Firsthand Fandom: The Full Fiesta Bowl Experience

Brandyn Thompson had one more play in him. I knew it.

Andy Dalton dropped back, seconds ticked off the clock and the Frogs were in need of a touchdown and extra point to tie -- or they would go for 2 and put the game away.

As he surveyed the field, I looked into Dalton's eyes from my seat in the end zone bleachers (Boise State's end zone, of course). He looked panicked, unsure, most likely from Kyle Wilson's snot-bubbler blindside sack earlier that left the quarterback in a heap on the University of Phoenix Stadium field.

Finally, Dalton launched a pass to the left sideline (to my right). Thompson, making my thought as prophetic as a time traveler who's already seen what happens, stuck out his hand and tipped the ball into the waiting and willing hands of nickel Winston Venable.

I went nuts. If the people around me didn't already know me, they would have been scared. But I didn't care. We had just won our second Fiesta Bowl and had beaten newfound nemesis TCU at the same time. I was on cloud nine. The entirety of Bronco Nation was on cloud nine. We were on top of the world.

The 2009 football season, and subsequent Fiesta Bowl, took place during my final year as an undergrad student at BSU. I was a proud member of the Keith Stein Blue Thunder Marching Band. Interim band director had taken the whole group to the Valley of the Sun in a convoy of 4 charter busses to support the team.

Memories of the trip to the Poinsettia Bowl in San Diego the year before were still fresh. TCU had beaten us 17-16 in a game many expected the Broncos to win. We were out for revenge, though I was skeptical of the chances of that happening.

The busses drove 16 hours, most of it through the heart of Nevada on the Extraterrestrial Highway. We stopped in Ely for some grub along the way. The sign at an Arby's restaurant read, "Broncos trample Toads. Welcome BSU band."

When we to the Phoenix area, our hotel was in a beautiful part of Scottsdale. We spent time in Tempe, Glendale, Chandler and Phoenix. It was incredible.

I sat in an outdoor pool at midnight on January 1. That did not suck at all.

It was incredibly warm. I was sweating profusely during the Fiesta Bowl parade. It was worth it.

When game day arrived, we rolled up to the stadium. If you've never seen University of Phoenix Stadium, it looks like one of those Jiffy Pop stovetop popcorn skillets with an aluminum bag that's been fully popped.

Inside, it's massive. It's an NFL stadium, after all. We walked around in the bowels of the structure. The bleachers I sat in were removable, which was important because the grass field was on a giant "tray" that could slide outside and get some sun when needed. Incredible ingenuity.

At kickoff, the stadium electric; half purple and half blue and orange.

When Thompson got his pick-6, I was confident. After the Kyle Brotzman to Kyle Efaw pass on a fake punt, I was ecstatic. When Doug Martin cartwheeled into the end zone for what became the game-winning touchdown, I went out of my mind.

You know what happened next. Game. Set. Match. Goodbye Toads.

I still smile every time I think about that trip and the game. It set Boise State apart from the rest of the non-BCS schools and firmly onto the newly-minted "power program" shelf. Being a fan and representative of the university was one of the greatest experiences of my life.

The last two seasons have been hard at Boise State. Whether it was Petersen, Prince, Kwiatowski, complacency or a combination of any or all of them, the team was down. The mystique was faltering, but not totally gone (sorry Rocky Long). Change was needed, though some of us, including me, didn't know it yet.

Change has done Boise State well. Harsin is our blue and orange knight. How fitting that he has the Broncos back in the Fiesta Bowl in his first season as the head coach, just like Petersen once did.

Win or lose, Boise State has reestablished itself as the premier "Group of 5" team, one that has stood the test of time and is far from the one-year wonders that pop up every season.

Those who are in Glendale for the game, keep all this in mind. Cheer loud, enjoy the moment and take lots of pictures. It's a bowl game, but this particular Fiesta Bowl is Boise State once again showing the nation and naysayers it is here to stay.

Go Broncos.

One year later the world hasn't ended; a look back at Petersen going purple

When I was younger, I had a favorite blanket. It was my constant companion while at home and I thought about it often while I was away. 

I had separation anxiety from my "blankie."

One day I came home from school to find blankie was missing. The devastation was severe. It was ugly. I had a crisis on my hands. I interrogated the only suspect, my mother, and she cracked. 

Blankie was gone forever, never to return. My mom had thrown the ratty thing away, and I immediately knew life was over. Permanently altered. 

Why go on? What is life without your favorite blue blanket? Oh how I longed for it. 

As time passed, I replaced the hole in my heart left by blankie with other things; sports, video games, girls, etc. Before I knew it, the blanket never crossed my mind, even accidentally.

I was over it. I had finally let go. The wounds were healed, and, you know what? My life was pretty darn good. 

As a longtime Boise State fan, Chris Petersen was my college football blankie. Strange comparison, I know, but think about it. How did you feel when he left for the purpler grass at Washington?

Like crap. I know I did. 

When Ian Johnson scored the 2-point conversion against Oklahoma in the first Fiesta Bowl and Petersen did his double fist pump celebration, the man immediately became my idol. When he left, that role model was ripped from me just like my mother removed blankie from my life.

I went through the stages of grief. That night when Huskie Athletic Director Scott Woodward flew to Boise and the news leaked that Petersen was leaving, I was in denial. No way. That guy loves Boise. He IS Bronco football. 

What were we going to do without Petersen? Life was over. We were screwed. It sucked. We were never going to win again. Rip up the blue turf and sell it to some high school in Alaska. 

But, time passed, as it always does, and the wounds began to heal. The Petersen-shaped hole in my heart was partially filled by Bryan Harsin's energetic, BAMFy attitude and confidence. 

When August rolled around and Boise State faced off against Ole Miss in Atlanta, I saw a team with energy, fight and desire. 

I saw Boise State was still Boise State, Petersen or not. The loss to Air Force had me worrying, but what transpired after that has me as giddy as a 13-year-old girl at a Justin Bieber concert. 

One year later, Petersen is no longer a concern. I wrote a piece saying I was rooting for Petersen to fail at Washington a couple of months ago, but even those feelings are now watered down. In fact, I find myself cheering for him. I discovered I still have a deep, deep respect for him and his work. 

Now he just needs to beat Oregon and we'll be even. 

Life goes on. It's actually pretty sweet. Life after Petersen hasn't been all candy canes, puppies, rainbows and gumdrops, but it's been far from the Broncopocalypse we all expected it to be.

I bleed blue. Always have and always will. So carry on, fellow Bronco fans. Who we are wasn't forged by just one man, one season or one win. We are a conglomeration of everything we've been through and experienced, including the departure of a beloved coach and role model. 

Enjoy what's left of this season. I sure will. At least we aren't on flight watch and coach Defcon alert this time around. 

Go Broncos!