MOSCOW, Idaho –  Idaho head football coach Jason Eck Thursday announced the hire of former NFL lineman Cody Booth as the offensive line coach.

Booth comes to Idaho after coaching tight ends at Colorado State last season. He coached Trey McBride to the Mackey Award for the best tight end in college football. He served as the tight ends coach at CSU since the 2021 season.

"I am thrilled to join the Vandal coaching staff and work under coach Eck," Booth said. "I look forward to working with our student-athletes and building the grittiest offensive line in the Big Sky Conference. My goal is to develop our players into outstanding young men on and off the field."

Before his time at Colorado State, he spent the 2019 season as an offensive graduate assistant at Boston College where he worked with the offensive line and helped develop All-ACC honoree Zion Johnson.

He was the offensive GA at Temple during the 2017 and 2018 seasons where he also worked with the offensive line. He worked with Remington Award finalist and NFL Draft Pick Matt Hennessy.

"Cody started as a walk-on tight end at Temple grew into an offensive lineman there, and then worked his way into a three-year NFL career," Eck said. "It shows grit and determination. I like that the coaches he played for at Temple wanted him back as a GA. He came highly recommended by several coaches that I have a lot of respect for. Lastly, you see what he did at Colorado State, working with Trey McBride who went on to win the Mackey Award and will probably be the first tight end to be drafted this year and that is pretty impressive for a young coach like Cody."

He began his playing career as a walk-on tight end at Temple but shifted to the offensive line for his final season in 2013 as a tackle. That move proved valuable as Booth spent three years in the NFL as an offensive tackle with the Chicago Bears (2014), Jacksonville Jaguars (2014-15), and Washington Redskins (2016).

Eck is expected to announce one more hire to the Vandal coaching staff ahead of Idaho starting spring practice on March 26. Idaho will host its annual spring game on April 30 at Thunder Field at Eagle High School in the Treasure Valley.