Boise State leading receiver Eric McAlister is transferring, multiple sources told Bronco Nation News late Sunday night.
McAlister can’t officially enter the transfer portal until it opens on Dec. 4, but sources told BNN he informed the Broncos of his decision to leave the team on Sunday.
It’s a huge loss for the Broncos, who at 4-5 are off to their worst start to a season since 1997 but had young talent like McAlister as a reason to be excited about 2024.
The redshirt sophomore leads Boise State with 47 catches for 873 yards and five touchdowns. He was targeted 19 times in a 37-30 loss at Fresno State on Saturday night and had eight catches for 85 yards.
Andy Avalos released a statement to Bronco Nation News via a team spokesman early Monday morning, saying “Eric McAlister has chosen to no longer compete as a member of our program. We wish him the best in the future and our focus remains on our next game.”
Avalos is scheduled to address the media on Monday at 11:30 p.m. for his regularly scheduled press conference ahead of Saturday’s game against New Mexico.
The 6-foot-4, 200-pound McAlister was recently added to the Biletnikoff Award Watch List, given each season to the top wide receiver in the country.
The Azle, Texas, native was a three-star recruit when he signed with the Broncos as part of the 2021 recruiting class. He was the No. 67-ranked wide receiver in the class, according to 247Sports.
McAlister came on strong late last season after Dirk Koetter took over as offensive coordinator, finishing with 11 catches for 259 yards and four touchdowns.
He quickly became Boise State’s top option this season. He had seven catches for 160 yards and a touchdown against Wyoming, five catches for 170 yards and a score against San Jose State, and six catches for 143 yards and two touchdowns against North Dakota. He has at least five catches in seven of nine games this season.
BNN profiled McAlister and his childhood earlier this season. Read that story here.
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Uuuggghhhh!! The hits just keep on coming. It’s gonna be hard to keep the culture going the rest of this year. I hope this isn’t a sign of more to come. Jumping ship. A domino effect.
Did he get poached? Yeah we lost a few games but everything was looking great for him here, at least on the surface.