Boise State’s super seniors have unfinished business as they return for more football
Boise State football players head into the 2021 season with unfinished business, especially the eight seniors who took the NCAA up on its offer of an extra year of eligibility.
The Broncos made their fourth consecutive appearance in the Mountain West championship game last season only to watch San Jose State take the trophy home.
“We all have a chip on our shoulder,” Boise State linebacker Riley Whimpey said. “We’re putting in the work now and doing the things we need to do to not only play in the Mountain West championship game again, but win it.”
Following their loss in the championship game, Boise State’s players voted to opt out of playing in a bowl game — a decision that was far from a consensus in the locker room.
“It was very 50-50 and came down to the last person,” Boise State wide receiver CT Thomas said. “I wanted to play personally, but it’s bigger than me. It’s not just about what I want to do, it’s about what’s best for the whole team.”
It wasn’t the way anyone in the Boise State locker room pictured the season ending, particularly the team’s 19 seniors — most of whom thought it was their last.
“Everybody is super hungry to get out there and show what we can do, because we definitely ended 2020 with a sour taste,” offensive lineman Jake Stetz said.
Nine players who were listed as seniors last year will be back this season: the eight super seniors and offensive lineman Donte Harrington, who was approved for a medical redshirt year before COVID-19 wreaked havoc on the season.
Whimpey, Thomas and Stetz are all super seniors, and they’re joined by nickel Kekaula Kaniho, wide receiver Octavius Evans, linebacker Brock Miller, offensive lineman Uzo Osuji and punter Joel Velazquez.
For Whimpey and Thomas, the decision to return was an easy one, and it hinged on their own personal unfinished business.
Whimpey was the Broncos’ leading tackler the past two seasons — posting 83 in 2019 and 61 last fall. The native of San Clemente, California, has appeared in 42 games since 2017, but he said he still has room to grow.
“It’s just a feeling that I have — a feeling that there’s more that I need to do,” Whimpey said. “There’s no reason that I shouldn’t be the best linebacker that I’ve been physically and mentally because it’s my last year.”
Thomas said he was always leaning toward coming back, but he took time to consult his family and wide receivers coach Matt Miller before making his decision.
The 5-foot-8, 175-pound native of Lancaster, Texas, was second on the team last season with 20 catches for 347 yards and two touchdowns, and he heads into this season with 117 career receptions for 1,525 yards and 10 touchdowns. But like Whimpey, he said there’s still work to be done.
“I want to get better as a person and a player and grow in all aspects of the game and life,” Thomas said. “I look forward to making big plays and leaving Boise State better than when I found it.”
Passing on the NFL?
For Stetz, the decision wasn’t quite so simple, especially after some advice he got from former Boise State offensive line coach Brad Bedell, who followed former head coach Bryan Harsin to Auburn.
After the NCAA announced last August it was offering an extra year, Stetz spent the season planning to return. But that decision didn’t seem like such a slam dunk after Harsin left Dec. 22 and began taking assistant coaches with him. Bedell will coach tight ends at Auburn.
It was after Harsin left that Stetz said he spoke to Bedell, who suggested he forget about the extra year and move on to the NFL.
“That whole week was rough,” said Stetz, who started all seven games at right guard last season. “Everybody was stressed out.”
Stetz said he discussed the decision with his family and reached out to former Boise State offensive linemen Ezra Cleveland (Vikings) and John Molchon (Buccaneers) — both of whom are currently in the NFL — and he decided to stick with his original plan and come back for another year.
He made the decision after Andy Avalos was hired to replace Harsin.
“I did a gut check and wanted to see what my heart wants, and it told me to come back for my super senior year,” said Stetz, who is one of four starters expected back on the offensive line. “I want to keep developing leadership skills and helping the young offensive linemen and keep writing my legacy.”
Kaniho: ‘This is a place I love’
Kaniho decided he was coming back before Avalos was hired, and his decision was as much about his education as spending another year on the blue turf.
The native of Kahuku, Hawaii, plans to graduate in May with a degree in health and science and begin pursuing his masters degree this fall. He’s been selected to the Mountain West’s All-Academic team the past three years in a row, and in 2019, he was named first-team all-conference as a defensive back.
He was named the winner of the 2020 Senior CLASS Award, which is given annually to the top senior student-athlete in the country.
He was also a finalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy — an honor that came with an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship. Kaniho said he has three years to use the funds and an extension is available if he were to make an NFL roster.
“The biggest thing I learned last year is one day you can be playing football and the next they can tell you you can’t play until next year,” Kaniho said. “But the one thing I knew was going to be guaranteed was my education. … If you tell me tomorrow I can’t play football anymore, I’m going to have all these things to fall back on.”
In 2019, Kaniho finished third on the team with 11 tackles for loss and fourth with 61 tackles. Last season, he led the Broncos with seven pass breakups and finished with 32 tackles.
He has appeared in 48 games and started 34 since his freshman year in 2017.
In addition to finishing his education, Kaniho said he couldn’t pass up taking the field for another year with his younger brother, freshman cornerback Kaonohi Kaniho.
“For me to have the opportunity to come back and do it again is really special,” Kekaula Kaniho said. “This is a place I love being and a place I call home.”
Transfers still settling in
Miller and Osuji are both returning for year two in the program after they transferred in last summer.
Osuji, an offensive tackle from Rice, said he wasn’t sure if the new coaching staff was going to bring him back, and the reality that he was back for another year didn’t set in until he showed up on campus in January for his first COVID-19 test of the new semester.
He saw limited reps at right tackle last season and made just one start, filling in for Nick Crabtree during the Broncos’ win at Hawaii. Crabtree was one of the seniors who opted not to return this year, though, which means the job is open for the taking.
“After last year, it would have been a tough way to go out, for sure,” Osuji said. “I’m just thankful I get another opportunity.”
Miller was hampered last season by an injury suffered during fall camp. In the final scrimmage of camp, he partially tore the plantar fascia in one of his feet. He played through the pain in the season opener and started the next week at Air Force, but just before halftime against the Falcons, he tore it completely.
“It was one of the most painful things I’ve ever experienced. It was like walking on glass,” Miller said. “I had high hopes just like everybody else and it was just another great part of 2020 that I had to overcome.”
He spent the six games that followed on the inactive list. He was active for the championship game against San Jose State, but he didn’t record a stat.
After transferring in from N.C. State — where he appeared in more than 40 career games — it wasn’t how he pictured his first season with the Broncos going.
“I’m just excited for the opportunity to play football again,” Miller said.
Velazquez: ‘I love being here’
Velazquez called returning for an extra year a “no brainer.”
“I’m never going to say no to more Boise State football,” he said. “I have goals to play at the next level, and I love being here and getting better in this environment.”
Velazquez missed two games last season because of contact tracing. He averaged a career-high 41 yards a punt and dropped six inside an opponent’s 20-yard line.
Evans is the only super senior who hasn’t spoken to the media yet. He appeared in Boise State’s first two games last season but spent the rest of the year on the inactive list for undisclosed reasons.
The native of Center, Texas, heads into the season with 40 career catches for 407 yards and four touchdowns.
Boise State is scheduled to open spring practice on March 12, and the 2021 season opener is set for Sept. 4 against UCF in Orlando, Florida.
There are a few more familiar faces than anticipated in the locker room this spring, but the players say there’s a new energy.
“Change is good,” Whimpey said. “Change allows you to step outside of your comfort zone, and outside of your comfort zone is where growth comes.”
