Change is afoot for the Boise State Broncos football team.
At 5-5, disappointment in the Broncos and Avalos was warranted. However, at 4-2 in conference, Boise State remains in the hunt for an appearance in the Mountain West title game. They still need some dominos to fall their way but had help over the weekend when Hawaii defeated Air Force and the San Jose State Spartans took down Fresno State.
Boise State's final two games will be coached, on an interim basis, by defensive coordinator Spencer Danielson. A national search by athletic director Jeremiah Dickey is likely already under way and I imagine Danielson and offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan will at least get courtesy interviews, if they are interested in the position.
From there, well, who is to say what route is ultimately taken to help repair the mess that is the '23 season. Members of the Boise State family could be considered, with Jeff Choate, Ryan Dinwiddie, and Kirby Moore among the possibilities. Sorry to those clamoring for Kellen Moore to take over. While it's a nice dream to have, I imagine he's on the NFL head coach track and won't return to his alma mater. At least for the time being.
Avalos and the Boise State standard
Avalos' firing was a product of bad luck, improving competition, a changing college football landscape, bad in-game decisions, and ultimately (this is only a guess), a locker room where he'd lost the respect of players. I have a hard time believing not all players and respect, because if that was the case, the Broncos would have put up an absolute dud against the Lobos on Saturday.
Instead, the Broncos were a team that, despite a slew of injuries on both sides of the ball, had a fairly fantastic victory over New Mexico. And I wonder how much of a different tune the world would be swinging if the Broncos were 9-1 right now instead of .500.
The loss against the Washington Huskies was truly the only game in which Boise State was not close to winning. What if special teams played better, avoiding blocked field goals returned for touchdowns or game-changing kickoff return for touchdowns right before halftime? What if the defense came up with just one more stop or last-second Hail Mary was defended in any of the four losses Boise State suffered by a combined 13 points?
This is not to say the offense is not to blame. Two interceptions ended drives in the Fresno State loss that could have turned the tide of the game Boise State's direction.
Despite the troubled two-quarterback system implemented, Boise State has scored 30+ points in the last eight games. The offense had its hiccups, battling inconsistency, turnovers, injuries, and transfers, but they are far from the biggest issue on this team.
Perhaps firing Avalos was a pre-emptive move to stem the swell of players looking to transfer from Boise State. A move, likely a difficult one for Dickey, in effort to convince them to stay and learn under a new coach and new atmosphere. To this outsider, it also makes me wonder if the locker room was a divided one. What about the players who Avalos recruited, who loved to play for him, and now will be looking to get out? Is that risk worth the reward.
Sadly, coaches with short hooks and getting fired quickly is the norm. This is not to say Avalos didn't have plenty of opportunity to turn things around.
Jumping around from school to school, too, has long been the state of college football coaches, especially at Boise State. Because of their excellence, the coordinator position has often been a revolving door of coaches. They move on to bigger pay days and better opportunities. Head coaches, too, have moved on, with Boise State now looking for their fourth head coach since the start of the 2006 season. Not exactly a "gasp" situation but, as a perceived elite program, something you'd like to see a little more stability with (money talks, as they say).
Through it all, the Broncos have continued to win. Their last losing season was in 1997, a streak on the line in the last two regular season games. We'll never know if Avalos, with a career record of 22-14, would have taken the Broncos there in 2023.
In the end, Avalos, the 2022 Mountain West Coach of the Year, failed in his tenure to reach a high standard previous coaches at Boise State had set. Now, we'll get to see if the grass is greener (or bluer, to wit) with Danielson and whoever comes after. Or if all that clamoring in recent weeks was all for not and there wasn't enough patience to see if Avalos could grow this program to the top of the mountain once again.
photo: Jason Haskins
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