‘This year has obviously changed my life.’ Loyalty pays off for Boise State’s Jeanty
Ashton Jeanty wanted to stay with the team that first gave him a chance. And the decision has worked out perfectly.
After shunning NIL money and the transfer portal to stay at Boise State for his junior season, everything the 5-foot-9, 215-pound star running back set out to accomplish is now coming to fruition.
Jeanty is in New York City this week for the Heisman Trophy ceremony, which will be televised beginning at 6 p.m. Mountain time Saturday on ESPN. He is one of four finalists alongside Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter, Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel and Miami quarterback Cam Ward.
“I think this whole year, how it’s transpired, speaks to that whole situation,” Jeanty told local media outlets in a Zoom interview Thursday night after arriving in New York. “I wanted to be one of the best running backs in the nation. I wanted to win a championship, wanted to go to the college football playoffs, wanted to be a Heisman award finalist. Wanted to leave a legacy that was bigger than just football at wherever I’m at.
“But the common theme was that no dollar amount was really going to change those outcomes. It was just about the place and the opportunity that I had, and Boise State offered that to me since day one before any of those other schools did.”
Jeanty leads the nation this season with 2,497 rushing yards and 29 rushing touchdowns, helping propel Boise State to its first College Football Playoff berth and a first-round bye as the No. 3 seed. The Broncos will play in the Fiesta Bowl on Dec. 31 against the winner of No. 6 Penn State vs. No. 11 SMU.
Jeanty said he’ll be attending Saturday’s Heisman Trophy ceremony with his family, including his mom and dad. And the trip to the Big Apple has already gotten off to a great start, as Jeanty was named the winner of the 2024 Doak Walker Award (top running back) and Maxwell Award (best player) on Thursday night.
“All my family has really just been saying to take it all in and enjoy the moment,” Jeanty said. “There’s a lot of pressure, a lot of busy, long days, a lot of hard work, but one year can change your life. And this year has obviously changed my life. So to be where I’m at right now, it’s a blessing. So I’m just taking it all in, enjoying the moment and being present where my two feet are.”
Jeanty is the second Heisman finalist in Boise State history, joining quarterback Kellen Moore, who was a finalist in 2010 and finished fourth in the voting. Moore also was in the top 10 in voting in 2009 and 2011.
While Hunter remains the favorite to win the Heisman with minus-2,000 odds to Jeanty’s second-best odds at plus-800, Jeanty has a chance to cement his legacy by doing something the legendary Moore never had a chance to do — win a College Football Playoff game. The system began in 2014 with four teams and expanded to 12 this year.
“I knew it would take a lot of work and time to get to this point. It wasn’t just gonna happen overnight,” Jeanty said. “But all these goals and everything that’s happening right now, I’ve always had my mind on it, but I couldn’t look too far ahead.”
