Boise State football’s picky approach pays off with drama-free recruiting class
Perhaps it was the personalized approach, but the way Boise State football’s early signing period came together could not have worked out better.
The Broncos added 15 players Wednesday, and it was the 15 they expected to sign when the day began. There were no late surprises, no changes of heart, no magic offers from other schools.
“It’s not always the case with every program; you see guys today flipping or whatever. Our coaches did a tremendous job of continuing to build relationships with these guys,” Boise State coach Bryan Harsin said. “... I think we’ve also done the work on the type of guys that will commit and stay committed.”
Part of what enabled that attention was Harsin said only 61 scholarship offers were handed out for the 2019 class, a very small number considering the average Power Five program offered 232 prospects, according to 247Sports.com’s database. Tennessee offered 440 on the high end, Stanford 76 on the low end.
It also is unusual given the Broncos’ recent history. They signed 23 players in last year’s class, over the December and February signing periods, while offering 121 prospects.
“It was honestly one of the toughest years because we had to turn away quite a few good players,” running backs coach Lee Marks said. “We want those offers to mean something, don’t want our recruiting to be watered down or scripted.”
[Related: Bios for Boise State’s new recruits]
Marks said he focused only on three running backs this period, and signed two: Declo High’s big-play machine Keegan Duncan and George Holani, from national power St. John Bosco in Southern California.
It was not too long ago that former Boise State coach Chris Petersen would be frustrated on signing day as Power Five schools would swoop in at the last minute to poach the Broncos’ commitments. Those attempts were made once again, but none of the signees wavered.
That’s mostly because those offers weren’t anything new. Nearly all of the commitments already had Power Five offers when they committed over the last few months. During this cycle, only one known commitment, Alec Pell, flipped to another school, and he chose Colorado back in August.
Quarterback Hank Bachmeier, the crown jewel of the class, had offers from Georgia and Ole Miss. Receiver Khyheem Waleed had them from Michigan State and Oregon, STUD end Casey Kline from UCLA, and cornerback Markel Reed from Arkansas. The class is regarded as the best in the Group of Five — five are 247Sports four-star recruits, and no other Group of Five school has more than one.
“To us, it’s really our eyes, our ears — we know who’s offered ... just because they have those offers doesn’t mean we’re going to back down,” Harsin said. “When you make that connection, the (other) offers don’t matter.”
That’s exactly what happened with Bachmeier, who was ranked by all major recruiting services as one of the top 10 pro-style passers in the country. The Murrieta Valley (Calif.) High quarterback said in an interview Tuesday that he felt a bond with the staff and felt the scheme fit him well when he committed in May.
And nothing changed.
“I just wanted to keep focused on the next step. I stayed solid, told those other schools I’d found my fit,” Bachmeier said.
Bachmeier plans to enroll next month, as does the Broncos’ other quarterback signee, Folsom (Calif.) High’s Kaiden Bennett. The 6-foot, 175-pound Bennett put up video-game numbers in high school and provides a dual-threat look — he threw for 60 touchdowns and rushed for 12 this season.
Both will be “thrown into the fire,” Harsin said, because Brett Rypien will have graduated and sophomore Chase Cord will be out recovering from a torn ACL.
“Those two guys (Bachmeier and Bennett) ... they both have the same type of mindset,” Harsin said. “We’re going to have to bring them in here and microwave those guys in a hurry.”
In addition to the two quarterbacks, the Broncos signed three STUD ends, two running backs, two wide receivers, two offensive linemen, a defensive lineman, a safety, a tight end and a cornerback. All signees were at least 6 feet tall, with length being a key trait for the second year in a row.
All three STUDs are at least 6-4, 220 pounds, the offensive linemen are each around 285 pounds, Reed is a big cornerback at 6-2, and Waleed and fellow receiver signee Shea Whiting are 6-3 and 6-2, respectively.
“We really needed some length in the room, some taller guys, and both fit that criteria for sure,” receivers coach Eric Kiesau said.
Boise State director of recruiting Darren Uscher said the focus on size was key, even in a slightly small class in terms of numbers. But with the staff finishing its fifth season, it could avoid wasting time on uninterested prospects.
“We know what we want and know what we need. .... We knew exactly what we were looking for in the areas we needed to get better,” Uscher said.
QUICK HITS: Harsin said the team currently has three open scholarships, likely to be filled when the regular period begins Feb. 6. One of those is likely to be used on a kicker, said Kent Riddle, who is the special teams coordinator. ... The team will report to Dallas for the First Responder Bowl on Friday. The game is Wednesday, the day after Christmas. ... Holani was the last to sign, doing so about two hours after the other 14, making those who watch recruiting like hawks sweat a bit. No worries, Harsin said, it was just a paperwork issue.
This story was originally published December 19, 2018 at 6:27 PM.
