Jovon Bouknight (Juh-vonn Bo-night) is entering his 10th season as Utah State’s wide receivers coach, including his second working with the outside receivers. He served as the team’s co-offensive coordinator in 2016 and passing game coordinator in 2014-15, along with being an offensive graduate assistant in 2009.
During his nine years at Utah State, Bouknight has been part of a program that played in a school-record five-straight bowl games, to go along with a 2012 Western Athletic Conference championship, and in six bowl games in the past seven seasons.
In 2017, Bouknight mentored junior Ron’quavion Tarver, who earned third-team all-Mountain West honors from Phil Steele’s Magazine after leading the team with 48 receptions for 569 yards and seven touchdowns. Bouknight also helped USU’s offense record its ninth-straight 2,000- yard rushing season.
Utah State’s offense also set single-season school records in 2017 by scoring 50-plus points in three games and producing 500-plus yards of total offense in four games. USU also rushed for 2,228 yards, marking the ninth-straight season it has rushed for at least 2,000 yards.
As co-offensive coordinator in 2016, mentored Tarver, who caught 46 passes for 602 yards and three touchdowns, as those 46 receptions are tied for the most by an underclassman in school history, while his 602 receiving yards are the most by a USU underclassman since 2009.
In 2015, Bouknight coached one of the most productive wide receivers in school history in Hunter Sharp, who earned second-team all-Mountain West honors, and is currently in the NFL with the New York Giants.
Sharp finished his senior season ranking first in the MW and 28th in the nation in receiving touchdowns with nine, second in the MW and 19th in the nation with 71 receptions, and third in the MW and 41st in the nation with an average of 76.3 receiving yards per game. Sharp finished his career ranking ninth all-time in school history with 137 receptions, ninth all-time in touchdown receptions with 16 and 14th all-time with 1,770 receiving yards.
In 2014, Bouknight coached a pair of all-Mountain West receivers in JoJo Natson and Sharp as both players earned honorable mention honors. Sharp finished the season with 66 receptions for 939 yards, which are the most receiving yards by an Aggie since 2002. Furthermore, Sharp had four-straight 100-yard receiving games, the most by an Aggie since 2002.
During the 2013 season, Bouknight was part of an Aggie offense that set school records for pass completions (297), total offensive plays (1,073), touchdown passes (30) and first downs (310), while the 445 points scored and 481 pass attempts both rank second all-time. Furthermore, USU’s 56 total touchdowns rank third all-time and its 31.7 points per game average ranks fifth.
In 2012, Bouknight mentored two all-WAC performers in Matt Austin and Chuck Jacobs as Austin earned second-team honors and Jacobs earned honorable mention accolades. Jacobs spent three years in the NFL and is currently in the CFL with the Toronto Argonauts.
During the 2012 season, Bouknight helped coach an Aggie offense that set single-season school records for total points (454), total offense (6,108 yards), completions (285) and total yards per game (469.8), while ranking second all-time in points (34.9 pg) and passing yards (3,445).
In 2011, USU’s offense was statistically one of the best in the country as it led the WAC and ranked sixth in the nation in rushing offense (282.69 ypg). USU also ranked first in the WAC and 18th in the nation in passing efficiency (151.8), first in the WAC and 23rd in the nation in scoring offense (33.62 ppg), and second in the WAC and 20th in the nation in total offense (457.31 ypg).
Bouknight came to Utah State after one season at his alma mater of Wyoming, where he was an offensive graduate assistant, working with UW’s wide receivers. Bouknight concluded his college career ranked No. 20 in NCAA history in both career receiving yards (3,626) and career receptions (250). After graduating from Wyoming in the spring of 2006, Bouknight signed an NFL free agent contract with the Carolina Panthers and later played in NFL Europe in 2007, before signing as a free agent with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
During his senior season, he was one of 15 semifinalists for the 2005 Biletnikoff Award, which honors the nation’s top college receiver. He also earned honorable mention All-America honors from College Football News, along with earning first-team all-Mountain West honors. For the 2005 season, he ranked No. 9 in the NCAA in average receiving yards per game (101.45 ypg), No. 15 in total receiving yards (1,116), No. 10 in all-purpose yards (160.45), No. 12 in average receptions per game (7.00), and No. 11 in kickoff returns (27.75). He concluded his career ranked No. 2 in Mountain West history in both receptions (250) and receiving yards (3,626).
In Wyoming school history, Bouknight ranks No. 3 in career receiving yards (4,446 yards), No. 2 in career receptions (250), and is UW’s all-time all-purpose yardage leader (5,921 yards) and career kickoff return leader (2,016 yards). He caught at least two passes in 47 consecutive games, which was also every game of his college career and a UW school record up until 2014.
A native of Denver, Colo., Bouknight received his bachelor’s degree in kinesiology and health promotion from Wyoming in 2006.
Bouknight is married to Jeanine Hernandez, who is a former USU softball player, and the couple has one son, Breeze (2) and one daughter, Brene (3 mo.).