September 27, 2007

Turn on ESPN tonight at 6:30 p.m. and do a double-take before adjusting the color on the television. Yes, it is indeed a blue field.

For most of its history, Boise State has been known mostly for its field’s blue turf. Legend has it that birds routinely land on it, thinking it’s water.

After one game in January, however, the Broncos became less known for the blue turf and more for being a bell cow for every small college program trying to battle with the big boys. Tonight when the Broncos host Southern Miss, it will be a battle of one small team that has made it and another one striving to do so.

The Golden Eagles have been known for years as the team that will scare the dickens out of bigger opponents, usually coming up just short. Every once in a while, Southern Miss takes down Alabama and Nebraska, Florida State or Auburn. The Eagles received the monicker “giant killer,” which after a while became more of a nuisance to Golden Eagle faithful.

The Eagles used a rallying cry of anyone, anywhere, anytime. They play in a state with two Southeastern Conference teams whose most popular excuse for not scheduling USM is because it would be beneath them to play a small conference team on the road, even though one has played at Memphis this year and one at Tulane. The Eagles are still a team few want to schedule because the score likely will be close and the outcome unknown.

Such was the situation for undefeated Boise State on Jan. 1. The Broncos carried the banner for the small guys into the Fiesta Bowl against Big 12 behemoth Oklahoma. Many believed that the Cinderella story of our time would end there. Oklahoma would win big and talk of small schools battling for a national title would be dashed.

But the Broncos led most of the game until Oklahoma scored 18 fourth-quarter points to tie it 35-35. OU scored to go ahead 42-35, then Boise countered with a halfback pass to get within a point at 42-41.

Kick the extra point and send the game into a second overtime? Or prove that there is a little magic left in college football?

The Broncos did the right thing and went for it. Ian Johnson, who will be playing running back tonight, took a handoff from the seldom-used Statue of Liberty play — one in which the quarterback fakes a pass, then hands the ball off behind his back to the running back — waltzed into the end zone, threw the ball into the stands and proposed marriage to his girlfriend. A perfect storybook ending to a storybook season.

This year Appalachian State beat Michigan and Florida International took down Minnesota of the Big Ten. South Florida stunned Auburn. The list goes on and on.

When Boise State and Southern Miss lock horns tonight, it will be a historical battle of two of the classic little guys fighting to be respected on the level of the monsters.

Boise State made it first. Southern Miss wants one day to be in that same situation.

Running a trick play, shocking the world.

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Sean P. Murphy is sports editor of The Vicksburg Post. E-mail him at

smurphy@vicksburgpost.com