After losing a heartbreaker to BYU on a last second play,the Boise State Broncos bounced back and pounded a poor Idaho State team 52-0 at home. It was a strong performance for a Boise team that played poorly offensively against BYU, although it was against lesser competition. 

But one big blow to the Broncos offense is the loss of starting quarterback Ryan Finley. The senior suffered a broken ankle and is out for eight weeks. He has an option to be out for the rest of the season and be eligible for a fifth year, or try and rush back and finish out his college career as the starting quarterback. 

His replacement will be freshman quarterback Brett Rypien. It is not normal for Boise State to have a freshman at starting quarterback, as they have had a senior starter at quarterback for at least a decade now and it will take some patience from Bryan Harsin and the coaching staff. He will be the first freshman starter since 1993 and will be thrown into the fire on the road against the Virginia Cavaliers. 

He will also be expected to split snaps with sophomore Tommy Stuart. The coaching staff is leaning towards Rypien so expect him to get more snaps as the season moves on. 

Although Boise fans should be worried about a freshman starting at quarterback, the success of freshman starting quarterbacks this year has to be encouraging. Another encouraging factor has to be the fact that Virginia's defense has not forced a turnover this season, so don't expect them to be as opportunistic as the defenses Boise State has already faced this season. 

The defense was its usual dominant self against Idaho State. They shut out a high powered passing attack and held them in check all night. They will be facing a Virginia team that has one of the country's best backs in Taquan Mizzell. Boise will have to be on their heels as they were roasted two weeks ago against BYU. 

Virginia has a bunch of formations that they can use, something Boise is familiar with because their offense has its complexities. Expect a battle of wits between the defense and offense all night.

Special teams will be a big factor in this game as well, as Boise State's special teams has been playing great in the past few weeks. For a team that has a history of kicking problems, the Broncos have seemed to have that problem solved this year. But they have to be wary of Virginia's Maurice Canady, who returned a punt for a touchdown last week. Punter Sean Wale will have to be on his best game to make sure that Canady doesn't have any room to return the ball. 

It was a heartbreaking loss for Boise against BYU and they took out their anger on Idaho State. Now the Broncos are on the road again to face Virginia and show that they are still in the talks for making a New Years Day Bowl.