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Utah State addresses key needs with 2026 transfer and high school class | Sports

Following weeks of diligent work in the transfer portal, along with the months of recruiting the led to the early signing class, Utah State football as led by head coach Bronco Mendenhall, presented its 53-man 2026 signing class Wednesday morning to the public. The Aggies have signed a total of 21 players out of high school — 16 added in the early signing period and an additional four by Wednesday’s national signing day (USU did have 17 signings initially, but running back Jackson Regan is no longer coming to Logan, seemingly by the choice of Utah State). Utah State Football 2026 High School Signing Class *Player was signed after the early signing period ^Player will serve a two-year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Name Pos. HT WT Hometown High School Chantz Chargualaf* OL 6’2″ 290 Ewa Beach, HI James Campbell Jesse King*^ DL 6’4″ 240 Orem, UT Timpanogos Ifo Pili Jr.*^ DL 6’5″ 225 West Valley, UT Granger Kaina Watson* WR 6’1″ 175 Las Vegas, NV Bishop Gorman Luke Baker OL 6-8 270 North Logan, UT Green Canyon Tiki Bell DL 6-4 310 Hamilton, Ontario, Canada Episcopal (Va.) Dontae Dyson CB 6-1 170 Layton, UT

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February 4, 2026 No Comments

Hillstead, Brosterhous, Garcia? Breaking down Utah State’s pending quarterback battle | Sports

Utah State will see a new starting quarterback for the 2026 season as fan-favorite Bryson Barnes has graduated and used up all of his eligibility. And the stage has now been set for an offseason quarterback competition. The actors in this drama are ready, and will consist of returning QB/WR Anthony Garcia, Virginia transfer Grady Brosterhous, BYU transfer/former Aggie McCae Hillstead, freshman Kaleb Maryland and freshman Brady Goodman. Returning QB/WR Anthony Garcia could theoretically be in the mix, but is not expected to compete for a spot on the quarterback depth chart (more on that later). As of now, the top two candidates are probably the two transfers from power conference teams, Hillstead and Brosterhous (though the former’s status as a P4 transfer is somewhat muddied by the fact that he started his career at Utah State). Theoretically, they’d have the highest potential. That will be put to the test this spring, summer and fall when all of these players do battle behind the scenes. Here, we’ll break down as in-depth as possible both of these transfers and what they can bring to the table as a potential starter. But we won’t completely neglect Garcia or the incoming freshmen entirely

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February 4, 2026 No Comments

How the new Pac-12 and Mountain West media deals stack up to each other | Sports

After a long wait, the Mountain West has finally nailed down its next media rights deal, securing an agreement with CBS, Fox Sports and the CW to broadcast around 150 regular season and postseason events each year. The MW shares many of the same partners as the Pac-12, which finalized its own media rights deal with CBS, The CW, and USA Network back in November. The two conferences will share both geographical and TV/digital space in the coming years. They’ll also be sharing a courtroom for much of that time as the two sides continue to fight over roughly $150 million in exit fees and other money owed by the Pac-12 and future members based on their impending departure from the Mountain West. Since five of the future Pac-12 schools left the Mountain West for the new league, it’s worth comparing the two and seeing if the move, and potentially $150 million price tag, was ultimately worth it. Pac-12’s Broadcast Slate A maximum of 48 regular season Football games Minimum of 3 regular season games on CBS Maximum of 10 regular season games on CBS Sports Network 13 regular season games on The CW 22 regular season games on USA

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February 3, 2026 No Comments

Utah State Athletics launches Show Me initiative, targeting fundraising and community engagement | Sports

Utah State University’s athletics department announced its latest initiative aimed at moving the Aggies into the modern era of collegiate sports. Titled as the Show Me Initiative, it sets new targets for both fundraising and community engagement which will help Utah State stand up for itself in a time where budgets for college athletics departments around the country are ballooning. 𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐌𝐞 pic.twitter.com/vOCJrIrx4n — Utah State Athletics (@USUAthletics) January 28, 2026 This new initiative is an expansion upon what USU began with its Reach and Rise campaign announced last summer as a five-year plan to raise $125 million for the athletics department. The primary difference, or addition, with the Show Me initiative is that it is more than just fundraising. It targets goals in season ticket sales and number of sponsorships for the athletics department in addition to goals surrounding fundraising and membership in its Blue A Society and Big Blue Club. Currently, Utah State has approximately 80 direct sponsors for athletics, 100 members of its Blue A Society (which requires a $5,000 per year donation with a five-year commitment) and 1,400 members of its Big Blue Club (which requires a $50 per year donation). There are also roughly 6,800

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January 28, 2026 No Comments

Utah State football loses OC Kevin McGiven to Utah, hires Robert Anae | Sports

In a short, but busy Saturday, Utah State football went from having Kevin McGiven as its offensive coordinator to hiring Robert Anae to that same position when the former left for the University of Utah. McGiven served as the Aggies’ OC for the 2025 season, crafting an offense that finished second in the Mountain West in points per game It developed and showcased players like quarterback Bryson Barnes, who earned Second Team All-Mountain West honors and even get some mid-season player of the year hype, along with First Team All-MW wide receiver Braden Pegan. With those accomplishments came recognition, some good and some bad for Utah State. The good was that McGiven received a nomination for the Broyles Award which is given to the top assistant coach in college football. The bad is that the University of Utah saw that success and said “mine.” The Utes’ new head coach Morgan Scalley, scooped up McGiven. The move is part of the domino effect caused by the departure of longtime Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham. The Utes’ winningest coach in program history stepped down and then was hired by Michigan. Whittingham then pilfered the coaching cupboards of both BYU and Utah, one

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January 5, 2026 No Comments

Robert Anae named Utah State football Offensive Coordinator | Sports

LOGAN, Utah – One of the top offensive architects in college football, Robert Anae (Uh-nye), has been named Utah State’s offensive coordinator, it was announced by second-year head coach Bronco Mendenhall on Saturday. A three-time nominee for the Frank Broyles Award as the nation’s top assistant coach, Anae’s offenses have finished in the top 25 of 10 different NCAA offensive statistical categories a total of 56 times in his 18-year tenure as an offensive coordinator, including 21 top 10 rankings. Anae brings 36 years of collegiate coaching experience with him to Utah State and has helped 28 teams to bowl eligibility. “I’m thrilled to welcome Robert Anae as our offensive coordinator at Utah State,” said Mendenhall. “Robert and I share a long history together, and the success we’ve had side by side speaks for itself. His ability to develop quarterbacks is as good as anyone in college football. Robert understands how to build an offense that is smart, adaptable, and player driven. He is the perfect fit for our program, our staff, and the direction we are taking Aggie Football.” Anae has spent 15 seasons working for Mendenhall as an offensive coordinator at Virginia (2016-21), and two different stints at

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January 4, 2026 No Comments

Devon Dampier leads No. 15 Utah past Nebraska in Las Vegas Bowl, 44-22 | Sports

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Devon Dampier threw for 310 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 148 yards and three scores, and No. 15 Utah won the Las Vegas Bowl in Morgan Scalley’s first game as coach, beating Nebraska 44-22 on Wednesday in the Las Vegas Bowl. Scalley was expected to be the Utes’ coach beginning after this game, but Michigan hired Kyle Whittingham on Friday, prompting a quicker change. “There have been so many distractions for these players,” Scalley said. “The game is all about them, and so they’re the ones that don’t deserve all the distractions. They worked their tails off.” For Dampier, the game MVP, the question now is whether the junior will return to Salt Lake City or enter the transfer portal and maybe even follow his old coach to Michigan. He didn’t directly address a question regarding what his thought process would be over the next two days. “It’s the last couple of hours I get to hang out with these guys,” Dampier said. “That’s where my mind is going to be at for sure.” This game was considered a sort of audition for Nebraska freshman quarterback TJ Lateef, who passed for 182 yards and

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December 31, 2025 No Comments

Utah State football’s biggest offseason needs | Sports

Utah State’s 2025 season has officially come to a close, which means it’s time to look ahead to the 2026 season. It’s hard to set expectations for how the offseason will go down thanks to the chaos of the transfer portal, but at the very least it should be less hectic than the previous one which featured an almost entirely new roster in addition to the new coaching staff. Said staff, led by head coach Bronco Mendenhall, are already hard at work figuring out what needs have to be met to build on their first season at Utah State. The 6-7 record in 2025 was decent in context, but is not the kind of season fans will be content with for long. Utah State fans haven’t seen a winning campaign come through Logan since 2021, and they’ll be itching for one to come in 2026. The following are the most important things for Utah State to address ahead of next season. They are certainly not the only things, but these need to be checked off or next year may not be much better than this year. And that’s not something Mendenhall and Co. can afford if they want to overstay

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December 31, 2025 No Comments

Bowl games to start the year? “Not a crazy idea” according to bowl executive | Sports

Could college football bowl games, the icon of the sport’s postseason and a staple of the December athletics calendar, be moved to the start of the season? On its face, the notion is radical, even absurd. But it shouldn’t be dissmessed out of hand as it’s a possibility with growing support. The idea of playing bowl games in August, is one that dates back several years. ESPN put out an article in 2022 exploring the idea and featured quotes from key personnel in the collegiate sports landscape. A year later, the now-ended popular show, Pardon the Interruption, saw its hosts Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon discuss the very same idea. As recently as this past August, former NFL QB Christian Ponder threw out the idea on X, formerly Twitter. I need someone to run this up the flagpole at the @NCAA: bowl games should be played at the beginning of the year. Your record this year earns you the bowl game to kickoff next season. Star players play & the game matters. Playoffs only to end the season. — Christian Ponder (@cponder7) August 31, 2025 “I need someone to run this up the flagpole at the @NCAA,” Ponder said in his

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December 23, 2025 No Comments

Utah State offense struggles early, falls to Washington State in Potato Bowl | Sports

BOISE, Idaho— Although Utah State has had a significant amount of familiarity with the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, wins in said bowl continue to be elusive. In the Aggies’ sixth appearance in the Boise-based bowl Monday they lost for a fifth time, 34-21 to Washington State. For much of the game, it appeared as though Utah State would struggle to score any points as it gained just 49 yards in the first half quarters and didn’t score until there were only 17 minutes left in the game. The Aggies flirted with putting up the fewest points in Potato Bowl history (record was and remains 10 by Tulsa in the 2003 season). Utah State head coach Bronco Mendenhall praised Washington State’s defense, which entered the game as the 27th-best team in the nation in points allowed per game. “Really strong scheme. Really good players that execute well within that,” Mendenhall said. “They were consistently better, just really in most circumstances until the very end where we were able to kind of make a last-minute push. And so I was impressed and they were as advertised for sure.” Utah State’s reliance on All-MW quarterback Bryson Barnes perhaps became its weakness. The Aggies’

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December 22, 2025 No Comments

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