Boise State roster countdown 2018: Day 87, Tyneil Hopper

My favorite part of every passing day is the fact we get closer to football. Especially now that we don’t get as much news in general. Today’s entry is going to be a true freshman next year and doesn’t have a number yet. Also: with Alec Dhaenens moving on, there is no one with this number, but today’s spotlightee COULD have it. Now that we are 87 days away from kick off, let’s review—Tyneil Hopper

#87, Tyneil Hopper, Freshman, Tight End

Stats

Height: 6’ 2”

Weight: 225

High School: Roswell High School, Roswell, GA

How’d he get to The Blue^TM?

Mr. Hopper is one of the ‘good gets’ that had the possibility of going to some very fine schools. 247Sports had Hopper rated as a three-star athlete, and a composite of three as well. But Rivals noted him as a four-star rated TE. So that’s the one we will be referencing going forward.

Officially speaking Hopper had offers from schools such as Alabama, Auburn, Illinois, Louisville, South Carolina, and a bunch of high-profile ‘interest’. So it is safe to say that Boise State beat out all these other schools for Mr. Hopper’s services.

Per Coach Harsin, Hopper knew about Boise State due to the NCAA video game. So don’t ever say videos never benefited the Broncos. Hopper’s addition to the Broncos was kind of late in the game. But one that is appreciated.

Nickname

”Hopper”

Honestly, his last name is cool enough that I don’t want to mess with it. Plus, it’ll be really cool when he goes back to his ‘day job’ of saving the world from the Upside Down.

Look-alike

Brandon T. Jackson

Career highlights

He is just going to be a true freshman in the fall. But that hasn’t stopped Hopper from succeeding in the high school ranks. He was the Atlanta Journal Constitution All-Region. He had 22 pass for 350 yards and one touchdown. Looking forward to seeing him get some Broncos highlights.

2018 Prospectus

If there was ever a time for a true freshman Bronco tight end to get some playing time, this is it. With Jake Roh and Alec Dhaenens moving on due to graduation, there will be a vacuum for “go to” tight ends for the Broncos.

Currently there are six tight ends on the roster. Garrett Collingham has been converted a couple of times over. Cody Shoemaker is a walk-on juco transfer (but with a fantastic last name, he’s certainly got a bit of a head start). Matt Pistone appeared in 12 games last year, but didn’t record a stat, per se, and was mostly utilized as a run-blocking tight end. Daniel Cantrell is coming off sitting a year. John Bates appeared in all games and recorded three catches. And injury-plagued Chase Blakley only played two games before getting injured (he had one catch for 13 yards).

So, in reality, there is a good chance that Hopper has a decent impact on the tight ends going into the fall. Seeing as how he was so highly-rated (and the offers to back it up) he may be ‘too good’ to NOT see the field. And that John Bates is the only Bronco in the tight end group that had more than one catch last year, it’s a wide open race. This coaching staff is not worried about preserving a red-shirt so, honestly, I expect Hopper to see some game time next year. How much, we will see.

Is he on Twitter?

Yes he is.

Completely made up fact

South Korea has a number dedicated to reporting spies: 113. Hopper once had to use this number to foil an international plot. While the details are still forthcoming, the United States government had to put him in witness protection for his own safety. As long as no one outside of Bronco Nation (and football fans) reads this he should be fine. Should be.