Ashton Jeanty became Boise State’s first 2,000-yard rusher by collecting 169 yards on 19 carries as the 12th-ranked Broncos beat Wyoming 17-13 on Saturday night in Laramie, Wyo.
Jeanty, who also found the end zone once on the ground, entered the contest as the nation’s leading rusher with 1,893 yards. His big performance on Saturday helped Boise State (10-1, 7-0 Mountain West Conference) clinch a berth in the conference championship game.
The Broncos got 53 rushing yards from Jeanty during their penultimate drive of the game, which ended with Jambres Dubar rumbling across the goal line from 2 yards out for a 17-13 lead with 5:02 to go.
Wyoming (2-9, 2-5) turned the ball over on downs on its ensuing possession. It had gone up 13-10 earlier in the fourth quarter when John Hoyland made good on a 35-yard field goal with 9:03 remaining.
Maddux Madsen completed 14 of 26 passes for 168 yards for Boise State. Cameron Camper had five catches for 74 yards, while Dubar rushed for 22 yards and the touchdown on five touches.
Kaden Anderson started under center for the Cowboys, but he did not play in the second half because of an apparent injury. He had 116 yards and a TD on 9-of-14 passing prior to exiting. Evan Svoboda took over and hit on 6 of 13 passes for 87 yards.
Wyoming’s Justin Stevenson had four catches for 82 yards and a touchdown, and Jaylen Sargent finished with four receptions for 86 yards.
Boise State took a 7-3 lead on a 61-yard Jeanty touchdown run with 3:40 to go in the first quarter. Jeanty cut back and sprinted down the wide side of the field for the score.
Early in the second quarter, Anderson launched a pass from the Cowboys’ logo at midfield and found a leaping Sargent for a 41-yard completion. Two plays later, Stevenson grabbed a 5-yard TD for a 10-7 lead with 9:36 to go.
As time ran out in the first half, Jonah Dalmas’ 24-yard field goal tied the game at 10.