The Pac-12’s rebirth brings a fresh stage for Boise State, and a few Broncos look ready to make the jump with it.
Boise State helped define the Mountain West for 15 years, closing that stretch with three straight conference titles and a College Football Playoff berth in 2024. The Broncos also piled up all-MWC honors last season, with eight players earning spots and four landing on the first team: offensive tackle Kage Casey, center Mason Randolph, safety Ty Benefield and cornerback A’Marion McCoy.
As Boise State settles into its new conference home alongside Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State, three players stand out as strong candidates to pop right away in the new-look Pac-12.
Maddux Madsen’s backfield partner Ashton Jeanty? Wait source says Riley. Let's craft accurately.
Ameer? No, source names Riley.
The sophomore back already looked like a star in 2025, and Phil Steele has him on the preseason first-team all-Pac-12 list for 2026. At 5-foot-10 and 192 pounds, Riley turned 195 carries into 1,125 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns last season, then added 15 catches for 149 yards and two more scores.
He reached 100 yards on the ground five times, including a career-best 201 yards in an October blowout of UNLV. Riley was a second-team all-MWC pick last year, and he’ll share the load again with Sire Gaines, the 6-foot, 217-pound force who ran for 811 yards in 2025 and scored nine total touchdowns.
There’s real upside in that pairing; both could clear 1,000 yards this season.
At tight end, Luke Wagner is next in line for a bigger role after spending the past two seasons behind Matt Lauter. Wagner checks in at 6-foot-5, 250 pounds and enters his junior year with 34 career catches for 359 yards and a touchdown.
Lauter, meanwhile, leaves Boise State after a productive career that featured 97 receptions for 1,146 yards and 12 touchdowns, plus two all-MWC selections, including first-team honors in 2024. He’s trying to earn an NFL roster spot this season, and his work as both a receiver and blocker helped Boise State’s run game hum.
Wagner has already shown he can handle a workload, and this looks like the year he steps into the spotlight.
In the secondary, A’Marion McCoy brings the kind of résumé that travels well into a new conference. The 6-foot-1, 188-pound defensive back came to Boise State from Notre Dame in the 2025 offseason after three seasons there and arrived with a four-star recruiting pedigree from Southern California’s Centennial High School.
Last season, he played in 13 games with 11 starts at nickelback and finished with 38 tackles, including seven for loss, along with five pass breakups, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. Phil Steele has him pegged as a preseason first-team all-Pac-12 selection, and he’s positioned to become Boise State’s top cornerback in 2026.
In Other News...
Boise State Just Locked In A Key Piece For The Pac-12 Move
Boise States basketball staff has been taking shape around its next chapter, and the latest move adds another familiar name to the mix. The Broncos recently brought former player Max Rice onto the coaching staff, a move that helped deepen the programs connection to its own past as it prepares for the Pac-12.
Will Voigt also joins the bench after spending the last two seasons at BYU under Kevin Young, where he was part of a staff that worked with top-end talent. For Boise State, the hire fits the broader push to get the program set for the conference transition, while also filling a key opening left when Tim Duryea stepped away in May after eight seasons. [Read more 🡒]