Boise State 2025 spring football position-by-position preview: Quarterbacks

Maddux Madsen returns behind center for Broncos

Boise State Broncos quarterback Maddux Madsen. / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Boise State soared to new heights during the 2024 football season. 

The Broncos repeated as Mountain West Conference champions and were selected for the College Football Playoff. 

Both accomplishments were program firsts for the Broncos, who finished 12-2 overall after falling to Penn State in the Fiesta Bowl. 

Boise State’s roster will look a bit different next season as star players like running back Ashton Jeanty and defensive end Ahmed Hassanein move on to the NFL. 

With spring ball just around the corner, Boise State Broncos on SI is taking a position-by-position look at head coach Spencer Danielson’s roster heading into next season. 

To kick things off, we’ll start with the quarterback room. 

Quarterbacks 

Maddux Madsen pulled off a mild surprise last August by beating out five-star USC transfer Malachi Nelson for the starting quarterback job. 

The undersized sophomore from Utah took the opportunity and ran with it, completing 247 of 396 passes for 3,018 yards and 23 touchdowns with six interceptions last season. Three of the picks came in the second half of the Fiesta Bowl with Boise State in catch-up mode. 

Madsen was also effective with his legs, turning 57 carries into 221 yards and five touchdowns en route to an all-MWC honorable mention.

“I think the absolute world of Maddux Madsen,” head coach Spencer Danielson said in a January press conference. “How he played last year, how he led our team, an absolute relentless competitor. He is going to take another big step this year. 

“Maddux Madsen’s best football is in front of him. I really do believe he is one of the best quarterbacks in the country, period, point-blank.”

Max Cutforth, who served as Madsen’s backup for the Fiesta Bowl when Nelson entered the transfer portal, will enter spring ball as the No. 2 quarterback. 

Cutforth, a sophomore-to-be, walked on to the Broncos coming out of Nampa, Idaho’s Skyview High School. Cutforth was placed on scholarship for the spring term. 

Kaleb Annett redshirted last year and will begin spring practice as the third-string quarterback. Annett was a three-star prospect from Southern California’s Corona Del Mar High School when he signed with Boise State in December 2023. 

Zeke Martinez, who starred for nearby Meridian High School, graduated early and will participate in spring practice. Martinez is joining the team as a walk-on. 

Danielson said that new offensive coordinator Nate Potter and quarterbacks coach Zak Hill are also scouring the transfer portal and prep and junior college ranks for another scholarship quarterback. 

“I believe in the quarterbacks we currently have here in this building, but we are going to go out and find the best guy that fits here,” Danielson said. “The reality of the quarterback recruiting space is if you are going to go out and try and find the right fit in the transfer portal or junior colleges, those young men are going to want to come into a situation where there’s not a returning starter — the majority of those players. When you have a returning starter that’s had the success that Maddux has had, it’s hard to find the right guys who want to come in and compete and add value in the room.”

The Broncos already have a verbal commitment from class of 2026 quarterback Jackson Presley of Montana’s Glacier High School. 

Nelson, who completed 12 of 17 passes for 128 yards with no touchdowns and an interception last season, is now at UTEP. 

MORE BOISE STATE NEWS & ANALYSIS

• Offensive tackle Kage Casey announces return to Boise State

• Outgoing Boise State OC Dirk Koetter on NIL: Oregon offered Broncos defensive starter $700K to transfer

• Boise State transfer portal tracker: Broncos RB commit Keyjuan Brown withdraws from portal, returns to Louisville

• ExtraQuiet Arena? Boise State’s sellout crowd lacked energy in San Diego State loss

• Report: NCAA considering rule change to allow fifth year of eligibility

• Boise State head coach Spencer Danielson: ‘What we did this year is not going to be enough going forward’

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