If you’ve been following along at home since Jeramiah Dickey was named Boise State’s AD—taking over for the “what would you say you DO here” Curt Apsey, you’re slowly coming around to the knowledge that—as Cinderella (the hair band, not the Disney princess) said—you don’t know what you got, till it’s gone. Well, with JD nearing two years on the job, the contrast between him and his TEAM and the previous regime could not be more stark. For one, Dickey and his team are responsive to fans. Incredibly so. Perhaps to a fault in some cases as during a Bronco game you might see Dickey or one of his inner AD crew being subtweeted on everything from long wait times at bathrooms to concession stands being out of relish. But they respond…and it may even be to say that they only have sweet relish left and that’s worse than no relish at all. And they will more than likely create a plan to fix future relish shortages and outline that for the fanbase with complete transparency.
The difference getting the most pub, is obviously in fundraising—where Dickey and crew QUICKLY got to 200 members of the newly-formed “Lyle Smith Society” (minimum $25k pledge to Bronco athletics over 5 years—so $5M generated AT MINIMUM) and secured nearly $10M in gifts on just TWO donations in the last calendar year. That’s rather insane…and frankly, that’s without even tapping into a somewhat vast revenue stream from some of our most successful alums (professional athletes). Some of that dough is earmarked for specific projects…from new turf in the indoor practice facility to a new Jumbotron in the south end zone (seriously, this thing is going to be enormous) and is sure to give the proposed North End Zone project a huge kick in the pants, not to mention further plans for an athlete’s village and the kind of facility upgrades that are sure to at least give future conference expansion decision-makers pause. The momentum is undeniable…eastside stadium trough lovers should be startled.
We all know that college athletics has changed rapidly with NIL and transfer rules being applied so haphazardly that the famously-stingy NCAA all of the sudden is overseeing a wild west show that would make Buffalo Cody blush. There is literally zero time to rest on ones laurels, and unfortunately, that’s precisely what the previous regime did, making Dickey’s gigantic advancements in less than two years all the more impressive—and necessary. College football has become little more than an arms race and given the amount of starting QBs entering the portal at every turn, I mean that quite literally. CFP expansion only makes this race’s consequences all the more dire. There is no participation trophy…if you’re still stuck languishing in the G5, you better be the marquee name. There was a time when Boise State football was just that, but they’ve fallen off the last few years even if they’ve remained at or near the top of the MWC heap. So the new contracts to keep assistants and coordinators in place is of equal import to the facility upgrades—and now some of the money is going to need to start filling the coffers of the NIL collective, so the student-athletes remain as happy as the suddenly-competitive staff salaries.
The Broncos have an NFL prospect under center that will ONLY be a sophomore next season, and will have so much talent in the backfield I’m frankly a tad embarrassed. The time to strike is now on any number of fronts and JD’s elite squad understands this completely and are making things happen that were in the realm of dreams just a few short years ago. So, perhaps the most important “win” the Broncos could have in the next few years is keeping miracle-working Jeramiah Dickey in Boise. That’s worth a donation in and of itself.
Want to support the collective? You can here
Want to have Taylen Green pitch your locally-made GREEN salsa? You can do THAT here.
Dickey is absolutely killing it! If we can keep him for 3-5 years and if Taylen explodes and leads us to either an NY6 in ’23 or a playoff appearance in ’24 (or BOTH!!!), the good times will be rolling once again for Bronco Nation! The really cool thing about the impending playoff era is that Boise State can be a de-facto P5 program if they grab that spot every 1-3 years – even if the bigger conferences never quite can get over their old-timey focus on market size vs. a marketable, recognizable, national brand. Here is hoping for a… Read more »
Let’s say Jerimiah Dickey is somewhere in the middle of his career. What next? A P5 program at double his current money? Right now he’s a little north of $400,000. Things are good. However he knows things can turn ugly overnight. So he’s thinking, “if I run out of my mojo (raising money and getting things done), where is it better to happen? Boise or some P5 school at double what I make here? Man,” he thinks, “I’d better make as much while I can. Hello, Houston!” A friend of mine ran out of gas in this real rich neighborhood.… Read more »
Yesterday was proclaimed Nick Patti Pride Day (or NPPD). The Nick Pattis of the world can now stand proud, libertated, and united. One of their own opened the gate of prejudice, hatred, missinformation and raised the flag of equailty at its threshold. Soon Pattiphobics will have nowhere to hide. Patti-wagon forever! https://www.si.com/college/pittsburgh/football/nick-patti-deserved-pitt-panthers-hero-all-season