Consistency is key: Boise State football focused on ‘investing in,’ keeping its coaches
Consistency is vital to success in just about any endeavor, and the Boise State football team’s quest to get back to a New Year’s Six bowl game is no different.
The Broncos last played in such a postseason game on Dec. 31, 2014, when they knocked off No. 10 Arizona 38-30 in the Fiesta Bowl. Getting back to that level requires consistency in the weight room, the offseason and on the practice field, Boise State coach Andy Avalos said — but it also has to begin with the coaching staff.
Avalos said one of his top goals moving forward is to keep his coaching staff intact for as long as possible, which is why seven of the 10 have signed multiyear contracts.
“Recruiting the right people and retaining the right people is key,” Avalos told the Statesman. “To have the right resources to keep them here and help them grow, that’s when you’re successful.”
Three of the four assistant coaches who joined Avalos’ staff this year signed multiyear deals: running backs coach/special teams coordinator Keith Bhonapha, tight ends coach/run game coordinator Nate Potter and edge coach/co-special teams coordinator Kelly Poppinga.
Bhonapha’s deal is for three years, and he’s scheduled to make $340,000 by 2024. Poppinga and Potter signed two-year deals, and both will make at least $220,000 this year.
Three of Avalos’ returning assistants had an additional year put on to their deals: defensive coordinator/linebackers coach Spencer Danielson, safeties coach/co-defensive coordinator Kane Ioane and defensive line coach Frank Maile. Their contracts all expire in February 2024.
Second-year offensive coordinator Tim Plough signed a two-year deal last November, but its official start date was March 1, 2021. It will expire the end of February 2023.
Wide receivers coach Matt Miller, offensive line coach Tim Keane and cornerbacks coach Demario Warren, who was hired in January, all remain on one-year deals.
Multiyear contracts were not the norm under former Boise State coach Bryan Harsin, who left for Auburn after the 2020 season. During Harsin’s final two seasons, former tight ends coach Kent Riddle was the only assistant operating on a multiyear deal.
Turnover also was not uncommon under Harsin. He went through four offensive coordinators and replaced at least one assistant every year between 2014 and 2020.
Most of Harsin’s assistants left to take jobs in Power Five conferences. Avalos said he felt like the university could do more to show the coaches they already had a great gig.
“It’s no different than it is with the players: Bring them here, push them hard, love them up and watch them flourish,” Avalos said. “Those deals show coaches we’re investing in them and believe in them.”
Avalos and Boise State Athletic Director Jeramiah Dickey were hired just seven days apart in January 2021, and they said they immediately put their heads together to come up with an idea to retain coaches. The result was an annual $50,000 increase to the assistant coach salary pool that was built into Avalos’ five-year contract. Boise State’s assistant salary pool is $2.15 million this year.
“This is a people business, and people are our greatest asset,” Dickey told the Statesman. “When you look at the most successful programs, they’re consistent with their staffing and culture, and that’s the foundation of our program.”
Boise State assistant coach contracts
Keith Bhonapha, running backs/special teams coordinator — 3 years, $125,000 this year ($340,000 by 2024)
Spencer Danielson, defensive coordinator/linebackers — 2 years, $290,014
Tim Plough, offensive coordinator — 2 years, $280,009
Frank Maile, defensive line — 2 years, $270,004
Kane Ioane, safeties/co-defensive coordinator — 2 years, $225,014
Kelly Poppinga, edge/co-special teams coordinator — 2 years, $220,000
Nate Potter, tight ends/run-game coordinator — 2 years, $220,000
Matt Miller, wide receivers — 1 year, $160,014
Tim Keane, offensive line — 1 year, $225,014
Demario Warren, cornerbacks — 1 year, $120,016
