Hightower, Bachmeier lead No. 22 Boise St past Portland St

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — John Hightower returned a kickoff for a touchdown and caught another, and Hank Bachmeier threw for 238 yards as No. 22 Boise State beat Portland State 45-10 on Saturday night.

Boise State (3-0), which was playing only its third FCS opponent since 2010, used its big-play offense to bury an outmatched Vikings squad. The Broncos had 11 plays from scrimmage go for 20 yards or more, including three touchdowns.

Portland State (1-2), which played Arkansas tough in a 20-13 loss in the Vikings’ season opener, racked up 159 yards in the first quarter but only 85 over the final three.

“Protection was a problem for us all night long,” Portland State coach Bruce Barnum said. “We had some things work for us early and I was pleased with the start, but we couldn’t get them off the field after that first quarter.”

Boise State has yet to allow any points in the second half, joining Wisconsin as the only two schools to still hold that distinction this season. In the Broncos’ dominant defensive performance, Curtis Weaver tied a single-game school record with four sacks.

“It means something to me,” Weaver said of tying the record. “It’s always good but, at the end of the day, the whole D-line played a role in it. But we’ve got to keep moving forward. We’ve got the Mountain West conference play now and that’s still our goal.”

Bachmeier was 16-of-25 passing with an interception. C.T. Thomas also hauled in two touchdown passes, one from Bachmeier and another from backup quarterback Chase Cord.

THE TAKEAWAY

Portland State: The Vikings were picked to finish 10th in the Big Sky but three weeks into the season look as if they might be more competitive than previously believed in one of the toughest FCS conferences in the country.

Boise State: As one of the top contenders from the Group of 5 teams vying for a New Year’s Six bowl game, the Broncos have little margin for error. And after cracking the rankings after an opening week upset of Florida State, Boise State appears poised to fight for that spot all the way through the end of November and has learned it has a freshman signal caller more than capable of getting the team there.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

Boise State shouldn’t fall any after manhandling Portland State. And with a couple of teams close to the Broncos in the polls, Michigan State and Maryland, suffering embarrassing losses, Boise State could continue to ascend in the rankings.

UP NEXT

Portland State closes out its non-conference schedule by traveling to Eastern Oregon on Saturday.

Boise State hosts Air Force on Friday in the Mountain West conference opener for both teams.