American Ninja Warrior features Boise State alum

Matthew Duffy on American Ninja Warrior. Photo by Scott Everett White/NBC

Broncos tuned in for NBC's American Ninja Warrior this June may have spotted a familiar face onscreen - Buster Bronco himself. The Boise State mascot strutted onto set, ready to complete a high-speed obstacle course, but removed his mask prior to the competition, revealing recent graduate Matthew Duffy (BBA finance, 2025).

Duffy, a Buster for two of his four years at Boise State, received the call a month prior to filming that he'd be appearing on the game show. A friend had helped him create an audition video, filming clips on campus of Duffy as Buster, and at Bodies in Motion, a Boise gym equipped with a full American Ninja Warriors training course.

"I got a call later in the summer, and honestly, I thought it was one of my friends pranking me," Duffy said. "And they were like, no, we're going to have you on the show. We're going fly you down, pay for your hotel and your travel."

Busters in motion

After receiving this call, Duffy began a rigorous training process. American Ninja Warrior presents unique challenges to its contestants, involving swinging from ropes and balancing on precarious platforms. Luckily, Duffy was able to connect with another Boise State alum to help him with this process - Bodies in Motion gym owner Duncan Richardson (BS civil engineering, 2000).

Duffy practices the Salmon Ladder, a notoriously difficult American Ninja Warrior obstacle that requires competitors to hang from a loose horizontal bar and use their hips to throw the bar upward into the next set of ascending rungs. Photo provided by Duffy

Duffy stood out to Richardson because of their similar backgrounds: Richardson also worked as a Buster during his time at Boise State, and was a contestant on American Ninja Warrior in 2016.

"We have a lot of people who come to Bodies in Motion to train because they got called to be on the show," Richardson said. "Sometimes they're from out of town, or they don't have anywhere to train. And oftentimes I'm the one that gets pegged to meet them once or twice. But with Matthew, I was like, 'Okay, I've got to take this guy under my wing and meet with him several times.'"

Richardson was impressed by Duffy's discipline throughout the training process.

"I remember his grip strength improving, because that's a big one. If people come to us and they haven't done any sort of rock climbing or any sort of Ninja Warrior training, that's the hardest thing to develop … He was dedicated."

Though Duffy took training seriously, he also had to limit his time on the Ninja course to avoid injury.

"The training was, mainly, four days a week, just because of the amount of wear and tear [training can cause] on your hands," Duffy said. "At one point, I had twelve blisters on my hands. So, I had to make sure I was spacing it out as much as I could, because I think I went a little too hard at first."

Sharing the Boise State spirit

Screenshot from Duffy's audition video for American Ninja Warrior. Photo provided by Duffy

On set of American Ninja Warrior, Duffy was excited to share his Boise State spirit. He received permission from the Boise State Spirit Squad to travel with the Buster Bronco suit, and he filmed promotional material for the TV show as Buster. Duffy also received an unexpected video message from Boise State football star Ashton Jeanty prior to completing the Ninja course.

Duffy did not make it past the qualifying round of the competitive TV show. However, he valued the unique opportunity to meet a variety of new people while on set.

"I think the guy that ran before me was in the WWE [or World Wrestling Entertainment, an American professional wrestling promotion]. The person after me was a world boomerang champion," Duffy said. "There were even some pretty famous influencers who I became friends with, which was kind of fun."

The contestants had one thing in common: a passion for Ninja.

"When I got to Ninja Warrior, everybody was asking me, 'Are you going to Croatia next week for the world championships?'" he said. "I didn't know that's what everybody does. Their full-time job is Ninja. I was like, 'Nah, I gotta go to work.'"

What's next for Duffy?

Duffy as Buster on The Blue. Photo provided by Duffy

Duffy's Ninja career may be reaching its end, but he looks forward to new adventures in the near future. Starting this August, Duffy will work overseas as a missionary for a year. After that, he sees himself starting his own business in a service-based field, such as landscaping or window washing, or working at a church.

From both his Boise State education and his Ninja Warrior appearance, Duffy said he will take a willingness to try new things and take risks.

Share This

• Share on Facebook
• Share on X
• Share on LinkedIn
• Share through Email