Hey Rebneck,
Do you think Boise will be good this year being up in Broncoland?
I have some doubts, mostly because their new coach has a significantly worse resume than say Brenna Marion, and most of us wouldn't want him to take over the program if it came to that.
Their prized QB recruit seems to be a big crapshoot, especially since it looks like he was scared off by Maiava.
Boise has talent, and I think they were a lot better than they have shown under Avalos the past 2 seasons, but I am skeptical that they are frontrunners for the playoff like I have seen some people say.
Yeah, I think they'll be good. I wouldn't say HC Danielson has a bad resume, but rather a short one. He climbed fast and was super-popular with the players, and it showed after he replaced Avalos. He's talented, charismatic, and defense-oriented. He also has Dirk Koetter back as OC this year.
Maddux Madsen showed enough talent to displace Taylen Green as QB1 for the Broncos last year, but he was sidelined by an Achilles that left CJ Tiller as the deer in UCLA's headlights for the bowl game. Green is now QB1 at Arkansas and Tiller has fled to the Cache Valley and USU. Madsen has recovered enough to be named QB1 after Spring camp, but Malachi Nelson has made enough strides that virtually nobody outside of Maddog's camp thinks Madsen will still be QB1 by mid-season, let alone the end of the regular season.
Ashton Jeanty. Need I say more about the RB room? He'll probably declare for the NFL draft after this year and not last past Day 2. Cedric Minter remains safe atop the BSU RB record book. But I digress.... Breezy Dubar is a more than capable RB2, but incoming freshman Sire Gaines will have something to say about that as the season progresses.
WR/TE looks promising. Latrell Caples returns after missing all of last season due to pre-season injury. He was Bronco's leading receiver in '22. Prince Strahan, Austin Bolt and Travis Penry return good experience, while incoming talents Cam Camper (Indiana) and Chris Marshall (TAMU, juco) have people excited in Boise. Matt Lauter proved to be a talent at TE last year, but the other five guys are all pretty green.
Four of five starters return on the OL, but the one loss was all-MW RT Cade Beresford, who looks like he'll be getting a UDFA shot with Seattle. Hall Schmidt has been penciled in at RT. Depth could be an issue with the O line.
The defensive backfield seems to get the most fingers pointed at it for biggest question mark. The oft-injured Markel Reed returns for what seems like his eighth year at CB, opposite A'Marion McCoy. The rest of the CB are pretty short on experience. Safety looks strong with Oladipo, Robinson, Kaniho, Washington, and Benefield all proven performers. LB will need somebody to step up, with Simpson and Notarainni the most experienced of the bunch. They are looking for a bookend DE to put opposite Hassanein to balance the rush. German league refugee Max Stege has been in the program for a year and is an intriguing prospect/possibility. The interior DL is full of opportunity for the youngsters on the roster.
Jonah Dalmas returns just 17 FG short of being the NCAA all-time leader. Aussie James Ferguson Reynolds averaged 49.7 per punt last year and comes back for more. I think the BSU kicking game will be fine. ST coach Stacy Collins was stolen away by Penn State a few years ago, but he escaped Happy Valley and has returned, so special teams should be a strength.
I'm probably forgetting some stuff but, yeah, they're looking forward to this season in Boise. OOC includes @Georgia Southern, @Oregon, Portland St., Washington St, and Oregon St, In case anyone missed it, they added @Notre Dame to their 2025 schedule.
