2022 Mountain West Football Top 50: #11, Boise State S JL Skinner

The Broncos’ big hitter is the top-ranked safety on this year’s countdown of Mountain West football’s best athletes.

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Always on patrol.

It’s one thing to make a few plays that land on SportsCenter and another to make the rest of the plays that don’t, but Boise State safety JL Skinner, the next standout on our annual list of the Mountain West’s best, provides both in spades.

The 6-foot-4, 220-pound San Diego native made his first start for the Broncos back in 2019, appearing in 14 games on part-time duty, and his first full year as a starter in 2020 hinted at his potential: Though Boise State fell short in their championship run that year, Skinner picked up 37 total tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, and an interception in six games.

Last year, though, he put the conference on notice, delivering big hits and making big plays seemingly every week. By year’s end, Skinner had earned a spot on the all-Mountain West second-team defense after posting 92 total tackles, eight tackles for loss, four passes defended, two forced fumbles, and an interception.

All of that production explains why Skinner was also our staff’s selection as the conference’s preseason defensive player of the year last month. The Boise State defense is stacked headed into 2022, but his leadership and play put him on a level that’s nearly his own.

More MW Top 50!

2022 Mountain West Football Top 50: #12, Air Force QB Haaziq Daniels

2022 Mountain West Football Top 50: #13, Fresno State RB Jordan Mims

2022 Mountain West Football Top 50: #14, San Diego State LB Caden McDonald

Story originally appeared on Mountain West Wire