Boise State’s Green wins Mountain West freshman of year, Avalos named coach of year
Boise State quarterback Taylen Green has been named Mountain West Freshman of the Year and Andy Avalos earned Coach of the Year honors, the conference announced Tuesday.
In addition, two Broncos earned first-team all-conference recognition and five made the second team.
Avalos, a former linebacker at Boise State, led his alma mater to a 7-5 record in his first season, and this year the Broncos started 2-2. They then won seven of their final eight regular-season games and punched their ticket to the Mountain West championship game, going unbeaten in league play.
He is the first Boise State football coach to earn a coach of the year accolades since Chris Petersen was named the Western Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 2008 and 2009.
The Broncos (9-3, 8-0 Mountain West) host Fresno State (8-4, 7-1) on Saturday (2 p.m., Fox). Boise State will be playing for its conference-leading fifth championship.
Green, a 6-foot-6 redshirt freshman, picked up his fifth and sixth player of the week awards on Monday. He was named Mountain West Offensive Player and Freshman of the Week after throwing a career-high four touchdown passes and adding a 91-yard touchdown run against Utah State last Friday.
The native of Allen, Texas, has been named freshman of the week four times this season and offensive player of the week twice.
Green took over as the Broncos’ starting quarterback after four-year starter Hank Bachmeier opted to transfer following a loss at UTEP on Sept. 23.
Green posted 1,730 yards and 12 touchdowns through the air this season, throwing just four interceptions, and rushed for 437 yards and eight touchdowns.
Two Broncos made the first-team all-conference cut: left tackle John Ojukwu and safety JL Skinner.
Ojukwu earned a first-team nod for the second year in a row. He was the only member of Boise State’s offensive line to start every game in the regular season. He also started every game last year.
Skinner leads the Broncos with four interceptions, two of which he snagged in the final minutes of Boise State’s 20-17 win at Wyoming on Nov. 19. He’s second on the team with 59 tackles.
Five Boise State players were named second-team all-Mountain West: running back George Holani, right tackle Cade Beresford, defensive tackle Scott Matlock, and linebackers DJ Schramm and Ezekiel Noa.
Holani cracked 1,000 rushing yards this season for the first time since his freshman year in 2019. He has posted at least 100 rushing yards in six games this fall, and the redshirt junior is sitting at a career-high 1,059 yards heading into Saturday’s championship game. Holani has also racked up a career-high 13 touchdowns (10 rushing, 3 receiving), breaking his previous high of 10, which he had in 2019.
Beresford joined the Broncos this year after transferring from Washington State. He started 11 games at right tackle, missing only last week’s regular-season finale against Utah State.
Matlock, a Homedale native, is the unquestioned leader of the Broncos’ defensive line. He started 11 games and has tied his career high with 41 tackles. He also had two sacks in the regular season after racking up a career-high seven last season.
Schramm is a fifth-year senior but a first-year starter. He leads the Broncos and ranks No. 8 in the Mountain West with 93 tackles in 12 games, and also has 10 tackles for loss.
Noa hasn’t played since suffering an injury against BYU on Nov. 5, but the fifth-year senior posted career highs in sacks (4.5) and forced fumbles (3) in the regular season. He also recorded the first interception of his career.
Five Boise State players were named honorable mention all-conference: Green, cornerback Caleb Biggers, kicker Jonah Dalmas, running back Ashton Jeanty and nickelback Tyreque Jones.
Mountain West all-conference team
Offensive Player of the Year - Brad Roberts, RB, Sr., Air Force
Defensive Player of the Year - Viliami Fehoko, DL, Sr., San José State
Special Teams Player of the Year - Jack Browning, P/K, Sr., San Diego State
Coach of the Year - Andy Avalos, Boise State
Offense
QB - Jake Haener, Sr., Fresno State
WR - Tory Horton, Jr., Colorado State
WR - Jalen Moreno-Cropper, Sr., Fresno State
WR - Elijah Cooks, Sr., San José State
RB - Brad Roberts, Sr., Air Force*
RB - Jordan Mims, Sr., Fresno State
TE - Caleb Phillips, Sr., Hawai‘i
OL - Isaac Cochran, Sr., Air Force
OL - John Ojukwu, Sr., Boise State*
OL - Ilm Manning, Sr., Hawai‘i
OL - Alama Uluave, Sr., San Diego State
OL - Alfred Edwards, Sr., Utah State
PK - John Hoyland, So., Wyoming
KR - Jordan Byrd, Sr., San Diego State*
Defense
DL - David Perales, Sr., Fresno State
DL - Jonah Tavai, Sr., San Diego State
DL - Viliami Fehoko, Sr., San José State**
DL - Cade Hall, Sr., San José State*
LB - Caden McDonald, Sr., San Diego State**
LB - Kyle Harmon, Sr., San José State**
LB - Austin Ajiake, Sr., UNLV
LB - Easton Gibbs, So., Wyoming
DB - JL Skinner, Sr., Boise State
DB - Jack Howell, So., Colorado State
DB - Bentlee Sanders, Sr., Nevada
DB - Patrick McMorris, Sr., San Diego State*
P - Jack Browning, Sr., San Diego State
PR - Jordan Byrd, Sr., San Diego State
SECOND TEAM
Offense
QB - Chevan Cordeiro, Jr., San José State
WR - Nikko Remigio, Sr., Fresno State
WR - Tyrell Shavers, Sr., San Diego State
WR - Brian Cobbs, Sr., Utah State
RB - George Holani, Jr., Boise State
RB - Calvin Tyler, Jr., Sr., Utah State
TE - Mark Redman, Jr., San Diego State
OL - Everett Smalley, Jr., Air Force
OL - Cade Beresford, Sr., Boise State
OL - Bula Schmidt, Sr., Fresno State
OL - Micah Vanterpool, Sr., Hawai‘i
OL - Cade Bennett, So., San Diego State
PK - Daniel Gutierrez, Sr., UNLV
KR - Christian Washington, Fr., New Mexico
Defense
DL - Scott Matlock, Sr., Boise State*
DL - Mohamed Kamara, Sr., Colorado State
DL - Dom Peterson, Sr., Nevada*
DL - Adam Plant, Jr., Sr., UNLV
LB - Vince Sanford, Sr., Air Force*
LB - Ezekiel Noa, Sr., Boise State
LB - DJ Schramm, Sr., Boise State
LB - Michael Shawcroft, Sr., San Diego State
DB - Trey Taylor, Jr., Air Force
DB - Evan Williams, Sr., Fresno State
DB - A.J. Haulcy, Fr., New Mexico
DB - Ike Larsen, Fr., Utah State
P - Aaron Rodriguez, Jr., New Mexico
PR - Nikko Remigio, Sr., Fresno State
*Two-Time Second-Team Selection
** Three-Time Second-Team Selection
FRESNO STATE AT BOISE STATE
When: 2 p.m., Saturday
Where: Albertsons Stadium
TV: Fox (Tim Brando, Spencer Tillman, Petros Papadakis)
Radio: KBOI 670 AM/93.1 FM (Bob Behler, Pete Cavender)
Records: Boise State 9-3, 8-0 MW; Fresno State 8-4, 7-1 MW
Series: Boise State is 17-7 all-time against Fresno State, including a 40-20 victory at home earlier this season.
Vegas line: Boise State by 3
Weather: High of 38 degrees, 24% chance of rain, 10 mph wind
This story was originally published November 29, 2022 at 1:41 PM.
