WR Tim Gilligan had 1,192 yards and 6 TD. Boise State Hawkins left Boise State for Colorado after the 2005 season, and Petersen was promoted to head coach on Sophomore tailback Ian Johnson said about the transition, "We trusted him and knew he was going to take care of us. We knew he was a great person. He was going to recruit people just like himself. We waited for him to get everybody here and he got in the perfect people." Petersen had served as offensive coordinator at Boise State for five seasons and was twice nominated for the Broyles Award, given to the nation's best assistant coach. 2007 Fiesta Bowl In his first year as head coach, Petersen led the Broncos to an undefeated regular season in 2006 and the program's first ever BCS bowl game berth. He became the fourth rookie head coach to lead a team to a BCS bowl game; Boise State was the only undefeated team in Division I FBS for the 2006 season. The Broncos defeated Big 12 champion Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl as only the second BCS non-AQ conference school to play in a BCS bowl, after Utah in 2004. Petersen drew particular attention for his bold play calling after the Broncos, who were leading most of the game, trailed the Sooners by a touchdown late in the contest. A 50-yard hook-and-lateral play on 4th-and-18 described as "stunning" tied the game with seven seconds left. An option pass (off a direct snap to a wide receiver) on 4th-and-2 on Boise State’s possession in overtime pulled the Broncos within one point after Oklahoma scored on their possession. Petersen then decided to forgo an extra point kick and go for the victory with a two-point conversion attempt, calling a successful "Statue of Liberty" misdirection play for a 43-42 win. Petersen stated, "We were trying to get to it earlier, to tell you the truth. We needed a play like that to get it over with." Improved contracts After the undefeated season of 2006, the Idaho State Board of Education approved a new contract for Petersen on February 22, 2007, paying him $4.25 million for five years, or $850,000 was paid mostly by revenue from the Football Coaches Club, the Bronco Athletic Association booster club, and media and public appearances; state-appropriated funds covered $150,000 After leading Boise State to another undefeated regular season in 2009,