Boise State Broncos College Football Pregame Quote, 12/26/2024

Q. Dirk [Koetter] said that we’re making too much of the rest for you and the team, in terms of playing that up as how much fresher you’re going to be. How do you feel about the rest and how it’s going to help you next week?

ASHTON JEANTY: I feel really good about it, from the standpoint football is a very physical sport. Then our offense, we pride ourselves in physicality. I think it will do us all well having this time off. But obviously, it’s been a little bit since we played football. But I’m confident in our preparation and how we’ve been working, and we’re all back now so we can put some more work in and get ready.

Q. Is the elbow injury completely behind you?

ASHTON JEANTY: That’s completely healed up. Glad that it is, so I can be closer to 100%.

Q. We saw some of the time you carrying the ball in the other hand because of that. How much did that affect you in some of those games?

ASHTON JEANTY: It definitely made it more challenging. Obviously, wearing that big elbow brace, you can’t hold -I mean, I got big biceps, so I couldn’t hold the ball the way I wanted to always. That’s- why I was switching it over. I think it was versus Nevada, I had a fumble, because I couldn’t secure it properly. So just making sure I can really take care of the ball, because that’s the most important thing.

Q. You haven’t had 30 carries in three weeks. What is it like to not have to deal with that?

ASHTON JEANTY: It’s a great feeling, I’ll say that. Obviously, you want the ball in your hands. But time off, recovery, rest, sleep, that’s the best thing you can have as an athlete.

Q. When was the last time you might have felt this fresh going into a game, or even a game week for that matter?

ASHTON JEANTY: Georgia Southern, honestly, week one, because after that, you don’t really get this much time off. So it’s been a blessing to have this much time off. Last time I was feeling this super fresh, you seen what I did. Hopefully not just me, but the whole offense and defense, we can all play our best game.

Q. Can we expect 60 yards?

ASHTON JEANTY: I don’t know about that. Penn State has got a real good defense. But we can expect a great performance, not just from me but from the whole offense.

Q. What are you seeing from Penn State?

ASHTON JEANTY: They got some really good players. Their front seven is elite, great linebackers, great D-line. They do a lot: Blitzes, pressures, moving the D-line, stunts, and all that. They’re a single high team. We know for sure we’re going to get some seven, eight man surfaces. That’s just natural from all the defenses we’ve seen. But we’re going to have to play a great game, stay ahead of the chains. They’re one of the best teams on third and long. So we want to stay out of those situations.

Q. You played some good defenses through the year. This is an NFL level defense, we are to believe. Are you excited to almost prove a point and show what you can do?

ASHTON JEANTY: Yeah, definitely. For me, I want to play against the best of the best competition. This is the biggest platform to do that in college football right now, against one of the best teams in the nation. This is always the best thing to me, to play against the best competition.

Q. With all the hoopla of the Heisman and all that, going to New York, and everything you’re going to be dealing with in future months with Combine and all that stuff, how excited are you to have a game week, lock back in, be with your team, and play in the playoff this week?

ASHTON JEANTY: Obviously, there’s a lot of stuff that has happened, and there’s a lot of things to come. But this is the most important thing to me right now, is finishing what we started, finish to finish. I’m just excited to be back with the guys, my teammates, and to keep making memories. And we’re still playing football.

Q. Some of the running backs, like Jay Ajayi in the Fiesta Bowl in 2014, it was the last game. It wasn’t a playoff game. It was a bowl game. He knew he was going pro, like other guys. For you, the fact that this is a playoff game,- so it’s not like I’m going to sit out or whatever-. H-ow all- -in are you in terms of wanting to help this team win a national championship here?

ASHTON JEANTY: Yeah, just like each and every game of the season, I’m going to give the team my all, my everything, from preparation to practice to the work, to the way I hydrate, eat, get sleep. This is very important to me and, obviously, to the team, to Boise State football. So I’m just blessed to have this opportunity.

Q. [Mason] Randolph -when you’re hurt, it takes a while to get back. What have you noticed from him as the time that he’s been back has been longer-?

ASHTON JEANTY: He’s done a great job of getting back. Obviously, the injury he had, some people wouldn’t even make a return during the season. But I spent a lot of time in the training room this year, so I seen him in there every day working, just keeping his head down.

To have him back, he’s a leader. He’s been leading the O-line even while not playing, just having a great impact on the team. So to have him back on the field is special, because he’s a great player. He’s also very smart. He also helps the O-line connect and gel and everything run smoothly. To have him on the field is always great.

Q. The Heisman is in the past now. But even since then, former Baylor running back Harris or Cam Newton was talking about you. What does it mean? I know the votes have been tallied, but you hear those guys fully supporting you saying you should have won.

ASHTON JEANTY: I think it’s real dope to have the respect of former players, legends of the game, guys who did a lot of great things on the field. To have the respect and support from them, that goes a long way.

Q. Talk about Kage Casey.

ASHTON JEANTY: He’s like a silent assassin. He doesn’t say too much. Obviously, we talk and we’re personal and connect and all that. But he’s just one of the most humble guys I’ve been around. Obviously one of the best O-linemen I’ve played with. He does an extremely great job.

When you talk about practice, you talk about preparation. The way he works is like no other. He’s a genetic freak (chuckles). He’s done a great job; and he’s been a great teammate, not just to me but to everybody. It’s been great to have him as a teammate for these past few years.

Q. What are some of the qualities that you see in yourself, just as a running back, that you think can translate well to the NFL?

ASHTON JEANTY: Just being a three-down back. Obviously running the ball. Every great running back, you’ve got to be able to run the ball. But now in terms of the way the game is shifting, you’ve got to be able to pass protect, block in the pass game. Just having the IQ to understand defenses, understand how they’re going to pressure and being able to pick it up. Just being able to play on each down and receiving the ball out the backfield.

Obviously not as much this year, but it’s on my resume last year. I don’t remember how many yards I had or catches. But I did a real good job in the receiving game. I feel that from all three phases, those will be able to translate into the next level.

Q. You guys are double digit underdogs in this game. Not a lot of people giving you guys much of a chance. How much are you as players embracing that underdog role and excited to prove people wrong?

ASHTON JEANTY: It’s nothing new. Nobody had us picked to come to the playoffs. They had us picked to win the conference like they do every year. But in terms of going against what you call the Power Four or the more elite teams, per se, nobody ever has us picked to win.

Just the same mentality what we’ve been doing. We already proved people wrong, but we still got to do that. We still got that chip on our shoulder. We’re still fully aware that people are counting us out.

Q. Going back to the first Fiesta Bowl, nobody gave them a chance. What is it about this program over the years that you fuel off that? Spencer [Danielson] said: Please do count us out. What is it about you guys that you enjoy that part of it?

ASHTON JEANTY: For one, I think just a lot of players who come here, they’ve been counted out in their careers. They didn’t get the offers per se they wanted or go to the school that per se they wanted. But they decided to come here for a common reason and that’s because of the culture, the winning history of the program that you’re getting into. That just starts from the work we put in.

You talk about being blue collar, that’s just what we do. We go to work. We don’t care about what anybody is saying about us. We don’t really care about the outside noise. Just about the work we put in.

Q. You came in here before the 2022 season. The College Football Playoff was just expanding. We were starting to get a feel of what exactly it would look like. Was that ever on your mind, getting a spot in the playoff when you came in?

ASHTON JEANTY: Definitely. That’s always been a goal of mine, just as an athlete or playing in college, to win a national championship. Even coming in as a freshman, I knew we would have a chance to do it at some point; and now it’s here.

Q. Has it hit you that you guys have this opportunity? Or is it going to hit you more when you get down to Arizona in a couple of days?

ASHTON JEANTY: No, definitely. I feel like once they showed the seeding of the College Football Playoffs, that’s when it hit me. I feel like it hit everybody else. We’ve been practicing and preparing for it for the past few weeks, so we know what we’re getting into.

Q. I want to ask about Maddux [Madsen]. You came in, in the same class as him. How have you seen him grow over the last few years?

ASHTON JEANTY: He’s been a baller since he stepped foot on campus. From the work he’s put in, his preparation, I mean, he’s dialed every single day. Even sometimes he’s telling me to lock in. I’m a little goofy, playing around sometimes; but he’s telling me to lock in, focus up.

But he’s just grown each and every single year and gotten better. Just this season alone, he’s gotten better each and every single week. He knows what it takes to win. Obviously, everybody wants to win, but he knows what it takes to win. He’s willing to put the work in to get the results.

Q. Ashton, obviously teams do a lot of preparation to try and stop what you do as a runner. Do you ever feel that pressure internally from yourself to make those big plays? If they stopped you a couple of times in a row, how do you manage wanting to go after a big play to just taking what’s there, and maybe move the chains, versus get a 60 or 70 yard run?

ASHTON JEANTY: Well, just from running the ball perspective, unless you’re playing a bad defense, the big plays don’t just come off the rip. It comes from running the same plays multiple times, hitting the same spots in the run game. Or even the O-line, just wearing down the D-line.

Then over time, the big plays, they come, but every run is not going to be a big play. So just being patient, trusting my O-line, trusting my tight ends, my receivers, everybody blocking. I know over time, at some point during the game, there’s going to be a chance to make a big play.

Q. Ashton, you obviously have played at a high level and have seen some running backs play at a high level. From your perspective, is there any kind of common traits that to be a great running back you’ve got to have across the board?

ASHTON JEANTY: For one, running the ball, just your mentality is always making the first man miss. Every run play isn’t going to be blocked perfect. Sometimes somebody is going to come free. Sometimes you got to make the linebacker miss, safety. Whatever it is, you just got to break tackles. I think all the great running backs, they just have that mentality that the first man isn’t going to tackle them.

Q. Talking about Penn State’s defensive line, do you feel that this is the best D-line you’ve seen to this year to this point? What players stick out to you on their front?

ASHTON JEANTY: Definitely one of the best defensive lines, I feel. I think just as a whole collective unit, they’re all great. They all make each other look really good. Not even on the defensive line, the whole front seven. You’ve got linebacker, [Kobe] King. He’s a pretty big guy, 6’1″, 248. Abdul Carter, No. 11, off the edge. He’s a great player. They’re all working together as a great front seven, and we’re going to have our work cut out for us.

Q. I wanted to get a glimpse into who you are as a person. What makes Ashton Jeanty, Ashton Jeanty?

ASHTON JEANTY: Well, a lot of people just talk about the humbleness, but that’s just how I was raised. I think that’s just who I am as a person. I always want more. Obviously, I get a lot of glory, but that’s not really what drives me. Then I think you hear a lot of people say it, but I’m just goofy. I like to have fun. I like to bring joy to others around me.

I feel like, obviously, college football now is turning into more of a business. But you can do hard things and have a good time. The biggest thing for me is just having fun, enjoying what I’m doing, and bringing others along to enjoy it with me.

Q. Wanted to ask you about your pass protection mentality. There were several times this year where you stepped up and took a free blitz or took someone coming off free off the edge. What is that mentality to be able to do those things? Obviously, people will focus a lot on your big runs and your ability to make people miss. But how important to you is pass protection and being able to do that?

ASHTON JEANTY: I either picked them up or Mad Dog [Maddux Madsen] gets hit. It’s important to protect the quarterback, take hits off him. Then obviously receivers have time to run the routes and get open so Mad Dog can deliver the ball.

A lot of times they’re running free and they’re running full speed at you, but you’ve got to pick up the pressure. Sometimes I have gotten chucked, or whatever you want to call it, knocked over. But at least they didn’t hit Mad Dog. I think from that perspective, it’s just being another willing blocker to add to all the O-linemen blocking up, too.

Q. You mentioned the stuff on social media being a little crazy this year. The other day, did you look down and see: Oh, Barry Sanders is tweeting about me? How did that go down?

ASHTON JEANTY: I think the first one was before the Mountain West championship, I seen that one. Didn’t respond. Just was focused on ball and stuff. Then he tweeted again, kind of just in support of breaking his record.

I think it’s pretty cool to have support from the person who has the record right now and, obviously, considered the best, if not one of the best, to ever play the position. Obviously, I told him thank you for his support. It’s just great to have the support of a legend.

Q. You said earlier today, you had 1,916 yards last year, or whatever. I know you’re not the biggest stat guy. But at the same time, do you know what his number is and what you got to do to get there? That would be, obviously, a heck of a thing for you to go eclipse.

ASHTON JEANTY: I don’t remember the exact rushing. I think it’s like 2,600 or something like that. I know I’m at, like, 2,400 or something like that. I know I need 132.

Obviously, I want to break the record. But we just got to keep the main thing the main thing, and that’s just winning against Penn State. And I feel like if we take care of what we need to take care of, then that will come with it, just like everything else. Just like all the other awards and all the other stats, they’ll come with it.

Q. Do you want that on Mason’s [Randolph] side? Do you need that number to be 26, 28? And who is covering the cost of that thing? Was that sorted out yet?

ASHTON JEANTY: We haven’t sorted it out yet, but it would be best for me to cover the costs since I flipped the bet. I don’t got to cut my locks, so it’s the least I can do. But yeah, I’m not going to say that’s going to be the number because we take care of business. If we win, we’ve got some more games to play, so there’s going to be more rushing yards.

Q. Did you watch any of Barry Sanders’ highlights?

ASHTON JEANTY: Yeah, of course. Obviously, growing up, I wasn’t really watching Barry Sanders. But now more as of lately, definitely watched his highlights multiple times.

Q. What do you question the most, and what do you think is the most similar to him?

ASHTON JEANTY: Him, he was obviously super elusive, juking guys out of their shoes. I drew guys too; but I think the main thing is just making guys miss, breaking tackles.