Bronco Nation News is counting down the 25 most important players to the Boise State football team in 2025. Next up in our series is No. 24, wide receiver Chris Marshall.
There’s a glaring hole on Boise State’s offense: The need for an alpha, No. 1 wide receiver on the outside. Boise State has been exploring wide receiver options in the transfer portal, but of the players currently on the roster, I think Chris Marshall has the upside to become a true alpha wide receiver.
Marshall is a former five-star receiver who had 11 catches as a true freshman at Texas A&M. After playing for the Aggies Marshall transferred to Ole Miss, but left after spring ball to play for Kilgore Junior College. Marshall’s journey has been marked by off the field issues, and when he committed to Boise State, Spencer Danielson made it clear that this was likely his last chance at the FBS level.
So far, Marshall hasn’t had any issues off the field, but his 2024 season at Boise State was slowed due to injury. He came out of the gates hot with three catches in his first three halves of football, but suffered an ankle injury in the first half against Oregon. Marshall got back in a limited role for the Hawai’I and UNLV games, but re-aggravated his injury and missed the rest of the season.
After being hyped as one of the biggest additions in program history, Marshall finished the season with a disappointing three catches for 13 yards.
Health will continue to be a factor for Marshall, who missed most of spring camp with injuries, but the Broncos desperately need someone with the upside of Marshall to step up at wide receiver. Latrell Caples is a proven option in the slot, and Cam Bates has upside as a big-play weapon in the slot and on designed touches, but the lack of options on the outside is a major concern. Austin Bolt is the only other player with notable playing time who played a majority of his snaps on the outside. Bolt is a proven rotation player, but in his sixth season as a Bronco seems unlikely to take a leap to a true alpha wide receiver.
The lack of depth has resulted in Boise State to pursue wide receivers heavily in the portal. Multiple players have reported offers from Boise State, but there’s yet to be any commitments. I look at outside receiver as the biggest need for Boise State’s offense right now. Bolt and Marshall will be serviceable if they stay healthy, but both of them missed the Spring Game with injury and have missed extensive time in the past with injury.
If Boise State doesn’t get a wide receiver to commit, Chris Marshall will end up being the X-Factor for this offense. If he stays healthy and plays to his potential, Marshall could replace the production lost from Cam Camper’s graduation. If not, I expect a significant regression for Boise State’s passing game this season, making Marshall one of the biggest wildcards on this year’s team.
Boise State’s 25 Most Important Players in 2025
No. 24. – WR Chris Marshall
Nathan Carroll is a part-time contributor for Bronco Nation News and host of the TBA Basketball Podcast. Nathan works for Pro Football Focus as part of their data collection team, specializing in charting player data at the FBS level. Previously, he graduated from Boise State’s Honors College with a degree in Quantitative Economics and worked 5 years in Boise State’s athletic department. Follow him on X at Nathan_26_
