BOISE - Today, things got serious for the Boise State football team. Why? Because the No. 9 Broncos head to Reno Saturday to play the Wolf Pack (6-4, 4-2 Western Athletic Conference).

Last year's game in Boise evolved into an epic 69-67, four-overtime Bronco win. The last time the Broncos went to Reno, they clinched the WAC title and a spot in the Fiesta Bowl. Thousands of BSU fans stormed the field at Mackay Stadium, a display Nevada will not soon forget.

"We have tremendous respect for Nevada," BSU head coach Chris Petersen said Monday. "There's usually a lot on the line. It's going to take everything we've got to go out and play well against these guys."

The battle this week will surely be on the ground. Nevada leads the nation in rushing at 325 yards per game. Vai Taua replaced Luke Lippincott, the 2007 WAC rushing leader, at tailback and the Wolf Pack hasn't missed a beat. Taua leads the team with 128.4 yards per game. That's best in the WAC and sixth nationally.

Colin Kaepernick was named WAC Offensive player of the week after Nevada's rout of San Jose State last Saturday. He is second in the WAC in rushing this season.

"When you've got the top two rushers in the WAC in the same backfield, that's a problem," Petersen said. "They've got that offense humming."

The offense in Nevada is not elaborate, just effective.

"It complements itself very well," Petersen said. "That's the beauty of the thing. You don't get a ton of different formations, a ton of different plays."

The Pistol, a shortened shotgun look, has been more pass-oriented in previous seasons. But with Kaepernick at the helm, it has evolved a read option. Kaepernick also throws for almost 200 yards per game and Nevada is No. 5 in the country in total offense, compiling 524 yards per game.

"(Kaepernick is) just very comfortable with the offense, reading defensive ends, pitching it, pulling it in," Petersen said. "When you do balance up and have your numbers correct, he can still make plays and outrun you."

Petersen called Nevada a "downhill, hard-nosed, smashmouth team." He said he still wasn't sure exactly what tact the Broncos would take to defend that power running game. The strength of the BSU defense this season has been the secondary, which is now ranked third in defensive pass efficiency and second in scoring defense. Still, BSU ranks No. 12 in the nation in rush defense, holding opponents to 103.2 yards per game.

"I think we've done a great job on defense in general," Petersen said. "I think this is going to be a good challenge for us, because we haven't seen anyone who can run the ball like this."

The Broncos cleaned up a few things in their 45-10 win over in-stat rival Idaho. The penalties were minimized, the run game got going and turnovers were down. Freshman quarterback Kellen Moore didn't throw an interception. Outside of the first play of the game, BSU shut the Vandals down.

But Nevada isn't Idaho. And the pressure is building on BSU. For the Broncos to stay in the mix for a BCS bid, this week's game is a must-win.

"Sometimes when you're playing a team that you're better than you can lose the turnover battle and it won't matter. But when you're playing teams that are even, those things all matter," Petersen said. "I think these guys understand this is our biggest game of the year."

Dustin Lapray covers BSU football for the Times-News. Read his blog at Magicvalley.com/blogs/bsu.

Boise St. at Nevada Saturday, 2 p.m. TV: KTFT Radio: 98.3 FM