Boise State's Southwick gets better with experience

Dan Wolken, USA TODAY Sports | USATODAY

LARAMIE, Wyo. – He had waited patiently, watched and learned just like he was supposed to, and felt grateful when the chance to be Boise State's starting quarterback finally arrived. But Joe Southwick never realized he was about to inherit the most difficult job in college football.



Boise State may have lost nearly everybody, including six NFL Draft picks and the best quarterback in school history, but the program had moved beyond those days when rebuilding was acceptable. Boise isn't Alabama or LSU, but it has fans – lots of them – and Chris Petersen's ridiculous string of undefeated and 1-loss seasons had made their thirst for instant gratification

stronger than ever.



"It's interesting what our fans do sometimes," Southwick said Saturday. "All I can control is how hard I work."



Yes, for the first three weeks of this season, Southwick struggled – sometimes badly. And yes, he heard all the noise, all the unfair

comparisons to Kellen Moore, the vocal minority calling for him to be replaced by stud recruit (by Boise standards) Nick Patti.

Southwick won't get specific about how nasty it got, but he doesn't have to. And now, it really doesn't matter anymore.



For all intents and purposes, Boise State dropped off the national landscape Aug. 31 when they lost the season opener Michigan State. No more undefeated season, no more tedious arguments about how the Broncos would stack up in whatever power conference their critics wanted to put them in.



But after destroying Wyoming on Saturday, 45-14, the No. 18-ranked Broncos might be worth a second look.



Before we can talk about what that means, let's be clear about one thing: The fundamental dynamics of this particular Boise team haven't changed. It's still in the middle of a major roster transition, still not as stacked with NFL talent as it was last season and certainly won't be part of the BCS championship debate into November the way it has often been.



What the Broncos can say, however, is that they're 7-1 and getting better every week, likely on the verge of another ho-hum 11-1 season and possibly a berth in a BCS bowl. And what Southwick can say is that he no longer has to worry about his critics, assuming he has any left. This is now clearly his job, and after another strong performance Saturday, completing 20-of-28 passes for 198 yards, it will remain that way for quite some time.



"The first game was his first true game playing the whole game, and every week he's gotten better in my eyes because he's getting experience," linebacker J.C. Percy said. "He's gotten better every game, and he's starting to come out of his shell."



No program in the country has done a better job developing talent and replacing key players than Boise, which might be why expectations were too high for Southwick in the first place. And it wasn't like he was coming in without any experience. As Moore's backup, Southwick got a decent amount of mop-up duty because Boise usually won games by such large margins.



But starting was something completely different, and it was ugly early. In the 17-13 loss to Michigan State, Southwick completed just 15-of-31 for 169 yards. Three weeks later against BYU he went 15-for-25 for 145 yards, and the Broncos needed a defensive touchdown to win 7-6. It didn't help that the context for every performance was provided by a legendary predecessor.



"He had to replace the winningest college quarterback in history," receiver Matt Miller said. "Very big shoes to fill, and he's done a

very good job of it so far. You can't ask for a kid to come in and do the exact same thing Kellen did. That's too much to ask, but he's handled it very well."



For Boise State, beating Wyoming doesn't register as much of an accomplishment and certainly isn't a measuring stick. But it was another step for Southwick, who only made one major mistake – an early interception in the red zone – and converted 12-of-14 third downs.



Though it's easy to look at his numbers and say he doesn't produce big downfield plays (his longest completion was 25 yards) and isn't particularly great when he has to use his feet or get out of the pocket (he ran for just five yards, and his worst throws came on the run), he is making it harder every week for Boise fans to complain.



"There's just no substitute for game experience," Petersen said. "He's had a lot of reps in our system as a practice player, but that's just so different from when money's on the line. He really knows what we're trying to get done, and he's seeing things better, gaining more confidence as he continues to complete passes and win games."



The problem with being Boise State, of course, is that it still plays in the Mountain West, which is weaker this season than normal. The Broncos had one chance to beat a nationally relevant team, and Southwick wasn't ready to do that on Aug. 31. Perhaps it would be a different story if Boise State got a do-over, but that's not the way college football works.



Until Southwick gets another opportunity to beat a quality team, it will be difficult to illustrate how much progress he has made. He'll certainly get that chance next year in the Big East, and perhaps if the cards fall the right way, he can lead the Broncos to a BCS bowl, something Moore didn't do in his final two seasons.



"There's definitely a difference each game," Southwick said. "Just into a rhythm of just preparing first off, you know how to better prepare for each opponent, what to look for and then when you're out there playing. You get more comfortable, you understand your receivers better, and it helps a lot.



"I knew it wasn't going to be perfect, but if we kept working hard and put in the time, it would come along and it's starting to come

along very nicely."