Kellen Moore learned last Wednesday he would be the starter for the Boise State Broncos. No longer is he battling with senior Bush Hamdan for the starting nod. Now, he has work to do in preparation for Saturday's season opener against Idaho State.

"We've been playing against our defense, game-planning and focusing on them throughout this fall camp," Moore said. "At this point, we're all into Idaho State They're an aggressive defense. They get to the ball really well. They're an attacking type of defense. They run around and play really hard."

The redshirt freshman, who first played quarterback in the second grade, looks to still be soaking in his new role. He said he watches game film of professional and college quarterbacks in his spare time. He has been to football practice since he could walk, as the tee-boy, the ball boy and eventually the quarterback for his father's high school team in Prosser, Wash.

"I just like to watch football," Moore said. "There's tons of ways to do things and why not go and watch a little Tom Brady, Brett Favre, stuff like that. There's just a lot of quarterbacks that do things different and they still get it done. Some guys like to launch. You watch Tom Brady and he just sort of dinks and dumps and they move downfield. Then he takes a shot. You learn from everybody."

One other guy he has learned from is Hamdan, the senior who now backs him up. Moore said the battle hasn't soured their relationship.

"We're still good friends," Moore said. "Nothing's really changed. It's always tough battling against guys you get to know real well, and you're good friends with. (It's) just the way the quarterback position is, only one of us is playing. That's a tough thing. We both understand it. We picked to play quarterback and this is how it usually comes out. Bush, as usual, is a great guy, very complimentary. I'm just thankful to have him right there."

Now Moore automatically takes on the celebrity status of being the starting quarterback in Boise, a city where the football team is the biggest show in town.

"It's a well-known position and a lot of people focus on it, but I'm pretty lucky to have all those wideouts and running backs, all those guys around me," Moore said. "I just gotta manage the offense, get us in the right situations, don't be making dumb penalties, delay of games and stuff like that.

"We have four running backs, a gazillion receivers. It's pretty simple. I need to get them the ball."

Moore now gets the repetitions with the first team. He is in a position to lead. He will be tested in less than a week for the first time, in front of the largest crowd he has ever played in front of. He said he was a little nervous at his first high school game, which he started as a sophomore. This week, that feeling is amplified.

"Certainly the crowd is going to be a little bigger, probably a few more people watching television," Moore said. "But, once I get down to it, I'll sort of calm down and it will be good."

Getting the job was difficult, but handling it will be one of the biggest challenges the young lefty has undertaken. He is calm, almost stoic, smiling and fearless.

Saturday will tell if he is ready.