Boise State hires new athletic director; top candidate out of running to be football coach
Boise State’s new athletic director helped Houston raise funds at a historic level and was part of the rebuild at Baylor under former head coach Matt Rhule.
Baylor Associate Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Jeramiah Dickey will replace former Boise State athletic director Curt Apsey, the university announced Saturday evening.
Apsey stepped down in October to assume a role in university level fundraising. He joined Boise State in 1998 as a senior associate athletic director.
“Our dedicated committee forwarded a pool of candidates whose caliber was stunning — people who represented some of the best athletics programs in the country and who wanted the opportunity to lead our Broncos,” Boise State President Dr. Marlene Tromp said in a statement. “We stayed true to the profile we had built in concert with the department and our supporters. Jeramiah Dickey not only matched that profile perfectly, he rose to the top of the candidate pool. His blue-collar work ethic, humility, rich past experience and extraordinary performance make him an excellent fit for advancing Boise State.”
Dickey began his Baylor career in February 2017, serving as associate vice president of athletic operations before being promoted to associate vice president for intercollegiate athletics a year later.
His focus recently has been on external relations, business operations, facilities, event management, capital projects, equipment, information technology and human resources units, while also serving as sport program administrator for football, overseeing scheduling and day-to-day operations.
“I am excited and humbled by the opportunity to lead Bronco Athletics,” Dickey said in Saturday’s statement. “There is no question the Boise State national brand resonates at the highest levels in college athletics. The successes surrounding all of Bronco Athletics are well known. I am looking forward to working with President Tromp as we build on that solid foundation of all of our programs.”
He also led the way for $200 million in athletics initiatives within Baylor University’s Give Light Capital Campaign — a $1.1 billion campaign to fund scholarships, endowments and capital improvement initiatives.
The El Paso, Texas, native played a major role in hiring former LSU defensive coordinator Dave Aranda as Baylor’s new football head coach when Rhule left to take over the NFL’s Carolina Panthers, and he was also instrumental in hiring Tom Herman and Major Applewhite at Houston.
“I couldn’t give anyone a higher recommendation,” Rhule said in Saturday’s statement. “He puts student-athletes first, drives programs to become elite and is an absolute grinder, ready to take on every challenge. He was an integral part of our team going from 11 losses to 11 wins and a Sugar Bowl in three years.”
Dickey joined the staff at Houston in 2010 as an associate athletics director for development. During his time there, the Cougars set fundraising records seven years in a row.
During the 2015-16 fiscal year, he helped raise a program record $6.4 million. He was also instrumental in securing a 10-year, $15 million naming rights partnership with TDECU, an agreement that ranked third nationally among all collegiate facilities for corporate naming agreements.
In his first year at Houston, a record 15,022 football season tickets were sold.
Dickey’s skill as a fundraiser will come in handy at Boise State, which announced in August it could face up to $20 million in losses because of COVID-19 and cut its baseball and swim and dive programs in July in an effort to trim the budget.
Boise State is still in the market for a head football coach after Bryan Harsin left last week for Auburn. He was introduced as the Tigers’ new head coach on Christmas Eve.
Moore to stay in Dallas
Former Boise State quarterback Kellen Moore said Saturday that he’s no longer in the running to be the Broncos’ next head coach.
“I am very excited to remain with the Dallas Cowboys as the offensive coordinator,” Moore told The Athletic’s John Machota on Saturday. “I will no longer be pursuing the head coaching job at Boise State. I love Boise State. I will always root for them, and I hope one day to be a part of the program again.”
Moore is expected to sign a contract extension to remain as the Cowboys offensive coordinator, according to ESPN. He took over the offense in 2019, and his contract expires after this season.
Last season, the Cowboys owned the NFL’s top offense, averaging 431.5 yards a game.
Moore went 50-3 as a quarterback at Boise State, setting the NCAA record for wins in a career. He threw for more than 3,400 yards in each of his four seasons and finished fourth in the voting for the Heisman Trophy as a junior. He’s the only player in program history who was a Heisman finalist.
This story was originally published January 2, 2021 at 7:17 PM.
