LOGAN – Utah State held its Spring Showcase for football on Saturday. It was and will be the only practice or scrimmage made available to the public during spring ball. A few hundred Aggie fans came out for the midday action that provided the first clues of what the 2026 edition of Aggie football will look like.
The showcase lasted just shy of two hours, with roughly half, maybe slightly more, dedicated to 11-on-11 practice. There was no formal scrimmaging, scorekeeping or stats. Just the offense and defense going hard against each other in an energetic practice session.
If there was a winner to be declared for the day, it had to be the defense. Across the 11-on-11 and even some 7-on-7 portions, there were no less than five turnovers, three interceptions and two fumbles recovered. Aside from those big plays, the front seven were able to stonewall most run plays and get a few sacks in as well. All that on top of the many penalties called on the offense by the crew of referees there for the showcase.
Utah State’s defensive line features a lot of new players, especially at the edge rusher position. But it was that unit which really seems to be standing out during spring ball according to linebacker Bronson Olevao Jr.
“I think the D-line is our rock,” Olevao said. “When you talk about up front, they set the tone, and then us linebackers, we play in the box. If we can stop the run, then it makes everything else easier. I’m super proud of our D-line, especially the edge rushers. We got after the quarterback all spring.”
Utah State inside linebacker Bronson Olevao after USU’s spring showcase#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/TOTz8SKgOe
— Eric Frandsen (@efrandsen) April 18, 2026
Additionally, the defense played with incredible physicality given the time and setting. Most teams shy away from full contact in spring ball. Quarterbacks get a red shirt and you don’t touch them. Utah State did not subscribe to that way of thinking. And with that, a lot of big hits were doled out. Freshman quarterback Kaleb Maryland, in particular, took a vicious shot on a scramble and was dog-piled on a sack. But the young freshmen bounced up quickly on each occasion.
That the defense was able to get after the quarterback so effectively is a double-edged sword for an intrasquad scrimmage. It’s the nature of spring practice that every positive for one side of the ball could represent a negative for the other. And with Utah State’s well-established struggles on the offensive line last year, seeing the QBs on Saturday have to scramble away from pressure and even be caught by it on more than one occasion, isn’t a welcome sight.
Utah State head coach Bronco Mendenhall is very aware of the O-line’s need for improvement and the impact it will have on his team.
“Lots of work still to do. We knew that from a year ago,” Mendenhall said. “Most teams go as the offensive front goes. And the offensive front affects the quarterback play and vice versa. So that therein still lies something we have work to do on.”
Utah State head coach Bronco Mendenhall after USU’s spring showcase#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/zgu8myY3qm
— Eric Frandsen (@efrandsen) April 18, 2026
That work in progress hasn’t made as much progress as he’d like, however, as the health of the O-line room got in the way. According to Mendenhall, four scholarship linemen missed significant time and the unit never really had a moment during spring where they were all healthy. One of the injured linemen is returning starting left guard George Maile. He missed the entire spring with an unspecified injury. Maile was on the sideline at the showcase wearing his pads, though only ever carrying his helmet.
One of the likely most anticipated questions to be answered by the showcase was which of the Aggies’ quarterbacks would be the starter. Based on the rotations on Saturday, it’s highly likely that BYU transfer and USU prodigal son McCae Hillstead will be the starting quarterback. He took the first reps in the 11-on-11 portion, though he didn’t play a ton of snaps. Presumed backups Grady Brosterhous and Kaleb Maryland got in a bit more work in.
Mendenhall wouldn’t confirm who will be the starting quarterback heading into summer, though he isn’t going to hold back the announcement for long. Aggie fans should hear as soon as Monday who the starting quarterback will be for the 2026 season.
“We’ll evaluate today’s film. I’d always like our players to know first. And so before I share with anyone else the clarity of what I see and what we’re going to do,” Mendenhall said. “So, I’ll let the guys know first. I have a team meeting Monday at 10. And an announcement could come as early as then.”
In a showcase that noticeably lacked offensive prowess, Hillstead was featured in one of the unit’s few bright moments. He threw a long, arcing, perfect spiral pass down the sideline to wide receiver Rex Haynes who reeled it in for what was roughly a 60-yard touchdown. He also didn’t throw an interception, while his two immediate backups had at least one pick apiece across 11-on-11 or 7-on-7 work.
As for who the true backup quarterback may be, it appeared that Brosterhous and Maryland are in a battle for that role, with the former probably leading that battle by a slight margin. Brosterhous went second after Hillstead in all drills, though he and Maryland played an almost identical number of snaps in the latter part of 11-on-11 work when Hillstead had taken a seat.
Upon being asked, the interviewees brought up a few names of players they felt stood out during spring practice. Olevao had high praise for Charger Doty, a sophomore who played eight games as a true freshman last year.
“Charger has probably had the best spring of anyone on the team,” Olevao said. “Last year, he was getting ripped apart. He was being coached hard. It’s because we see it in him, and the coaches saw it in him. He took that personal, and throughout this spring, he has shown that he can play, he can execute, and he can stay disciplined and overall make plays and be physical. Super proud of him. Love Charger.”
Olevao also called out names from his own position group, namely Harrison Taggart, Luke Durfee and Dakota Howell, though Olevao said there were plenty of others he simply didn’t have time to mentioned in a short time span.
Utah State running back Javan Jacobs after USU’s Spring Showcase#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/H2k8Lc6arZ
— Eric Frandsen (@efrandsen) April 18, 2026
Running back Javen Jacobs highlighted a few players in the wide receiver room.
“Eli [Wood] as well as Rex, they’ve been making crazy plays,” Jacobs said. “LJ [Johnson Jr.], J-Rob [Javon Robinson]. They all just make plays when they’re out here, man. And I’m super excited to see them ball out this fall.”
