Boise State football is in a new conference. How has that worked out before?

BOISE (Idaho Statesman) — Boise State will begin writing a new chapter in its football history this year as it begins play in the revived Pac-12 Conference.

The Broncos seem to be the favorite for the regular-season title, but if history is anything to judge by, they are battling the odds.

In Boise State’s first season in a new conference since joining the NCAA and Big Sky more than half a century ago — 1970 — the Broncos have not won a regular-season title. From the Big Sky through to the Big West, Western Athletic Conference and Mountain West, here’s how each of the Broncos’ debut seasons went.

Big Sky – 1970

Conference record: 2-2, T-3rd
Overall record: 8-3
Head coach: Tony Knap

Boise State first became a four-year college in 1968 under head coach Tony Knap, but the Broncos competed as an NAIA independent for their first two years.

They joined their first-ever NCAA conference, the Big Sky, in 1970. The Broncos started the season 4-0, including a conference-opening win at Montana State. The perfect start was snapped by a 27-14 loss at Long Beach State — which counted as a conference game despite Long Beach competing in the Pacific Coast Athletic Association. Boise State also beat the Northwest Conference’s College of Idaho 41-7 in a game that counted toward the Broncos’ conference record. That happened because the transition to the NCAA took place quickly, and other Big Sky teams didn’t have room in their schedules to accommodate BSU, who had the two nonconference opponents count.

A defensive tackle on this team, Faddie Tillman, was taken in the 10th round, 241st overall, of the 1971 NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons. He went on to play one game in the NFL for the New Orleans Saints in 1972.

Big West – 1996

Conference record: 1-4, 5th
Overall record: 2-10
Head coach: Pokey Allen,

Tom Mason Boise State’s first season in the Big West was nothing to write home about. The Broncos won just two games as defensive coordinator and interim head coach Tom Mason stepped in for Pokey Allen, who underwent surgery for an aggressive muscle cancer, rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS), before the season started.

Boise State started the season 1-1, losing 42-21 to Central Michigan before defeating Portland State 33-22 in a pair of nonconference games. The Broncos then lost eight straight before Allen returned for the final two games of the season.

Back under Allen’s leadership, Boise State defeated conference foe New Mexico State 33-32 — the Aggies went 0-5 in conference play — before losing the final game of the season 64-19 to the Idaho Vandals.

Allen’s condition worsened after the season, and he died in December 1996. On the field, Boise State was led by quarterback Tony Hilde, who threw for 2,473 yards and 21 touchdowns, with 17 interceptions. Ryan Ikebe led the wide receiver corps with 959 yards and nine TDs, while Reggie Etheridge led the team with 811 rushing yards and five touchdowns.

Western Athletic Conference – 2001

Conference record: 6-2, 2nd
Overall record: 8-4
Head coach: Dan Hawkins

Boise State was coming off a pair of Big West conference championships under Dirk Koetter, and despite a solid conference record of 6-2, the Broncos fell just short of an inaugural WAC title.

Boise State started the season 0-2 after a 32-13 loss at No. 21 South Carolina and a nonconference 41-20 home loss to Washington State. This would be the Broncos’ last loss on The Blue for over a decade, until the infamous 36-35 loss to TCU in 2011.

The highlight of the season came in a 35-30 win over No. 8 Fresno State, with Ryan Dinwiddie and the Broncos stunning the Bulldogs and QB Derek Carr — the matchup aired on ESPN and arguably sparked the now 25-year rivalry with Fresno.

However, a 48-42 loss at Louisiana Tech two weeks later would condemn the Broncos to second place in the conference, with LaTech claiming the WAC title at 7-1. Despite finishing 8-4, Boise State did not play in a bowl game because the WAC had too many bowl-eligible teams compared to the conference’s bowl tie-ins, leaving the Broncos on the outside looking in.

Dinwiddie ended the season with 3,043 yards passing and 29 touchdowns. His favorite target was Jay Swillie with 48 receptions, but Jeb Putzier led the receivers with 824 yards and 12 touchdowns. Meridian native and future NFL player Brock Forsey led the rushing attack with 1,207 yards and 13 TDs.

Mountain West – 2011

Conference record: 6-1, 2nd
Overall record: 12-1
Head coach: Chris Petersen

Boise State, led by senior quarterback and Heisman Trophy candidate Kellen Moore, and legendary coach Chris Petersen, lost just one game all season — and still couldn’t claim the conference title in its first Mountain West campaign.

The Broncos entered the year ranked No. 5 in the nation and rose to No. 4 after starting 8-0, including a 35-21 win over No. 19 Georgia in Atlanta to open the season.

But the kick in the teeth came on Nov. 12, when TCU came to Boise and eked out a 36-35 win to hand the Broncos their first loss on The Blue in over a decade. Boise State freshman kicker Dan Goodale fired the potential game-winning 39-yard field goal far right of the goalpost as time expired.

TCU went on to a 7-0 record to win the Mountain West, and was 11-2 overall. Boise State won out the rest of the season, including a 56-24 victory over Arizona State in the Maaco Bowl. Moore ended the season with 3,800 yards passing, 43 touchdowns and just nine interceptions, and finished No. 8 in the Heisman Trophy voting. Tyler Shoemaker led the receiving corps with 994 yards and 16 TDs on 62 catches, while Doug Martin led the Broncos’ rushing attack with 1,299 yards and 16 touchdowns. He also had a pair of receiving TDs.

A program-record six Broncos were taken in the 2012 NFL Draft: DL Shea McClellin (Chicago Bears, 1st round, 19th overall), RB Doug Martin (Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 1st, 31st), DL Tyrone Crawford (Dallas Cowboys, 3rd, 81st), S George Iloka (Cincinnati Bengals, 5th, 167th), DL Billy Winn (Cleveland Browns, 6th, 202nd) and OL Nate Potter (Arizona Cardinals, 7th, 221st), who is the team’s current offensive coordinator.

Moore went undrafted but subsequently signed with the Detroit Lions as an undrafted free agent.