Boise State coach Chris Petersen knew what BG’s quarterback/wide receiver combo of seniors Tyler Sheehan and Freddie Barnes had done in their first three games.
Sheehan was one of the top quarterbacks in the nation in passing yards, with a good chunk of it coming on Barnes’ nation-leading 42 catches; a vast improvement for Barnes, as he only caught 41 balls in an injury-plagued campaign last season.
And even with the No. 8 team in the country at the time, Petersen knew he would have to neutralize Barnes or BG could hang in the game.
‘They’re a very good combination,’ Petersen said last week before the game. ‘We saw those guys up close and personal last year. They both look like they’ve gotten better over the year.’
While the Broncos went on to score plenty of points and leave the Falcons behind with a 49-14 throttling, Petersen got his wish from his only senior defensive starter, cornerback Kyle Wilson.
‘Our guys did a good job making him earn some things,’ Petersen said.
Wilson helped hold Barnes to four catches for 24 yards, with the longest reception going for 10 yards. His defense was so strong that Sheehan only targeted Barnes six other times, after looking his way more than 20 times the week before at Marshall.
Like Petersen, Wilson had his eyes on Barnes coming into the game.
‘He’s a good receiver, and obviously, I had to do my homework,’ Wilson said after the game. ‘I’m not sure how many balls he caught on me. He’s a key to their offense and I wanted to get my best shots.’
Sheehan said the various schemes Wilson and the rest of the Boise State defense used against Barnes made it difficult to find him open.
‘Double and triple coverage all day. They were rolling his way, fake blitzing his way and putting a guy out on him,’ Sheehan said. ‘They did a really good job isolating that and they know that is a big part of our game plan. They know if they stop that, they have a good shot at winning.’
Sheehan was able to complete 16 of 29 passes before handing the reins over to backup Aaron Pankratz for the fourth quarter, but not before he found Adrian Hodges for a touchdown and Justus Jones for 37 yards on three catches in the third quarter.
Forcing Sheehan to find those other targets was also a part of Petersen’s game plan.
‘They have some other weapons too, but [Barnes] is the guy that we were certainly paying close attention to,’ Petersen said.
But despite his lackluster performance, Barnes extended his lead over the nation in receptions.
He came into the game leading Southern Methodist’s Emmanuel Sanders by seven but left Saturday with a 10 reception lead over Texas’ Jordan Shipley after Sanders had a bye week.
Barnes said he still wants a shot at making catches when he’s facing tough defenses and that the coaches have enough confidence in him they will continue throwing his way.
‘The confidence and belief that my coaches and my quarterback have in me this year has been considerably different,’ Barnes said yesterday during the Mid-American Conference teleconference. ‘They want me to make plays in those situations.”
