All in the Family

We are just one day away from the opening of the 2007 Bronco football season. The players, as great as they are, cannot do anything without a coaching staff, which is among the finest in the land.

The famous Boise State coaching staff that led Boise State to a 13-0 record last season and #5 ranking now includes a record five former Bronco players.  It’s an innovative, talented group that works extremely well together.  The Bronco coaches not only bring some of the most talented student-athletes to Boise, but also some of the best human beings.

Chris Petersen—Head Coach

Head Coach Chris Petersen last year became the only coach since 1900 to win 13 games in his first season as a Division I football coach. 

Petersen, moving into his second season at the helm of the Bronco program, led Boise State to an undefeated 13-0 season, including a 43-42 overtime win over Oklahoma in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl last season.

Petersen also became the first Boise State coach to earn national coach of the year honors winning the 2006 Paul “Bear” Bryant Coach of the Year award.  

The award was only one of a number of honors Petersen received.  He was a finalist for the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award, a semifinalist for the George Munger Coach of the Year Award and was the Region 4 Coach of the Year by the American Football Coaches Association.  The perfect season ended with Boise State ranked fifth in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll and sixth in the USA Today Coaches Poll, the highest rankings for the Broncos in school history.  

As Boise State’s ninth head coach in the 39-year history of Bronco football, Petersen not only led Boise State to an undefeated 13-0 season and its first ever BCS bowl game, but he also led the Broncos to their fifth straight Western Athletic Conference title.

Under the guidance of the 42-year old Petersen, Boise State not only met team goals but his players received national and conference accolades during the drive to the BCS.

Running back Ian Johnson became the school’s first Division I first-team All-America pick when SI.com and CBS Sportsline.com tabbed the sophomore as one of two running backs on their respective teams.  The Sporting News honored Johnson as a second-team All-America pick, and the Associated Press named Johnson third-team All-America.  Sophomore offensive lineman Ryan Clady became just the fourth Bronco to earn second-team All-America honors when he was selected by SI.com.

Johnson and Clady led a Bronco offense under Petersen that placed six players on the All-WAC first or second team and finished the season second the nation in scoring and rushing touchdowns, sixth in rushing and 10th in total offense.

Not to be outdone, behind Petersen’s leadership the Bronco defense sported the WAC Defensive Player of the Year in  Korey Hall and placed three other players on the WAC first or second team, while finishing eighth in the nation in rushing defense, 14th in total defense and 20th in scoring defense. 

Boise State also led the WAC in rushing defense, pass efficiency defense, scoring defense and total defense.  On special teams the team was honored with the first-team All-WAC kicker and second-team All-WAC punter.

A school-record four players were picked in the 2007 NFL Draft with Gerald Alexander going to the Detroit Lions in the second round, Legedu Naanee to the San Diego Chargers in the fifth round, Hall to the Green Bay Packers in the sixth round and Derek Schouman to the Buffalo Bills in the seventh round.  Six other Broncos signed free agent contracts.

Honors and national rankings are nothing new to Petersen.  As Boise State’s offensive coordinator from 2001-2005, he was twice (2002 and 2004) a finalist for the Broyles Award, which honors the nation’s top assistant coach.

With Petersen as offensive coordinator Boise State sported one of the most balanced offenses in the country averaging 41.3 points per game, while also finishing as the nation’s top scoring team twice (2002 and 2003).  The Broncos also finished second (2004), eighth (2005) and 18th (2001) in scoring while Petersen was running the Broncos offense.

As offensive coordinator, Petersen helped Boise State boast one of the most balanced offenses in the country.  The Broncos finished in the top 15 in total offense four times, including three top10 finishes—first in 2002, fourth in 2004 and seventh in 2003.  The Broncos had four top 20 finishes in passing during that time, including a high ranking of fifth in 2003.  The Broncos also ranked in the top 25 in the country in rushing in three of the last four seasons that Petersen served as offensive coordinator, including 14th in 2004 and 15th in 2005.

Petersen also developed a pair of Bronco quarterbacks who have ranked among the nation’s most successful and accurate passers.  Ryan Dinwiddie (2001-2003) finished as the NCAA career passing efficiency leader with a rating of 168.19.  Dinwiddie had a career-best 188.18 ranking in 2002 that would have set an NCAA single-season record if he played in one more game.  He also had a 164.69 rating in 2001 and a 163.72 rating in 2003, both good enough for fourth in the country.

With Petersen as his quarterback coach, as well as offensive coordinator, Dinwiddie led the Broncos to a 28-6 record as a starter.
After Dinwiddie left, Petersen helped groom Zabransky into one of the most successful quarterbacks in college football history.  The Bronco quarterback helped Boise State to three straight league titles, two undefeated regular seasons and a 32-5 record as a starter, including a 23-1 record in Western Athletic Conference games.

Petersen’s players at Boise State have received multiple honors, both nationally and in the WAC, while he was the offensive coordinator.  In five seasons leading the Broncos offense, Petersen had two players earn national All-America honors (running back Brock Forsey in 2002 and offensive tackle Daryn Colledge in 2004), while 12 Broncos earned first-team All-WAC honors and two (Dinwiddie in 2003 and Forsey in 2002) were named WAC Offensive Player of the Year.

As offensive coordinator Petersen has seen four of his players drafted into the NFL, with Colledge picked in the second round in 2005, Forsey selected in the fifth round in 2002, offensive tackle Matt Hill going in the fifth round in 2001 and tight end Jeb Putzier picked in the sixth round in 2002. 

Petersen came to Boise State from the University of Oregon, where he joined the coaching staff in 1995 and immediately helped contribute to a passing attack that ranked among the nation’s elite each of the six seasons he served as wide receivers coach.  Twice during Petersen’s stay at Oregon, offensive teams he was linked to broke the school record for single-season passing yards, and three times in the same time period the Ducks broke the single-season school record for most touchdowns. 

Prior to working at Oregon, Petersen served as the quarterbacks coach at Portland State University from 1993-1994, helping the Vikings advance to the NCAA Division II playoffs both seasons. 

In 1992, Petersen guided the quarterbacks at the University of Pittsburgh.  That season, the Panthers established a school record for passing yards and ranked eighth nationally in total offense and passing.  In addition, he contributed to the development of first-team All-Big East Conference quarterback Alex Van Pelt, who eclipsed the school’s passing yardage totals previously held by Dan Marino.

Petersen’s success as a coach can be directly linked to a record-setting career as a quarterback at his alma mater, UC-Davis.  He was named the Northern California Athletic Conference Player of the Year as a senior and was the top rated Division II quarterback in the nation.  Petersen received second-team Kodak Division II All-America honors and still holds the Division II record for career pass completions at 69.6 percent.  Petersen was inducted into the school’s athletic hall of fame in 1993.

After receiving his bachelor’s degree in Psychology from UC Davis in 1988, Petersen started his coaching career at Davis, serving as the head freshman coach in 1987-88 and the receivers coach from 1989-91.  Petersen holds a master’s degree in Educational Psychology from UC Davis. 

Brent Pease—Wide Receivers Coach

Pease is in his first season as assistant head coach at Boise State and his second as wide receivers coach.  He brings a wealth of experience to the Bronco offense.  Before coming to Boise State, Pease spent 15 seasons coaching at four different schools in three different conferences, the last 10 as his team’s offensive coordinator.

Last season Pease meshed a group of receivers into a productive unit that helped Boise State finish second in the country in scoring, sixth in passing efficiency and 10th in total offense.  Legedu Naanee was named first-team All-WAC, the first Bronco receiver to earn first-team all-league honors since 2004.  Naanee coupled with fellow seniors Jerard Rabb and Drisan James to catch 108 passes for 1,777 yards and 14 touchdowns.  Rabb and James were part of the historic “hook and lateral” play that allowed Boise State to score a last-second touchdown against Oklahoma that sent the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl into overtime.

Following the season, Naanee was a fifth round pick in the 2007 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers and James (Chicago Bears) and Rabb (Dallas Cowboys) signed free agent contracts.

Before joining the coaching staff at Boise State, Pease spent the last three seasons (2003-2005) as the offensive coordinator at Baylor University in the Big 12 Conference.  While at Baylor, Pease helped the Bears improve and finish with a 5-6 record last season, the team’s best finish since 1995.

From 2001-2002 Pease served as offensive coordinator at Kentucky in the Southeastern Conference, where he helped turn the Wildcats into one of the top scoring offenses in the country.  After posting a 2-9 season in Pease’s first year, the Wildcats finished 7-5 and ranked 23rd in scoring offense in 2002.  The 7-5 record matched the Wildcats’ best record since 1984.  

Pease coached future National Football League players Artose Pinner (Detroit Lions) and Jared Lorenzen (New York Giants) during his two seasons at Kentucky.  Pinner finished 13th in the nation in rushing in 2002 and Lorenzen was 23rd in pass efficiency that season, while Derek Abney was 10th in all-purpose rushing in 2002 and 12th in 2001.

Before moving to Division I football as a coordinator, Pease spent 10 seasons at Division I-AA schools Montana and Northern Arizona, five of those as a coordinator.  Pease served as assistant head coach, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Northern Arizona University from 1999-2000.  He was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at the University of Montana from 1996-1998 and was an offensive assistant coach for the Grizzlies from 1991-1995.

Pease helped the Grizzlies establish themselves as one of the premier I-AA teams in the mid-90’s when the Grizzlies won the I-AA National Championship in 1995, finished second in 1996 and advanced to the semifinals in 1994.  During his time coaching at Montana, the Grizzlies finished with 10 or more wins four times in eight years and while he was offensive coordinator Montana boasted records of 14-1 (1996), 8-4 (1997) and 8-4 (1998).

Montana led all of I-AA in passing in 1996, averaging 339.6 yards per game, while leading the Big Sky in both 1996 and 1998.  Under Pease’s tutelage as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, Grizzly quarterback Brian Ah Yat threw a Big Sky record 42 touchdown passes in 1996.

During his time at Montana, Pease mentored quarterbacks Dave Dickenson and Ah Yat.  Dickenson is first in Big Sky Conference history in total offense and Ah Yat is 12th.  Ah Yat led I-AA in 1996 with an average of 340.36 yards of total offense per game.  Dickenson was the 1995 Walter Payton Award winner and was an AP All-American in 1993, 1994 and 1995.  Ah Yat was a Walter Payton Award finalist and was an All-American in 1996 and 1998.  Dickenson and Ah Yat combined to win five Big Sky MVP awards.

Pease graduated from Mountain Home High School in 1983.  He played at Walla Walla Community College from 1983-1984 and then played at Montana from 1985-1986.  Pease ranks ninth at Montana in both single season and career passing.  He graduated from Montana in 1990 with a degree in health and human performance emphasis in social sciences

Bryan Harsin—Offensive Coordinator

Harsin is in his seventh season as a member of the Bronco football staff and his second as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.  The 30-year-old Harsin is one of the top young coaches in the country and one of the youngest offensive coordinators in Division I football.

After serving as tight ends coach from 2002-05, Harsin was promoted to offensive coordinator when Petersen was named head coach.  Harsin was a graduate assistant in 2001.

In Harsin’s first season as offensive coordinator, Boise State finished first in the WAC in rushing, second in scoring offense and passing efficiency, third in total offense and fourth in passing offense.  The Broncos also were second in the country in scoring offense, sixth in rushing offense and passing efficiency and 10th in total offense.

Six Boise State players earned either first-team or second-team All-WAC honors, with two of those earning All-America recognition.  Running back Ian Johnson led the country in rushing touchdowns and scoring while finishing second in rushing and ninth in total offense.  Johnson also set a new Boise State single-season rushing record with 1,713 yards on a school-record 277 carries.  

He was named to four separate All-America teams and finished eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting.  He was also a semifinalist for the Doak Walker Award and one of 10 “Players to Watch” for the 2006 Walter Camp Player of the Year Award.

Offensive lineman Ryan Clady earned second-team All-America recognition by SI.com and was a first-team All-WAC pick along with wide receiver Legedu Naanee and tight end Derek Schouman.  Quarterback Jared Zabransky was a second-team All-WAC selection as was offensive guard Jeff Cavender.  

Two players on the Broncos’ offense were selected in the 2007 NFL Draft, Naanee in the fifth round by the San Diego Chargers and Schouman in the seventh round by the Buffalo Bills, and four others (Drisan James, Jerard Rabb, Brad Lau and Zabransky) signed free agents contracts with NFL teams. 

While Harsin coached the tight ends they played a vital role in a Bronco offense that led the country twice and finished in the top 10 in scoring in each of his four years as tight ends coach.  During his tenure as tight ends coach, two Bronco tight ends earned honorable mention All-WAC honors.

In 2005, four Bronco tight ends combined to catch 27 passes for 298 yards and three touchdowns.  Schouman finished sixth on the team with 17 catches for 177 yards and a touchdown, while Sherm Blaser and Ryan Putnam each caught four passes and Jared Hunter added two catches.  

In 2004, Harsin helped Bronco tight ends contribute to the top scoring offense in school history.  Tight ends Schouman, Andy Weldon and Blaser combined for 29 catches, 447 yards and three touchdowns.  Weldon earned honorable mention All-WAC honors and Schouman finished fourth on the team with 15 catches despite missing five games with an injury.

In 2003, Harsin blended a pair of returnees with three new tight ends, including a pair of freshmen.  The five tight ends combined to catch 41 passes with five touchdowns.  True freshman Schouman made an immediate impact on the team, catching 17 passes while scoring four touchdowns, including the game winner against TCU in the PlainsCapital Fort Worth Bowl.  

In 2002, Harsin helped turn a group of tight ends into a cohesive unit that made plenty of big plays for the Bronco offense.  Rocky Atkinson was an honorable mention selection on the All-WAC team.

Harsin was a member of the Bronco football team from 1995-1999, earning three varsity letters during that time.  He served as Boise State’s No. 2 signal caller in 1999, when the team went 10-3 and won the Crucial.com Humanitarian Bowl.

After graduating from Boise State in 2000 with a degree in Business Management, Harsin entered the coaching profession at Eastern Oregon University.  During the 2000 season he coached running backs and receivers at the La Grande, Oregon school.

Justin Wilcox—Defensive Coordinator

The 30-year-old Wilcox’s defense was instrumental in helping Boise State to a 13-0 record in his first season as defensive coordinator and a 43-42 overtime win over Oklahoma in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl.

The Broncos led the Western Athletic Conference in scoring defense, total defense, rushing defense, pass efficiency defense and pass defense.  The Broncos also ranked second in sacks and third in tackles for loss in the WAC.  Nationally, Boise State was eighth in rushing defense, 14th in total defense, 20th in scoring defense, 28th in sacks, and 30th in pass efficiency defense.

Four Broncos earned either first-team or second-team All-WAC honors under Wilcox.  Linebacker Korey Hall was named the WAC Defensive Player of the Year, defensive tackle Andrew Browning was a first-team pick while safety Marty Tadman and linebacker Colt Brooks were second-team all-league selections.

Two members of the Broncos 2006 defense were selected in the 2007 NFL Draft, Gerald Alexander in the second round by the Detroit Lions and Hall in the sixth round by the Green Bay Packers, and three others (Browning, Mike Dominguez and Quinton Jones) signed free agent contracts with NFL teams.

Before assuming the duties as the Bronco defensive coordinator, Wilcox spent three seasons at the University of California as the Golden Bears’ linebackers coach.  

While coaching linebackers at Cal from 2003-2005, Wilcox helped the Golden Bears to three straight bowl games and 26-12 record.  The Bears played in the Insight Bowl in 2003, the Holiday Bowl in 2004 and the Las Vegas Bowl in 2005.  

Wilcox was credited with turning his linebackers into a tight-knit unit that epitomized the Cal defense’s swarm-to-the-ball philosophy.  In 2005 he coached a second-team All-Pac 10 player and two first-team freshman All-America picks.

In two seasons as a graduate assistant at Boise State, Wilcox worked with outside linebackers.  He helped Boise State to a victory over No. 8 Fresno State in 2001, the highest ranking of any team Boise State has beaten, and a 12-1 record and a No. 15 national ranking in 2002.

Wilcox played at Oregon from 1995-99, and was a part of four Duck teams that advanced to bowl games.  He played in the 1997 Vegas Bowl, the 1998 Aloha Bowl and the 1999 Sun Bowl, while redshirting in 1995 when Oregon played in the Cotton Bowl.

Wilcox was a safety for three years at Oregon before moving to cornerback in 1999 as a senior.  He earned second-team All-Pac 10 Conference honors.  Wilcox earned his bachelor’s degree in Anthropology from Oregon in 1999.  

The Wilcox name is one very familiar to Bronco football, as Justin’s father is former Boise Junior College great Dave Wilcox.  The elder Wilcox played for the Broncos in 1960 and 1961, where he earned All-America honors before transferring to the University of Oregon.  Dave Wilcox went on to become an All-Pro linebacker for the San Francisco 49ers and was later inducted into the Boise State Athletic Hall of Fame and the NFL Pro Football Hall of Fame as a member of the 2000 class.

Chris Strausser—Run Game Coordinator and Tight Ends Coach

After a one-year hiatus, Chris Strausser returns to Boise State as the team’s run game coordinator and tight ends coach.  Strausser spent five seasons at Boise State in the Dan Hawkins era before accompanying Hawkins to Colorado for one season.

Strausser was the architect of the modern Boise State line, serving as offensive line coach at Boise State from 2001-2005, while doubling as assistant head coach from 2003-2005.  It was his leadership that transformed the unit into a cohesive, consistent and highly talented line that has become one of the best in the nation.

In his five seasons as offensive line coach for the Broncos, Strausser had four players earn first-team All-WAC honors, with Daryn Colledge doing it twice.  Colledge earned first-team All-WAC accolades in both 2004 and 2005, Scott Huff and Rob Vian were named to the all-conference team in 2002, and Matt Hill earned the honor in 2001.  Strausser also had three players earn either second-team or honorable mention honors, with Klayton Adams being named second-team All-WAC in 2005 and Colledge earning second-team All-WAC honors in 2003. Tyrone Tutogi was an honorable mention All-WAC selection that same season.  At Colorado, Strausser coached Brian Daniels who was named an honorable mention All-Big 12 pick.

Two of Strausser’s offensive linemen at Boise State were drafted in the NFL, with Colledge picked in the second round in 2006 by the Green Bay Packers and Matt Hill drafted in the fifth round in 2002 by the Seattle Seahawks.  Vian singed a free agent contract with the Detroit Lions following the 2002 season.  

A veteran assistant coach, Strausser has a varied coaching background, one that has seen him make stops at six different schools in California and the Pacific Northwest.

In addition to his season at Colorado, where he served as assistant head coach and offensive line coach, Strausser served as the offensive line coach and run game coordinator at Portland State University during the 2000 season.  His work with the Viking offense played a key role in the team going 8-3 and advancing to the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs for the first time in school history.  It marked his second stop at Portland State, as Strausser also served as offensive line coach and recruiting coordinator for the Vikings during the 1993 and 1994 seasons.  Portland State advanced to the Division II playoffs in both of those seasons.

In between stints at Portland State, Strausser spent two seasons at San Jose State and three years at Foothill College in Los Altos Hills, California.  Strausser was at San Jose State during the 1995 and 1996 seasons, serving as the offensive line coach and recruiting coordinator for the Spartans.  In 1997, he moved on to Foothill, where he spent three seasons as the offensive coordinator.  While directing the offense at Foothill, Strausser helped the Owls to back-to-back 10 win seasons in 1998 and 1999.

Strausser started his coaching career in 1989 as the wide receiver and tight ends coach at Menlo College in California.  During the 1990 and 1991 seasons, he was an assistant coach at Oregon State, where he coached running backs the first year and offensive tackles and tight ends his second year with the Beaver program.  In 1992, Strausser moved on to Sonoma State, where he continued to work with the offensive tackles and tight ends, as well as serving as special teams coordinator.

A 1989 graduate of Chico State with a degree in Physical Education, Strausser earned his master’s degree in Education from Oregon State in 1991. 

Jeff Choate—Running Backs and Special Teams Coach

Choate is in his second season as running backs and special teams coach at Boise State.

In his first season, three players Choate coached earned All-WAC honors, with Ian Johnson named as a first-team running back, Anthony Montgomery as first-team kicker and Kyle Stringer as second-team punter.  In addition, Johnson was named to four separate All-America teams and finished eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting.  He was also a semifinalist for the Doak Walker Award and one of 10 “Players to Watch” for the 2006 Walter Camp Player of the Year Award.  

Johnson led the country in rushing touchdowns and scoring while finishing second in rushing and ninth in total offense.  Johnson also set a new Boise State single-season rushing record with 1,713 yards on a school-record 277 carries.  Montgomery tied for 18th in the country in scoring while finishing third in the WAC.  Stringer was ninth in the nation in punting and first in the WAC, and was signed as a free agent by the Seattle Seahawks following the season.

Choate joined the Bronco program after one season as the Eastern Illinois special teams coach. The Panthers finished the 2005 season first in the Ohio Valley Conference and 22nd in the nation in net punting at 34.3 yards per punt. The Panthers’ punter finished second in the OVC and put 27 of his 69 punts inside the 20, 18 of those inside the 10. Choate’s place kicker at Eastern Illinois was named to the OVC All-Newcomer team. 

Before coaching at Eastern Illinois, Choate spent two seasons as the special teams coach at Utah State, where the Aggies led the country in punt returns in 2004. They also ranked 24th in the country in kickoff returns and were 27th in net punting. Utah State was one of just six NCAA Division I teams to have three special team units rank among the top 30. 

Choate was a graduate assistant at Utah State and worked with the defensive line and safeties before becoming the special teams coach. 

Choate was head coach at Post Falls High School from 1997-2001 and also served as athletic director the final two years. Post Falls advanced to the Idaho state playoffs twice in 1998 and 1999. Before coaching at Post Falls, Choate was the defensive coordinator at Twin Falls High School in 1996 and was the head coach at Challis High in 1994-95. Challis had its first winning season in 10 years and first playoff appearance since 1976 during his tenure. He earned District Six Coach of the Year honors. 

Choate is a 1993 graduate of Montana-Western with a degree in Secondary Education, where he served two seasons as an assistant coach while completing his degree.

Scott Huff—Offensive Line Coach

Former Bronco great Scott Hutt is in his second season coaching at his alma mater and his first as the team’s offensive line coach.  Huff spent his first season at Boise State tutoring the team’s tight ends.  Huff spent the previous two seasons working with the offensive line as a graduate assistant at Arizona State University under former Boise State coach Dirk Koetter.

In his first season as a full-time coach, Huff’s tight ends were instrumental in Boise State’s undefeated, 13-0 season and its 43-42 win in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl over Oklahoma.  Derek Schouman earned first-team All-WAC honors, while Boise State’s tight ends combined to catch 36 passes for 401 yards and five touchdowns as Boise State finished second in the country in scoring, sixth in rushing and 10th in total offense.  Schouman was also a seventh round pick in the NFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills.

As a player, Huff started 40 games at center during his four-year career.  During that time he earned first-team All-WAC honors as a senior anchoring an offensive line that helped Boise State lead the nation in scoring and total yards.  During his career, Boise State won three conference championships—one in the Western Athletic Conference and two in the Big West Conference.  In 2005 he was named to the Bronco Stadium 35th Anniversary Team as the team’s center.

Huff, a team captain his senior year at Boise State, was also named first-team All-WAC by The Sporting News following his junior season and was on both the Rimington and Lombardi Award watch lists as a senior.   

Huff, a native of Phoenix, Ariz., earned a Business Administration degree from Boise State before getting his master’s degree in Secondary Ed-Curriculum and Instruction at Arizona State.

Pete Kwiatkowski—Defensive Line Coach

Kwiatkowski is in his second season of his second stint coaching at Boise State, his alma mater, as the Broncos’ defensive line coach.  

In his return to the Broncos last season, Kwiatkowski helped coach Boise State to an undefeated season, 13-0, and a 43-42 overtime win over Oklahoma in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl.  Defensive tackle Andrew Browning earned first-team All-WAC honors, while Boise State led the WAC in rushing defense, total defense and scoring defense, and finished second in sacks.  The Broncos also ranked eighth nationally in rushing defense, 14th in total defense, 20th in scoring defense and 28th in sacks.  

Before returning to Boise State, Kwiatkowski spent six seasons as Montana State’s defensive coordinator.  

Under Kwiatkowski, Montana State’s defense allowed a league-best 332.2 yards per game in 2005, while also leading the league in passing defense, allowing just 165.6 yards per game. The Bobcats were second in scoring, giving up only 22.8 points per game. The Bobcats also led the Big Sky in total defense four other times--in 2001 allowing 358.0 yards, in 2002 giving up 306.8 yards and in 2003 with 298.4 yards per game. 

In addition to leading the Big Sky in pass defense in 2005, the Bobcats also led the league in pass defense under Kwiatkowski in 2001 with 203.9 yards per game, in 2002 with 194.1 yards per game and in 2003 with 168.7 yards per game. The Bobcats also finished the 2003 season first in scoring defense, allowing only 16.5 points per game. 

With Kwiatkowski as defensive coordinator, Montana State qualified for the I-AA playoffs in 2002 and 2003.  He coached cornerback Joey Thomas, a third-round pick by Green Bay in 2004, and defensive tackle John Taylor, a fourth-round pick of the Detroit Lions.  Kwiatkowski also coached three Big Sky Conference defensive MVPs, Boise State’s Joe O’Brien in 1994, Kane Ioane in 2003 and Roger Cooper in 2004. 

Kwiatkowski began his coaching career as an assistant at Boise State, where he coached for eight seasons (1988-96) under three different head coaches. During his first stint with the Broncos he coached defensive backs, outside linebackers and the defensive line at various times. After leaving Boise State, Kwiatkowski moved to Snow Junior College where he was the defensive co-coordinator and defensive line coach for one season and then coached at Eastern Washington for two seasons where he coached Dario Romero, a first-team All-Big Sky pick who went on to play for the Miami Dolphins. 

Kwiatkowski was inducted into the Boise State Athletic Hall of Fame in 1996.  He earned four first-team All-America awards in 1987 and was named the Big Sky Conference’s Defensive Player of the Year. He also received first-team All-Big Sky honors in 1986 and 1987 and honorable-mention honors in 1985. He received honorable mention All-America recognition from the Associated Press in 1986.

Kwiatkowski graduated from Boise State in 1990. 

Viliami Tuivai—Linebackers Coach and Recruiting Coordinator

Tuivai is in his fourth season at Boise State and his second as linebackers coach and recruiting coordinator.  He began in Boise working with linebackers as a graduate assistant for two years and served as director of football operations for one season. In Tuivai’s first season as linebacker coach, Korey Hall earned WAC Defensive Player of the Year honors and Colt Brooks was named second-team All-WAC.  Both Hall and Brooks also won a WAC Player of the Week honor.  

Hall became the first linebacker drafted in the annual NFL draft since 1987 when he was picked in the sixth round by the Green Bay Packers in the 2007 NFL Draft.  

Tuivai served as a volunteer assistant linebacker coach at UC-Davis in 2002.  He was a two-year starter at weak side linebacker at UC Davis, helping the Aggies to the NCAA Division II national semifinals in 2000 and 2001.  Tuivai played one year at Mt. San Antonio College (1996) and one year at San Bernardino Valley College (1997), helping both squads to the Southern Cal Bowl championship each season.  

Tuivai graduated from UC Davis in 2002 with a bachelor’s degree in Sociology.

Marcel Yates—Secondary Coach

Yates is set to begin his fifth season as a coach for his alma mater.  He will once again be in charge of the entire secondary after coaching cornerbacks the previous three seasons.  Prior to joining the Bronco coaching staff, Yates was the assistant secondary coach for Montana State for two years.

Last season safety Marty Tadman earned second-team All-WAC honors and was named the defensive MVP at the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl.  Freshman Kyle Wilson was named an honorable mention Freshman All-America by The Sporting News. Tadman finished third in the WAC in interceptions and 29th in tackles.

In 2002, Yates helped lead Montana State to an overall record of 7-5, the school’s first Big Sky Conference championship, and its first NCAA Division 1-AA playoff appearance in 18 years.    

In 2003 both of Yates’ starting cornerbacks earned All-WAC recognition.  Gabe Franklin was named to the All-WAC second team, while Julius Brown was an honorable mention All-WAC choice.  Brown was second in the league in passes defended, while Franklin was fourth.

In 2004, one of Yates’ pupils earned All-WAC honors for the third straight year.  After two seasons as a second-team all-league pick, Gabe Franklin was named first team after leading the WAC in passes defended.  Yates’ other corner, Gerald Alexander, led the WAC in interceptions with five and was fifth in passes defended. 

Two years ago, true freshman Orlando Scandrick was named to pair of Freshman All-America teams after starting 12 of Boise State’s 13 games.  Scandrick finished eighth in the WAC in passes defended while Alexander  was sixth.  

Alexander became the first Bronco defensive back selected in the NFL Draft since 2001 when he was the second round pick of the Detroit Lions in 2007.  Alexander, the 61st overall pick, was the fourth highest Bronco ever picked in the draft trailing Marcus Koch (30th), David Hughes (31st) and Daryn Colledge (47th).  

Yates had an outstanding rookie season for Boise State making 70 tackles in 1996.  Yates finished his career with 138 tackles, 89 unassisted.  Following the 1999 season he received the team’s Denny Erickson Memorial Award for Valor.  

Yates received his bachelor’s degree from Boise State in Social Science/Public Affairs in 2000.

Julius Brown—Offensive Graduate Assistant

Former Bronco star Julius Brown is the offensive graduate assistant at Boise State after spending last season as the assistant director of football operations.  Brown will work with the Bronco wide receivers. 

Brown spent one season coaching defensive backs at Boise’s Capital High School.  While at Capital, Brown helped the Eagles to the state playoffs, while coaching a pair of current Broncos, Kyle Efaw and Jarrell Root.
 
Brown, a 2006 graduate of Boise State with a degree in Business Administration, was a three-year starter and a four-year letterman for the Broncos playing from 2000-2003.  He was a member of Boise State’s 2002 and 2003 WAC championship teams and helped the Broncos to wins the 2002 Humanitarian Bowl and the 2003 Fort Worth Bowl.  Brown was named an honorable mention All-WAC selection as a senior after leading the WAC in passes defended.   

Anthony Parker—Defensive Graduate Assistant

Parker is in his first season as the defensive graduate assistant at Boise State after spending two seasons as a student manager for the Broncos.  Parker assisted with the defensive line while he worked to complete his undergraduate degree.  He coached defensive backs and was the pass-defense coordinator at Del Oro High School in Loomis, California and also was the defensive backs coach at Rocklin High in California.

Parker’s Del Oro team earned a spot in the Sac-Joaquin section championships in 2004.  The Eagles led their conference in interceptions and gave up the fewest points in the league.  Parker’s pass defense led the entire Sacramento area in interceptions in 2003 with 20.

Rocklin held opponents to 32.9 yards passing per game and led their league in scoring defense.

After serving four years in the United States Marine Corps, Parker attended Sierra Junior College in Rocklin, Calif., where he played both defensive back and receiver for the Wolverines. 

Parker graduated from Boise State with a degree in Social Science in 2007.

Keith Bhonapha—Director of Football Operations

Bhonapha is in his second season as director of football operations at Boise State after playing at Hawai’i, and then serving as a graduate assistant for the Warriors for three seasons.  Bhonapha made 42 tackles, one sack and six pass breakups his senior year in Hawai’i.  Following his graduation from Hawai’i in 2003, he worked with defensive backs and special teams.