FSU football: Boise State trying to prepare for Florida heat

FSU football will take on Boise State in less than two weeks. Will the Florida heat  and humidity be another opponent for the Broncos?

FSU football needs a win against Boise State in the 2019 opener for a number of reasons. It’s arguable the most important game on the schedule and the Noles will take every advantage they can get.

The game is on a neutral field, but it’ll be much closer to a home game for the Noles with the game taking place in Jacksonville, Florida.

FSU will go into this game with the more talented team as they have recruited at a much higher level than the Broncos.

The other advantage for the Noles? The Florida heat and humidity could be a 13th man on the field if you will.

It’s something Boise State is trying to simulate at their practices according to KVTB.com:

"The big news from Boise State fall camp Tuesday came out of the Caven-Williams Sports Complex, the indoor facility.  The doors were closed, the heat was cranked, and the field was watered down (as were the players), creating maximum humidity in an effort to replicate the conditions they’ll see on Labor Day weekend in Jacksonville.  This is not a new exercise.  The Broncos worked that routine just last year, preparing for their trip to Troy, AL, where they beat the Troy Trojans 56-20.  Boise State also created the same sweatbox in 2016 before beating Louisiana-Lafayette 45-10 on an oppressively hot day.  And the Broncos used the tactic nine years ago before their monumental win over Virginia Tech In Landover, MD.  It may or may not work against Florida State, but it’s worth a try."

Thoughts

It’s definitely worth a try and no different approach than trying to simulate crowd noise for away games which I’m sure they’re doing as well.

As you can see, Boise State has played in similar circumstances in recent years with trips to Alabama and Louisiana. The biggest difference is the talent level and size they’ll be facing on August 31st compared to playing Troy and Louisiana-Lafayette in recent years.

It’s a different animal when going up against defensive and offensive lines equal two or larger than what Boise St. is used to.

A Oklahoma State that finished 7-6 last season was the only power five team Boise State faced and were beaten soundly 44-21.

The other interesting note will be how will Boise State handle the tempo of a Kendal Briles offense? Troy ran 77 offensive plays last year, but being down 35-7 at halftime made that a mute point because they basically were one dimensional after that.

If Briles is able to get into a rhythm in the first half and put about 35-40 plays on that Boise State defense there’s a good chance fatigue will show up for them in the second half.