Exciting freshmen, big competition: How Boise State’s WR group is shaking out
Boise State football fans will get their first taste of what the 2026 team could look like this weekend, when the program opens the doors of Albertsons Stadium for Saturday’s annual spring game.
The event, which begins at 1:30 p.m. and is free to attend — along with free parking — pits the Broncos’ offense against its defense after the team spent the last month-plus in spring practices.
One of the biggest areas of interest for fans will be the wide receiver group. Not only is the position group probably the most inexperienced on the team, but it also holds some of the most exciting up-and-coming freshmen.
There are just three returning upperclassmen among the group: junior Cam Bates, redshirt junior AJ Maes and sixth-year player Ben Ford. Bates established himself as a guy with big-play capability last season, but Maes hasn’t recorded a single catch in college.
Ford, meanwhile, is working his way back from a second torn ACL.
Boise State has added some older heads through the transfer portal in Darren Morris (Southern University) and Akeem Wright (De Anze College), but neither is proven at the FBS level.
Meanwhile, freshmen Terrious Favors and Rasean Jones are stirring excitement around the program despite their inexperience.
“I’m very hopeful and encouraged by what they’re doing and what they’re showing on a daily basis,” wide receivers coach Alvis Whitted said Thursday.
Whitted himself is a new addition to the team, having joined from N.C. State in January.
Bates, who recorded 17 catches for 301 yards and a touchdown last season, appears to be the only player with a decent hold on a starting spot in 2026. But here’s what Whitted is thinking ahead of Saturday’s spring game.
Exciting freshmen
Four-star recruit Terrious Favors arrived in Boise from Atlanta with plenty of hype. The 5-foot-9 receiver offers elite speed and could earn regular snaps in the slot in 2026. He’s matched his incoming hype through the spring, and even had coaches jumping on Thursday morning as he lowered his shoulder to make a big tackle.
“He came up to me beforehand and said, ‘Hey, Coach, watch this,’” Whitted recalled. “I just trust those guys to go play and have fun. He just plays fast, and let their God-given ability take over.”
Meanwhile, Rasean Jones is an Oregon native who spent his final year of high school at Rocky Mountain in Meridian. He came into spring practices a little under the radar but has quickly found his name prominent in the program.
Offensive coordinator Nate Potter said he’s never coached a receiver with Jones’ combination of speed, size, strength and maturity. Redshirt senior quarterback Maddux Madsen has called him “extremely impressive,” while redshirt sophomore running back Sire Gaines said Jones is “one of the strongest on the team.”
“I’m just blown away, especially for a kid that’s supposed to still be in high school,” Whitted said about the 17-year-old. “He’s got it figured out. He’s got the right wiring.”
Whitted said it’s going to be “on-the-job training” for Favors and Jones, indicating both could see snaps early in the season.
Upperclassmen competing for spots
Boise State’s two wide receiver additions from the transfer portal are both new to the FBS level. Redshirt senior Morris played at the FCS level with Southern University, while senior Wright was at the community college level with De Anza College.
While they’re two of the oldest in the room, Whitted said their involvement in 2026 remains “up in the air.”
“They’ve done some fantastic things in practice, and obviously it’s a learning experience for them,” Whitted said. “They’ve come in from different offenses, different programs where certain things may not have been as detailed as they are here.”
Hope remains around Ford’s availability in the fall, despite no timeline for his recovery being provided. Ford was leading the team in touchdowns (5) through seven games last season before he suffered a second torn ACL in the span of three years.
Despite not being able to participate in spring practice, Ford has remained a big part of team meetings, Whitted said.
“(Ford) has obviously been in this offense. So if he sees something, he’ll continue to try to uphold that standard,” Whitted said. “He’ll correct a guy if he sees something that needs to be corrected, and I give him that autonomy, because this is his team, too.”
