Boise flag in Fresno QB’s apartment isn’t going down until the Broncos do
Graham Watson – October 5, 2011
| Derek Carr carried the burden of beating Boise State well before he ever became quarterback at Fresno State .
In 2001, his brother David was the quarterback for the No. 8 Bulldogs and they had just appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated when an unranked, relatively unknown Boise State team came into town. The Broncos were making their first foray into the WAC after defecting from the Big West, and were still five seasons removed from the 2007 Fiesta Bowl win over Oklahoma that would vault the program into the national limelight. So there was no reason to think that a team that had never beaten the Bulldogs would ultimately destroy what was shaping up as the best season in school history. |
But that’s exactly what happened. Boise State upset the Bulldogs 35-30 in Fresno. According to the Idaho Statesman , David Carr never forgot it — and he’s passed the burden of revenge on to his younger brother.
The Carr family hasn’t forgotten.
In fact, David Carr placed a Boise State flag in his little brother Derek’s living room when Derek arrived at Fresno State in 2009. Carr, a redshirt sophomore, will get his first shot at the Broncos on Friday night.
“That was my brother’s little moment to mess with me,” Carr said of the flag. “He said I can’t take it down till we beat them.”
The flag is not popular with teammates.
“It’s definitely come down a lot,” Carr said. “I have to keep putting it back up.”
Derek said he remembers watching the 2001 game from the stands above the ramp where players entered Bulldog Stadium “like it was yesterday.” (“It made me feel for my brother, and it really made me want to come to Fresno State.”) Since then, Fresno State is 1-8 against Boise State, the only win coming in 2005, losing by an average of 25.8 points per game. In the past three years, the Broncos have really poured it on, scoring 163 points, including last year’s 51-0 blowout.
If there’s one thing that plays in Fresno State’s favor on Friday — and it may be the only one, besides the home field advantage — it’s that Fresno State is undefeated against the Broncos when they’re are in different conferences, which they now are with Fresno State in the WAC and Boise State in its first season in the Mountain West. The two teams had met three times when Boise State was in the Big West and the Bulldogs handled the Broncos easily. Of course that was more than a decade ago — before Boise rattled off a string of conference titles, national rankings, BCS bowl appearances and a Heisman-contending quarterback, Kellen Moore .
The chances of Carr taking that Boise State flag off his wall this year are slim to none. But, if the cosmos have their way, maybe it will come down the next time he sees the Broncos, when he’s a senior in 2013.
– – – Graham Watson is on Facebook and Twitter: Follow her @Yahoo_Graham .
NCAA: Violations led to Boise State suspensions
OISE, Idaho (AP) — Two of Boise State’s three football players with Dutch ties were suspended at the start of the season because of recruiting violations and for taking illegal benefits, including one player who received a car and payments to cover auto insurance, NCAA officials said.
The statement issued by the NCAA Wednesday provided the first explanation for the one-game suspension handed down to senior safety Cedric Febis and the four-game suspension served by sophomore receiver Geraldo Boldewijn. Officials say the investigation into sophomore defensive tackle Ricky Tjong-A-Tjoe is still pending.
Febis, who was held out of the season opener, was penalized for “recruiting violations and receiving impermissible transportation.” NCAA spokeswoman Emily Potter declined to share details of Febis’ infractions and instead referred inquiries to university officials.
Later Wednesday, the school issued a statement that said Febis had paid a $20 reinstatement penalty to go along with his one-game suspension.
In Boldewijn’s case, NCAA investigators concluded he received $700 in illegal benefits, including a car and insurance coverage. Boldewijn has repaid those benefits, according to a story first reported Wednesday by The Idaho Statesman.
The school later revealed more details. Boldewijn was suspended for “impermissible use of a 1990 Toyota Camry with 177,000 miles and driver’s insurance coverage,” according to the school statement. The school voluntarily held him out of the first three games and his four-game suspension was complete after the Broncos’ win over Nevada last weekend.
Boldewijn is practicing with the team this week and expected to play when the No. 5 Broncos (4-0) play at Fresno State on Friday night.
“In each case, the University, in conjunction with the Mountain West Conference and the NCAA, has concluded that the violations related to this matter are secondary in nature (defined as “isolated and inadvertent”). Thus the NCAA has concluded that there is not a major infraction involved and no major case proceeding will result from this investigation,” the school said in its statement.
All three players are from Amsterdam and moved to the Boise area to play high school football before signing on to play for Boise State. All three also played limited roles for the Broncos last season.
Boise State officials announced days before the opening game against Georgia that the Dutch players were suspended indefinitely due to eligibility concerns.
During the investigation and reinstatement process, NCAA staff considers a variety of factors, including the type of violation, the value of the benefit and whether it amounts to a significant competitive advantage and the athlete’s responsibility in the case.
Boise State alerted the NCAA of the possible rule violations for the players, Potter said.
Last month, Boise State President Bob Kustra suggested in an interview with the Statesman that athletic boosters were responsible for the infractions.
“What we have to make sure we do very well here is educate our boosters and make sure that they understand what boosters can and cannot do,” Kustra told the newspaper when asked about the three Dutch players.
More updates later today
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