Boise State’s backup QB hasn’t played in a game since 2018; Washington filling many roles
Boise State released its initial depth chart Monday ahead of this weekend’s season opener against Utah State, and a newcomer will back up sophomore quarterback Hank Bachmeier despite the fact that he hasn’t played in a game since Nov. 27, 2018.
Jack Sears, a graduate transfer from USC, will open the fall as the Broncos’ No. 2 quarterback after signing with the team in February. He spent the past three years with the Trojans but sat out last season to focus on completing his undergraduate degree.
Boise State coach Bryan Harsin said Monday that he’s seen enough from Sears to be comfortable with him playing. He also said it’s impossible to simulate the physicality and speed of a game during the week because, like at most programs around the country, the Broncos’ quarterbacks are donning red jerseys in practice, which means they’re off-limits.
“All our quarterbacks, they’re going to take off and run,” Harsin told reporters during a conference call. “There’s going to be scrambles, there’s going to be quarterback run game and all that, and the one thing you can’t simulate is running the ball and then taking that hit.”
The Broncos witnessed that last fall when Bachmeier was knocked out for two games following a collision on a quarterback run during their regular-season win over Hawaii. He suffered another injury against San Jose State, which cost him four more games.
Harsin said the best a quarterback can do sometimes is draw from previous game experience.
“You have to go back and recall that speed, what it felt like in the pocket when guys are coming after you, the sounds and all the things that really go along with playing in a game, because you’re not going to get that in practice,” he said.
In 2018, Sears was USC’s No. 3 quarterback, but he impressed in his only outing of the season. Facing Arizona State, he completed 20-of-28 passes for 235 yards and two touchdowns.
Harsin feels like he knows what Sears can do on the field. Now it’s just a matter of him settling into another new system after having already gone through multiple offensive coordinators at USC.
“That’s probably the most challenging thing at the quarterback position, learning a new system,” Harsin said. “It’s really the same plays but in a different language.”
Harsin didn’t go into specifics Monday about how long quarterback Chase Cord will be out, but he reiterated that the redshirt junior is still recovering from a shoulder injury suffered last fall and offseason ankle surgery. Cord appeared in eight games last season, starting two, and finished with nine passing touchdowns and two rushing.
“Chase is still working through just healing up,” Harsin said.
Washington will move around
One of the biggest surprises on Boise State’s depth chart was on the defensive line where redshirt sophomore Demitri Washington is listed at defensive end, but Harsin warned not to put too much stock in where he’s listed on the two-deep because he’s going to line up in multiple positions.
“He’s that guy that keeps taking that next step, and that provides us the opportunity to move him around,” Harsin said.
Last season, Washington appeared in all 14 games — mostly at STUD — and posted 4.5 sacks and 5.5 tackles for loss. At 6-foot-3 and 272 pounds, he has the size to help against the run, but his athleticism makes him an ideal candidate to replace former STUD Curtis Weaver’s Mountain West-leading 13.5 sacks.
Harsin said Washington will rush the passer this fall as a STUD — which stands for stand-up defensive end — but he may also line up at defensive end or even defensive tackle, depending on the situation.
“The one thing about defenses now is they’re so much more personnel-based than they used to be,” Harsin said. “To be honest, we may have three or four different packages in a series that have guys at different spots.”
Sixth-year senior Sam Whitney is listed at STUD on the depth chart, and he’s backed up by a pair of redshirt freshmen in Isaiah Bagnah and Casey Kline, who was a four-star recruit in the Broncos’ 2019 class.
Whitney started five games in 2017 before suffering a season-ending knee injury, and a torn ACL suffered last preseason left him sidelined for all of the 2019 season. The Folsom, California, native joined the team as a three-star recruit in 2015. Since then, he has appeared in 23 games and posted 38 tackles and two sacks.
Junior college transfer Shane Irwin is listed as Washington’s backup at defensive end.
Robinson on two-deep
Defensive back Rodney Robinson is one of two true freshmen on the Broncos’ first depth chart of the season.
After catching the eye of his coaches early in camp, the San Bernardino, California, native will back up senior Kekaula Kaniho at nickel.
“He has been a real surprise for a lot of people, but not for me,” Boise State safeties/nickel coach Gabe Franklin told reporters on Oct. 8. “Rodney is bringing the juice every day, and he wants to be great.”
Kaniho doesn’t miss many snaps. He has appeared in 41 career games and started 27, including all 14 last fall and five as a true freshman in 2017. Last season, he was a first-team All-Mountain West pick after finishing third on the team with 11 tackles for loss and fourth with 61 tackles.
But the Broncos have to replace three veteran safeties after Kekoa Nawahine graduated and Jordan Happle and D’Andre Pierce transferred. Sophomore JL Skinner and redshirt junior Tyreque Jones are listed as the starters at safety, but Kaniho also has experience there and can step in, opening the door for Robinson at nickel.
Robinson was a late addition to the Broncos’ 2020 class on early signing day last December. He posted 80 tackles and four interceptions as a senior at Cajon High in San Bernardino. The year before, he tallied 120 tackles and three picks.
The other true freshman on the depth chart is a local product: former Rocky Mountain High kicker Jonah Dalmas, who joined the team this year as a walk-on. The Broncos’ starting kicker is listed as Dalmas or Joel Velazquez despite the fact that the Broncos brought in graduate transfer Johnny Messina this offseason.
Harsin said Dalmas’ athleticism sets him apart from the rest of the kickers.
“(Dalmas) kicks the ball very well, he’s got a strong leg and he’s athletic,” Harsin said. “He doesn’t just come in and do the workouts. He’s one of our better guys in the movement piece, and he’s a football player in my opinion.”
Dalmas was a two-sport star at Rocky Mountain. He was an all-state kicker for the football team and named the Gatorade Idaho boys soccer player of the year in 2016-17.
Velazquez is also listed as the starting punter and kickoff specialist.
Note
▪ True freshman defensive end Andy Nwaoko recently had knee surgery and will miss the season, Harsin said Monday. Nwaoko and junior college transfer running back Taequan Tyler are the only players officially out for the year.
UTAH STATE AT BOISE STATE
When: 5:10 p.m. MT Saturday
Where: Albertsons Stadium
TV: Fox Sports 1 (Kevin Fitzgerald, Robert Smith)
Radio: KBOI 670 AM/KTIK 93.1 FM (Bob Behler, Pete Cavender)
Records: Boise State 0-0; Utah State 0-0
Series: Boise State leads 19-5 (last meeting: Boise State won 56-21 in 2019 in Logan, Utah)
Vegas line: Boise State by 16.5.
Weather: 45 degrees, 40% chance of rain, 10 mph wind at kickoff
This story was originally published October 19, 2020 at 4:04 PM.
