In 2026, the idea of a college football quarterback entering his third straight year as a school’s starter is almost entirely foreign.
Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) and the transfer portal have transformed big-time college football into an NFL-esque model, with financial incentives and immediate playing time often outweighing student-athletes’ desires for long-term development and program loyalty.
Because of this, players bouncing around between three, four or sometimes even five schools throughout their college careers has become somewhat standard.
Today, only a small group of college football players spend their entire careers at one school, an increasingly rare path in the modern game.
Boise State quarterback Maddux Madsen is one of them.
The redshirt senior is entering his third year as the Broncos signal caller. As the starter, he’s led the team to back-to-back conference championships and a 19-6 record.
A member of the program since 2022, this upcoming fall will mark Madsen’s final year of eligibility.
“It’s a huge deal to be here for five years,” Madsen said when asked about his feelings entering his senior year. “Playing in the same place for five years, you don’t see that very often. I take a lot of pride in that and everything that I want to give to this program.”
The Utah native was a three-star recruit in the 2022 class coming out of American Fork High School. Rated the No. 21 recruit in the state per ESPN, Madsen threw for over 4,000 yards and nearly 50 touchdowns as a junior. The 5’10” pocket passer committed to Boise State on July 6, 2021.
Beginning his career in a backup role to Taylen Green, Madsen saw action in just one game during his true freshman season. He made his collegiate debut on Nov. 12, 2022, at Nevada, where he threw for 43 yards on three completions.
Entering 2023, Madsen’s redshirt freshman year, Green remained the starting quarterback. In a position most players would’ve run from into the arms of the transfer portal, Madsen remained in Boise, honing his craft each day until his time came.
When it came, he was ready.
After Madsen made nine appearances in 2023 that included one start, his first true test arrived in the form of USC transfer quarterback Malachi Nelson.
Many outsiders expected the former five-star recruit to beat Madsen out for the starting job, with Nelson’s high-profile talent and flashy image overshadowing the more lightly-touted Madsen.
But in a program like Boise State’s, flashiness means nothing, and tenacity is everything.
Madsen outperformed Nelson during the spring and summer and was named the starter heading into 2024 fall camp. Once named QB1, Madsen never looked back, leading the Broncos to back-to-back conference titles in 2024 and 2025 as the team’s starting quarterback.
As a redshirt sophomore, his first year as the starter, Madsen threw for just over 3,000 yards and 23 touchdowns, both leading the Mountain West. He guided the Broncos to a College Football Playoff berth, where they lost to Penn State in the Fiesta Bowl.
Madsen appeared on multiple preseason award watchlists before 2025, including the Maxwell Award. In ‘25, Madsen threw for 2,334 yards and 18 touchdowns on 176 completions. Plagued by an injury late in the season that caused him to miss multiple games, Madsen returned for the conference title game and was named Mountain West Championship MVP after throwing for 289 yards and scoring four total touchdowns in the contest.
Described by head coach Spencer Danielson as the “heartbeat” of the team, Madsen provides an elite spark that sometimes gets overlooked.
“Maddux Madsen is one of the best quarterbacks in the country,” Danielson said. “If [people] don’t [believe that], I tell them, ‘please watch the film.’ Just because he’s maybe not 6’5” or what people think equals elite, Maddux Madsen is an elite quarterback. We put a ton on [him], and he never flinches, loves his team and comes to work every day with a smile on his face looking to get better.”
The responsibilities that come with being Boise State’s starting quarterback mirror the balancing act Madsen managed as a dual-sport athlete in high school.
In 2022, his senior year, Madsen transferred to nearby Lehi High School for the spring semester to play baseball under his father, who was an assistant coach at the time. He was named 5A Player of the Year and led Lehi to its first state championship since 1981 while hitting .455 with 42 RBI.
A former pitcher and infielder, Madsen is fittingly named after Hall of Fame pitcher Greg Maddux, with his middle name, Jeter, being a nod to longtime Yankee captain Derek Jeter.
The tight-knit bond Madsen shares with his family — including his five siblings, all named after baseball stars — has surely kept him grounded throughout his journey in Boise. Now, after marrying his wife, KarLei, in March, he enters the season with added motivation.
Since stepping foot on campus in 2022, Boise State quarterback Maddux Madsen has grown tremendously, both on and off the field.
Being patient and buying into a program’s culture despite no immediate playing time is a feat in itself that not many college football players in today’s age can say they’ve accomplished. Madsen’s poise, work ethic and maturity have guided him to his starting role and cemented his legacy as one of the best quarterbacks in program history.
Despite social media criticism directed towards the quarterback during the team’s rough stretch last year, running back Sire Gaines has made it clear he’s ride-or-die for Madsen heading into 2026.
“I don’t care what anybody says, that’s my quarterback,” Gaines said. “Everybody can say what they want to say, but I’m riding with Maddog until the wheels fall off. When you talk about a true quarterback that’s leading, that’s Maddux Madsen.”
