On an otherwise unremarkable day as spring camp was winding down, Utah State football head coach Bronco Mendenhall passed one of his players, a wide receiver. This athlete was consulting a sheet of paper. Mendenhall’s curiosity got the best of him, so he asked what it was.
“It’s McCae’s plan,” came the reply.
The upcoming summer break meant the coaching staff had to go hands-off with workouts and training, as required by NCAA rules. So the recently named starting quarterback, McCae Hillstead, took it upon himself to craft a plan for the offense to hone their skills during the quietest months of the football calendar.
That brief encounter lasted mere seconds, yet it reinforced Mendenhall’s belief that naming Hillstead the starting QB was the right call. One of his explicitly stated reasons for publicly naming a starter, something coaches will often shy away from to preserve any semblance of an advantage over their early-season opponents, was so the offense would have a well-defined leader. And here was Hillstead already living up to that role in a big way.
Months later, as fall camp gets going, Mendenhall is now thoroughly convinced of his quarterback’s skill in planning.
“McCae does a really nice job of marshaling resources,” Mendenhall said. “He’s a fantastic organizer. He’s very detailed in his planning. The plan that he put together for our offense without coaches being around would rival any offensive coordinator that I’ve seen would have put together.”
When asked about his plan, Hillstead elaborated on why he developed his current approach.
“I’m a pretty big believer that action eliminates doubt,” Hillstead said. “When you have a plan and when you take action in that plan, you can eliminate any doubt that you might have going into a game or going into practice. And I think that that preparation is something that I believe in.
“I think that organizing that for a group and making it so we’re all working together on a similar plan and we’re all on the same page makes it not only that we’re dialed in on all the schematics but also that we’re spending time with each other outside the building, spending time with each other when it’s not required of us. And I think that just builds our unity, and also builds our ability to play fast.”
This version of Hillstead, a soon-to-be 22-year-old veteran who places considerable emphasis on off-the-field matters, is quite distinct from the young man who suited up for the Aggies as a true freshman in 2023.
Three years ago, Aggie Nation was introduced to Hillstead while their team was being blown out on the road at Air Force. With the Falcons up 29-0 early in the second quarter, head coach Blake Anderson benched the starting QB, Cooper Legas, and subbed Hillstead in, hoping the latter could ignite a stagnant offense. The freshman delivered by throwing for 202 yards and three touchdowns, salvaging a little bit of pride for Utah State by shaving down the margin of defeat (39-21 at the final whistle). A week later, Hillstead a USU home crowd by coming just one yard short of being the first freshman in USU history to throw for 400 yards. As it was, his 399 yards and four touchdowns against James Madison were both freshman records for the program.
Those first two performances provided a glimpse of what Hillstead could be. But for as flashy as these initial outings were, a small handful of issues plagued the youngster throughout his first season.
For one, Utah State did not win a single game in which Hillstead played the majority of snaps. And secondly, Secondly, Hillstead’s impact dropped off following his flashy introduction. After averaging 8.1 yards per attempt, with seven touchdowns to just three interceptions, across his first two major appearances, Hillstead’s efficiency dropped. In his next five games, Hillstead averaged just 5.6 yards per attempt and threw more interceptions (five) than touchdowns (four).
In recalling that up-and-down season three years ago, Hillstead said becoming the starter “was a lot, taking that all in at the time,” with his overall summary painting a picture of a young man capable of being the leader of an offense, but not having reached his potential.
“I describe it to a lot of people as it being indicative of my talent level, not necessarily my full capacity and skill level,” said Hillstead.
The 2024 season might have provided Hillstead the opportunity for an improved sophomore campaign. Alas, it wasn’t to be. At the end of spring camp in 2024, Hillstead lost a three-way battle for the starting quarterback job between himself, Legas, and the ultimate winner, Iowa transfer Spencer Petras.
With no clear path to playing time, Hillstead opted to enter the transfer portal in the spring window and found himself two hours down the road at BYU.
Two years later, having done little on the field and being forced to sit behind Jake Retzlaff and Bear Bachmeier on the Cougars’ depth chart, Hillstead decided to test the portal once more. Amid the chaos of that process, a familiar team entered his radar: Utah State. But while the Aggie colors were the same, and Hillstead could still recall his intimate knowledge of Logan, things were different inside the walls of the football program.
“The things that have changed are really completely just within the building,” said Hillstead. “Coach Mendenhall, his mentality and his culture is so much different than any culture that I’ve ever been a part of. And I’ve really enjoyed, and I felt a lot of personal development for myself.”
Both sides of this pairing have undergone significant off-the-field changes. Utah State is led by a culture-focused, veteran head coach who has the sixth-most wins among active head coaches. And Hillstead is no longer the 18-year-old kid slinging the ball around the field, relying more on talent than experience and savvy. Now, he’s partially defined by his upcoming chance to emerge from three years of relative obscurity.
“I think McCae’s journey has given him a chip on the shoulder,” said USU offensive coordinator Robert Anae. “It feels like every day that kid has something to prove. There’s a drive there. And it shows.”
And as fall camp begins, Hillstead could only describe his emotions one way.
“I’m just really excited. That’s kind of the only way I can put it as of right now.”
