This May Have Been the Most Brutal Boise State Football Game in History

To say that 2023 has been a rollercoaster for Boise State’s football team is an understatement. After an 0-2 start, losing to Colorado State for the first time ever and firing their head coach for the first time as an FBS school, the team STILL finds itself knocking on the door of the Mountain West Championship game. 

As we sit down to write this article, the Broncos are gearing up for their final regular season game against Air Force. If they can win, the Mountain West Championship game is a reality. Of course, with a 5-2 conference record, they’ll need a little help on top of that win. 

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UNLV sits atop the conference. If they beat San Jose State on Saturday, November 25, they’ll host the game at Allegiant Stadium and face Boise State in December. If San Jose State upsets UNLV, there will be a three way tie between the Rebels, Broncos and Spartans. The conference would use a computer algorithm to determine which two teams are in. 

That’s why the team hopes that Bronco Nation will show up in full force for their game against Air Force on The Blue on Black Friday at 2 p.m. Air Force is beatable, but they’re out to prove something. That team started the season undefeated but lost their last three games against Army, Hawaii and UNLV. 

How Cold Will Today’s Game Be?

Late November games in Boise can be downright frigid. If you forget to bring some extra layers, you’ll either want to watch the rest of the game from Chili’s or the RAM or huddle around the bathroom heater between quarters. It wouldn’t hurt to bring and extra layer of Blue (today’s a blue out) Bronco gear, but today won’t be miserable. The National Weather Service predicts 41 degrees, sunny skies and 5 mph winds at kickoff. 

That seems like absolute paradise compared to the coldest Boise State game on record! That game was absolutely brutal for the fans, players and coaches! 

Were You at the Coldest Boise State Game on Record?

We were and it’s something we won’t soon forget! The date was Saturday, November 154, 201. Boise State needed a win over San Diego State to stay on track to go to the Mountain West Championship game. Just 27,478 fans showed up that night, making it the worst attended regular season home game in over a decade. In fact, with the exception of the games played under COVID restrictions, there hasn’t been a lower attended regular season home game since. 

But those 27,478? They were dedicated and it was impressive that they showed up to begin with. The day before the game, Mother Nature dumped a record setting 4.3” of snow on Albertsons Stadium. The university was aware of the winter storm and made sure to get deicer on The Blue, but had to work from the early morning hours that Friday into the evening hours to make sure it didn’t pile up and freeze. Even Coach Harsin grabbed a shovel and helped clear the stands. 

When kickoff rolled around on November 15? It was a bone chilling 9 degrees, making it the absolute coldest Boise State game in history. Boise State won 38-29. Boise State went on to win out the regular season, win the Mountain West Championship game and the Fiesta Bowl against Arizona that year.

If you were at the game, did you make it to the end? We eventually tapped out in the third quarter and watched the rest of the game from a packed End Zone across the street.