There wasn’t much buzz around Rasean Jones when he first showed up at Boise State. That’s changed fast.
The 6-foot-2, 215-pound wide receiver arrived with a modest recruiting profile, but his rise has been impossible to ignore after just one college game. Jones grew up in Baker City, a small eastern Oregon town of about 10,000, roughly a two-hour drive from Boise on Interstate 84. After spending his senior year at Rocky Mountain High in Meridian, he picked Boise State over offers from Oregon State, Washington State and Idaho, and former Broncos wide receivers coach Matt Miller helped sell him on the idea that he could make the jump to receiver.
Jones got to campus early in January, joining offseason workouts as a 17-year-old freshman. From there, the momentum built quickly.
By April, offensive coordinator Nate Potter said he had never seen a wide receiver come through the program like Jones. When fall camp opened, there was already talk he could earn meaningful snaps.
By the end of camp, he was lined up as a starter.
Then came Saturday at Oregon’s Autzen Stadium, where Jones made his debut in front of more than 57,000 fans and immediately looked like he belonged. In Boise State’s 34-27 loss, he caught four passes for 76 yards, including a 23-yard grab on third-and-9 that kept the Broncos’ opening drive alive and helped lead to a touchdown. He also hauled in an 18-yard catch for a first down on Boise State’s final drive.
The performance wasn’t just about the numbers. Jones showed up all over the field, from a vertical route down the left hash that turned into the 23-yard catch in the first quarter to third-quarter receptions of 22 and 13 yards. He finished with a one-handed catch in the final two minutes while a defender was all over him, the kind of play that makes people start asking bigger questions.
Do the Broncos have their next star WR in the making?
“He’s still a true freshman, so you can’t label him any one big thing right now,” Potter said Monday. “We’ve got to be careful with that.”
Even with the caution, Potter made it clear Jones has already earned trust. He said Jones is “one of our best playmakers that we have.
He’s proven that,” and added, “... I’m really proud of what he did, and I know there’s going to be some things that we’ve got to clean up. ...
I think he showed who he is as a football player.”
Quarterback Maddux Madsen said the freshman is the “most poised” person he’s ever been around. Jones echoed that calm on Tuesday, saying he felt an “odd peace of mind” before the Oregon game.
“I thought I’d be kind of anxious and riled up and all that, but I really had a peace of mind,” Jones said. “... I don’t know, it didn’t really shock me as much as I thought it would.”
Boise State leaned on him heavily in the opener. Jones played 66 of the Broncos’ 68 offensive snaps and also contributed on kickoffs and kickoff returns. Potter said the staff has to “be smart” with his workload as a freshman, but if Jones keeps playing like this, taking him off the field may get harder and harder.
“He’s a great football player, a great kid, a great guy in the building,” Potter said. “So I think he’s going to have those highs and lows, just like every player and every freshman player is going to have.
“But I think we know we’re going to continue to push and get the most out of him, because we know what he’s capable of doing.”
In Other News...
Boise State Just Took A Recruiting Hit Fans Will Notice
Boise States 2027 recruiting class took a notable early blow when Kingston Parks, a three-star wide receiver from Aledo High School in Texas, announced he is no longer committed to head coach Spencer Danielson and the Broncos. Parks had already taken a winding path to this point, first committing to Utah, then backing off that pledge before landing with Boise State, which made his departure feel especially abrupt for a program trying to build momentum on the recruiting trail.
The Broncos still have 14 known commitments in the class, and wide receiver is not completely empty behind Parks, with JIsaiah Mitchell already in the fold. Even so, losing a pass-catcher with Parks profile is the kind of setback fans notice, especially this early in the cycle, and it leaves Boise State with another position group to keep recruiting hard as the 2027 class continues to take shape. [Read more 🡒]
Dakorien Moore Is Becoming A Bigger Problem Than Boise State Saw
Oregons offense found another explosive answer against Boise State when Dakorien Moore turned a 62-yard touchdown into one of the nights biggest momentum swings. For a Broncos defense trying to settle in, it was the kind of play that quickly changed the temperature of the game and reminded everyone how dangerous the Ducks can be when their young receiver gets a clean lane.
Dan Lanning has been as impressed with Moores habits as his highlights, pointing to the receivers coachability, his effort on the less visible parts of the job and the way he handles game situations with maturity. Moore also said he is healthy and ready to go for Oregons next road trip to Oklahoma State, which is hardly comforting news for anyone hoping Boise State was going to see the last of him anytime soon. [Read more 🡒]
Boise State Just Saw The Oregon Threat That Changed Everything
Boise State spent opening night chasing Oregons passing game, and the Ducks receiver trio gave the Broncos plenty to worry about in the 34-27 loss. Evan Stewart was busy all night with eight catches for 72 yards, while the Ducks kept finding ways to stress the coverage with tempo, spacing and a passing attack that looked comfortable from the start.
Dan Lanning made it clear after the game that the wideouts and offensive coordinator Drew Mehringer were a big reason Oregons offense clicked so well. For Boise State, the bigger concern is obvious: the Ducks found enough matchup wins at receiver to keep the Broncos on their heels even with the game hanging in the balance, and the path those targets created is the part Boise State will be dissecting long after the final whistle. [Read more 🡒]