Boise State football wins three individual awards, lands five on All-MW first team
Boise State claimed three of the Mountain West’s five major football awards and had 17 players named to all-conference teams, which were released Wednesday afternoon.
STUD end Curtis Weaver is the second Bronco to be chosen as the league’s defensive player of the year, joining current Dallas Cowboys linebacker Leighton Vander Esch (2017). Weaver has the third-most sacks in the country this season with 13.5, and he already has set the Mountain West career sacks record and moved into No. 2 all-time at Boise State with 34.
“On game day, I can see the energy from the second he walks in, and our defense feeds off that,” Boise State defensive coordinator Jeff Schmedding said. “He has the ability to change every single play. He’s like anybody else. He needs reps, he needs work and all those things, but when the lights come on, he’s ready to roll.”
Running back George Holani is the second player in Boise State history to be recognized as the conference’s top freshman. Quarterback Brett Rypien won the award in 2015. Holani leads the Broncos with 912 rushing yards and seven rushing touchdowns. He also has two receiving touchdowns, and his 1,078 yards from scrimmage are the most by a true freshman in Boise State’s FBS history.
Holani made the second-team cut, while Wyoming running back Xazavian Valladay (1,084 yards, 5 TDs) and UNLV’s Charles Williams Jr. (1,257 yards, 11 TDs) made the first team.
“A lot of backs will end up feeling that contact and going down, and he doesn’t,” Boise State offensive coordinator Zak Hill said. “He doesn’t. He keeps going, he’s got good balance through contact and I think that’s a big part of what makes him special.”
Cornerback/punt returner Avery Williams is the first Bronco in program history, regardless of conference affiliation, to be selected as the Special Teams Player of the Year. Williams has returned two punts for touchdowns this season and blocked two kicks.
Offensive linemen Ezra Cleveland and John Molchon were the only two Broncos to earn spots on the first-team offense. It was the second all-conference honor for both of them, while Weaver also made the first-team cut to earn his third such honor. Williams’ first-team nod was the first in his career. Nickel Kekaula Kanhio was the Broncos’ fifth first-teamer.
Here is the complete list of Mountain West honorees:
Offensive Player of the Year: Josh Love, Sr., QB, San Jose State
Defensive Player of the Year: Curtis Weaver, Jr., DE, Boise State
Special Teams Player of the Year: Avery Williams, Jr., RS, Boise State
Freshman of the Year: George Holani, RB, Boise State
Coach of the Year: Nick Rolovich, Hawaii
2019 ALL-MOUNTAIN WEST FIRST TEAM
OFFENSE
QB - Josh Love, Sr., San Jose State
WR - Warren Jackson, Jr., Colorado State
WR - Cedric Byrd II, Sr., Hawaii
WR - Tre Walker, Jr., San Jose State
RB - Charles Williams, Jr., UNLV
RB - Xazavian Valladay, So., Wyoming
TE - Trey McBride, So., Colorado State
OL - Scott Hattok, Sr., Air Force
OL - Nolan Laufenberg, Jr., Air Force
OL - Ezra Cleveland*, Jr., Boise State
OL - John Molchon*, Sr., Boise State
OL - Keith Ismael*, Jr., San Diego State
PK - Dominik Eberle, Sr., Utah State
KR - Savon Scarver*, Jr., Utah State
DEFENSE
DL - Mosese Fifita, Sr., Air Force
DL - Curtis Weaver**, Jr., Boise State
DL - Dom Peterson, So., Nevada
DL - Myles Cheatum, Sr., San Diego State
DL - Cameron Thomas, Fr., San Diego State
LB - Justin Rice, Jr., Fresno State
LB - Mykal Walker*, Sr., Fresno State
LB - Kyahva Tezino*, Sr., San Diego State
LB - David Woodward, Jr., Utah State
LB - Logan Wilson, Sr., Wyoming
DB - Kekaula Kaniho, Jr., Boise State
DB - Jamal Hicks, Sr., Colorado State
DB - Luq Barcoo, Sr., San Diego State
DB - Alijah Halliburton, Sr., Wyoming
P - Ryan Stonehouse*, Jr., Colorado State
PR - Avery Williams, Jr., Boise State
*Two-Time First-Team Selection | **Three-Time First-Team Selection
2019 ALL-MOUNTAIN WEST SECOND TEAM
OFFENSE
QB - Cole McDonald, Jr., Hawaii
WR - John Hightower, Sr., Boise State
WR - JoJo Ward, Sr., Hawaii
WR - Siaosi Mariner, Sr., Utah State
RB - George Holani, Fr., Boise State
RB - Ronnie Rivers, Jr., Fresno State
TE - Parker Houston, Sr., San Diego State
OL - Connor Vikupitz, Sr., Air Force
OL - Garrett Larson, Sr., Boise State
OL - Ilm Manning, So., Hawaii
OL - Daishawn Dixon, Sr., San Diego State
OL - Keegan Cryder, So., Wyoming
PK - Brandon Talton, Fr., Nevada
KR - John Hightower, Sr., Boise State
DEFENSE
DL - Chase Hatada, Sr., Boise State
DL - David Moa, Sr., Boise State
DL - Keshawn Banks, So., San Diego State
DL - Tipa Galeai*, Sr., Utah State
LB - Kyle Johnson, Sr., Air Force
LB - Demonte Meeks, Jr., Air Force
LB - Riley Whimpey, Jr., Boise State
LB - Ethan Aguayo, Sr., San Jose State
DB - Kekoa Nawahine, Sr., Boise State
DB - Jalen Walker, Jr., Boise State
DB - Tariq Thompson**, Jr., San Diego State
DB - Jericho Flowers, Sr., UNLV
P - Tyson Dyer, Jr., New Mexico
PR - Austin Conway, Sr., Wyoming
*Two-Time Second-Team Selection | ** Three-Time Second-Team Selection
2019 HONORABLE MENTION
Air Force: Milton Bugg III, Jr., DB; Jeremy Fejedelem, Sr., DB; Jordan Jackson, Jr., DL; Timothy Jackson, So., FB; Jake Koehnke, Sr., PK; Zane Lewis, Sr., DB; Geraud Sanders, Sr., WR; Kadin Remsberg, Jr., RB
Boise State: John Bates, Jr., TE; Sonatane Lui, Sr., DL; Eric Quevedo, Sr., OL; Khalil Shakir, So., WR; Avery Williams, Jr., DB
Colorado State: Anthony Hawkins, Sr., KR; Manny Jones, Jr., DL
Fresno State: Kevin Atkins, Jr., DL; Blake Cusick, Sr., P; Juju Hughes, Sr., DB
Hawaii: Cortez Davis, Jr., DB; Rojesterman Farris II, Sr., DB; Solomon Matautia, Sr., LB; Kaimana Padello, Sr., DL; Gene Pryor, OL; Taaga Tuulima, Jr., OL; Blessman Ta‘ala, So., DL
Nevada: Daniel Brown, Sr., DB; Romeo Doubs, WR, PR; Gabriel Sewell, Sr., LB; Toa Taua, So., RB
New Mexico: Ahmari Davis, Sr., RB; Alex Hart, Sr., LB; Teton Saltes, Jr., OL; Kyle Stapley, Jr., OL
San Diego State: Matt Araiza, Fr., PK; William Dunkle, Fr., OL; Darren Hall, So., DB; Brandon Heicklen, Sr., P; Dwayne Johnson Jr., Jr., DB
San Jose State: Bailey Gaither, Sr., WR; Troy Kowalski, Sr., OL; Matt Mercurio, Fr., PK; Jack Snyder, Jr., OL
UNLV: Julio Garcia, Jr., OL; Rayshad Jackson, Sr., LB; Justin Polu, Sr., OL; Javin White, Sr., LB
Utah State: Shaq Bond, Jr., DB; Gerold Bright, Sr., RB; Jordan Love, Jr., QB; Caleb Repp, Sr., TE; Christopher Unga, Sr., DL
Wyoming: Tyler Hall, Sr., DB; Logan Harris, Jr., OL; Cassh Maluia, Sr., LB
This story was originally published December 4, 2019 at 1:16 PM.
