Boise is a city that knows something about sheltering goats.
Bill Buckner, whose family was shamefully hassled by Red Sox fans for years after his 1986 World Series error, retired there, about as far from Boston and major-league baseball as he could get.
Now the Idaho city has its own Rocky Mountain goat — kicker Kyle Brotzman. His missed 26- and 29-yard field goals at the end of Friday night’s game against Nevada moved the Boise State Broncos from the cusp of the school’s first-ever Rose Bowl bid or even a spot in the BCS championship game to something much less — likely San Francisco’s Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl.
Happily, the majority of Boise State fans appear to be supporting Brotzman, a local kid who had been a hero for the Broncos in last year’s Fiesta Bowl, among other times. They’ve started a Facebook page “The Bronco Nation Loves Kyle Brotzman,” which already has more than 20,000 likes. Many posters noted that the first field goal looked good on TV, but since Nevada’s goal posts didn’t extend high enough, no one will ever really know.
There’s also been negative reaction, both online and in the form of harassing phone calls, but the majority of commentary has been supportive.
Brotzman’s misses brought back memories of Scott Norwood, whose “wide right” 47-yarder cost the Buffalo Bills a victory in Super Bowl XXV. It took Norwood years to recover, but eventually he became hailed for his resilience, a trait that can’t hurt in his second career, real-estate agent.
