Boise State lands a QB on signing day and may not be done adding to its 2020 class
Boise State offensive coordinator Eric Kiesau and tight ends coach Kent Riddle were in Texas recruiting another player a few years ago when they stumbled onto the Broncos’ latest quarterback recruit, Cade Fennegan.
Almost on a whim, Kiesau went to see Fennegan throw during practice at Woodrow Wilson High in Dallas, and he came away from the session impressed.
“I’d watched him on film and knew he was a good player, but then I saw him in person and it really hit home,” Kiesau said Wednesday. “He was excellent. His body presence, how he carried himself, how he led the team and how when things went wrong, he fixed it. He was very accurate, and he probably missed two balls all day.”
Fennegan was one of five recruits the Broncos added on National Signing Day, which gave them 20 in the class.
Boise State coach Bryan Harsin said Wednesday that Fennegan has signed a financial aid agreement instead of a national letter of intent because he’s still in Argentina finishing a two-year LDS mission. The agreement is less binding than a letter of intent and technically gives Fennegan the freedom to back out of his commitment.
Fennegan gave the Broncos a scare Tuesday when he announced he’d received an offer from USC, but Harsin said Wednesday that he expects his newest quarterback on campus in May or June.
“At the end of the day, we feel really good about where we stand with him and his family and him coming here to Boise State,” Harsin said.
Communicating with Fennegan wasn’t easy the past couple years. While on his mission, he is only allowed access to email once a week, usually on Mondays.
Harsin spoke to him on the phone just once, and Fennegan spoke in Spanish most of the time. The staff did most of its communicating with his parents, and the coaches even visited Fennegan’s home in Dallas while he was out of the country.
“We just have a criteria of exactly what we’re looking for and we go find it,” Kiesau said. “We don’t really compare stars or if he has 10 offers or zero offers. We’re just looking for the right fit for us, and he fit us, and that’s why we went after him.”
In three years as the starter at Woodrow Wilson, Fennegan racked up 6,545 yards and 94 touchdowns through the air and added 18 more on the ground. He was in camp with the Broncos not long after Kiesau saw him throw and he impressed the coaches with his speed, which Harsin said equated to a 40-yard dash time somewhere between 4.5 and 4.55 seconds.
Harsin said after being away for so long, it’s going to take Fennegan some time to get back into game shape, but he has seen plenty of his players do it, including linebacker Riley Whimpey and former defensive lineman Sonatane Lui.
“He’s a guy we haven’t seen in a couple years … but he’s going to come back and get stronger and get bigger,” Harsin said. “The one thing about all these guys is they’re hungry and they want to be part of this program.”
Broncos may not be done
Even though the Broncos brought in a scholarship quarterback Wednesday, Harsin made it clear they are still open to adding another, whether it’s an incoming freshman or a transfer.
“We will look at another quarterback. It’s just a matter if we find him,” Harsin said. “Today is a big day for some of these quarterbacks. They’re going to see who their team signed. Where do they fit in? They might be making decisions that they don’t want to be there anymore.”
Sophomore Hank Bachmeier and junior Chase Cord are the only scholarship quarterbacks on the roster. Redshirt sophomore Zach Matlock is a walk-on, and true freshman Andy Peters (Timberline) will join the roster this summer as a walk-on.
Harsin said the Broncos still have five open scholarships and are also open to adding players at running back, tight end, offensive line and defensive line.
“We’re never done, and that’s one of the things with recruiting,” Harsin said. “There are still opportunities for guys to join our team, and we’ll have guys on campus throughout the spring.”
This season, Boise State has to replace four starters on the offensive line, including left tackle Ezra Cleveland, and four starters on the defensive front, including Mountain West career sacks leader Curtis Weaver. Senior John Bates is the only tight end on the roster who has seen regular playing time.
Late push lands Wright
Harsin said Wednesday that wide receiver Cole Wright’s name came up in coaches’ meetings for quite a while, but it took traveling to Carlsbad, California, and meeting the versatile athlete in person before the Broncos’ coach was sold on him.
“Here was a guy that I felt like was just dying to be at Boise State and be part of what we do, and so many people said all the right things about him,” Harsin said.
Wright didn’t visit Boise State until the weekend before signing day, and Harsin said the staff wasn’t even sure about bringing him out until three days before he boarded a plane. The visit went well, though, and Wright committed before he left town Sunday.
“We’ve known about him, we’ve talked about him, but until you actually get to see him and connect and get him up here around everybody, you never really know,” Harsin said. “At the end of the weekend, it was no doubt.”
Wright started at wide receiver and defensive back at Carlsbad High, and he finished his senior season with 71 receptions for 1,176 yards and 13 touchdowns. Kiesau said the 6-foot, 175-pound receiver fits perfectly into the Broncos’ scheme.
“Cole is just your utility, everything, smartest-guy-on-the-field type player,” Kiesau said. “Obviously, he can fit in anywhere and he can be very productive. You can never deny a kid who’s got big-time numbers every week and every game at that level of football in California.”
New Boise State wide receivers coach Matt Miller made a trip to Carlsbad before Wright’s official visit. He compared the agile slot receiver to former Boise State wide receiver Thomas Sperbeck, who played for the Broncos from 2013 to 2016 and is the program’s all-time leader in career receiving yards (3,601) and 100-yard games (15).
“They’re very similar in terms of stature and skill set,” Miller said Wednesday. “They’re kind of that unassuming wide receiver, who does their job and understands what’s trying to get done X’s and O’s wise, and has great balls skills to go up and make that contested catch and make it look easy.”
Notes
Defensive back Isaiah Bradford will sit out the 2020 season as a grayshirt. The safety from Redlands East in California is recovering from a torn ACL he suffered in the third week of his senior season. … Harsin confirmed Wednesday that defensive lineman Shane Irwin is already on campus and he is the only early enrollee in the class. … Texas defensive lineman/linebacker Gabriel Hunter will join the program as a walk-on. … According to Harsin, the Broncos have scholarship commitments to 80 players for the 2020 season.
This story was originally published February 6, 2020 at 6:00 AM.
