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Wednesday, November 1
Hendricks shines outside the spotlight

By Mike Sorensen
Special to ESPN.com

At the start of the season there was talk, even if it was just a little more than a whisper, about Boise State quarterback Bart Hendricks being an all-American candidate or even a longshot Heisman Trophy hopeful.

However, with several other quarterbacks having excellent seasons for nationally ranked teams, guys like Josh Heupel of Oklahoma, Chris Weinke of Florida State, Drew Brees of Purdue and Michael Vick of Virginia Tech, those dreams for Hendricks have long vanished. It might just be the worst year ever for a player from a conference like the Big West to be competing for national honors at the quarterback position.


	Boise State's Bart Hendricks is a finalist for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award.

Still that doesn't mean Hendricks hasn't been putting together an outstanding season.

The senior quarterback has led the Broncos to a 6-2 record with the two losses coming by a touchdown to teams from prominent conferences (Arkansas and Washington State). He ranks No. 1 in the country in points responsible for with 20.0 per game and is also No. 5 in both passing efficiency (154.8 rating) and total offense (311.3 ypg).

"Bart is playing very well right now," said Boise State coach Dirk Koetter. "He's probably played as well the last three weeks as he ever has. He's reading defenses well and his throws are right on. The thing I like about him is his mental toughness. Last week Bart was going to will his team to victory."

Last week was one of Hendricks' best games as he passed for 375 yards on 23 of 36 completions and three touchdowns in a come-from-behind 34-31 win over New Mexico State. With the Bronco defense struggling to stop the Aggie running game, Hendricks was the offensive force as he led the Broncos on a last-quarter winning drive, capped by a 3-yard pass to Lou Fanucchi.

"We weren't going to lose with Bart out there," said Koetter.

Actually Hendricks is receiving some national attention. Just last week he was named one of five finalists for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award given to the top senior quarterback. Others finalists include Brees, Weinke, Heupel and Marques Tuiasosopo of Washington.

At 6-0, 205 pounds, Hendricks isn't likely to draw a lot of attention from the NFL after the season. But if they want a winner, Hendricks certainly fills the bill. Last year, he led the Broncos to a 10-3 record, when he was named Big West offensive player of the year and the Broncos could end up 10-2 this year.

This week at Arkansas State, Hendricks has a chance to move into third place on the all-time Big West passing yards list as he trails UNLV's Randall Cunningham by just 67 yards and Long Beach State's Jeff Graham by 127 yards. Before the season is over, he should become Boise State's leader in passing yards.

Around the Big West

Boise State
After sitting out for most of the past two games with an injury, Brock Forsey returned to rush for 106 yards against NMSU. ... Hendricks rushed for 61 yards, which gave him 436 total yards, the second-most in BSU history . . .Two BSU receivers amassed more than 100 receiving yards and a third was just four yards short of 100. Lou Fanucchi caught six passes for 116 yards, sophomore Jay Swillie had five catches for 109 yards, while Jeb Putzier caught six passes for 96 yards. ... Freshman David Mikell returned three kickoffs for a 107-yard average last week to move up to No. 1 in the country with a 30.3-yard average. ... Fast starts have been key for the Broncos this year as they've outscored the opposition 85-37 in the first quarter and have scored 20 or more points in the first half in six of eight games . . . The Broncos lead the Big West in sacks with 22 in eight games, led by defensive end Jeff Copp with six. ... Fullback Shay Swan had an MRI on his knee this week and is questionable for this week's game.

New Mexico State
Against Boise State Saturday, the Aggies went into the fourth quarter with a 31-27 lead, but ran only eight plays for 22 yards in the quarter as Boise State dominated offensively. The Broncos only got seven points, but it was enough for a victory. ... After scoring just 13 points (4.3 per game) in their first three games, the Aggies have exploded for 181 points (36.2) over their last five games. NMSU has scored at least 30 points in each of those five games. Over the last five weeks, the Aggies have gone from last (114th) in the NCAA in scoring offense to 68th. ... New Mexico State is averaging 254.4 yards per game on the ground this season, third-best on the school's single-season list. ... NMSU is ninth in the nation in rushing and leads the Big West by nearly 90 yards per game. ... Senior Chris Barnes has rushed for 843 yards this season and could become the school's 14th 1,000-yard rusher. Barnes, who has rushed for at least 100 yards in each of his last three games and four of his last five, is 18th in the nation in rushing, averaging 105.38 yards per game, but only third in the Big West. ... Besides Barnes, other Aggies in the national statistics include freshman wide receiver Ronshay Jenkins, who is tied for 43rd in the country in punt returns and senior cornerback Jascon Willis, who is tied for 44th nationally in interceptions. ... Senior left tackle Mick Rodemeyer, who suffered a torn MCL in his right knee at Arkansas State and missed the Boise State contest, may return this week.

Utah State
Emmett White finally earned Big West Player of the Week honors after rushing for 202 yards and picking up 289 all-purpose yards in the 44-31 win over Arkansas State. He had been nominated five times earlier in the season. White still ranks No. 1 in the nation in all-purpose running with a 214.5-yard average, 25.5 yards ahead of LaDainian Tomlinson of TCU. ... Placekicker Brad Bohn was selected as Big West special teams player of the week after making all three of his field goal attempts, from 41, 44 and 41 yards out against Arkansas State. Bohn ranks 11th in the nation in field goals. ... Utah State has won five straight league games dating back to last year . . . After scoring just 9 points total in the first quarter of the first seven games, the Aggies put 17 points on the board in the first quarter against Arkansas State. ... After Saturday's home game, the Aggies are averaging 21,418 fans per game, second best average in school history. They need a crowd of 14,328 in the final home game against Idaho State Nov. 18 to surpass 100,000 fans for the first time in history. ... Until losing last year in Logan, Utah State hadn't lost to New Mexico State since 1967. USU enjoys a commanding 21-4 edge in the all-time series with NMSU.

Idaho
The Vandals took last week off and tried to regroup for this week's game at North Texas following the upset loss to Utah State. "We're trying to get back to where we were mentally. We're recommitting ourselves to what our goals are," said coach Tom Cable. ... Willie Alderson still leads the Big West in rushing and is 16th in the nation with a 113.0 average, but his lead over Utah State's Emmett White closed to just five yards after White's big day against Arkansas State. ... Cable has been calling the offensive plays since John Welsh struggled in the second half against West Virginia. Even though the Vandals lost to Utah State, Cable said he will continue to call the plays for now instead of offensive coordinator Bret Ingalls. Cable was the offensive coordinator in his previous job at the University of Colorado. ... Linebacker Chris Nofoaiga moved up to No. 4 on the Vandals' all-time tackles list.

North Texas
Linebacker Brad Kassell was named Big West defensive player of the week after registering 14 tackles, causing a fumble, and intercepting a pass in the Mean Green's 13-0 shutout of UL Lafayette. ... A lack of big plays has hurt UNT all season, but the Mean Green had a bunch of big plays against UL Lafayette, including a 39-yard run off a fake punt, a 50-yard pass play and a 68-yard run from scrimmage. The Mean Green also added a season best 23-yard punt return and had an 11-yard gain on a reverse. ... Ja'Quay Wilburn had his best rushing game of the year Saturday, gaining 145 yards. It marked his first 100-yard rushing game since October 23, 1999 against Arkansas State. ... Wilburn moved up to 8th on the all-time Big West rushing list with 2,744 yards. ... UNT's 315 yards in total offense was its second highest total of the season. ... Kassell and Don McGee are tied for first in the league in interceptions.

Arkansas State
Still looking for their first victory, the 0-9 Indians must face league favorite Boise State Saturday in Jonesboro. ... Robert Kilow had one of his best games of the year at Utah State Saturday, catching 10 passes for 102 yards. He moved up to No. 6 in the nation in receptions (7.25 rpg) and No. 9 in receiving yards (98.1 ypg). He's also No. 3 in kickoff returns and No. 4 in all-purpose yards. ... Before last week's game, Hollis complained about the "freak plays" that had haunted the Indians all season. They had another one Saturday in the final minute after driving to the 2-yard line. Quarterback Cleo Lemon never got the snap and it ended up in the end zone where Utah State recovered. A touchdown there wouldn't have won the game, but would have cut the margin to 44-38 with a chance at an onside kick . . . Left tackle Garrick Jones is doubtful for this week after sustaining an injury last week. ... Running back Danny Smith sat out last week with a hamstring injury and may play this week.

ALSO SEE
Big Ten notebook

Big 12 notebook

Mountain West notebook

WAC notebook

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