Reports: Boise St. interested in Bobcats' coach
Daily Inter Lake | Daily Inter-Lake | UPDATED 5 years, 3 months AGO
Montana State football coach Jeff Choate is a candidate to replace Bryan Harsin as head coach at Boise State, both the Idaho Statesman and Bozeman Chronicle newspapers reported Wednesday.
Choate, who’s been the Bobcats’ head coach since 2016, was an assistant under Chris Peterson at Boise State from 2006-11.
Dave Southorn of the Statesmen reported via Twitter that Choate would interview.
“He has the support of a lot of former players, and I can confirm, via sources, that Montana State coach Jeff Choate will interview for the Boise State vacancy,” Southorn wrote.
The Chronicle contacted MSU AD Leon Costello, who declined to comment.
Choate worked with Boise State’s running backs for three years and then linebackers for three years while directing special teams all six seasons. The Broncos went 73-6 in that span with two unbeaten campaigns and four bowl victories.
Choate left for a job at Washington State in 2012 and after another year at the University of Florida, he rejoined Peterson at Washington for 20014-15.
His record in four seasons at MSU is 28-22, which includes an 11-4 record in 2019 that ended with the Bobcats’ first FCS semifinal appearance since the 1984 national championship. Choate has also gone 4-0 in the heated Brawl of the Wild rivalry with the University of Montana.
A St. Maries, Idaho native who played and graduated from UM-Western, Choate found lots of support from former players on social media. That includes Seattle Seahawks’ tight end Will Dissly, a Bozeman product who was coached by Choate at UW.
“Played under #CoachChoate at Washington and watched him turn around MSU. Guy deserves that Boise state job,” Dissly tweeted.
Former Boise State linebacker Hunter White was more effusive, including this tweet:
“He took us under his wing, he had relationships with EVERY player and it meant something. BTW we DID have the best special teams in the country year in year out and every O/D starter wanted on special teams cuz of Choate.”
Two other candidates mentioned are Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator, who became the winningest quarterback in BSU history from 2008-11; and Oregon offensive coordinator Andy Avalos, who coached at Boise State from 2012-18l, the last three seasons as defensive coordinator.
Possibly delaying a decision is Boise State’s national search for an athletic director. Curt Apsey stepped down from the position in October, and senior associate AD Bob Carney has been the interim AD since.