Senior Bowl director compares this Boise State safety to member of ‘Legion of Boom’

One name comes to mind when Senior Bowl Executive Director Jim Nagy tries to compare Boise State safety JL Skinner to an NFL player: former Seattle Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor.

Chancellor played at Virginia Tech and was picked by Seattle in the fifth round of the 2010 NFL Draft. He spent his entire seven-year career with the Seahawks and helped the franchise win Super Bowl XLVII before he was forced to retire because of a neck injury he suffered in 2017.

Skinner and Chancellor are similar in stature. The former is 6-foot-4 and 220 pounds heading into his senior season at Boise State. The latter is 6-3 and spent most of his NFL career hovering around 230 pounds. But Chancellor, a member of the Seahawks’ famed “Legion of Boom” secondary, was never as nimble as Skinner, Nagy said.

“Skinner isn’t the same physical presence as Kam yet, but he has more length and range, and he’s probably a little faster at this point,” Nagy told the Idaho Statesman on Wednesday. “When you see him in pursuit, that’s when you get really excited.”

Getting compared to Chancellor is a dream come true, Skinner said.

“That’s my favorite safety of all time,” Skinner said. “I try to take aspects of his game, like his physicality and the way he used to always come down into the box, and incorporate that into my game.”

Skinner tops the list of Boise State players Nagy and his staff of scouts are keeping an eye on this year for their postseason game. Nagy said Skinner has a chance to cement himself as an early pick in the 2023 NFL Draft with another strong season.

“He’s an interesting guy to watch on tape in terms of figuring out which scheme he best fits in,” Nagy said. “You see bigger guys usually play closer to the line of scrimmage, but you see him play on the hash and do some things in the deep part of the field that you don’t see a lot of big safeties do.”

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The annual Senior Bowl — an all-star game that follows a week of practices in Mobile, Alabama — has been a launching pad for Boise State players in recent years.

Wide receiver Khalil Shakir didn’t play in the game the game this year, but he did enough in practice to draw teams’ interest and convince the Buffalo Bills to draft him in the fifth round. Tight end John Bates played in the Senior Bowl in 2021 and was picked in the fourth round by the Washington Commanders.

Skinner has a chance to get drafted higher than either of them, Nagy said.

“He’s going to put himself near the top of the safety class if he can take that next step as a player,” Nagy said. “He’s got good range and good eyes back there, and you see him near the line of scrimmage using his size to take away tight ends and help against the run.”

Skinner led Boise State with 92 tackles last season, and had two interceptions and two forced fumbles. The first time he stood out to a Senior Bowl scout was in the Broncos’ 2021 season opener at UCF. The scout was in The Bounce House to see Knights defensive lineman Big Kat Bryant, but he couldn’t help but notice Skinner during pregame warmups.

“He texted me saying Boise State has a great looking safety, but unfortunately he’s an underclassman,” Nagy said. “(Skinner) really jumped out on film last year. His size and speed combo is exactly what you’re looking for.”

The one area Nagy said Skinner still needs to clean up is tackling in space. He had a few bad misses last year, Nagy said.

Skinner also missed part of two games because of targeting penalties last season. He was called for a third, but it was overturned after being reviewed.

“The question is can he get people on the ground when he needs to,” Nagy said. “He uses his size to his advantage, but he just needs to clean up a few of those missed tackles.”

Nagy said he and his Senior Bowl staff are keeping an eye on four other Boise State players this year: left tackle John Ojukwu, cornerbacks Markel Reed and Caleb Biggers, and running back George Holani, who is a redshirt junior but is eligible for the all-star game because he’s in the fourth year of his college career.

The 2023 Senior Bowl game is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 4, eight days before the Super Bowl. The 2023 NFL Draft will be held April 27-29.

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Broncos lose transfers

Boise State has lost three players to the transfer portal in recent weeks, and a local player left the team.

Redshirt freshman wide receiver Jalen Richmond was the latest player to announce he was transferring. He didn’t appear in any games last season after joining the program as a three-star recruit from Chandler High School in Arizona.

Former four-star recruit Casey Kline is also in the portal. He joined the Broncos in 2019 as an edge rusher but didn’t see much playing time and moved to tight end in the spring.

Offensive lineman Jacob Golden is also transferring after he was suspended from the team following a DUI arrest in June.

Former Rocky Mountain High School standout Jordan Erickson is no longer on the roster. He walked on last year as a safety. It’s unclear whether he intends to transfer after appearing in just one game last season.

Boise State’s 2022 schedule

Sept. 3: at Oregon State, 8:30 p.m. MT, ESPN

Sept. 9: at New Mexico, 7 p.m., CBSSN

Sept. 17: vs. UT Martin, 2 p.m., FS1

Sept. 23: at UTEP, 7 p.m., CBSSN

Sept. 30: vs San Diego State, 6 p.m., FS1

Oct. 8: vs. Fresno State, TBA, Fox/FS1/FS2

Oct. 22: at Air Force, 5 p.m., CBSSN

Oct. 29: vs. Colorado State, TBA, Fox/FS1/FS2

Nov. 5: vs. BYU, TBA, Fox/FS1/FS2

Nov. 12: at Nevada, 8:30 p.m., CBSSN

Nov. 19: at Wyoming, 5 p.m., CBSSN

Nov. 25: vs Utah State, 10 a.m., CBS