difference in the play calling in the productive, keep-the-Ducks -off-balance first half and the protect-the-lead second half Saturday. Same senario in the Bowling Green game.
I agree
It seems to me that the players are doing their job. Not sure why the coaches keep changing the game play in the 2nd half when everything is working great in the 1st. Two weeks in a row we have turned to sh*** in the 2nd half.
BSU used to be there strongest in the 2nd half. It does not appear to me that our players are worn out, just that the game play changes.
It wasn't our gameplay that changed
and that's the problem. Oregon went from a run Offense to a pass Offense and we took time to adjust. That to me seems like the kind of stuff you'll see from a relatively young team. It is too bad we allowed them back into the game, but at least when it came down to the crunch the defense responded. HUGE props have to go to the special teams in this one too...recovering the on-side kick was clutch as were making the most of field goal attempts and embarassing the home team for having such a poor FG kicker.
whatever
#71 from Oregon should have been ejected.
late hits
I agree we don't have a reputation for giving cheap-shots, but Peterson should take the high road and state that this is not condoned by the coaching staff. Downpplaying it makes him lok bad. The second late-hit was meaningless as to the outcome of the game, but think about how the defense handled the Ducks 5th string QB in the th quarter and you've got to be stupid to believe the late hit on Mosoli didn't help the outcome of the game. Go Broncos!
Deserved the Flag
He absolutely deserved to get the yellow flag. If the roles were switched and a Duck put that kind of hit on one of our WRs, we'd all be outraged .... and you know it.
Flag. Do doubt.
Ejected... probably didn't deserve it.
hit
It was a penalty type hit, NOT an ejection type hit. ducks are whiners! GO JJ!
Sad Duck fans
Read the comments on the espn web site and it seems as though the duckfans are blaming their loss on Jerons hit and the hit that was put on their quarterback which sent him from the game. Calling both cheap shots and promising revenge next year in Boise. Waa Waa Waa Waa Waa Waa
Well I was curious enough to
Well I was curious enough to look up the NCAA rules about this situation, and per their definition of a defenseless player, if he didn't fit the bill perfectly then it was awful close. As for the hit itself, the rules state that "intentional helmet-to-helmet or any other blow directed at the opponents head is illegal. Flagrant offenders shall be disqualified" Now the rules also define aiming at the head as anything at the level of the shoulders or above.
In the refs defense, at full game speed, it would have been more difficult to judge. The upper part of the sternum is at the level of the shoulders, so it is all dependant on what angle the refs were at. But the rules do state when in doubt, it is a foul. I personally think the ref acted in good faith. Didn't see the other play that Coach Pete referred to. Did anyone else see it? I suffered from highly active two year old, so I did miss some of the game.
According to all the rules I read, the Oregon lineman should have definately been flagged. Unfortunately those types of situations aren't reviewable by replay. Isn't there some sort of referee commitee that oversees this stuff?
And one interesting point that I know will interest you. U of O head Coach Mike Bellotti is the chair of the NCAA football rules committee.
The play
OU play that you didn't see was not on TV, OSN wouldn't show it, you had to be there to see it. It's a game of football, you wear pads because you are going to get hit. There were cheap shots on both sides. How bout how the ducks held up the players and took swings at the ball to get it loose to get a fumble. What happens when the swing doesn't connect the ball? Hits the player. And what happen to Gott that one time, sucker punch? Of course they didn't get that on TV. Gott handles it like a true champ, got up and walked it off. Maybe the Ducks should learn from that and quit their bawling?
leading with the head
In addition to the Johnson hit... You've got to admit that the BSU player was leading with his head when he gave the Oregon quarterback the concussion.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQnQwAVzZcE
If there is a culture of dirty play brewing at BSU, I want no part of it.
Ok, WOW
Yeah, I didn't see that hit, I had heard about that one, but assumed it was incidental. After looking, no it was not. It was lead with the crown of the helmet, and there was no attempt to wrap up the tackle. It was nothing more than a punishing hit.
And before any of you whining ***wipes say anything, I am a BSU alum, and a huge Bronco football fan. I love my school and my team, but I, like the poster before me, want no part of a dirty play culture for BSU.
Referee's Call
The referee is responsible for the quarterback and backfield and has final say. The referee did not think the foul was flagrant thus warranting disqualification.
No Doubt it was the Refs call
However, comparing the two hits, this was the more flagrant of the two IMHO. I've looked over the 4th quarter JJ hit, and it could have been caused by the angle of attack vs. the receiver coming down from his jump. The QB hit however, was just bad. I cant say I saw alot of the game, I have to Bronco Vision it here in Memphis, and being that its at the house, I have two daughters to distract me.
I was there in person
So your commenting on something you didnt even see all of? You admitted as much. Oregon was just as dirty, taking cheap shots whenever they could. As fans at the game we saw it firsthand. Emotions run high and I dont condone those cheap shots by our side. It didnt affect the game and I really doubt it will become habits among our Broncos.
Atmosphere
JL I was there too, and yes, there was lots of emotion that would not be captured on TV. The ejection put an end to it, more or less, which was good for both teams.
I guess the big question is,
I guess the big question is, if it had cost you the game, would everyone still be saying how great a hit it was?
rules for a reason
These guys are all playing to build their careers, and some of them even care about school. Rules are in place to protect players and keep them walking. J's head was down, he was targeting a man, not a ball - regardless of how the play came down. I agree with the call. You can be a physical and rough player, but you also have to be alert. J said he needs to be smarter - I hope he means that in a 'pay attention to the game' way, not in a 'get away with hits I shouldn't give' way.
Please
Mr Johnson saw a ball thrown by the QB in the direction of the man he was covering. In a split second he saw the guy jump for the ball and reacted. I'm pretty sure he wasn't intending to cheap shot the guy, he was playing football. Next time I hope he does the same thing b/c when he second guesses himself the guy will come down with the ball and run it in for 6 points. Good job Jeron, tough call to be ejected though. Pac 10 refs suck but they do ref in a hard division.
I'm with you
bluephan, I'll take several personal foul penalties over missed opportunities that could loose a game for us.
Lots of guys
see balls thrown in a general direction. Lots of guys make split second decisions. Lots of guys also make sure they know what they are doing is right before they complete it. JJ is 2/3, better luck next time.
You'd rather
have a player ejected for an illegal hit that could end some other kid's career, than some "missed opportunities that could 'loose' a game for us"?
If that's gonna be the way of thinking around here, I'm rooting for the Vandals.
Then change your name...
and start rooting for them. How can a guy whos name is broncobuster say hes going to root for the Vandals? What a shame. Now get off our bandwagon, theres no room for you or your constant pessimism of our Nation....NOW GET!
I truly do hope that no one
I truly do hope that no one ever gets injured by hard hits, legal or otherwise. I know I regret what I did to someone in a game years ago. The guy walks with a cane and never played sports again. No game is worth someone getting seriously injured over
Frasier
I totally agree with you. I know football is a hard playing game but I dont want to see anyone hurt. I suffered concussions and had migraines from playing and carry a limp in lower leg from getting taken out illegally. I hope the Broncos play within the rules and personally dont think they will make a habit of "cheap shots"
Very true. I have watched
Very true. I have watched BSU games for the last few years and they are a very clean team overall. But this horse has been kicked to death, skinned, ground up, and used for compost. Be safe out there, play smart and hard, have fun.
I may be rooting for La Tech, but that is cause I always have supported the underdogs. Even though I was born and raised in Oregon, and I had hoped they would win, it was pretty cool seeing the underdog take it to them.
Peace out
How come the sports section comment section works, but most of
the other pages on the website either have no comment field or some wierd new box that asks you to log in?
Is the Idaho Statesman trying to suppress all the negative talk about the Ferrari and champagne bailout for Wall St?
New software.
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