Ashton Jeanty lets his play do the talking for CFP-bound Boise State
BOISE, Idaho– After Ashton Jeanty drove through the middle of UNLV’s defense en route to a 75-yard touchdown Friday night in the Mountain West Conference title game, he didn’t strike a Heisman pose.
He didn’t even push for it after the game, instead letting his play do the talking.
“I think the same thing week in and week out,” Jeanty said of all the Heisman Trophy hype after No. 10 Boise State beat No. 19 UNLV 21-7 to earn a spot in the playoffs. college football. “Not only are they one of the best teams in the country, but they have one of the best players in the country.”
Jeanty added another 209 yards – his sixth 200-yard game this season – to bring his total to 2,497 – just 132 yards shy of Barry Sanders’ FBS season rushing record.
Boise State coach Spencer Danielson, who sprinted down the sideline for a few yards with Jeanty – playing his final game in Boise – on the long run, was not at all quiet after the game.
“When it comes to the Heisman, I ask all voters to just watch the film, look at the statistics,” Danielson said. “That will show you that he is the best footballer in the country. … If you’re a Heisman candidate, you should be in a championship game. And seeing what he did in a championship game for his team says a lot too.
It was a not-so-subtle dig at Heisman favorite and Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter, whose team was left out of the Big 12 championship game and will not make a postseason appearance playoffs.
But Jeanty will also be in the playoffs, albeit long after the ballots have been cast and the ceremony has taken place. And he will have the chance to put together one of the greatest single-season rushing performances in FBS history.
“He’s showing week in and week out that he’s the best football player in the country and I don’t think it’s even close,” Danielson said.
The fact that Jeanty is even at Boise State this season in the NIL and transfer portal era is almost as astonishing as his eye-popping stats: the 2,497 rushing yards along with 29 touchdowns and five touchdown runs over 70 yards.
Jeanty, who rejected several offseason NIL offers from Power 4 schools a year ago, opted to return to Boise State to do something special.
It soaked everything on Friday.
“As soon as I woke up, that was all I thought about,” Jeanty said of his time at Boise State. “I was so grateful to the program, the coaches, the community and everyone who believed in me. I took it all during the whole match. It was just an incredible experience. I wouldn’t want to go out any other way.
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