‘It’s guys that know how to go finish;’ South Florida coach on Boise State’s fourth-quarter prowess

Boise State put together a dominant 12-2 overall record last season, but the Broncos were rarely able to cruise to the finish line. 

Boise State faced a fourth-quarter deficit in five games, including losses to Oregon (37-34) and Penn State (31-14). The Broncos fell on a last-second field goal against the Ducks and missed an early fourth-quarter field goal in the Fiesta Bowl that would’ve cut Penn State’s lead to a touchdown. 

In four other games, Boise State led by a touchdown or less entering the final quarter. The Broncos also held a nine-point advantage after three quarters against Oregon State. 

“I think the most telling thing — and we’ve talked about it as a team every opportunity we’ve had — is how they’re able to go finish football games,” South Florida head coach Alex Golesh said of Boise State. The Bulls will host the 25th-ranked Broncos at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday in the opener for both teams. 

“They had (eight) games last year going into the fourth quarter that were one-score games, and you’re looking at a ball club that won 12 games on the season. So it’s guys that know how to go finish, guys that know what it takes to go strain to win, on top of being a talented group that plays to their potential.”

Boise State head coach Spencer Danielson knows the Broncos’ fourth-quarter success is not guaranteed to carry over from season to season. 

“I’m proud of what our team did last year in regards to finishing games; that was last year’s team,” Danielson said. “Obviously it’s our goal to make sure we can continue to finish games in the fourth quarter. We had games that we were down in the fourth quarter, came back to win. And we had games that we were up by a little bit and we found a way to grind it out and win, hard games on the road.

“This game’s going to be no different. … I told our team that it’s going to be a dogfight, that’s what we’re going into. It’s two really good teams going at it, and the game’s going to go however the team finishes. That’s what this game’s going to be.”

South Florida trailed 14-13 entering the fourth quarter at Alabama last season before the Crimson Tide pulled away. The Bulls also hung with Miami for a half. 

“They had a bunch of teams on the ropes; they just didn’t finish it,” Danielson said. “That’s going to be a huge message. And knowing their coaching staff from afar, knowing the players they have, they’re built to finish games, too. So it’s going to be really good to see two really good football teams work to finish this game.”