Those who stay will be national champions.
Those words were displayed in the Boise State locker room. This was long before Boise State played on blue turf, was a staple of ESPN college football, and long before the Broncos busted the BCS.
Back in the late 1970s, it would’ve been easy for players to leave Boise State. The Broncos were ineligible for the 1979 Big Sky Championship and for the second ever Division I-AA postseason. Oh, and the 1979 Broncos were good, finishing 7-0 in conference and 10-1 overall.
So, it wasn’t a surprise when Boise State upset Utah the opening week of the 1980 season. Nor was it much of a surprise that Jim Criner coached the Broncos to the national championship that season, earning the Big Sky its first I-AA title. The Broncos wild ride ranks 27th on the list of the Big Sky Conference’s “50 Greatest Men’s Moments.’’
“The thing that gives me the most personal pride is not only did we win a national championship, but we had a lot of handicaps to overcome,’’ said Criner, who resides in West Yellowstone, Mont. “We only had four full-time coaches. Other teams had nine full-time coaches. We were always bussing, while other teams were flying. I’m as proud as anybody to see what Boise State has accomplished, but I take great pride in what we accomplished.’’
Boise State returned 21 of 22 starters from the 1979 team. The defense was led by tackle Randy Trautman, linebacker Dan Williams, and defensive back Rick Woods. Running back Cedric Minter, wide receiver Kipp Bedard and quarterback Joe Aliotti, a junior college transfer who garnered First Team All-Big Sky accolades in 1979 and 1980.
“When we got to a point where we were good enough to win a national championship, the only thing we were missing was a quarterback,’’ Criner recalled. “We were recruiting three, including Jim McMahon. Jim wanted to come to Boise, but his dad wanted him to go to the biggest school who recruited him. Joe came in and started every game for us.’’
Aliotti formed the backbone of Boise State’s “Four Horsemen” backfield, which also included Minter, Terry Zahner and fullback David Hughes. Minter, who graduated as the Big Sky’s all-time leading rusher, gained 1,060 yards during the regular season. Zahner had 540. Aliotti completed 61.5 percent of his passes for 1,590 yards and 13 touchdowns.
The Broncos opened the season with an impressive 28-7 thumping of Utah, but suffered a 17-13 upset loss the following week at home to Southeast Louisiana.
“After the Utah win, my hardest job was keeping the coaches off the phone,’’ Criner said. “They all wanted to put their feet up on the desk and talk about how good we were. Our players were breaking their arms patting themselves on the back. That Southeast Louisiana loss made the biggest difference in the season.’’
Boise State rebounded to win six of the next seven. The Broncos suffered a late-season loss to Cal Poly, which went on to win the Division II national championship. The Broncos closed the regular season with a 22-13 win over Idaho State.
A home playoff game against Grambling and legendary coach Eddie Robinson awaited. The I-AA playoffs were just a four-team affair at the time, so the winner advanced to the national championship game.
Grambling featured “The Trees of Terror” defensive line, future NFL star Everson Walls at cornerback, and fully expected to demolish the Broncs in front of their home fans.
“The night before at the team banquet, I introduced some of our guys, and the Grambling players laughed,’’ Criner recalled. “They called out, ‘Coach, tell those guys to stand up, we can’t see them.’ I looked around the room and could see the smoke in their eyes. After the Grambling players were gone, I told our players to remember what you heard and saw tonight. They don’t respect you. I think on every tackle, we had three or four guys in on every tackle.’’
Fog engulfed Boise State that day, but it didn’t hinder Criner’s crew. With the score tied 7-7, in the fourth quarter, Aliotti handed the ball to Zahner, who flipped it back to the QB on a flea-flicker. Bedard caught the ball for a 63-yard touchdown en route to the 14-9 win.
“Joe hit him right on the money,’’ Criner said. “I can see the race right now. Kipp was running down the sideline, and then all of a sudden Everson Walls reads what happened. He caught Kipp at the 10-yard, and Kipp dragged him into the end zone for the winning play.’’
A date with defending national champion Eastern Kentucky awaited for the I-AA national championship. The contest was played at Hughes Stadium in Sacramento, Calif. The fog followed Boise to Sacramento.
“A lot of fans came down from Boise,’’ recalled Trautman. “My mom and brother came down, but I was pretty much focused on the game. You can’t dream about something you’ve lost. I had to stay focused on the next down.’’
The championship game would prove to be as dramatic as any in history. With 55 seconds remaining, Eastern Kentucky’s David Booze hauled in a long touchdown. The Broncs found themselves behind, and the dreams of a national championship appeared dashed.
“I never thought for one second we weren’t going to win, even on the last drive,’’ Aliotti told Joey Zager, of BroncoCountry.Com.
Aliotti connected with Bedard on passes of 19, 13, and 34 yards in just 20 seconds.
“To be honest, it’s crazy how we won the game,’’ Trautman said. “Joe kept throwing to Kipp, and we got down toward the goal line.’’
But after three incompletions, the Broncos found themselves in deep trouble.
“We were running a lot of things off the sprint-draw,’’ Criner said. “Joe would go through his progression, and at halftime we told him that when the tight end was going across the field, that they were leaving him open. We told Joe that before you throw the ball to the post, or to the outlet, go back and check the tight end. As a coach, you don’t really expect your guys to remember those types of things.’’
For some reason, those words clicked. Tight end Duane Dlouhy ran a shallow cross. Bedard ran a deep cross. He wasn’t open. Eastern Kentucky’s Buddy Moore was closing fast on Aliotti, but slipped. Aliotti scrambled to the right. He gave another look to Dlouhy, who was wide open.
“Something clicked in my head,’’ Aliotti said. “To this day, I don’t know why, but something told me to turn my head.
Dlouhy caught the pass, and the celebration ensured. Boise State won 31-29.
“That was the kind of kids we had,’’ Criner said. “They had a great football attitude. You could make adjustments, change things in the game, because they were so in tune with football. They wanted to accomplish this goal. Someone told me 80 percent of the kids who came in as freshman or sophomores were on that team. We had that many kids committed.’’
Those who stayed were national champions.
