Wednesday, October 1, 2008.

The 1999 Boise State season began innocently with a 38-7 loss at UCLA, a game closer than the score indicated as the Broncos managed 360 yards of offense. Despite a winning season in '98, the Broncos didn't think--or maybe didn't know--they had the drill down. That changed midway through the '99 campaign with a 52-17 rout of the then-juggernaut Nevada Wolf Pack. BSU went on to a 10-3 season, capped by a 34-31 win over Louisville in the Humanitarian Bowl, the school's first postseason appearance. And so began what is known as the Golden Era. Tonight against Louisiana Tech on the blue turf, the Broncos seek their 100th win of this remarkable run.

The 10th season of the Golden Era sees BSU carrying a 99-19 record, with seven conference championships and eight bowl appearances. In that span, the Broncos have won all 34 of their conference home games (Big West and WAC) and are 63-5 in league action overall. It's on that note BSU opens its eighth season of WAC play tonight on ESPN. With that said, the Broncos are playing for the first time as a Top 25 team in 2008. They have a two-game losing streak while ranked, having fallen to Hawaii and East Carolina to end last season while rated 17th in the AP Poll. Which is where BSU happens to be right now.

One of the themes for Boise State this week is finishing in the fourth quarter, which is exactly what Louisiana Tech brings to the table from its biggest victory of the year. Hey, the Bulldogs have a win over an SEC team--they held Mississippi State to zero first downs, minus-10 yards rushing, and 16 yards overall during the fourth quarter in beating the other Bulldogs 22-14 on Opening Night. La Tech held the ball 10½ minutes during that final stanza. All this sounds eerily familiar to the Bronco offense, which could hardly get the ball (and couldn't get points) during the fourth quarter versus Bowling Green and Oregon.

Bronco fans are accustomed to watching Ian Johnson's every move, and so they will be tonight. Johnson is looking to bust some moves after being bottled up by the Ducks last week in Eugene. Ian's 2.1 yards per carry at Autzen Stadium dropped his season average to 4.9 per tote. And it's only 3.7 if you subtract his one big run of the season, the 53-yarder against Bowling Green. Conventional wisdom says things will improve against non-Pac-10 defenses--and as Johnson gets to know the nuances of his offensive line, and they instinctively react to him. Ian can still find the end zone, as he's just one rushing touchdown away from matching Brock Forsey's school career record at 50. And coach Chris Petersen goes right to the bigger picture: "At least two of the three games (this season) he's impacted the game on special teams."

Nevada got well in a hurry after its humiliation at Missouri 2½ weeks ago. The Wolf Pack parlayed their bye week following the 69-17 loss to the Tigers into a triumph in the Battle of the Fremont Cannon last Saturday, drilling rival UNLV 49-27. Idaho has to look at Colin Kaepernick's numbers from that game and say, "Oh great." Nevada's sophomore star was a human highlight reel, becoming the first Pack quarterback ever to rush for 200 yards--he had 240, including 66 on a touchdown run to open the third quarter. Kaepernick also threw for 176 yards and two TDs with no interceptions. Now he takes his show to the Kibbie Dome Saturday, where Nevada is favored over the Vandals by 24½ points.

Former Idaho coach Tom Cable seemed like one of those guys who was an excellent assistant coach--but not cut out to be a head coach. He led the Vandals for four seasons and compiled a record of 11-35 from 2000 to 2003. The Oakland Raiders, however, think Cable is the man to be their interim coach after yesterday's firing of Lane Kiffin. It would be fascinating to be a fly on the wall in meetings between Cable and Raiders owner Al Davis. Kiffin had no power; will Cable have any? It's an amazing and, at the same time, pathetic situation down there. I went to my first Raiders game when I was 12, at Frank Youell Field, before the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum was built. I am old. The coach of the Raiders that day: Al Davis.

Baseball's playoffs are here, with rosters dotted by former Boise Hawks. There are a few still up in the air, as teams have until 10am EST the day of their first game to submit their finalized Divisional Series rosters. Therefore, whether Ronny Cedeno will be with the Cubs for Game 1 against the Dodgers tonight has to be decided imminently (the Cubs active roster hasn't been updated at Scott Slant press time). Cedeno has been a valuable utilityman for Chicago in its run to the NL Central title, but he jammed a shoulder will an ill-advised head-first slide into first base last Wednesday against the Mets. His first game back was last Saturday, and he uncorked a wild throw from shortstop, favoring the shoulder. Cedeno hit .269 this season with 28 RBIs. He was a member of the Hawks' 2002 Northwest League championship team.

Utah Jazz training camp opened yesterday amid a heap of optimism. Continuity abounds--the Jazz return an astounding 13 players from last season's team that went 54-28 and won a second straight NBA Northwest Division title, and they have coach Jerry Sloan back for a 21st season. This team has firmly established a new identity in the post Stockton-Malone era. Training camp is a test of stamina, though, for Carlos Boozer and Deron Williams. They haven't had much of a break in the past year, having helped the U.S. to the Olympic gold medal 5½ weeks ago in Beijing. Observing the Jazz gathering this week and now on their way to Toronto for a tryout session: Idaho Stampede coach Bryan Gates and his new assistant, former Stampede star Randy Livingston, to be officially announced tomorrow as Gates' new right-hand man to replace Ray Lopes.

He may not make the Idaho Steelheads roster this season, but he'll be interesting to follow in training camp. Derek Paget, who dates back to the Steelheads' West Coast Hockey League days, has been invited to try out with the club when camp convenes this weekend. Paget, who spent three seasons with the Steelies, has been out of hockey since helping the team win the Kelly Cup championship in its first ECHL season in 2004. Also, John Lammers has been assigned to Idaho by the Dallas Stars. Lammers was a key component of the Steelheads' Kelly Cup title run in 2007. And Craig Cescon will return to the Steelies after finishing second in penalty minutes last season behind Lance Galbraith.

The Lee Leslie era is over for the Boise Burn. The first coach in franchise history will not have his contract renewed for the 2009 af2 season. Leslie had a 16-16 record in the Burn's first two years, characterized by fast starts, mid-season slumps and resurgent finishes. The Burn narrowly missed making the af2 Playoffs each season. Eric Trapp and company at Idaho Sports Properties now begin the search for Leslie's replacement.

This Day In Sports...October 1, 2005:

One of the wildest games in Boise State history, as the Broncos erase a 20-7 halftime deficit with a 92-yard punt return for a touchdown, a 69-yard return of a blocked field goal for a TD, and a rare defensive two-point conversion on a return of a blocked extra point to stun Hawaii, 44-41. Quinton Jones had the school-record punt return, while Daryn Colledge knocked down both kicks and Orlando Scandrick scored on both runbacks. The victory at Aloha Stadium was BSU's 27th in a row in the WAC.

(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 1350 KTIK/The Ticket. He also handles color commentary on KTVB's telecasts of Boise State football.)

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