Choate, staff hope to keep Idaho pipeline going despite Vandals’ return

BOZEMAN — Zach Redd remembers his recruitment by the University of Idaho during his last two years as a standout at Rocky Mountain High School in Meridian.

Growing up in a suburb 15 minutes from Idaho’s capital city of Boise, Redd naturally gravitated toward rooting for Boise State. The 6-foot-1, 275-pound center received some interest from the hometown Broncos, but his first scholarship offer came from the Vandals.

“All my friends were going to Moscow but I wanted to do my own thing, go my own route,” Redd said on Wednesday.

Montana State head coach Jeff Choate grew up in Saint Marie’s, Idaho about an hour from Moscow. After beginning his coaching career when his playing career was cut short at Montana Western, Choate spent 1994 until 2001 as a high school coach in the Gem State with stops at Challis, Twin Falls and Post Falls.

After launching his college coaching career at Utah State in 2002 and spending 2005 as the special teams coordinator at Eastern Illinois, Choate landed at Boise State. For most of the last 13 years, Choate has mined the Treasure Valley for football recruits.

Photos by Brooks Nuanez. All Rights Reserved.