Jared Zabransky shook off three frustrating quarters to lead two scoring drives in the final minutes, and Anthony Montgomery kicked his third field goal -- from 37 yards -- as time expired in No. 14 Boise State's 23-20 victory tonight over San Jose State.

San Jose State, whose program has been revived by former University of Hawai'i coach Dick Tomey, will play the Warriors next Saturday at Aloha Stadium.

Ian Johnson ran for 149 yards and a touchdown for the Broncos (10-0, 6-0 WAC), who got their stiffest test of the season in a stadium where they've had plenty of trouble in recent years. Two years ago, they had to block a field goal as regulation ended in a double-overtime 56-49 victory.

In this trip, Boise State faced its first halftime deficit of the season before falling behind 20-12 early in the fourth quarter on consecutive TD passes by Adam Tafralis, who passed for 173 yards and three scores.

But Zabransky, who was 14-of-20 for 181 yards in his 30th victory as a starter, calmly led the Broncos on a 63-yard drive capped by his 1-yard TD sneak and a 2-point conversion pass to Jerard Rabb with 5:22 to play.

San Jose State then stalled, and Marty Tadman's 44-yard punt return put Boise State at the Spartans' 37 with 2 minutes left.

Zabransky and Johnson patiently moved the Broncos to the 20, and Montgomery's kick split the uprights to send Boise State's players and coaches spilling onto the field to celebrate the Broncos' 37th victory in 38 WAC games.

James Jones caught two TD passes for the Spartans (6-3, 3-2), who came agonizingly close to their first win over a ranked team since beating ninth-ranked TCU in 2000.

Still, San Jose State's rebuilding program under second-year coach Tomey gained plenty of legitimacy. Led by linebacker Matt Castelo's 20 tackles, the Spartans' defense held the Broncos' high-powered offense to fewer than 36 points for just the second time all season.

Boise State has two games left against Utah State and Nevada. The Broncos need to win out to have a shot at getting to one of the five BCS bowl games.

Ohio State, Michigan and Rutgers are the only other unbeaten teams left in Division I-A -- and for three quarters, Boise State seemed unlikely to stick with them.

After the Broncos were shut out in the first quarter for the first time this season, Jones caught a 10-yard TD pass on a fade to the corner on the first play of the second quarter. Boise State made drives of 86 and 61 yards before halftime, but had to settle for Montgomery's chip-shot field goals when they faltered at the goal line.

The Spartans also got their share of bad breaks: Yonus Davis made a 72-yard TD run early in the third quarter, but it was called back on a holding penalty against Jones.

The Broncos finally executed near the goal line midway through the third quarter, with Johnson scoring on a 2-yard run on fourth-and-1 to finish off an 81-yard drive.