Boise State’s roster is built around more than just Saturday’s depth chart. For Oregon fans, the recruiting trail tells a big part of the story, and the Broncos have a handful of names worth knowing before kickoff.
The headliner on defense is cornerback Jaden Mickey, a former 4-star from Corona (Calif.) Centennial High School who once had an Oregon offer before committing to Notre Dame.
Mickey appeared in 24 games with three starts as an underclassman for the Fighting Irish, redshirted in 2024, and then moved to Boise State in 2025. His first season with the Broncos was productive: 38 tackles and seven tackles for loss.
At quarterback, Boise State leans on Maddux Madsen, a three-star prospect from American Fork (Utah) in the 2022 class. He chose the Broncos over only one other offer, New Mexico, but by his redshirt freshman year he was already sharing snaps with Taylen Green.
Green later departed for Arkansas and was a sixth-round NFL Draft pick earlier this year. Madsen then turned in a big 2024 season alongside Ashton Jeanty, throwing for 3,018 yards, 23 touchdowns and six interceptions.
Last year, he finished with 2,334 passing yards, 18 touchdowns and nine interceptions while dealing with an injury late in the season.
On the edge, Jayden Virgin-Morgan stands out as Boise State’s star recruit. The fifth-year senior was a four-star coming out of high school and stayed home for the Broncos.
He redshirted as a freshman, worked into a bigger role by his redshirt freshman year, and now sits as the favorite for the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year award. The 6-foot-3, 257-pound pass rusher has piled up 16 sacks, 119 tackles and three forced fumbles over the past two seasons.
Boise State also got a lift from the transfer market with safety Roman Tillmon, who is expected to start at nickelback. Tillmon arrived after a standout season at South Dakota, where he led the team with 94 tackles.
He was only a two-star recruit out of Missouri, but his production last year made him one of the Broncos’ more useful offseason additions. Boise State did not add any transfers rated better than 86 by 247Sports this offseason.
The Broncos’ highest-rated transfer overall is Sterling Lane, a four-star from Westlake Village (Calif.) Oaks Christian in the 2022 class.
He originally committed to Arizona over Oregon State and Colorado, and had also reported an offer from Oregon. Now listed at 6-foot-4 and 240 pounds, Lane has settled into an edge role.
He had six tackles last season, along with three sacks, including two in Boise State’s bowl finale. He is expected to rotate again this year.
One of Boise State’s better recruiting wins came at running back with Sire Gaines. The Broncos’ offense is powered by 87-rated 2024 back Dylan Riley and 86-rated 2025 back Gaines, and the pair combined for nearly 2,000 rushing yards and 18 rushing touchdowns last season, with Riley edging him out as the lead back.
Gaines had been trending toward Arizona State and also held offers from Arizona and Washington, with San Diego State and Washington State in the mix. Boise State landed him anyway, and he delivered as a freshman.
Another name that fits the under-the-radar mold is linebacker Boen Phelps. The Spokane (Wash.)
Freeman High School product was a versatile athlete in the Pacific Northwest, but recruiting services didn’t give him much attention. Boise State brought him in as a preferred walk-on in the 2023 class, and Washington State also had a PWO offer on the table.
Phelps broke through in 2025, starting nine games and finishing with 66 tackles and four tackles for loss. He also forced a fumble in the Broncos’ Mountain West Championship Game win.
Boise State’s 2026 class includes a pair of four-star freshmen. Wide receiver Terrious Favors, a two-way athlete from Atlanta (Georgia) Carver High School, signed on with the Broncos, but early reports say his role may be limited to start the 2026 season. The 5-foot-9, 168-pound receiver is one of the class’s top names, even if the opening workload is expected to be modest.
The other four-star freshman is offensive tackle Kole Cronin, a 6-foot-6 lineman from Reno (Nevada) Bishop Manogue. He had Power 4 offers from Cal, Arizona, Colorado, Michigan State and Minnesota, then chose Boise State over Oregon State, Nevada and Cal. Cronin’s first year will be delayed, though, because he is set to miss the season with a preseason injury.
And then there’s one more freshman Oregon fans should keep an eye on: receiver Rasean Jones. A native of Oregon who played at Baker High School before transferring to Meridian (Idaho) Rocky Mountain High School for his senior year, Jones came in as an 88-rated recruit. Fall camp reports say he has been one of the Broncos’ best-performing freshmen and could get on the field right away at Autzen Stadium.
In Other News...
Autzen Is Facing A Threat Oregon Fans Never Wanted
Autzen Stadium has long been one of the more accessible places in major college football, where generations of Oregon fans could realistically make a game part of their fall routine. That feeling is getting harder to preserve. Home ticket prices have climbed sharply in recent years, with many games now opening above $100 and the biggest matchups climbing toward the kind of figure that used to sound unthinkable for a seat in Eugene.
For Ducks fans, the concern is bigger than a single expensive Saturday. The worry is that the people who helped build Autzens atmosphere, the longtime loyal crowd that made the place feel different, could slowly get pushed out by rising costs. Oregons success has made home dates more desirable, but it has also made them less reachable for the average fan, and that tradeoff is becoming impossible to ignore. [Read more 🡒]
Oregons Deep Backfield Could Become A Real Problem For Opponents
Oregons running back room is starting to look like one of the cleaner advantages on the roster as the Ducks turn toward the 2026 season. Sophomores Dierre Hill Jr. and Jordon Davison sit at the center of it, but they are hardly alone, with Da'Jaun Riggs, Simeon Price, Tradarian Ball and Brandon Smith all part of a group that gives the staff real options. For a program that has spent plenty of time building around speed and depth, this is the kind of position battle that can sharpen everyone involved before the games even begin.
Dan Lanning has already underscored how much depth and competition matter, especially after the challenges Oregon dealt with last season, and quarterback Dante Moore has echoed that same message from the offensive side. The bigger question now is not whether the Ducks have enough bodies at running back, but how much of that talent can translate into a problem for opponents when the rotation tightens and roles start to settle. [Read more 🡒]
Dante Moore Is Already Giving New Oregon Teammates Real Confidence
Even before the 2026 season gets rolling, Dante Moore is already becoming the kind of quarterback Oregon teammates trust quickly. Coming off a strong 2025 season, Moore has drawn praise for the accuracy and leadership that show up in the little things, the sort of qualities that matter most in a locker room full of new faces trying to settle in. Among them is transfer tight end Andrew Olesh, who arrived from Penn State and is working to build timing with Moore as he tries to carve out a role in Oregons offense.
Olesh enters a tight end group with an opening after the departure of the Ducks top player at the position, and that makes this early chemistry even more important. He is viewed as a potential contributor, but in a new setting, with a new quarterback, nothing is handed out. For Oregon, the encouraging part is that Moore seems to be giving teammates a real sense of stability already, which can go a long way for a pass catcher trying to find his place in the offense. [Read more 🡒]