In a season of injuries, this Boise State runner is back to help spell Ashton Jeanty

Boise State wants junior running back Ashton Jeanty to get a lot of touches, but in recent weeks, he has been carrying nearly the total weight of the ground game.

Over the past four games, Jeanty has run the ball 129 times. In that same span, the rest of the team has 46 rushes, and 19 are from redshirt sophomore quarterback Maddux Madsen.

In part, that’s because of how good Jeanty is — he leads the nation in rushing yards (1,734) and rushing touchdowns (23). But it’s also a result of a banged-up Broncos running back room.

Jeanty was expected to be the focal point of the attack this season, but there also was talk of a “three-headed monster” because of the abilities of freshman Sire Gaines and sophomore Jambres “Breezy” Dubar.

However, injuries to those two backs put the bulk of the effort onto Jeanty’s shoulders, with some occasional help from freshman back Dylan Riley and sixth-year fullback Tyler Crowe.

But reinforcement is about to arrive, with Dubar finally returning to full fitness. Dubar has played in three games, including nine carries and a touchdown in the 62-30 victory over Utah State, but a persistent lower-body injury has kept him from seeing too many snaps and forced him to miss time.

Boise State coach Spencer Danielson said that Dubar practiced well last week. He got into the game against Nevada last weekend, carrying the ball twice for seven yards.

“We’re very mindful of him with the amount of games he’s missed, with the injuries he’s had from fall camp to now,” Danielson said. “We didn’t go in with a snap count, but we’ve got to make sure his role grows.”

Naturally, it’s been a frustrating year for Dubar. Coming off a freshman campaign in which he averaged 5.4 yards per carry and scored two touchdowns, he and the team expected his production to grow.

Dubar has repeatedly been on the cusp of being able to play, with the coaching staff often saying he was close, but he never seemed to be quite healthy enough. His three appearances this season came in the Broncos’ fourth, fifth and ninth games.

“The first time when I reactivated (the injury), I had some doubts because I was just thinking about not hurting it again,” Dubar said. “But I’m back now, so just trying not to think about that is helping me out.”

Dubar hopes his role grows as the Broncos make the final push toward hosting the Mountain West championship game and earning a bid to the 12-team College Football Playoff.

No. 13 Boise State (8-1, 5-0 Mountain West) travels to play San Jose State (6-3, 3-2) on Saturday. The Spartans are one of the nation’s leading interception teams (16), in part because they drop so many guys to defend the pass, BSU offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter said. Doing that against the Broncos would leave plenty of room to run.

“I know (Jeanty) took like three games of 30-plus carries,” Dubar said Tuesday. “That’s pretty tough on his body, so coming back and taking a load off him would be pretty nice.”

Boise State at San Jose State

When: 5 p.m. Mountain time Saturday

Where: CEFCU Stadium (30,456, AstroTurf)

TV: CBS Sports Network

Radio: KBOI 670 AM and KBOI 93.1 FM/Sirius XM Ch. 162 or 201 (Bob Behler, Pete Cavender)

Records: Boise State 8-1, 5-0; San Jose State 6-3, 3-2

Series: Boise State leads the series 15-1

Vegas line: Boise State by 13.5 points

Weather: High of 64, low of 43, humidity 70%, clear skies, 4% chance of rain