Boise State football coach Chris Petersen wants his players to graduate in nine semesters.

The university guarantees students can graduate in four years.

Neither of those goals was lofty enough for junior tight end Richie Brockel.

Brockel is expected to complete his bachelor's degree in accounting next week - three years after he started - and begin work on his master's later this month.

His plan: Leave Boise State with an all-expenses-paid master's degree at the end of the 2009 football season, his senior year.

He won't even go through the graduation ceremony this winter.

"I see graduation symbolizing a change," said Brockel, who ultimately wants to earn a doctorate and become an accounting professor. "I'm just going to be going right back out to practice. I'll walk when I'm done with my master's degree."

Brockel's accomplishment is extremely rare among football players. He entered college with seven credits, took as many as 18 credits in a semester and once took 11 credits in the summer.

Coaches know that's not the path for everyone, but it is a great demonstration of finding the balance between student and athlete.

"If they were all like Richie, this would be a very easy job," Boise State coach Chris Petersen said. "He's kind of a poster child for how you'd like it to be done. He's got toughness. He's got great intelligence. He's got motivation. He's kind of got that whole package, on the field and off, and that's what makes him a special guy."

Said senior tight end Chris O'Neill: "He knew what he wanted to do and he plowed through it."

Already, another Bronco - another tight end, actually - is talking about taking the same path. Freshman Chandler Koch hopes to earn a master's during his football career.

Two current seniors, quarterback Bush Hamdan and linebacker Dallas Dobbs, also have earned bachelor's degrees.

"As many guys as we can get around like that, then some of the younger guys coming in can see how it's done," tight ends coach Chris Strausser said. " A guy like Chandler who might be thinking I don't know if I can (graduate in three years) might be going, 'I can get that done.' "

Brockel considered dragging out his classes so that he could coast through his last two seasons of football. That's what safety Marty Tadman did last year.

"But if I'm not loading up, I get kind of bored," Brockel said.

Brockel's classroom habits carry over to football, where he is renowned for his intelligence. He splits time between fullback and tight end - a role that turned into a potent part of the offense late last season.

Brockel had 12 catches for 104 yards and four touchdowns. Offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin expects to expand that role this year.

"Not only is he naturally a smart guy, but he studies just like he does in his classes," Strausser said. "He takes pride in understanding concepts. when he understands concepts he can go to different spots because he sees the big picture."