The Boise State Broncos know Ty Benefield is an excellent safety.
Now, they’re trying to find out if the Canadian might be able to help the team on offence, too.
At spring practice this week, the NCAA football squad had the Vancouver native lined up as a receiver on some plays. One wonders if Benefield could draw comparisons to Travis Hunter, the former two-way star at Colorado who is poised to be a high pick in next week’s NFL Draft.
“We even had a couple plays on offence for him the other day, just because he’s that type of football player,” Broncos head coach Spencer Danielson told reporters, per Sports Illustrated. “We had some receivers out, and it’s like, ‘Hey, Ty, go out there and catch a couple passes.’ He’s just that guy for us.
“Is that going to turn into anything or not? We’re going to continue to walk that path. But I’ll tell you what, Ty Benefield is a leader on this team. He loves this team, and how his play … I mean last scrimmage, he played at a level that I hadn’t even seen him play at yet. So, it’s cool to see him continue to grow.”
Benefield was an honorable mention Mountain West all-star in his second college season last year, helping Boise State advance to the 12-team College Football Playoff.
Benefield, the son of former CFL star Daved Benefield, said he played receiver in high school in California and jumped at the chance to take reps at the position this spring.
“If it works, it works. If it doesn’t, I’ll take my butt back to the defence and play straight that way,” he said, per the Idaho Statesman. “So yeah, we’ll see. I’d really like to (do it), yeah.”
Boise State plays its annual spring game on Saturday, which could give a better idea of how much the team wants to experiment with Benefield at receiver.
The team’s season opener is Aug. 28 at South Florida.
“I know what type of athlete he is,” Danielson said. “I watched him in high school do it, and spring ball is the time to kind of put guys in those situations and see what they can do, and he had a big-time catch in Thursday’s practice when he was out there.
“Ty is such an elite competitor. He loves football, and everything he does is about growing to be the best version of himself. Even a guy going into his sophomore year last year, we put a lot on our safeties and he did a great job executing in all situations. And now seeing him through spring ball, he is taking his game to the next level.”
#Canadian #safety #Benefield #Travis #Hunter #Boise #State
