Boise State’s top receiver — a ‘Frisbee-catching dog’ — specializes in contested throws
Boise State’s leading receiver once dreamed of a future in basketball.
Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Eric McAlister never really had the ball-handling or shooting skills to be a guard, but he didn’t mind throwing his weight around with the big boys in the post.
He got serious about his basketball career at Azle High School in Texas. So serious that he thought about quitting football heading into his junior year so he’d have more time to spend in the gym.
Azle football coach Devon Dorris caught wind of McAlister’s plan and called him in for a one-on-one meeting.
“Honestly, I told him there aren’t a lot of 6-foot-4 post players in college basketball, but there are plenty of talented 6-4 receivers running all over college football fields,” Dorris told the Idaho Statesman. “It was never that he didn’t want to play football. He’s just a competitor and wants to be the best at whatever he does.”
Dorris’ message struck a chord with McAlister, and he got serious about football. After spending most of his free time in the gym putting up shots, he started to devote that time to perfecting his craft as a receiver.
“Coach told me if you’re in, you have to be all-in,” McAlister said Thursday. “There’s not going to be any slacking. There’s no, ‘I might come back to football.’ He said I had to be all-in or all-out.”
McAlister decided he was all-in when it came to his football career, and the results spoke for themselves. He was a big-play machine during his final two seasons at Azle, racking up 2,947 receiving yards and 43 touchdowns. That has continued into his college career.
McAlister leads Boise State with 39 catches for 788 yards and five touchdowns this season. He’s averaging 20.21 yards per catch, which ranks No. 10 in the country, and he’ll put that big-play ability on display Saturday at Fresno State (8 p.m., CBSSN).
“Teams certainly have to account for Eric on the edge,” offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan said. “He’s done a tremendous job of not just creating separation, but making tough plays with a guy in his face.”
McAlister hasn’t just impressed people in Boise. The rest of the country is taking notice, too. The 6-4, 200-pound Texas native was added to the Biletnikoff Award watch list on Wednesday. The award is given to the best wide receiver in college football.
“These are the things I dreamed about in high school,” McAlister said. “I’m pretty confident in my abilities, but it’s a blessing to be mentioned with some of the best receivers in the country.”
One of the most impressive things about McAlister is that he doesn’t necessarily have to be open to make a big catch. He’s making a career out of catching 50-50 balls with defenders on him. Boise State wide receivers coach Matt Miller calls him a “Frisbee-catching dog.”
“When the ball is in the air, it’s his ball,” Miller said. “He’s got natural pass-catching abilities, and he takes a great deal of pride in catching contested passes.”
McAlister’s ability to make catches in traffic didn’t just appear out of thin air when he got to college. Dorris said he can’t even remember how many times his former receiver was double- and even triple-covered in high school, and still came down with a catch.
“Anytime the ball is in the air, he thinks it’s his,” Dorris said. “He has great body control and unbelievable ball skills, and when the ball comes his way, he just goes and attacks it.”
This weekend, McAlister will face a Fresno State secondary that is giving up an average of 221.7 passing yards a game. His penchant for making contested catches is sure to be on display.
“Sometimes it just comes down to who wants the ball more,” McAlister said. “I’m always going to want it more than whoever is covering me.”
BOISE STATE AT FRESNO STATE
When: 8 p.m. Mountain time Saturday
Where: Valley Children’s Stadium (40,727)
TV: CBS Sports Network (Jordan Kent, Donte Whitner, Brandon Baylor)
Radio: KBOI 670 AM/93.1 FM (Bob Behler, Pete Cavender)
Records: Boise State 4-4, 3-1 MW; Fresno State 7-1, 3-1 MW
Series: Boise State leads the series 17-8. The Broncos lost to Fresno State 28-16 in the Mountain West championship game last year in Boise.
Vegas line: Fresno State by 2.5 points.
Weather: 70 degrees at kickoff, 0% chance of rain, 2 mph wind
This story was originally published November 3, 2023 at 1:30 PM.
