Moore throws 2 TD passes as No. 3 Boise State rolls to 51-6 win over Wyoming

Moore leads No. 3 Boise State past Wyoming, 51-6

LARAMIE, Wyo. — Kellen Moore threw for 370 yards and two touchdowns, Boise State’s defense forced three turnovers and the third-ranked Broncos extended their winning streak to 16 with a 51-6 victory against Wyoming on Saturday night.

The Broncos (2-0) showed no signs of rust after a 12-day rest, piling up 648 total yards. They scored 37 straight points to begin the game, allowing Moore & Co. to watch the final quarter from the sideline.

Moore, a Heisman hopeful, efficiently led the Broncos offense, spreading around the wealth as he threw long TD passes to both Austin Pettis and Titus Young.

Young had 94 yards on four catches, hauling in a 49-yard pass as he simply flew past Wyoming (1-2).

Pettis finished with three catches for 88 yards, including a 58-yard TD reception on a flea-flicker in which he punctuated the score by somersaulting into the end zone, drawing a penalty.

He only played sparingly after his first-quarter flip, apparently in coach Chris Petersen’s doghouse.

Doug Martin finished with 105 yards and a touchdown and defensive lineman Shea McClellin added another score by pouncing on the football in the end zone.

The Boise State defense came up big all night, holding the Cowboys to minus-21 yards rushing and 135 total yards. The team put constant pressure on quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels, picking off two of his passes.

Carta-Samuels got the Cowboys on the board in the third quarter when he connected with fullback Greg Saydjari on a 35-yard TD, the result of a breakdown in the Broncos’ secondary.

While the Broncos were idle, they dropped seven of their eight first-place votes. Virginia Tech’s loss to lower-tier James Madison didn’t help, tainting the Broncos’ big win over the Hokies in the season opener.

Boise State has been waiting all week for another chance to show the team is worthy of the national title talk.

The Broncos know to get back into the conversation they can’t just win, they have to win convincingly.

And they can’t just look good — they have to look spectacular.

This helped their cause.

Boise State could’ve scored more, but had a long punt return called back and three drives stall out inside Wyoming’s territory, leading to three field goals from Kyle Brotzman.

The danger heading into this game for the Broncos was glancing ahead. But Boise State’s concentration was squarely on Wyoming, even with a matchup against No. 25 Oregon State looming next week. The Beavers held off Louisville, 35-28, earlier in the day.

This was a taste of Mountain West Conference play for the Broncos, who will move into the league after this season. Boise State is now 11-1 in games against Mountain West Conference teams since the league’s inception in 1999, including a 5-0 mark versus Wyoming.

The Broncos resorted to gadgetry to score their first offensive touchdown as Moore handed the ball off to D.J. Harper, who then flipped it back to Moore.

With the Wyoming defense taking the bait, Moore hit Pettis in stride.

Moore watched the play from his back after taking a hit, throwing his hands up in the air as Pettis somersaulted into the end zone.

Before the game, Wyoming held a moment of silence to honor freshman linebacker Ruben Narcisse, who was killed in a car accident in Colorado on Sept. 6.

The team handed out 5,000 T-shirts with “Ruben Narcisse, Always a Cowboy” printed on it and wore decals with his initials on their helmets.

Wyoming broke out new uniforms for the Boise State game, wearing gold jerseys, brown pants with “Cowboys” written down the side, brown socks and white helmets with a metallic gold emblem.

The Broncos also went with a different look, donning their orange pants and white uniforms for the occasion.