Boise State AD Jeramiah Dickey joins Bronco Roundup in Georgia

Welcome back live at Poulson Stadium kicking off the 2024 season and Boise State Director of Athletics, Jeremiah Dickey joins us. Uh, you went, you went with All Black today, Bud Mouse, Jay Man or Mouse. You, you're from the South or at least spent time down here. What the heck? This is, this is real. Yeah, it is real. And, and it's not something that like I just walked into, I'm like, oh, yeah, you know, I've gotten used to that Boise weather, but this is, you know, I'm, this is exciting, you know, whether or not, you know, and, and it's not that hot. I mean, we'll, we'll battle through it, but we're prepared and we're ready to go. I was gonna say the players and coaches definitely prepared. I'm the only one complaining it's ok. We sat down and had a chat the other day, Jeremiah and, and you shared a story about how some of the guys off this team came up to you and said, hey, this was our toughest fall camp yet, but we loved it, right. It's amazing how Spencer can get a lot of work done and still get the players to enjoy it. What do you admire about his, his process and how he's able to achieve that one? I think it starts with how authentic he is. He has not changed. He's been the same guy as the D Cordinator as he was, as the interim, as he is now as the head coach. And, and that's important and I think kids nowadays they feel that, you know, they want that level of trust and, and, and appreciation in the relationship and, and all the things that matter to any relationship. And, you know, they also said that they would run through a wall for him and they understand that they have to prepare. There's a lot of high expectations for us, which is why we're all here and, and we embrace that. And so I'm really excited to see how they come out and perform and, and play for their, their brothers and, and ultimately, for Spencer as the leader of that program, I'm going to get to the expectations in just a minute here. But first, you know, we saw what Spencer was able to achieve in such a short window as the interim head coach last, you know, November, December when they, they went on to win a mountain conference championship despite having a 1% chance to do. So. How different do you think it will look now that Spencer has had 259 days since the last time, the Broncos played, not that I'm counting in order to build that culture, I would expect it to be very similar. You know, I, I think he spent a lot of time as a decorator, building those relationships and, and that's just continued into the off season. Obviously, he is in a different role and has to be more CEO than maybe coach and, and not as involved in the Xs and Os. But I mean, the guy doesn't sleep, his level of energy and who he is and how he shows up. He has been consistent from day one. I think everyone's kind of waiting for that shoe to drop of like, oh, he's human and, and, and ultimately, no one's perfect and Spencer will be the first one to tell you he is learning. But I've been really impressed with how he's leaning on his staff and leaning on people like coach Pete and others. You know, he wants to perfect this and he wants to do what's right and our purpose is so much greater than, than winning football games. I do believe the wins are going to and we have high expectations this season, but Spencer's really embraced his role as a member of this community department and a leader, you know, so it's something that's so interesting on this side of it is the media side of it. Sometimes you feel like coaches are trying to hide stuff. Spencer, he wants everything to be seen almost because there, there is a certain level of transparency and as you said, he's a very genuine person and it's been a lot of fun to cover this team when it comes to those expectations. This is something we've talked about probably at Nauseam here, Jeremiah, but Boise State now has legitimate access to the college football playoff if they take care of business. How big is that for your university? It's massive. You know, this is what we've, we've wanted, right? Group of five has wanted this, we now have a seat at the table and, and we're going to fight like hell for it. You know, obviously we have some control on that. We got to go out and win games and everyone understands that and it's not to add pressure to the team, but that's why you become a Bronco. It's not much has changed from wanting to go to a Fiesta bow. And now having this new opportunity in terms of, of a CFP, those Kellum more years they should have been in, in the playoff or B CS or whatever it was at that point in time, it feels like forever ago. Um, now we have that opportunity and, and I think there's, uh, there's an urgency and, you know, and these guys are locked in, you know, they're playing for each other and they're locked arms and, and that culture does matter if, if anything ever mattered off the field of play, it's this year and everything they've done this off season and how they've served in the community and their academics. And, you know, I've had the least amount of problems in a football program that I've ever had in my history in athletics. That's a testament to these guys. That's a testament to these coaches. There's, there's a different, different level of care and, and, and that's something I really appreciate as a leader. I think you see it in action too. Spencer doesn't just talk the talk. He walks the walk and you know, talking like a guy like Jonah Dal, his fifth year in the program. He's been here forever. He said that he wants to take, to help take this program places. It hasn't been, which would be the college football playoff. I will say this. Jonah, actually, you'd just be coming back potentially to the place you started the year because the college football national championship is in Georgia this year. Um Jeremiah, recently you guys announced 20,000 season tickets. That is a big time milestone. It hasn't been achieved at Boise State in about a decade, I believe. How proud are you of Bronco Nation right now? It's hard to put words to it, Jay, you know, that's something that when you plan the work, work, the plan and this started 3.5 years ago being my fourth season. And when you look at the team behind the team and our staff and why we added a season ticket team and, and why we created the external unit like we did in the infrastructure to support it. We have to be prepared for the success when it happens and we are prepared and Bronco Nation has stepped up. I can't say enough about them. Um, six game, six sell offs and they've embraced it. You look at our first three games and, and I believe we're going to get there and, and belief is a powerful thing and, and the CFP and with the off season we had and the momentum we have, you know, I believe in Epic and, and everything counts, everything matters and, and you look at what we've done and, and the fan support that we have, uh, it's, uh, it's powerful and that's something that, that i it's not lost on me. I don't take it for granted. A lot of teams that, you know, I saw the stats come out in terms of what other Mountain West programs are doing and, and, you know, it's impressive and, and obviously my goal is to take the brand I inherited and to elevate it, we're bar raisers and we're gonna continue to raise the bar and as long as I'm here, we're not gonna stop and, and we're gonna keep grinding, chopping wood and our teams, uh, behind me in that and, and I'm really grateful I'll get you out of here on this one. We, we talk about how transparent and fun. Spencer Jamison can be. I mean, he, he's kind of taken a chapter from the book of Jeremiah Dickey as well. I'm, I'm just gonna leave this. It's kind of an open ended question here, but I'm just gonna ask you what's next because what's on your mind? What is next for you? Well, obviously, you know, my mind doesn't stop Jay. Um, you know, in my mind, we're, we're done with the north end zone and we're moving forward now, I'm pivoting to the east side of the same. I'm, I'm looking at extra mile. We have the ox gym that we're also looking at. We have a bunch of smaller projects, say that a couple million dollars here or there. Um I, I, I'm bullish on our future and, and I believe we can do Epic and, and it takes a team to do that. I believe we have the right people in our foxhole and, and we're not going to stop, you know, as long as I'm here, we're not stopping, we cannot stop. Our industry is changing the house settlement revenue share. We are going to compete and, and that is, that is going to continue to be my, my call to action to Bronco Nation and, and anyone who's stepping up to support us, we need the help. We're grateful for it and it's what's next, the man that sets the pace of the race and it's not, it's not a walk it's not a jog, it's a sprint. Go get some shade. Jeremiah, we appreciate you. Abs. Absolutely. Jeremiah Dickey, the director of athletics here at Boise State.