Here’s how much Boise State is paying its assistant coaches. Some signed multiyear deals
Seven of Boise State football coach Andy Avalos’ 10 on-field assistants have signed multiyear contracts, which were not the norm toward the end of former coach Bryan Harsin’s tenure.
No coaches on Harsin’s staff had multiyear deals in 2020, which was his final season at his alma mater. In 2019, former tight ends coach Kent Riddle was the only assistant on the staff with a multiyear contract, but he signed a one-year deal in 2020. Harsin left for Auburn following that season.
Three of the four assistants who joined Avalos’ staff this year signed multiyear deals, and one of them could soon become the Broncos’ highest-paid assistant coach.
New running backs coach and special teams coordinator Keith Bhonapha’s deal is for three years and will pay him $125,000 this year, according to documents obtained by the Idaho Statesman. His base salary will increase to $320,000 next year — making him the highest-paid assistant on the staff based on current contracts — and $340,000 in 2024.
Part of the reason the Broncos got Bhonapha so cheap this year is that he’s still collecting money from Washington. His base salary in 2021 was $436,500 and he had one year left on his contract when the Huskies fired Jimmy Lake last November and opted not to retain most of his staff.
Edge coach and co-special teams coordinator Kelly Poppinga’s two-year deal at Boise State will pay him $220,000 this year and $240,000 next year. Tight ends coach and run game coordinator Nate Potter also signed a two-year contract that will pay him $220,000 a year.
Bhonapha replaced former running backs coach Winston Venable, who stepped down in January after making $115,000 last year. Poppinga replaced Stacy Collins, who left for Penn State after making $225,000 a year ago, and Potter replaced longtime assistant Kent Riddle, who also resigned in January after making $225,000 last year.
Three returning coaches earned one-year extensions this year: defensive coordinator and inside linebackers coach Spencer Danielson, safeties coach and co-defensive coordinator Kane Ioane and defensive line coach Frank Maile. All three contracts are set to expire on Feb. 29, 2024.
Danielson is the highest-paid assistant on Avalos’ staff for the second year in a row. His two-year deal will pay him $290,014 this year, which is up from $280,000 last year.
Danielson has coached at Boise State since 2017. He was co-defensive coordinator and defensive line coach in 2019 and 2020 and took over as defensive coordinator and inside linebackers coach after Jeff Schmedding followed Harsin to Auburn.
Maile also got a $10,000 raise as his base salary went from $260,000 in his first season at Boise State to $270,004 this year. Ioane will make $225,014 this year, which is up from $200,000 in his first season with the Broncos.
Second-year offensive coordinator Tim Plough signed his two-year deal last November, but its official start date was March 1, 2021, which means it will expire in February 2023. He’ll make $280,009 this year, which is up from $270,000 last year.
The rest of Boise State’s assistant coaches remain on one-year deals.
New cornerbacks coach Demario Warren will make $120,016 in his first season with the Broncos. He replaced former Boise State player and Super Bowl champion Jeron Johnson, who resigned earlier this year after making $110,000 last year.
Wide receivers coach Matt Miller will make $160,014 in his third season as a coach at his alma mater and offensive line coach Tim Keane will make $225,014 this year. Those are roughly the same as their salaries last year.
Avalos signed a five-year deal in January 2021. It included a $50,000 a year increase to the assistant coach salary pool, beginning this year, and his base salary increased from $1.4 million to $1.475 million.
Boise State assistant coach salaries
2022
Spencer Danielson, defensive coordinator — $290,014
Tim Plough, offensive coordinator — $280,009
Frank Maile, defensive line — $270,004
Kane Ioane, safeties/co-defensive coordinator — $225,014
Tim Keane, offensive line — $225,014
Kelly Poppinga, edge/co-special teams coordinator — $220,000
Nate Potter, tight ends/run-game coordinator — $220,000
Matt Miller, wide receivers — $160,014
Keith Bhonapha, running backs/special teams coordinator — $125,000
Demario Warren, cornerbacks — $120,016
2021
Danielson — $280,000
Plough — $270,000
Maile — $260,000
Keane — $225,000
Stacy Collins, edge/special teams — $225,000
Ioane — $200,000
Kent Riddle, tight ends — $225,000
Miller — $160,000
Winston Venable, running backs — $115,000
Jeron Johnson, cornerbacks — $110,000
This story was originally published April 5, 2022 at 11:17 AM.
