San Jose State took a lead into the fourth quarter against No. 21 Boise State at CEFCU Stadium Saturday night, but the Broncos used their relentless running game to put the game away late.

The Spartans (4-5, 1-4 MWC) will need to win two of their final three games in order to qualify for a bowl game. The Broncos (7-1, 4-0 MWC) finished the week as the only undefeated Mountain West Conference team in conference play.

Senior quarterback Josh Love, who tallied a season-high 438 passing yards, said the loss hurt, but the focus on earning a bowl game bid remains the same.

“We have three opportunities left,” Love said. “Got to win two of them, we’re hoping to win all three of them.” 

Despite the loss, SJSU controlled the majority of the first quarter as it took a 14-0 lead over the Broncos 12 minutes into the game. 

On the Spartans’ first offensive drive of the night, Love found junior wide receiver Tre Walker for 36 yards downfield, who skirted the sideline, making a diving catch setting up a first-and-goal at the 1-yard line.

Walker caught a game-high 9 passes for 193 yards on 14 targets.

Two plays later, senior running back DeJon Packer punched it in for the score on a second effort after initially being stopped. Junior offensive tackle Jack Snyder pushed Packer from behind, guiding him into the end zone for the first score of the game, putting SJSU up 7-0 after the extra point.

On Boise State’s first drive, back-to-back plays with heavy pressure from SJSU, including an intentional grounding penalty and a third down sack by sophomore linebacker Kyle Harmon, forced a punt.

SJSU then took advantage of a completely fooled defense as Love, not normally a runner, scored a 4-yard touchdown on a quarterback keeper as the Spartans took a 14-0 lead.

The Broncos’ second drive once again ended in a sack, this time by senior linebacker Ethan Aguayo. 

“I thought we fought pretty hard in the first half,” Aguayo said. “They came out with a little more heat in the second half. We’ve just got to do a better job when coming out in the second half with a little more juice.”

The Broncos’ first points in the game came from special teams as Broncos junior cornerback Avery Williams returned a punt for a 66-yard touchdown, cutting the Spartans’ lead to 14-7. It was the first punt return for a touchdown against SJSU since the 2014 season.

After an SJSU field goal, the Broncos scored their first offensive touchdown of the game on a 1-yard run by freshman running back George Holani, his first of four in the game.

Two drives later, Love connected with freshman wide receiver Isaiah Hamilton for a 16-yard score to give the Spartans a 24-14 lead. Boise State tacked on a field goal on its next drive as SJSU took a 24-17 lead into halftime. 

At the half, the Broncos had netted only 17 rushing yards, but the tides turned in the second half as Boise State got its running game going in a major way.

The Spartans forced a three-and-out on the Broncos’ first drive in the second half, but the Broncos scored five consecutive rushing touchdowns, gaining 236 rushing yards in the process.

“It ended up eating a bunch of clock, keeping the ball out of [Love’s] hands,” head coach Brent Brennan said. “We got thinned out a little bit up front and so a lot of those runs became longer gains.”

Boise State led for the first time in the game with 3 minutes and 28 seconds left in the third quarter after an 8-yard rushing touchdown from Broncos sophomore backup quarterback Chase Cord.

The Spartans reclaimed the lead the next drive on Packer’s second rushing score of the game as the team took a 34-31 lead into the fourth quarter.

Two more rushing touchdowns by Boise State built an 11-point lead that SJSU could not overcome.

A 9-yard touchdown reception from Love to senior wide receiver Bailey Gaither followed by a successful two-point conversion cut the Broncos’ lead to three. But a failed onside kick attempt gave Boise State the ball back. 

Holani then scored for his fourth and final time, sealing the game for the Broncos.

Gaither said that he’s confident in the team moving forward.

“We all believe in one another,” Gaither said. “That’s real important, that goes a long way. So, we have three games left, and we’re looking forward to Hawaii.”

SJSU has two consecutive away games at the University of Hawaii and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas with a bye week in between. 

The Spartans end the regular season with a home tilt against Fresno State Nov. 30.