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 2020 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.
This section is another one that features multi-positions. First, there was a special-teamer who had an under-the-radar recruitment and ended up becoming one of the best at his position in program history. Then, there were three transfers, each at different positions, who all brought an element of potential to Boise State, but ended up not fully delivering on that during their time. Check out why below.
K Jonah Dalmas
Thoughts when he signed:
Michael: I…don’t think I’ve known a kicker recruit by name since Jake Van Ginkel. So, really, I didn’t have any thoughts about him.
Hunter: Essentially nothing. I’m always happy when local kids get a shot, but it’s hard to expect much from a local walk-on, especially at a position like kicker.
Zach: Do we ever really know what to expect out of kicker? Dalmas was returning from a mission and was a local boy looking to make a mark for his hometown team.
Mike: I don’t even remember hearing anything about Dalmas prior to fall camp. But if I did, I would have thought “local kicker walking on to the team after returning from a mission? I’ll keep my expectations low.”
Thoughts over the past four years:
Michael: Kickers are a bit of a sensitive topic at *ahem*…firstkickwasgood.com. Yes. We’ve been hurt before. Don’t act like you don’t know when. That said, Dalmas has slowly, surely, and consistently chipped away at my deep insecurities to where I don’t even worry anymore every time he steps up to the tee. He’s become automatic and is fast becoming legend as a Boise State kicker. We are extremely lucky that he decided to come back for a final season.
Hunter: Football is having a kicker renaissance, and Jonah Dalmas is our Da Vinci. No matter who comes after him, he will certainly be remembered for his stunning efficiency, especially considering our checkered past with such things. All that’s left for him is the NCAA record, although kicking a lot of field goals isn’t exactly what I’m hoping for this year.
Zach: GOAT. Dalmas has become the greatest kicker in program history. He will destroy every kicking record at Boise State and probably the Mountain West when he finishes his career this fall. Dalmas has become a legend in Boise and we were all shocked when he announced he would be returning for his super senior season.
Mike: That August, a friend texted me that they were familiar with Jonah from his high school days and that he was extremely accurate on short to mid-field goals, and predicted he would win the job out of fall camp. Dalmas did just that and the rest has been history. Jonah has become arguably the best kicker Boise State has ever had. He is returning for his last season and has a chance to break some conference and NCAA records.
QB Jack Sears
Thoughts when he signed:
Michael: Before I repented, I used to be a sucker for anyone with four stars attached to their recruting profile. Especially one that transferred from the program that was the powerhouse of my formative years: USC. Jack Sears excited me a lot as a prospect and I was, frankly, surprised we were able to land him at the time. Not just because of his talent, but also because we already had two high-level talents at QB (for the Mountain West, at least) with Bachmeier and Chase Cord.
Hunter: Surprising addition to say the least. I was just happy to stick it to SDSU on this one, but it did make me wonder a bit about the state of the offense. Regardless, it was exciting.
Zach: This was a shocker. Sears was a former USC quarterback and a San Diego State commit. I was just glad he didn’t end up with the Aztecs.
Mike: Boise State was in the market for a transfer quarterback and managed to lure Jack Sears away from his SDSU commit. As a former four-star at USC, I figured he cemented the Broncos having the best QB room in the conference along with Hank Bachmeier and Chase Cord.
Thoughts over the past four years:
Michael: His first pass in his lone start went for a 75 yard touchdown. The rest of that game, he only had three incompletions (on 20 attempts), threw two more TDs, and beat Air Force 49-30. No interceptions. The following game, both Bachmeier and Chase Cord were still out with injuries, so I was actually really excited to see what he could do as the starter vs the most hyped BYU team I can recall. Unfortunately, he sustained a head injury on the first drive and that game quickly devolved into an absolute debacle. That wasn’t the last we saw of him, but pretty close. He got a smattering of snaps here and then…he was gone. I don’t think he ever played again after that. I’ll be honest though. After the ups and downs of Bachmeier, I would have been open to Jack Sears getting more starts after that Air Force game. The man had talent. And, while it was a small sample size, his consistency was pretty incredible. But, c’est la vie.
Hunter: His only real game was the most efficient game by a BSU QB in a decade. He absolutely torched Air Force and got quite a bit of buzz around him. Unfortunately a concussion at the opening of the next game at BYU led to one of the worst games I’ve ever seen as a BSU fan. If it wasn’t for the downstream effects of Covid and the transfer rule, I think he could’ve found another landing spot, but it was not to be.
Zach: This is a weird one. Sears started a game in 2020 when Bachmeier was out with COVID and had a phenomenal performance against Air Force. Probably the best passing game the team had that season. He then suffered a concussion against BYU and missed the remainder of the season. There was a quarterback battle going into the 2021 season, but Sears was injured during camp and lost the job to Bachmeier. He entered the portal again after the 2021 season.
Mike: I figured Sears would have a bit more of a role during his two seasons, but he may his time count. His only start was against Air Force in 2020 and he was a sensation, looking better than the starter did at any point during the season. Otherwise, he was mostly in for obvious running plays. His season was cut short after a missed targeting call at the start of the BYU game gave him a concussion. He transferred out after 2021 and never caught on with another school.
LB Brock Miller
Thoughts when he signed:
Michael: Medium to high excitement level. He certainly seemed to have potential and had already gathered some success in the ACC.
Hunter: I remember being really excited about this one. He had played a good amount at NC State, so I figured he would be a nice addition to the squad that would also play a lot.
Zach: I thought Miller was a really solid add out of the transfer portal. He seemed like a guy who would come in and play an important role at a spot where depth was needed.
Mike: Boise State was active in the transfer portal and I thought they brought in a starting linebacker when Brock Miller came in from NC State. He was recruited heavily by the Broncos out of high school, so I thought it was cool he picked them this time around.
Thoughts over the past four years:
Michael: Unfortunately, he didn’t make much of a mark. Honestly, despite him playing in a few games, I don’t remember his name ever being announced.
Hunter: Really did not go how I expected things to go. I can’t say I ever really remember him playing, though the team website has him playing in 3 games, including getting 4 tackles at Air Force. That Air Force game gets weirder and weirder the more I think about it.
Zach: Miller never saw much playing time. I believe he battled some injuries and mostly saw action on special teams.
Mike: Miller played a lot less than I thought he would. For whatever reason, he couldn’t crack the starting lineup or really even the two-deep. During the summer of 2021, there was a rumor he was leading the charge against a certain movement. Shortly before fall camp, it was announced he left the team, which I would guess followed a serious conversation with Coach Avalos. Whatever the truth is, his time here did not go according to plan.
DB Jonathan Earl
Thoughts when he signed:
Michael: Literally remember nothing other than the name and the fact he was a DB.
Hunter: Earl was a JC transfer brought in to bolster the secondary. I don’t remember much about him, and 24/7 barely even has an entry on him. Rivals says he was a 2 star with a couple FCS offers, so I don’t think anyone was hyping him up, but you never know, sometimes guys can surprise you.
Zach: I didn’t know much about Earl. I was just hoping he could provide depth to a secondary that was a bit inconsistent in 2019.
Mike: Was he one of the players over the years who was brought in solely because he had experience with the triple option? I don’t remember, but overall, I figured Earl was a depth piece for the roster.
Thoughts over the past four years:
Michael: Didn’t play much. For all I know, he could have been an all-star in the locker room, but his measurable impact on the field was very minimal and mostly on special teams. .
Hunter: Not too much to say from me obviously, but I think he was more or less what people expected from him.
Zach: From what I remember, Earl’s time as a Bronco was quiet and uneventful.
Mike: He produced like a player who was a depth piece for the roster. I think he played on some special teams, but was not able to make much of an impact.
See anything else that stood out to you? Make it known in the comments!
Dalmas has to be one of the all-time great Broncos.