USU flags in Maverik Stadium. Photo by Clint Allen
LOGAN — Back on its home field for the first time in nearly a month, Utah State took it to Nevada with a 17-point victory, 41-24, putting the Aggies just one win shy of bowl eligibility.
One of the best signs of good fortune for Utah State was scoring on its opening drive, something the team hadn’t done since the Week 2 win over Idaho State (it was also just the third time the Aggies had gotten a first down on their first drive aside from the win over the Bengals and loss to San Jose State). Utah State drove 75 yards in 11 plays, finishing the drive with an aggressive fourth-down attempt from the four-yard line. Cooper Legas found a wide-open Broc Lane in the back of the end zone on a fake QB keeper play.
Nevada would respond immediately to Utah State’s touchdown with a TD of its own, but the 86-yard scoring drive would be the only quality drive of the game for the Wolf Pack (or at least one not aided by a short field). Slowly but surely, the Aggies pulled away to secure its fifth win of the season.
Early in the second quarter was the first step toward pulling away. The Aggies once again drove to the Nevada four-yard line but that time opted to kick a short field goal to go up 10-7. But on Nevada’s next offensive possession the Aggies turned defense to offense. Wolf Pack quarterback AJ Bianco was pressured by Anthony Switzer on a screen pass and Bianco’s throw fell right into the hands of USU defensive tackle Seni Tuiaki who returned it 63 yards the other way for a touchdown.
Tuiaki was wearing an ear-to-ear grin for what was his first-ever touchdown at any level of football, though he also opened up on what that kind of play meant for a player who lost most of last season to a season-ending injury.
“For me personally, it’s a humbling experience to be honest,” Tuiaki said. “I’ve been through a lot last year with the major injury that caused me to end the season and just to see how God planned my life after that, it’s just an amazing experience. It felt fast at the time. I was telling the reporter I was actually thinking about running to McDonald’s, that’s how I ran super fast. I still can’t believe that at the same time. I’m lost for words right now.”
That play didn’t just function as a fun moment for Tuiaki and the team, that touchdown put the Aggies up 17-7 and provided a key turning point in a contest that had been a 7-7 stalemate for most if the first quarter and the early second.
“Any time you get a non-offensive touchdown I think it’s huge,” Anderson said. “Your chances of winning go through the roof. That came at a really good time. It put a little bit of air between us and them.”
The Aggies added to their lead before halftime, responding to a Nevada field goal that brought the score to 17-10. Utah State took over with 2:16 left on the first-half clock and easily marched 75 yards for a second offensive TD, largely thanks to a 47-yard pass play between Legas and Micah Davis.
From there, USU slowly built up its lead with a field goal on its first drive of the third quarter and a touchdown drive later in the same quarter that brought the score to 34-10. A big help, though, was the defense holding Nevada without a point for eight straight drives (six punts, one fumble recovery, one turnover on downs). Seven of said drives lasted five plays or less with three being three-and-out drives (the drive with a fumble lasted just one play, the fumble itself).
Tuiaki credited the good play on defense to falling in line with what the coaches were teaching them and having better energy.
“It’s just the energy we had last week on trying to get better, trying just take a step forward on getting the degree better,” Tuiaki said.
Nevada made a brief stab at a comeback, scoring a touchdown plus a two-point conversion with 7:21 left in the game, which did make it a two-possession game, 34-18. But the Aggies responded perfectly, scoring a touchdown of their own. Legas threw his third touchdown pass of the day, a 25-yarder to Terrell Vaughn.
That TD effectively ended the game with 5:27 left to play, regardless of the touchdown Nevada would later score with just over three minutes to play. But the Aggies ran out the remaining time on their next drive just to be sure.
Extra Notes and Quotes
Penalties fly, ruining plays on both sides
Utah State and Nevada combined for 25 penalties and 232 yards lost on those penalties. The Aggies were flagged 13 times for 125 yards with the Wolf Pack getting called for 12 penalties and 107 yards lost.
“I’m frustrated with the penalties, 13 penalties is ridiculous,” Anderson said. “We’ll watch and see [on film], I don’t know how many of them are legitimate or self-inflicted, but it’s way too many. They had 12, we had 13, that’s a crazy game in terms of penalties.”
The yards lost on those penalties was certainly bad enough, but the Aggies lost out on two huge plays because of penalties. The first was a holding penalty that negated a 68-yard punt return touchdown by Micah Davis. Another wiped out a surprise onside kick recovery because one of the Aggies was offside.
“I think if we could eliminate the penalties we’d score a couple more touchdowns,” Anderson said. “We just kept derailing every drive.”
Nevada also had a big play wiped out. An interception returned to the USU five-yard line was taken back due to a holding penalty (not the interception, but the yardage gained on the return).
Highly effective run game, powered by Faison’s career night
Running back Rahsul Faison had a career day for the Aggies. He ran the ball a career-high 22 times for a likewise career-high 181 rushing yards and added a touchdown. He had multiple big runs on the day, and on one of USU’s scoring drive, accounted for every yard on said drive (57 yards on four rush attempts in the drive that put the Aggies up 34-10).
Like most running backs, Faison gave a lot of credit to his offensive line.
“I just want to give a huge shoutout to my offensive line because, without them, none of this is possible,” Faison said. “They did a great job out front today.”
“Super-proud he’s with us,” Anderson said of Faison. “Great addition to the room. He gets better every week.”
Along with Faison’s 181 yards, the Aggies also got 69 from Robert Briggs and Legas got involved in the run game too, posting 45 yards on 10 carries. Legas may have been the third-leading rusher, but having Legas able to gain quality yards on designed rushing plays was a big boon for the offense.
“He made the right reads,” Anderson said of Legas. “I think it does spread the defense thin. Our spacing, the fact that we’ve got three wideouts and a tight end that are all hard to match up to, running backs that are more than capable. You add the quarterback’s feet to that and you end up relatively explosive.”
One game close to bowl eligibility
The Aggies are now technically eligible for a bowl, since teams that go 5-7 can get into bowl games, but the real key is getting six wins and that’s what Anderson and the Aggies are aiming for. Sitting at 5-5, USU needs one win to reach the bowl mark.
“It’s huge for us,” Faison said of getting to bowl eligibility. “This season was a grind, we had a really tough schedule. We’d never played with each other, there are a lot of new guys here. I feel like we’re starting to come together. Each and every week we’re getting better. It’s definitely a good step forward for us.”
“Getting to six is hard,” Anderson said. “But we had to get this one to really put ourselves in a good position to get there and hopefully we can take the next step next week against a really tough opponent.”
The remaining opponents on Utah State’s schedule are Boise State and New Mexico, beatable opponents which makes bowl eligibility not just attainable, but an expectation at this point in the season.
Stat Leaders
Utah State players are in bold, Nevada players in italics.
Passing
- Cooper Legas – 18/33, 182 yards, 3 TD, 2 INT
- AJ Bianco – 13/25, 161 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing
- Rahsul Faison – 22 att, 181 yards, 1 TD
- Sean Dollars – 18 att, 82 yards
- Robert Briggs – 11 att, 69 yards
- Cooper Legas – 10 att, 45 yards
Receiving
- Micah Davis – 6 rec, 87 yards, 1 TD
- Dalevon Campbell – 5 rec, 74 yards, 1 TD
- Terrell Vaughn – 6 rec, 46 yards, 1 TD
Defense/Special Teams
- MJ Tafisi – 12 tackles (3 solo), 0.5 TFL
- Richard Toney Jr. – 12 tackles (5 solo), 1.0 TFL
- Devin Dye – 9 tackles (4 solo)
- Marcel Walker-Burgess – 8 tackles (5 solo), 1.0 sack, 1.0 TFL
- Anthony Switzter – 7 tackles (5 solo), 1.0 sack, 1.0 TFL, 2 QB Hurries
Mountain West Standings
Standings and results updated though 6 p.m. on Nov. 11
| Team | This Week’s Opponent | MW Record | Overall Record |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air Force | @ Hawaii | 5-0 | 8-1 |
| UNLV | 34-14 W vs Wyoming | 5-1 | 8-2 |
| Fresno State | @ San Jose State | 4-1 | 8-1 |
| Boise State | vs New Mexico | 3-2 | 4-5 |
| San Jose State | vs Fresno State | 3-2 | 4-5 |
| Wyoming | 34-14 L @ UNLV | 3-2 | 4-5 |
| Utah State | 41-24 W vs Nevada | 3-3 | 5-5 |
| Nevada | 41-24 L @ Utah State | 2-4 | 2-8 |
| San Diego State | @ Colorado State | 1-4 | 3-6 |
| New Mexico | @ Boise State | 1-4 | 3-6 |
| Colorado State | vs Sam Diego State | 1-4 | 3-6 |
| Hawaii | vs Air Force | 1-4 | 3-7 |
NEXT UP FOR UTAH STATE — Nov. 18 vs Boise State (4-5, 3-2 MW)
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