Boise State football assistant coach dies. ‘Elite husband, father, coach’

BOISE (Idaho Statesman) — Ron Collins, a longtime Boise State football defensive assistant, died this week after a long battle with illness, the university announced Thursday.

Collins most recently served as a defensive senior analyst for the Broncos but also was the defensive coordinator during the program’s initial rise into the national conversation.

He died Tuesday at the age of 61. He was away from the team for most of the 2024 season while “battling his illness,” according to a news release from Boise State.

“RC was an elite husband, father, coach, and friend,” Boise State head coach Spencer Danielson posted on X. “Love you brother. We will see you again.”

One of the finest stretches of Collins’ career was from 2001 to 2005, when he helped Dan Hawkins build Boise State into a Top 25 program. He joined Hawkins’ initial staff in 2001 as linebackers coach and was promoted to defensive coordinator in 2002, a role he held for the rest of Hawkins’ tenure. Collins’ defenses helped the Broncos record Top 25 finishes in 2002, 2003 and 2004 and post a 45-7 record across four seasons.

He left for Colorado with Hawkins after the 2005 season. Collins returned to Boise State in 2022 as a defensive senior analyst. He served as an assistant coach for part of the 2023 season when Danielson was named interim head coach.

A coach for 38 years, Collins also coached at Colorado (2006-10), Ohio (2011-21), Washington University in St. Louis (1988-2000) and Iowa State (1987).

He played football at Washington State, where he was a team captain. He and his wife, Sharon, have two daughters, Taylor Rae and Alexandra. Kane Ioane, a former Boise State assistant now at Nevada, also posted on X about Collins:

“Great coach, better person; helped me in so many ways both professionally and personally during our time together … Love you RC!”