One of Boise State’s most experienced quarterbacks will miss spring football — again
Quarterback Chase Cord will miss spring practice for the third year in a row, Boise State football coach Andy Avalos confirmed Thursday morning.
Avalos also said defensive lineman Demitri Washington will miss spring ball as he continues to recover from a leg injury suffered last October during the Broncos’ win at Air Force.
On the bright side, Avalos said running back George Holani is healthy and ready to go this spring. The sophomore played in just one full game last season — the opener against Utah State — before suffering a knee injury the following week at Air Force.
Holani posted 1,014 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns as a freshman in 2019.
“He’s really excited for spring ball, and we can’t wait to see him get going again,” Avalos said.
The Broncos are a different offense when Holani is healthy. The same can be said for Cord, whose athleticism helped him emerge in 2018 as a change of pace to starting quarterback Brett Rypien before his injuries started piling up.
Cord missed spring practice last year while rehabbing from shoulder and knee injuries suffered during the 2019 season, and his recovery was slowed by offseason ankle surgery. He was limited in fall camp and didn’t play a down in 2020, and he was active for only one game — the Broncos’ regular-season finale at Wyoming.
The redshirt junior also suffered a torn ACL late in the 2018 season and was forced to miss spring ball and part of fall camp the following year. Cord first tore his ACL while playing basketball during his junior year of high school.
Avalos wouldn’t go into specifics about why Cord will be on the sideline for this year’s spring practices, which are scheduled to begin March 12, but it’s clear he’s still not healthy.
Cord hasn’t appeared in a game since he led the Broncos to an overtime win against Wyoming on Nov. 9, 2019. He has made two career starts — both in 2019 — and the native of Peoria, Arizona, has thrown 10 touchdown passes and run for three more in 12 career appearances.
Boise State has never been shy about playing multiple quarterbacks, but Cord has plenty of competition when it comes to prying snaps away from starter Hank Bachmeier.
Jack Sears — a USC transfer who joined the team last year — is likely to be No. 2 on the depth chart again this season, and both Cade Fennegan and Andy Peters saw playing time last fall as freshmen.
The Broncos also signed quarterback Taylen Green in December. He enrolled early and is already on campus, although he tested positive for COVID-19 not long after arriving and had to go into quarantine, according to Boise State offensive coordinator Tim Plough.
Plough said he didn’t think Green’s symptoms were very severe, and the 6-foot-5 Texas native certainly passes the eyeball test.
“When you see him walking down the hall, it kind of shocks you to see how tall and long he is,” said Plough, who compared Green’s lanky build to that of former Texas quarterback Vince Young. “He’s a very imposing figure. He runs very well, obviously, but he can throw it, too, and he’s just starting to get to what his full potential can be.”
Boise State is scheduled to open the season Sept. 4 at UCF in Orlando, Florida.
