Mountain West championship: No. 25 Fresno State outlasts No. 22 Boise State in snow

Ronnie Rivers scored on a 1-yard run in overtime to give No. 25 Fresno State a 19-16 victory over No. 22 Boise State on Saturday night in the snowy Mountain West championship game.

Fresno State (11-2, No. 25 CFP) won its first conference title since 2013, beating the Broncos (10-3, No. 22 CFP) on their blue turf for the first time in 10 tries.

Rivers scored after Boise State’s Haden Hoggarth made a 23-yard field goal on the opening overtime possession.

Boise State’s seven-game winning streak ended, and both teams’ dreams of crashing the New Year’s Six bowl games died when UCF beat Memphis to complete a perfect season.

With the temperature in the 30s and a constant mix of snow and rain falling, both teams struggled to sustain anything offensively.

An opportunistic Fresno State struck first, turning Brett Rypien’s fumble into a touchdown when Marcus McMaryion hit Michiah Quick on a 15-yard strike,

Rypien atoned for his mistake by driving Boise State and hitting Sean Modster on a 10-yard scoring play to tie it.

The Bulldogs cobbled together a 13-7 lead on Asa Fuller’s field goals in the second and third quarters.

With 8:01 left, Boise State’s Alexander Mattison ripped off a 34-yard run, muscling his way into the end zone with a defender draped on his back. However, Hoggarth’s extra point attempt was blocked by Matt Boetang, leaving it tied.

McMaryion was 20 of 32 for 170 yards and one touchdown, and Rivers led the Bulldogs on the ground with 63 yards. Mattison rushed for 200 yards and a touchdown on 34 carries for the Boise State. Rypien threw for 125 yards, completing 15 of 31 passes with one touchdown.

Boise State’s last overtime game at home was a 69-67 victory over Nevada on Oct. 14, 2007.