The winner of the annual contest between Utah State and Wyoming will take home the traveling “Bridger Rifle,” a .50 caliber Rocky Mountain Hawken rifle that was popular among mountain men and widely considered to be what Jim Bridger carried. Each year’s game score will be notched into the maple stock.
Utah State football is on a winning streak for the first time since the end of last season with nearly 301 days spanning between those streaks. The Aggies’ recently-acquired winning ways will be on the line this Saturday as they travel to face Wyoming. The Cowboys have lost two of their last three games but did win 27-14 last week at New Mexico.
This matchup will be as crucial as the previous two for USU. The team’s resurgence into contention for the Mountain West crown has little-to-no room for error. The Aggies retain control over their own destiny and a win will keep it that way.
USU will also be playing for the right to take home Bridger’s Rifle, the travelling trophy that began to be awarded in 2013 as part of what is now a 119-year old rivalry with 71 games played between the two sides. Though being able to take home a .50 caliber Rocky Mountain Hawken rifle as a trophy is a rather cool thing to do, Aggies head coach Blake Anderson is much more concerned with the on-field action.
“I’ll be truthful, I don’t know a lot about it,” Anderson said of the trophy itself. “I know I watched those guys carry it off the field last year and that was enough to piss me off. I just want to play good ball. It’s a conference game and it matters. It really wouldn’t matter who’s on the other sideline.
“It’s going to be Wyoming which brings about one of the best coaches in college ball. Brings about a physical, nasty style of football. And if we get to carry the rifle away so be it. But we just need to win. We need to stay in control of our own destiny and the only way to do that is keep winning.”
Here are the things to know about the upcoming “Bridger’s Battle.”
Game Info
- Kickoff: 7:45 p.m. MT
- Location: War Memorial Stadium | Laramie, Wyoming
- TV Broadcast: Fox Sports 2
- Aggie GameDay Coverage on KVNU (102.1 FM/610 AM & KVNU mobile app) & simulcast on 106.9 The FAN (106.9 FM / 1390 AM & 106.9 The FAN mobile app): 6:05 p.m. MT
- KVNU Aggie Call (102.1 FM/610 AM, KVNU mobile app + 106.9 FM / 1390 AM The FAN, 106.9 The FAN mobile app): Immediately after game ends
Uncertainty at QB for Utah State
The injury status of Cooper Legas and Levi Williams makes the question of who starts at quarterback for Utah State on Saturday a hard one to answer. The Aggies themselves won’t be sure until later this week and are unlikely to let that info leak.
Anderson didn’t divulge any significant updates on quarterbacks Legas and Williams or of defensive end Byron Vaughns. Somewhat understandable given how little time had transpired from the injuries and the nature of head injuries that Legas and Vaughns suffered at Colorado State.
“Everything for us is day-to-day at this point,” Anderson said. “It’s gonna really depend on what happens in the next 24-48 hours. What kind of progress those guys make. We’ll follow the protocol. They are in the protocol and if they’re cleared we’ll be ready for them to play. If not, we’ll be ready to play without them. It’s going to be a day-to-day process.”
Davenport will, for the first time since fall camp, take actual reps in practice with the team in anticipation of him possibly playing on Saturday. Anderson is confident that whether he starts behind center or one of Legas or Williams is healthy, that the offense will be ready.
“With reps, you’d like to think we could put together a very sound game plan that allows (Davenport) to utilize his skill-set,” Anderson said. “But also we’ll be day-to-day in terms of what the other guys can or cannot do. So we’ll prepare with him and prepare without him. But he will get reps for the first time since fall camp which is only going to help him.”
Aggies upset by Cowboys last year, a chance for revenge in 2022
Prior to last year’s matchup between USU and Wyoming, the Aggies were at the apex of a five-game winning streak with an 8-2 record and were receiving votes in the Coaches Poll (unofficially 33rd in that poll).
Wyoming put a stop, at least temporarily, to Utah State’s ascendancy in the conference with a humbling 44-17 beatdown of the Aggies on Merlin Olsen Field. The Cowboys ran for 363 yards – the 10th-most yards given up by the Aggies this century – with two Wyoming players each surpassing 140 rushing yards (Titus Swen, 169, Xazavian Valladay, 145).
Utah State will have a chance to at least partially avenge that loss, even though in the end all it accomplished was to bruise the Aggies’ pride since they went on to be conference champions regardless.
“I heard about the game last year and we can’t let that happen again,” said defensive end Daniel Grzesiak who wasn’t with the team last year. “Last two weeks, everyone got to do their job, gap responsibility. And D-line, we have to create knockback and, you know, I think we’re going to go out there and do a good job.”
“Obviously, there’s still a bit of a chip on our shoulders from last year,” Offensive guard Wade Meacham said. “It’s definitely a game we wish we could have back. We’re excited for this opportunity to line back up against them and prove that we’re – at least as an offensive line – a much better unit than we were last year.
Reunion of quarterbacks
Utah State and Wyoming participated in an interesting swap of quarterbacks in the offseason, though it was almost entirely coincidence. Anderson explained how his backup quarterback in 2021, Andrew Peasley, wound up playing for Wyoming, and how the Cowboys’ 2021 starter, Levi Williams ended up in Logan.
“(Peasley wanted) to be the starting quarterback and understood the circumstances with our room and what that meant,” Anderson said. “And so he put his name in the portal. We then decided to look and investigate the landscape of what was available. Levi reached out fairly quickly. It was obvious he was leaving. And with his fiancé being here on campus I think there was some incentive on his part to be a part of our roster. (He) knew the circumstances with Logan. Knew the circumstances with (Cooper Legas), both having been a starter and both having played well in the bowl game. Wasn’t afraid of competition and he chose us.”
As the starter for the Cowboys in each of their seven games, Peasley has thrown for 143.6 yards per game with nine touchdowns and three interceptions. He’s also run for 234 yards. Williams has appeared in just five games, going 4-of-16 passing for just 27 yards. He’s run the ball eight times for 36 yards. In his career at Wyoming, Williams made 17 appearances across three seasons with career numbers of 150-of-278 passing for 2,210 yards with 13 touchdowns and 10 interceptions along with 763 rushing yards and 13 additional TDs on the ground.
Battle of special teams
In nearly every aspect of special teams, both sides in this contest have proven rather capable. Utah State has blocked two punts this season while Wyoming has blocked a punt and a field goal. Both teams have also been capable on their own kicking games. Cowboys kicker John Hoyland is perfect on PATs (16-for-16) and leads FBS in field goals made with 15 (on 16 attempts). USU kicker Connor Coles was a perfect 5-for-5 of his own prior to Colorado State, where he went an uncharacteristic 1-for-3 on his attempts (all 45 yards or longer) but did make a crucial 49-yarder to tie the game in the third quarter.
In the exciting world of punting, Utah State’s punter, Stephen Kotsanlee is among the top players in FBS at his position. He is 38th in yards per punt and T-18th in punts downed inside the 20. Wyoming’s own Clayton Stewart is no slouch either, ranking 10th in yards per punt and T-28th in punts downed inside the 20. His average hang time of 4.04 seconds ranks T-29th among players with at least 10 punts this season.
“With the exception of our blocked punt this week I’d tell you that’s been one of our strongest phases all year,” Anderson said. “I think (the Cowboys) take a very similar approach. You don’t win championships like Coach Bohl has won in his career, you don’t win those without great special teams play, taking pride in special teams and coaching it just as energetically as you do offense and defense. And it shows. They’re not extremely complicated, they’re just extremely sound. And they compete in that area very very well.”
Contrast in penalties
While many aspects of Utah State’s team has improved, namely on the offensive end, one area that has not is penalties. In just the last game, the Aggies were penalized nine times for 93 yards, falling right in line with their season averages of 9.29 and 84.29. Those averages of penalties and per game and yards penalized per game rank 128th and 130th, respectively.
In contrast, Wyoming is one of the most disciplined teams in the country, ranking 12th in fewest penalties per game and 19th in penalty yards per game.
