Welcome to a fun off-season series that Michael, Hunter (both of FKWG), Zach, and Mike (both of MWCConnection) are rolling out for your viewing enjoyment (hopefully). Back in February, excitement was at an all-time high for fans and coaches alike as the 2024 class was officially signed. Like every year, fans often tout a class as potentially one of the best on paper. However, once players get on campus and actually on the field, the true story begins to reveal itself. It can often take years for a class to truly be judged as the impact of many players won’t be seen for a few seasons. That being said, this series will aim to revisit and evaluate Boise State’s 2019 class. There has now been enough time that many members of the class have either left or are entering their final seasons, which means players are able to be looked at for their production (or lack thereof) rather than projection and hype.

Anyway, each week, the four of us will look at a different position group or two from the class. While we will contribute two posts each week over the next month, the location of the posts will change. The start of the week will feature a post on FKWG while the end of the week will see a post up on MWCConnection, that way readers of both sites can follow along. This year, we are changing up the format a bit on how we discuss each player. The old way of assessing a recruit by categorizing them (exceeded, met, or failed to meet expectations) grew stale, as players basically were a bust, pleasant surprise, or lived up to the hype. Instead, our analysis will be more straightforward. The four of us will each share our thoughts when the player signed, and then share our thoughts over the past four years. The hope is that allows for more freedom in our descriptions rather than trying to fit everything into a pre-designed box. Hopefully, it will still be a worthwhile trip down memory lane, even if it is not always enjoyable. 

This year features the 2020 class, which was the last full class with Bryan Harsin as the coach. It had to follow up the Broncos’ greatest recruiting class ever, but managed to hold its own by bringing in a number of talented players. There seemed to be an emphasis on the defensive line and secondary this time around. Also, Boise State began to lean more into the transfer portal during this cycle. Relive it all while we dive into this series. 

Starting things off in this year’s series are two different members of the offensive side of the ball. While both had the potential to be contributors, neither ended up seeing many snaps. One was a transfer to shore up the depth in the RB room, while the other came out of obscurity from the state of Minnesota. To read about these interesting members of the Bronco recruiting class, read below. 

Running Back

RB Taequan Tyler

Thoughts when he signed:

Michael: As a transfer, with limited eligibility, when Boise State already had Holani and Van Buren, I didn’t imagine we would see much of him.

Hunter: Nothing specifically. George looked like he would be the guy for the foreseeable future, but figured JC guys can always be a fun surprise. Regardless, I just had to appreciate that Taequan Tyler went to Tyler JC in Tyler, Texas. 

Zach: Tyler seemed like he would be a quality depth guy behind Holani and company. He was an unexpected addition.

Mike: I don’t remember having too many thoughts about Taequan when he signed. I know the coaching staff was looking to restock the running back room after it had thinned out a bit. So he seemed like a way to add to their depth and who knows, maybe he would find a role to get carries. 

Thoughts over the past four years:

Michael: He seemed like he was a willing contributor when called upon. Even showed some impressive speed on a couple of solid runs in 2021. Ultimately, however, his career stats were just 11 carries for 47 yards. Though, if it hadn’t been for only gaining one yard on three attempts vs NM, he would have ended with a career yards-per-carry of 5.5. 

Hunter: Somehow my brain thought he had done a little bit more for the Broncos. He had a season ending injury in 2020, but got some play when we were reaching down the depth chart in ‘21. However, that doesn’t say much given no Bronco hit 100 yards rushing until November that season (When Holani came back from injury to decimate Kalen DeBoer’s Fresno State). 

Zach: Tyler had a few carries and seemed to be explosive. Over the course of the 2021 season he had 11 carries but was never anything more than a guy that got carries when the game was out of hand. He left the program and I am not sure what happened after his days as a Bronco concluded. In terms of his impact, he failed to meet expectations.

Mike: Unfortunately, Tyler never emerged from anything other than mop-up duty during his time with the Broncos. There may have been an injury at some point, but I might be remembering things wrong. Regardless, in his two years with the team, Tyler only appeared in three games. He left the team that year and I seem to recall there was a tweet or two about him not getting a fair shake (it may have been from a family member). 

Tight End

TE Russell Corrigan

Thoughts when he signed:

Michael: “I wonder if he’s related to that Kevin Corrigan fellow, that had a very minor part in The Departed and whose name I inexplicably remember?” And thaaaat was pretty much it. As a self-proclaimed big fan of hitting, he supposedly joined the Broncos on the promise that he would be the next Richie Brockel. So, not a sexy pickup, but…functional. Potentially valuable.

Hunter: I think there’s always a bit of excitement when talking about TEs at Boise State, and the location of Minnesota was interesting as well. However, in this case it didn’t seem like Corrigan was there to be a vertical threat, so I tried to temper my expectations for him there.

Zach: I thought it was really odd that the Broncos were looking at a tight end in Minnesota. That sounds like something Wyoming would do not Boise State. I was optimistic that he could become a nice blocker but did not see a ton of potential as a receiver. 

Mike: From what I remember, the coaching staff made a big deal about wanting to find the best blocking tight end they could. And in order to do that, they were willing to look anywhere, even if it meant outside their typical recruiting areas, Thus, Russell emerged from Minnesota, where I think he was one of the earlier commits in the class. I figured the staff found what they were looking for, and in a few years, he would develop into a solid blocker and have a role in the run game. 

Thoughts over the past four years:

Michael: For better or worse, we never got the chance to really have any thoughts about him. It might be that he left his mark in ways outsiders couldn’t see, but the fact is that he came, registered no statistics, and left. 

Hunter: I can’t recall him ever playing, and his player bio indicates those opportunities were limited. I don’t exactly know how the TE blocking/receiving depth chart works, but he was dropping below the likes of Riley Smith and Tyneil Hopper, which explains his zero game appearances in 2022 before transferring back to a school in Minnesota. 

Zach: Corrigan only saw a few snaps in his time as a Bronco and eventually transferred to Concordia University, St. Paul. His lack of playing time and short-live Bronco career would lead to him failing to meet expectations.

Mike: After Corrigan played in two games as a true freshman, I figured he must be doing pretty well on the practice field so the staff wanted to get his feet wet. That theory turned out to be wrong, as he only saw the field in one game the following year and none in 2022. After his playing time went the wrong way, he transferred. Corrigan probably was searching for a chance to play more, but I do wonder what his development looked like and how he got passed up on the depth chart after 2020. It’s also worth mentioning that Boise State has not signed a player from Minnesota since then. 

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