Boise State University

Big hair, big dreams and Blue Turf 🔵

The 80s at Boise State was an iconic era of change and growth. On Sept. 13, 1986, Boise State unveiled the nation’s first non-green artificial football field. Ever since, the Bronco turf has earned nicknames: Smurf Turf, Bronco Bluegrass and Lake Lyle in honor of Coach Smith.

In 1984, the World Birds of Prey Center was relocated to Boise and officially opened on a hilltop overlooking the Treasure Valley.

Photos courtesy of Special Collections and Archives at Albertsons Library.

The Bronco is out of the bag. Congratulations to our spring 2026 graduating Busters! 💙🧡

Kennedy Morton (BA, elementary education, 2026) always got a big smile on her face when, while inside the Buster Bronco suit, she got to interact with a real-life friend. “I just felt like, okay, I know something you don’t,” she said. “You’ll know eventually, but this is really funny right now.”

For most school mascots, this tends to be the case: students in the suit must keep their identity hidden in order to preserve the illusion that the mascot is its own living entity. But upon graduation, mascots retire, and the cat — or the Bronco — is out of the bag.

Boise State had five Busters graduate in spring 2026: Isaac Celedon, Wyatt Flick, Madeline Makowski, Kennedy Morton and Alex Snow. We caught up with four of these Busters to learn more about the students behind the mask: https://www.boisestate.edu/news/2026/05/26/the-secrets-out-meet-the-graduating-busters/