Boise State flips tight end who was committed to team it just beat in Frisco Bowl
Talk about adding insult to injury.
Less than three full days after Boise State beat North Texas 35-32 in the Frisco Bowl, which might as well have been held in the Mean Green’s backyard, the Broncos flipped one of their 2023 recruits.
Tight end Matt Wagner, who plays for Rock Hill High School in Frisco, Texas, announced Tuesday on Twitter that he’s joining Boise State’s 2023 class. His commitment came just a day after he announced that he was reopening his recruitment.
Wagner verbally committed to North Texas in July. He visited Boise State in early November and was in Albertsons Stadium for the Broncos’ loss to BYU.
The 6-foot-5, 230-pound native of Propser, Texas, is a three-star recruit, according to 247Sports. He also has scholarship offers from Georgetown, Lamar, Southeast Missouri State, Stetson and Tulane.
Wagner is the sixth recruit from the Lone Star State to join the Broncos’ class. He was the second player to join the class on Tuesday, following Colorado transfer Chase Penry.
Wagner is the sixth recruit Boise State has added to its class in the past two days. Four committed on Monday. Early signing day is on Wednesday.
Wagner began his high school career as a quarterback in a run-heavy offense at Rock Hill High, which opened in 2020. He transitioned to tight end and posted 47 catches for 592 yards and five touchdowns as a senior, according to MaxPreps.
New offensive coordinator Derek Thompson took over at Rock Hill in March, and he immediately abandoned the Blue Hawks’ scheme for a more balanced attack that featured his big, athletic tight end.
“The first time I got my eyes on Matt, I knew he was going to be a big part of our offense,” Thompson told the Idaho Statesman on Tuesday. “We were very versatile with him. We lined him up out wide, but he could also line up as a traditional tight end, put his hand on the ground and block somebody.”
Thompson said Wagner made a “business decision” when he moved to tight end. That was his best chance to get on the field once quarterback Kevin Sperry joined the team. The sophomore already has scholarship offers from Baylor, Florida State, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Tennessee, SMU, North Texas, Texas Tech, UTSA and Austin Peay, according to 247Sports.
Wagner and Sperry developed a strong chemistry this season, Thompson said, adding that Wagner became the young quarterback’s “safety valve.”
“We knew we could always count on him, and that’s what translates so well about him to the next level,” Thompson said. “He’s not just a freak athlete. He’s a guy who is going to do all the little things well and be very, very dependable.”
Thompson said Wagner had to grow into his role as a tight end. And grow he did. The budding pass catcher weighed just 190 pounds as a junior, but he tipped the scales at 230 this fall.
“He is a young man who invested in himself,” Thompson said. “I’m so excited for him at the next level because he’s going to get better every time he steps on the field. I think Boise State is getting a heck of a football payer.”
Boise State’s 2023 recruiting class
QB CJ Tiller, 6-3, 200, Rancho Cucamonga (California) High
LB Wyatt Milkovic, 6-1, 233, Basha High (Chandler, Arizona)
OL Jason Steele, 6-4, 280, Murrieta Valley (California) High
RB Jambres Dubar, 6-0, 200, Anna (Texas) High
WR Jackson Grier, 6-0, 175, St. Thomas Aquinas High (Fort Lauderdale, Florida)
CB Franklyn Johnson Jr., 5-11, 175, Little Elm (Texas) High
OT Kyle Cox, 6-6, 270, Eatonville (Washington) High
OT Carson Rasmussen, 6-5, 300, Owyhee High (Meridian)
TE Cayden Dawson, 6-5, 232, University City High (San Diego)
TE Oliver Fisher, 6-5, 225, Sherwood (Oregon) High
DL Michael Madrie, 6-4, 260, Argyle (Texas) High
DL Max Stege, 6-5, 250, Cologne Crocodiles, Germany
Edge Demanuel Brown, 6-4, 230, Dekaney High (Houston)
CB Khai Taylor, 6-2, 174, Pittsburg (California) High
DB Ty Benefield, 6-2, 185, Crean Luthern (California)
CB Nick Hawthorne, 6-2, 175, Boswell (Texas) High
S Titus Toler, 5-11, 195, Wisconsin, Long Beach, California
LB Chase Martin, 6-1, 205, Thousand Oaks (California) High
CB Gabe Tahir, 6-2, 180, Kamiakin High, Kennewick, Washington
CB A’marion McCoy, 6-1, 170, Laney College, Atherton, California
WR Chase Penry, 6-1, 190, Colorado, Greenwood Village, Colorado
TE Matt Wagner, 6-5, 230, Rock Hill High, Prosper, Texas
This story was originally published December 20, 2022 at 1:02 PM.
