How Boise State Athletics Got Their Financial Groove Back
There have been many great runs in Bronco Athletics' brief successful history, but we've never seen the amount of positive and fiscal momentum happening right now. The football team announced that all six home games were sold out for the first time. The basketball team is poised to return to the NCAA Tournament, and preseason ticket sales are up.
Most Bronco fans focus their attention on what happens on the field. However, the real action in college sports occurs behind the scenes, involving business terms like profit and loss. Boise State doesn't have a cushion of big-money donors who can supplement an athletic program that doesn't make money. The football program is THE revenue driver for the athletic department; if the team doesn't make money, every program suffers.
Years ago, the department and university were wrecks. Coach Bryan Harsin was so fed up that he blistered the athletic director and university president for their lack of support. The coach also ripped the Mountain West Conference for its lack of commitment to competition.
Also, COVID devastated the Boise State Athletic Department. The university had replaced its long-time president and athletic director. In other words, Boise State's Athletic Department was not an ideal gig for anyone who had other options. We almost forgot to mention football Coach Bryan Harsin left for an ill-fated head coaching job at Auburn.
The university needed a leader who could rebuild the once proud Bronco Nation and find the necessary revenue sources to allow the football team to become competitive again. Boise State hired Jeramiah Dickey from Baylor University. Mr. Dickey faced a welcoming but very territorial community regarding Boise State Football.
The young athletic director made the tough calls to cancel big games, using the saved revenue to fund Bronco Athletics. Many of his decisions were criticized as overly ambitious. It's not easy to be Boise State's athletic director when the ghost of Gene Blieymer rules. Mr. Blieymer was the father of America's most famous football field, the Blue.
We've learned from Mr. Dickey that he is a relentless promoter of all Boise State Athletics. You can follow his adventures supporting all school sports on X or Twitter. He made the tough but right choice to replace Andy Avalos with Spencer Danielson.
Coach Avalos couldn't build a consistent winner, and his tenure was marked with coaching and player turnover. Those moves were undoubtedly not the Bronco Way. Mr. Dickey could've stood Pat, but he made the difficult call to fire a former player.
Instead of hiring a recycled coach or an outsider, Mr. Dickey hired the young, unproven Coach Danielson, who chose the players. However, Coach Avalos was once the players' choice, but they soured on him. It would've been easy and safer to hire a proven coach. Mr. Dickey chose Mr. Danielson, who is now a candidate for college football coach of the year.
Remember when Chris Petersen won several of those awards at Boise State? Many more projects are on Mr. Dickey's to-do list at Boise State. To quote one former Boise State coach, Bronco Nation continues to 'attack the future.'
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