1971 Broncos: 10-2 Overall; 4-2 Big Sky; Camellia Bowl Champions Head Coach: Tony Knap
Led by quarterback Eric Guthrie, the 1971 Boise State football team provided Bronco fans with one big win after another en route to a 10-2 overall record. Guthrie started the season with a bang, throwing for 297 yards in Boise State’s season opening 42-14 throttling of the University of Idaho in the first-ever meeting between the two schools. All told, he would lead the Broncos to nine regular season victories, including a perfect 7-0 mark at Bronco Stadium. A successful regular season earned Boise State a spot opposite Chico State in the Camellia Bowl, held in Sacramento, California. It would take a monster fourth quarter to end the 1971 season with a bowl victory, as Boise State scored 25 points in the final 15 minutes to pull out a thrilling 32-28 victory over a stunned Chico State team. Guthrie completed 19-of-43 passes for 282 yards during the nationally televised game and was named Camellia Bowl MVP by ABC Sports.
The dream season for Boise State football took place in 1980 as the Broncos captured not only the Big Sky Conference title but also the NCAA Division I-AA national championship. A convincing 28-7 road victory over Division I-A Utah set the stage for what would be a memorable year. Boise State picked up wins in eight of its final nine games, while outscoring the Big Sky opposition by an average of 17 points per game en route to a league-best 6-1 record. Boise State’s march to the national title included a 14-9 upset semifinal victory over highly touted Grambling on a cold and foggy day in Bronco Stadium. Quarterback Joe Aliotti threw scoring passes to Cedric Minter and Kipp Bedard, just 1980 Broncos: 10-3 Overall; 6-1 Big supplying enough offense for the win. But it was the Bronco defense that Sky; Big Sky Conference stole the show, limiting Grambling to just 41 passing yards and preserving Champions; NCAA Division I-AA the victory with a big defensive stand just yards from the goal line on National Champions Grambling’s final possession. The Broncos did not let a ticket to the national championship Head Coach: Jim Criner game slip away, downing Eastern Kentucky in arguably one of the greatest football game in Boise State history. After falling behind 29-24 with less than a minute to play, Aliotti led the Broncos on a game-winning drive that took just 43 seconds off the game clock, but will be remembered forever by those close to the Bronco program. The final scoring play came on fourth-and-10 with 20 seconds to play, as Aliotti scrambled far to the right and threw back across the field to tight end Duane Dlouhy, who caught the game winner in the left corner of the end zone for a 31-29 lead to secure the dream season.
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