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The Boise St. Broncos enter the 2012 college football season as the No. 24 team in the AP Top 25 poll and will start things off with one tough test: a road game against the No. 13 Michigan St. Spartans. It is also being played in a prime time spot on ESPN. Will the Broncos be able to continue their long run of success under head coach Chris Petersen?
The Broncos will start Joe Southwick at quarterback in place of Kellen Moore and his 50-3 career record. The team lost not only its starting quarterback, but a senior class that included running back Doug Martin (31st overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft) and defensive stalwarts Shea McClellin, Billy Winn and George Iloka. Still, this team is the class of the Mountain West in its final year and will be in the conversation as a BCS buster.
Michigan State is breaking in a new quarterback as well, 6'3, 212-pound junior Andrew Maxwell. He takes over for Kirk Cousins, who joined No. 2 overall pick Robert Griffin III and the Washington Redskins as a fourth-round draft pick in April. Still, the offense will have Le'Veon Bell and his 987 rushing yards and 13 rushing touchdowns. The defense returns a solid unit, but it does need to find a replacement for Jerel Worthy.
Game time/date: 6 p.m. MT, Friday, Aug. 31
Location: Spartan Stadium, East Lansing, Mich.
TV Schedule: ESPN/WatchESPN
Odds: Michigan State, -4.5 (opening); -7 (current)
Matchup History: First meeting
For more on these teams, visit Boise State blog One Bronco Nation Under God and Michigan State blog The Only Colors. Head over to SB Nation NCAA Football for more news and notes around the college world.