Boise State is still in the market for a quarterback in its 2020 recruiting class
Boise State’s football coaches are on the road recruiting this week, which complicates preparation for the Las Vegas Bowl.
But with early signing less than a week away (Dec. 18), in-home visits and last-minute pitches are critical to locking down verbally committed recruits and maybe landing a new one.
The Broncos have 13 players committed to the 2020 class. It’s heavy on reinforcements for the secondary with four defensive backs, including nickel Kekaula Kaniho’s younger brother, Kaonohi, and the latest addition to the class, Semaj Verner, a 6-foot-2, 185-pound safety from Lakewood, California.
Wide receivers Latrell Caples (6-0, 185) and Chance Luper (6-2, 180) are similar in stature and athleticism to the Broncos’ current crop, and the class includes three offensive linemen, including junior college transfer Riden Leong.
Next season, the Broncos will have to replace at least three starters on the offensive line — four if left tackle Ezra Cleveland bolts early for the NFL — and there’s going to be a lot of turnover at wide receiver and in the secondary the next two years.
Wide receivers John Hightower and Akilian Butler are seniors this year, and CT Thomas will be next season. Safety Kekoa Nawahine will end his career at the Las Vegas Bowl, while Kaniho, cornerbacks Avery Williams and Jalen Walker and safeties Jordan Happle and DeAndre Pierce will be seniors next season.
So, if the Broncos can sign all of their verbal commits, they’ll have at least addressed some critical areas of need.
Boise State’s 2020 recruiting class ranks No. 1 in the Mountain West and No. 80 nationally, according to 247sports. But there are still holes to be filled. Here’s a look at the top three positions that still need to be addressed:
Quarterback
Only Hollywood could have scripted a better ending to former junior college quarterback Jaylon Henderson’s career, and there aren’t many who could fathom a better beginning to true freshman Hank Bachmeier’s. The Broncos won all seven of the games he started.
The job seems like Bachmeier’s to lose next season, but who knows what that will mean. It could send Chase Cord straight to the transfer portal. Or maybe Cord wins the job and Bachmeier looks elsewhere. There’s no crystal ball to gaze into and figure out what’s going to happen.
If either of them were to leave, the backups, as the roster currently stands, would be a pair of redshirt freshmen in Zach Matlock — a walk-on, who has yet to take a snap in a game — and Riley Smith, who spent this season working with the tight ends.
Boise State doesn’t have a quarterback in its 2020 class, and the Broncos may need two or three. Coach Bryan Harsin said as much on Sunday during his press conference following the bowl announcement.
“We have to get guys and we’ve gotta get guys who can play and guys who are going to be able to play immediately,” Harsin said. “We’ll have somebody recruited at that position. We’ll have somebody signed. But I also feel like we do a good job of making sure we have the right guys in our program.”
Even if Bachmeier and Cord stay, the Broncos may look to a graduate or junior college transfer to come in next year and fill Henderson’s role. They’re going to have to if either leaves. With the coaches’ penchant for playing multiple quarterbacks, their best odds for bringing one in who can play right away are in going the graduate transfer route.
The Broncos also have some high school prospects. According to 247sports, Boise State has offered scholarships to a pair of dual-threat quarterbacks and four pro-style passers, three of which have four-star ratings.
Carl Richardson, a pro-style quarterback with a three-star rating, was on campus over the weekend.
He was a finalist for the 2019 High School Heisman Scholarship after setting the single-season record at Salinas High in California with 34 touchdown passes. He also finished this season ranked No. 6 in California in passing yards per game (327.7), according to Maxpreps.com.
Richardson also has offers from Washington State, Colorado State, Nevada, Yale, Columbia, Fresno State, Howard, Idaho and San Diego. He visited Nevada in June, per 247sports.
Defensive line
As of Thursday evening, Boise State had three defensive linemen in its 2020 class.
Nick Booker-Brown — the younger brother of Boise State linebacker Josh Booker-Brown — committed Oct. 6. He’s a 250-pound defensive tackle with a three-star rating from 247sports. On Thursday, the Broncos added another three-star defensive tackle in Herbert Gums, who is the fourth member of the class from Texas.
Robert Cooper is listed as a strongside defensive end, but he has the size (6-5, 255) and athleticism to move into the Broncos’ STUD position, which is currently occupied by Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year Curtis Weaver.
With linemen David Moa, Sonatane Lui and Chase Hatada set to play the final games of their college careers in the Las Vegas Bowl, defensive line is right up there with quarterback on Boise State’s wish list this signing season.
A name to keep in mind from the junior college ranks is defensive end Shane Irwin. He began his career at San Diego State and spent last season at Long Beach City College, where he posted 47 tackles, 14.5 tackles for loss and 8.5 sacks. Boise State offered him a scholarship on Nov. 25.
A couple of high school seniors to keep an eye on are Keanu Tanuvasa — a 6-4, 275-pound tackle from Mission Viejo, California — and 6-6, 250-pound defensive end Nusi Malani, who, according to his Twitter account, had an in-home visit from Nebraska defensive line coach Tony Tuioti on Dec. 6. Tanuvasa visited Oregon State on Nov. 16, per 247sports.
Kicker
Graduate transfer Eric Sachse is 14-of-17 on field goals this season, and he hit the first game-winning kick of his career in overtime against Wyoming. But he’s done after the bowl game, and the Broncos don’t currently have a kicker in the 2020 class.
Boise State does have some young players at the position, including freshman Gavin Wale, a scholarship kicker whose cousin, Sean, punted for the Broncos from 2012 to 2016.
As of now, Wale would compete for the starting job with redshirt freshman Ryan Meyer and redshirt junior Joel Velazquez, who primarily punted and handled kickoffs this season but also made a 52-yard field goal at UNLV.
Without a known commodity at the position, don’t be surprised if the Broncos add another kicker. They may go back to the transfer route, which is where they’ve found their last three starters.
Tyler Rausa (2015-16) joined the Broncos after a year spent at Riverside Community College. In 2015, he was a semifinalist for the Lou Groza Award. Haden Hoggarth (2017-18) began his career at Bethune-Cookman, and he hit 30 field goals in two seasons as the Broncos’ starter.
2020 recruiting class
▪ DB Isaiah Bradford, 6-0, 170, Redlands (Calif.) East Valley High
▪ OT Brandon Hernandez, 6-6, 275, Yucaipa (Calif.) High
▪ TE Russell Corrigan, 6-4, 230, Hutchinson (Minn.) High
▪ CB Donovan Clark, 6-3, 190, Lincoln High (Tacoma, Wash.)
▪ CB Kaonohi Kaniho, 6-0, 180, Kahuku (Hawaii) High
▪ OG Nathan Cardona, 6-3, 280, Yorba Linda (Calif.) High
▪ DE Robert Cooper, 6-5, 255, Bethel High (Spanaway, Wash.)
▪ DL Nick Booker-Brown, 6-4, 275, Westfield High (Houston, Texas)
▪ WR Latrell Caples, 6-0, 185, Lancaster (Texas) High
▪ OT Riden Leong, 6-5, 320, Orange Coast College (Waimanalo, Hawaii)
▪ WR Chance Luper, 6-2, 180, Fort Worth Christian School (North Richland Hills, Texas)
▪ S Semaj Verner, 6-2, 185, Mayfair High (Lakewood, California)
▪ DT Herbert Gums, 6-1, 284 Diboll (Texas) High
This story was originally published December 12, 2019 at 4:00 AM.
