(Tom Scott's column will return Tuesday.)

Friday, August 18, 2006.

For years it’s been building. A long-term recruiting effort on the offensive line has paid off not only in WAC championships for Boise State, but also a cupboard that is better stocked each year. But the shelves have some space now after another key O-line contributor went down yesterday. According to coaches, it was a broken fibula that sent Ryan Keating off in an ambulance and out of action for up to seven weeks. Keating wasn’t hurt by contact; he snapped it during a regular O-line drill. The 6-4, 319-pounder started two games last year but wasn’t currently considered a starter—backing up at right guard and tackle.

The Broncos had already lost guard Pete Cavender to an Achilles injury this summer, and because of their depth, they were able to mix and match. The latest plan is to move Pete’s twin brother, Jeff Cavender, from center to right guard and plug Jadon Dailey, who saw considerable playing time last year, in at center. But with the injury to Keating, they’ve taken probably as many O-line hits as they can absorb. There’s a limit to how far down the roster they’d be able to go. You’ll be able to see if any further jockeying is to be started when BSU holds its second scrimmage of fall camp—and final one for public view—tonight at approximately 6:30 at Bronco Stadium.

If Boise State needs a backup for placekicker Anthony Montgomery, would it be Kyle Stringer? Or has Kyle Brotzman made a case for—under the right circumstances—burning his redshirt year? The true freshman walkon from Meridian High had a good enough spring that Chris Chalmers was the odd kicker out, and he transferred. Now Brotzman has taken it into fall camp, hitting field goals of 40 and 36 yards in the first scrimmage last week. He has the looks of a late-bloomer; he wasn’t an All-State selection as a senior for the Warriors. Brotzman wasn’t even all-conference, voted an SIC second-teamer.

The lines were steady outside the Varsity Center yesterday, and as of 5PM, there were 24 individual game tickets left for the Boise State-Oregon State game in three weeks—all singles. The run on that event was predictable, and it may be the catalyst that puts the Broncos over that magical 20,000 mark in season ticket sales. You can still get seats for the Bronco-Beaver showdown…if you buy season tickets. Or you can take your chances, as the season ticket allotment for the stadium that remains unsold will go on sale as individual game tickets a week from Monday. The Bronco Stadium attendance record was set in the 2004 BSU-OSU game at 30,950.

Big news out of Utah yesterday, but it remains to be seen how significant it is. Quarterback Brian Johnson will use his redshirt season this year, leaving the Utes’ quarterback race to Brett Ratliff and Tommy Grady. Johnson was contending for the starting job with the other two, but the knee he injured in the 10th game last season wasn’t quite strong enough. Ratliff took over for Johnson at that point and led Utah to an overtime win over BYU and a blowout of Georgia Tech in the Emerald Bowl. Then there’s Grady, the transfer from Oklahoma. He went 11-for-16 for 212 yards and three touchdowns in the Utes’ second scrimmage yesterday.

As Idaho ramps up for its second scrimmage of fall camp tomorrow afternoon, tight end Luke Smith-Anderson has quietly become a focal point of the Vandal offense. Coach Dennis Erickson has bemoaned the lack of a big-play wide receiver on his squad, although that could be changing. He does have a go-to tight end, though, in Smith-Anderson. The junior from Coeur d’Alene actually led the Vandals in the first scrimmage with five catches for 82 yards. Erickson raved about Smith-Anderson during spring football. “For all the things he’s been through in his life, it’s amazing to see him operate at the level he’s operating at.” Smith-Anderson has sustained three season-ending injuries in his career.

Michael Cooper is usually a one-inning guy, a get-‘em-out-and-get the save closer for the Boise Hawks. But he had a different role last night after the Hawks blew a 6-3 ninth-inning lead in Vancouver. Cooper came on in the 10th and pitched three scoreless innings, getting the win as Boise opened its Western Idaho Fair road trip with a 7-6 victory over the Canadians. He allowed just one hit and struck out four while watching Russ Canzler double in Josh Lansford with the winning run in the 12th. Furthermore, the Hawks’ East Division lead is back up to two games after rampaging West Division leader Salem-Keizer beat Tri-City last night for its 10th straight win.

When Tom Kotchman was in Boise for his number retirement ceremony four weeks ago, he indicated that son Casey was probably done for the year as he struggles to bounce back from his battle with mononucleosis. The Angels confirm that, as Casey has not yet resumed baseball activities. "We're past the point of when Casey is going to be able to get to where he needs to be," manager Mike Scioscia said. "I wouldn't say that we can't see the light at the end of the tunnel, but we're not getting any encouraging signs." Kotchman was initially diagnosed prior to spring training, but he batted .421 in exhibition games. By the time the regular season rolled around, though, he was sapped of all energy, hitting just.152 with one home run and six RBIs in 29 games.

Former Boise State star Quintin Mikell made up for lost time last night, making one tackle in the secondary and two more on special teams in Philadelphia’s 20-10 loss in Baltimore. Mikell, the 2002 WAC Defensive Player of the Year, had missed the Eagles’ first two exhibition games with an eye injury. Elsewhere in the NFL this weekend, Daryn Colledge starts to make his case for getting back into Green Bay’s starting lineup as the Packers host Atlanta tomorrow night, and Tyler Jones tries to strengthen his case as the designated kickoff man in Washington against the Jets. Redskins coach Joe Gibbs has said it’s unlikely regular kicker John Hall will handle kickoffs this season.

Also, former BSU standout cornerback Gabe Franklin has signed with the 49ers. It’s probably too early for Franklin to see any action, but he can at least stand on the sidelines Sunday evening in his hometown of Oakland, where the Niners play the Raiders. And he can catch up with one-time BSU secondary mate Chris Carr.

This Day In Sports…August 18, 1934:

The late Roberto Clemente is born. Clemente, inducted in 1996 into the World Sports Humanitarian Hall Of Fame in Boise, was a Baseball Hall of Famer who collected exactly 3,000 hits in his major league career with the Pittsburgh Pirates. While still a marquis big leaguer, Clemente was killed in a plane crash while trying to help deliver supplies to victims of a Nicaraguan earthquake on New Year’s Eve, 1972. Roberto Clemente would have been 72 years old today. Another World Sports Humanitarian Hall of Famer, former Olympic decathlete Rafer Johnson, turns 71 years old today.

(Tom Scott hosts the Scott Slant segment Sunday nights at 10:30PM on KTVB’s Sunday Sports Extra and anchors five sports segments each weekday on ESPN Radio 1350 KTIK.)

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