What Is Boise State Getting With New Coach Spencer Danielson?
Broncos promote from within
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Players wanted this guy
On the morning of November 12th, Boise State fans received the news that Head Coach Andy Avalos was relieved of his duties. The timing at first seemed odd, as the Broncos had just beaten the New Mexico Lobos decisively 42-14 only hours before. Upon closer review, the 5-5 Broncos were having one of their most difficult seasons since the turn of the century and were in danger of not even making a bowl game.
Athletic Director Jerimiah Dickey said that “his head, heart, and gut” were telling him it was time for a new leader of Boise State Football. As a result, Spencer Danielson was named the Interim Head Coach for the second time, only this time he would be responsible for leading the Broncos through their final two games of the season.
Fast-forward three weeks from that fateful day and the unbelievable has transpired. The Boise State Broncos were crowned Mountain West Champions after a dominant victory over UNLV and Spencer Danielson’s “Interim” tag has been removed. How did Jerimiah Dickey arrive at this decision?
Well, Coach Danielson may not have left him with much of a choice. When he was asked to take over as the interim head coach, the Broncos had a slim 0.1% chance to make the MWC Championship Game, much less win the whole thing in prevailing fashion. Members of the Boise State Football Team credited Coach Danielson with making the necessary changes to allow the Broncos to rise to a championship level.
Throughout the process Coach Danielson avoided campaigning for himself at nearly all costs, simply positively redirecting the focus towards his players, his coaches, Bronco Nation, and the task at hand. Now just because Coach Danielson was too modest to campaign for himself, does not mean that countless people around him did not.
Endorsements for him to get the permanent position came in from all sides from a variety of individuals such as current players, coaches, former players, and even parents of current recruits. Current players were extremely outspoken about their support for Coach Danielson, none more than Safety and Mountain West Championship Game Defensive MVP Alexander Tuebner. He loudly proclaimed that Jerimiah Dickey should “stop the search” because they had “found their man” during the MWC Championship Game Trophy Presentation.
Mountain West Wire’s 2023 Postseason All-Conference Football Team
Spencer Danielson spent his playing days at Azusa Pacific playing linebacker from 2009 to 2012. He graduated with a bachelor’s in business administration and went on to earn his master’s in business administration as well from 2012 to 2013. He then spent four seasons coaching at his alma mater before joining Boise State in 2017 as a graduate assistant.
He was quickly promoted to a full-time coaching position in 2018 and co-defensive coordinator in 2019, then took over full DC duties from 2021 to 2023. Throughout the last three seasons, the Broncos have achieved a top three scoring defense in the MW and were often among the top defenses in the country.
Throughout Coach Danielson’s time at Boise State, he has been offered multiple positions at Power 5 programs, including the opportunity to follow Bryan Harsin to Auburn, but has turned down those offers to stay at Boise State. Despite his young age (just 35 years old), no one can question the passion and energy Coach Danielson brings to the Boise State facilities every single day.
After the announcement of his hire, many people took to social media to share their personal stories where they interacted with Coach Danielson and he in turn positively impacted their life. Only time will tell if this hire will work out or not, but one thing is for certain, it will not be from lack of effort and enthusiasm from Coach Danielson.
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