INGLEWOOD — Rob Gronkowski stumbled around the podium, falling off balance to his left, before plopping into a chair behind Washington and Boise State helmets and jerseys.
“It’s going to be a great game; we got two solid teams,” the former star tight end for the New England Patriots, who’s the enigmatic and energetic host of the Bucked Up LA Bowl between the Huskies and Broncos at 5 p.m. Saturday at SoFi Stadium.
“I’m already drunk,” Gronkowski said about his entrance mishap. The LA Bowl, in every which way, is all “Gronk.”
Across the next seven minutes, the NFL on Fox analyst previewed his rematch match against Blitz, the Broncos’ tee dog, who retrieved the kickoff tees, before he retires at the season’s end – after Gronk defeated the dog at the 2022 edition between UCLA and Boise State – and rambled on about Washington coach Jedd Fisch’s exit from his alma mater, Arizona, in favor of new starts in Seattle.
“Jedd betrayed us at Arizona,” Gronkowski quipped, seconds before Fisch awkwardly entered the room.
Washington (8-4, 5-4 Big Ten), in its second season under the Arizona-turned-Washington head honcho, turned in a four-loss campaign; three losses of which came to notable Big Ten leaders in No. 2 Ohio State, No. 18 Michigan, and No. 5 Oregon. Compared to their 6-7 campaign a year ago, the Huskies improved across the board, much thanks to true sophomore quarterback Demond Williams Jr., one of the nation’s best dual-threat signal callers who led the Huskies to a 23rd ranking in total offense.
As Fisch put it Friday afternoon during LA Bowl media day, Washington’s goal is to compete for a College Football Playoff berth – and although he didn’t verbalize it – not lower-tier, Pac-12-related bowl games. Fisch, who said Washington had zero opt-outs and injuries to report ahead of Saturday, clarified again his commitment to Washington for the 2026 season as the ever-revolving coaching carousel continues.
“I expect to be here,” Fisch said, when asked if the last few days had impacted his stability on Montlake – including the likes of Michigan opening up after Sherrone Moore’s firing.
Boise State (9-4, 6-2 Mountain West), on the other hand, is playing in the Mountain West’s top bowl game offering after defeating UNLV 38-21 for the conference title last week. While Group of Six programs are increasingly making the CFP – with Tulane and James Madison playing in first-round contests next week – for coach Spencer Danielson, this is what the Broncos, who began the season in the Associated Press Top 25, have played for in 2025.
“We’re no different than I’m assuming almost every football program around,” Danielson said. “You want to win your conference championship, and then you always want to win your bowl game, and that’s our goal. We haven’t done that at Boise State since 2017, so it’s been a long time.”
The Broncos are led offensively by quarterback Maddux Madsen, who has 2,283 passing yards with 18 touchdowns and seven interceptions. On the ground, Boise State is paced by a one-two punch of tailbacks Dylan Riley and Sire Gaines, who’ve combined for 1,886 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns.
Two years ago, when Boise State fell to UCLA in the LA Bowl, Gaines was a newly signed Boise State incoming freshman from Orange Vista High in Riverside. He watched the game among the SoFi Stadium crowd, just a few weeks from arriving on campus.
Now, on Saturday, in front of a hometown crowd – of which Danielson says about half of his team is from the region – it’s Gaines’ turn to play in the LA Bowl.
LA Bowl: Washington (8-4) vs. Boise State (9-4)
When: 6 p.m. Saturday
Where: SoFi Stadium
TV: KABC (Ch. 7)