Boise State’s Weaver on made-for-TV event; Yates, Long find new gigs; Miles in XFL
One of Boise State’s top pass rushers in program history will take time off from preparing for the NFL Draft this week to compete on national TV against some of the best college football players in the country.
Former STUD Curtis Weaver was selected to participate in the 2020 State Farm All-Star Football Challenge on Friday at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. It will be broadcast at 8 p.m. on ESPN2.
The skills competition will feature 24 players split into six teams based on conference. Weaver will be on the Wild Card team, which is made up of top players outside of Power Five conferences. He’s joined by Utah State quarterback Jordan Love, Florida Atlantic tight end Harrison Bryant and Lenoir-Rhyne safety Kyle Dugger.
Each player will compete individually in one of four events, depending on position: accuracy for the quarterbacks, hands for the receivers, strength for the linemen and an obstacle course. The challenge will end with a team competition.
Weaver will be the fourth Boise State player to compete in the event, following Titus Young (2011), Kellen Moore (2012) and Cedrick Wilson (2018).
Weaver led the Mountain West and ranked No. 5 in the country last season with 13.5 sacks. With 34 career sacks, he’s the conference’s all-time leader and ranks No. 2 all-time at Boise State. He announced on Dec. 28, 2019, that he would forego his senior year and enter the NFL Draft.
Yates to coach Cal’s DBs
Former Boise State assistant coach Marcel Yates has landed a new gig. On Saturday, California announced Yates as its new defensive backs coach.
In his first stint at Boise State, Yates coached the cornerbacks from 2003 to 2005 before taking over the entire secondary in 2006. After two seasons as the co-defensive coordinator at Texas A&M, he returned to Boise State as its defensive coordinator — a position he held for two years before leaving to take the same position at Arizona following the 2015 season.
Arizona fired Yates in October 2019 after the Wildcats gave up a combined 133 points in losses to Washington, USC and Stanford.
Yates is reuniting with Cal coach Justin Wilcox, who was Boise State’s defensive coordinator from 2006 to 2009.
Long back with the Lobos
Three weeks after his surprise resignation as San Diego State’s head coach, Rocky Long is heading back to his alma mater as New Mexico’s defensive coordinator.
New Mexico coach Danny Gonzalez confirmed the hire Monday morning.
“Coach Long’s teams at both UNM and San Diego State were known for their defense, and I don’t think there is a better defensive coach in the country,” Gonzalez told ESPN on Monday. “We are lucky to (have) him back with our program. It’s very exciting.”
Long was a quarterback at New Mexico and was named Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year in 1971. He returned as the Lobos’ head coach from 1998 to 2008, and Gonzalez not only spent his final season of eligibility playing for Long but spent the first 19 years of his coaching career on his staffs at UNM and San Diego State.
After interviewing for Syracuse’s defensive coordinator vacancy, Long announced his resignation from San Diego State on Jan. 8.
Miles joins XFL roster
Former Boise State defensive lineman Durrant Miles will be back on the gridiron this winter after he made the active roster for the Seattle Dragons of the XFL, which kicks off its relaunch Feb. 8.
After going undrafted in 2019, Miles was in preseason camp with the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons, but he didn’t make the 53-man roster.
Miles was a two-time All-Mountain West honorable mention pick at Boise State. During his senior season in 2018, he finished third on the team with 4.5 sacks and fourth with 6.5 tackles for a loss.
The Seattle Dragons open the season Feb. 8 at the Washington D.C. Defenders, which signed former Boise State kicker Tyler Rausa on Jan. 21.
This story was originally published January 29, 2020 at 4:00 AM.
