Boise State football coach Avalos keeps longtime assistant, hires yet another ex-Bronco
Boise State football coach Andy Avalos is adding another former Bronco to his staff.
Former Boise State defensive lineman Kharyee Marshall is returning to his alma mater as a defensive analyst, Avalos announced Thursday afternoon.
Avalos also announced that the longest-tenured member of former Boise State coach Bryan Harsin’s staff, Kent Riddle, will stay on as tight ends coach.
“Kent Riddle has been around this program as long as anyone, and knows exactly what this culture is and what it means to those that have come through here,” Avalos said Thursday in a press release. “He has always been guided by a people-first mentality, and is a mentor not just for our student-athletes, but our coaches as well. He’s an amazing coach and an even better person, and I am thrilled to have him continue his career here with the Broncos.”
Riddle is the fourth member of Harsin’s staff retained by Avalos, following Spencer Danielson, who was promoted to defensive coordinator, running backs coach Winston Venable and wide receivers coach Matt Miller.
This will be Riddle’s seventh season as the Broncos’ tight ends coach and his 13th year on the staff. He has served two stints on the Broncos’ staff, also coaching special teams and running backs. He was an associate head coach under Harsin and was named offensive chief of staff last season.
“I am honored for the opportunity to work with Andy Avalos and continue to be part of the Bronco family,” Riddle said in Thursday’s press release. “This is home to our family and we bleed blue! I know Andy will continue the tradition and enhance the success Bronco football has enjoyed, since he helped build the foundation as a student-athlete. I know coach Avalos is a man of integrity and high character that thrives on connecting and building relationships to get the best out of everyone around him.”
Riddle was first a member of Boise State’s staff from 2001 to 2005, under head coach Dan Hawkins. That overlapped with most of Avalos’ playing career.
After stints at Colorado (2006-10), North Texas (2011-12) and Arkansas State (2013), Riddle returned to Boise State in 2014 as Harsin’s running backs coach and oversaw one of the greatest statistical seasons in school history. Jay Ajayi set single-season school records for rushing yards (1,823), rushing touchdowns (28) and all-purpose yards (2,358), and the offense ranked No. 9 nationally with 39.7 points per game and No. 14 with 494.3 yards per game.
Riddle has mentored several players who earned All-Mountain West honors during his career, including tight end Jake Roh, kicker Tyler Rausa and punter Sean Wale.
Marshall, the new defensive analyst, played at Boise State from 2010 to 2013. He appeared in 39 games during his career, including started all 13 games as a senior, when he finished the year with 6.5 sacks. He’s the fifth former Boise State player on the staff, joining Avalos, Miller, Venable and Jeron Johnson, who was hired Wednesday to coach cornerbacks.
Marshall worked with the defensive linemen as a graduate assistant at Boise State in 2018 and spent last season working with Avalos as a graduate assistant at Oregon. He began his coaching career at College of Idaho, where he oversaw defensive ends (2014-15) and defensive backs (2016), and then took over as defensive line coach in 2017.
Avalos’ first staff at Boise State is almost complete. He still needs an offensive line coach and a safeties coach, and he needs to find a replacement for director of recruiting and player development Darren Uscher, who followed Harsin to Auburn.
Boise State coaches
Andy Avalos, head coach
Tim Plough, offensive coordinator/quarterbacks
Spencer Danielson, defensive coordinator/inside linebackers
Frank Maile, defensive line/assistant head coach
Stacy Collins, special teams/edge
Winston Venable, running backs
Matt Miller, wide receivers
Kent Riddle, tight ends
Jeron Johnson, cornerbacks
Reid Kagy, strength and conditioning
This story was originally published January 21, 2021 at 6:55 PM.
