Smooth Pancakes' Coaching Carousel Career

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08-23-2015, 04:54 PM
SmoothPancakes

The story of this game, failure to catch! Both teams ended with 9 dropped passes, and damn near every single drive seemed to be killed because of a dropped pass.

Ohio State made their name on the ground, rushing for 251 yards to South Carolina's 32 yards. Meanwhile the Gamecocks dominated the air, passing for 288 yards to the Buckeyes 194 yards. Ohio State had 445 yards of total offense, South Carolina had 320. Ohio State had the only turnover of the game with an early fumble. South Carolina won time of possession 21:22 to 18:38.

The Buckeyes were 4-17 (23%) on third down, South Carolina was 6-20 (30%), while Ohio State went 0-3 on fourth down attempts.

Holy punt wars. Ohio State would end up punting 9 times for a 41.7 yard average, while South Carolina would punt 12 times for a 45.0 yard average. Talk about the punters getting a workout today!

Player of the game for Ohio State was quarterback Jordan Watkins, ending 24-45 for 194 yards, 24 carries for 116 yards and being responsible for both of Ohio State's touchdowns.

Top player for South Carolina was quarterback Jared Stevens, going 28-48 for 288 yards.
08-23-2015, 05:11 PM
jaymo76

Love your posts buddy. That being said, maybe stream on twitch and upload to YouTube to save yourself some time. You are going to burn yourself out with these amazing write-ups.
08-23-2015, 05:16 PM
SmoothPancakes

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaymo76

Love your posts buddy. That being said, maybe stream on twitch and upload to YouTube to save yourself some time. You are going to burn yourself out with these amazing write-ups.

I would love to, but I can't. I don't have anything that I can use to stream with my 360. When I first got my Xbox One, I tried to hook up my 360 using the pass through, but it won't let me stream on Twitch because either Twitch or the One automatically assumes I am passing through my TV feed, not my 360 feed and so it blocks me from being able to broadcast while using the pass through feed. So short of going out and spending a couple hundred bucks on an Elgato or whatever other devices there are out there, I'm left with no other option but typing.

Maybe if they ever add NCAA 14 as a backwards compatible game on the One, I would probably be able to go the Twitch route then, but for now, I'm stuck.

2023 Bowl Season Rundown

Bowl Game Conference Record Team Results Team Record Conference

:New_Mexico_Bowl: :Pac_12: 7-6 (4-5) :Oregon_State: 27-14 :Iowa_State: 6-7 (4-5) :Big_12:

:Famous_Idaho_Bowl: :AAC: 9-4 (6-3) :Temple: 20-10 :Ball_State: 6-7 (6-3) :MAC:

:Poinsettia_Bowl: :Mountain_West: 9-4 (6-2) :Air_Force: 52-44 :Tennessee: 6-7 (3-6) :SEC:

:Beef_O_Bradys_Bowl: :Pac_12: 8-5 (4-5) :Washington: 30-27 OT :Rice: 6-7 (4-4) :CUSA:

:New_Orleans_Bowl: :Sun_Belt: 9-4 (5-2) :Texas_State: 31-20 :Southern_Miss: 7-6 (5-3) :CUSA:

:Las_Vegas_Bowl: :Mountain_West: 10-4 (7-2) :Utah_State: 73-33 :Cal: 6-7 (5-4) :Pac_12:

:Hawaii_Bowl: :Mountain_West: 9-4 (5-3) (23) :Boise_State: 34-26 :Western_Kentucky: 8-5 (6-2) :CUSA:

:LittleCaesars_Bowl: :Big_Ten: 7-6 (4-5) :Northwestern: 42-38 :Toledo: 8-6 (7-3) :MAC:

:Military_Bowl: :MAC: 9-4 (6-3) :Northern_Illinois: 28-23 :New_Mexico_State: 6-7 (4-4) :Sun_Belt:

:Holiday_Bowl: :Big_12: 9-4 (5-4) (20) :Kansas_State: 45-41 (24) :Stanford: 9-5 (6-4) :Pac_12:

:Belk_Bowl: :ACC: 8-5 (6-3) :Louisville: 38-31 :Missouri: 6-7 (3-6) :SEC:

:Independence_Bowl: :ACC: 7-6 (5-4) :NC_State: 35-24 :SMU: 8-6 (7-3) :AAC:

:Russell_Athletic: :ACC: 10-4 (7-3) :Virginia_Tech: 50-14 :Oklahoma_State: 6-7 (3-6) :Big_12:

:Meineke_Texas_Bowl: :Big_Ten: 7-6 (4-5) :Indiana: 35-21 :TCU: 6-7 (5-4) :Big_12:

:Armed_Forces_Bowl: :CUSA: 10-4 (6-3) :Marshall: 35-23 (22) :Navy: 9-4 (6-3) :AAC:

:Fight_Hunger_Bowl: :AAC: 9-4 (6-3) :USF: 34-24 :Oregon: 6-7 (4-5) :Pac_12:

:Alamo_Bowl: :Big_12: 10-3 (6-3) (17) :Baylor: 42-37 :Utah: 7-6 (6-3) :Pac_12:

:BWW_Bowl: :Big_Ten: 7-7 (5-5) :Wisconsin: 24-17 (15) :Texas: 9-4 (6-3) :Big_12:

:Music_City_Bowl: :ACC: 10-3 (6-3) (16) :Florida_State: 27-14 :Mississippi_State: 7-6 (4-5) :SEC:

:Sun_Bowl: :ACC: 10-3 (6-3) (14) :Miami: 27-17 (25) :USC: 8-5 (5-4) :Pac_12:

:Liberty_Bowl: :CUSA: 11-3 (8-1) :UTSA: 35-30 :Kentucky: 6-7 (4-5) :SEC:

:Chick_fil_A_Bowl: :ACC: 11-2 (7-2) (10) :Georgia_Tech: 21-7 :Arkansas: 7-6 (4-5) :SEC:

:Heart_of_Dallas: :Big_Ten: 8-5 (4-5) :Penn_State: 48-38 :Miami_OH: 7-6 (5-4) :MAC:

:TaxSlayer_Gator: :Big_Ten: 7-6 (5-4) :Nebraska: 35-21 :Alabama: 6-7 (4-5) :SEC:

:Capital_One_Bowl: :SEC: 12-2 (8-2) (9) :Ole_Miss: 34-24 (18) :Michigan_State: 9-4 (6-3) :Big_Ten:

:Outback_Bowl: :SEC: 11-2 (7-2) (12) :Auburn: 41-7 :Purdue: 6-7 (5-4) :Big_Ten:

:Cotton_Bowl: :Big_12: 11-2 (7-2) (13) :Oklahoma: 42-35 :Florida: 7-6 (5-4) :SEC:

:BBVA_Compass_Bowl: :AAC: 8-5 (5-4) :UCF: 38-31 :Troy: 6-7 (4-4) :Sun_Belt:

:GoDaddycom_Bowl: :Sun_Belt: 9-4 (5-3) :Arkansas_State: 28-23 (19) :Ohio: 11-3 (8-2) :MAC:

2023 BCS Bowls

Bowl Game Conference Record Team Results Team Record Conference

:Rose_Bowl: :Pac_12: 12-2 (9-1) (8) :Arizona: 23-7 (5) :Michigan: 11-2 (8-1) :Big_Ten:

:Fiesta_Bowl: :Big_12: 12-1 (8-1) (4) :West_Virginia: 48-42 (7) :Cincinnati: 12-2 (9-1) :AAC:

:Sugar_Bowl: :Pac_12: 12-1 (8-1) (6) :UCLA: 21-10 (3) :Fresno_State: 13-1 (9-0) :Mountain_West:

:Orange_Bowl: :ACC: 11-3 (8-2) (21) :Clemson: 52-30 (11) :Louisiana: 11-2 (8-0) :Sun_Belt:

:BCS_Trophy: :Big_Ten: 14-0 (10-0) (2) :Ohio_State: 14-13 (1) :South_Carolina: 13-1 (10-0) :SEC:

2023 Bowl Challenge Cup Standings

Rank Conference Bowl Teams Bowl Record Percentage Teams in AP Poll

1 :ACC: 7 7-0 1.000

2 :Mountain_West: 4 3-1 .750

3 :Big_Ten: 9 6-3 .660

4 :Big_12: (1) 8 4-4 .500

5 :AAC: (1) 6 3-3 .500

6 :Pac_12: 9 4-5 .440

7 :Sun_Belt: (2) 5 2-3 .400

8 :CUSA: (2) 5 2-3 .400

9 :MAC: 5 1-4 .250

10 :SEC: 10 2-8 .200

11 Independents 0 0-0 .000

1 - Tied based on winning percentage, but final order based on number of bowl wins.
2 - Tied with 2-3 records, but Sun Belt holds 1-0 head to head record vs. Conference USA.

08-23-2015, 05:35 PM
SmoothPancakes

And so there you go. The domination continues. Ohio State is your 2023 national champion, winning their fourth straight national title and their 56th game in a row, while the ACC shows dominance of their own and goes a perfect 7-0 in bowl games to win the 2023 Bowl Challenge Cup.

On the other side of the coin, the SEC faceplants in epic proportions as they lifelessly float to a 2-8 finish in an extremely forgettable bowl season to claim the "we suck" conference title of 2023.

For readers teams, Texas State topples Southern Miss 31-20 in the New Orleans Bowl, Marshall defeats #22 Navy 35-23 in the Armed Forces Bowl, Utah State embarrasses California 73-33 in the Las Vegas Bowl, Arkansas State slips past #19 Ohio 28-23 in the GoDaddy.com Bowl, #12 Auburn manhandles Purdue 41-7 in the Outback Bowl, #21 Clemson routs routs #8 Louisiana Lafayette 52-30 in the Orange Bowl, #6 UCLA tops #3 Fresno State 21-10 in the Sugar Bowl, #4 West Virginia escapes #7 Cincinnati 48-42 in the Fiesta Bowl and and #2 Ohio State claims the National Championship for a fourth straight season, topping #1 South Carolina 14-13 in the national title game.

The American wrapped up their season going 3-3 in bowls, but with past success in the previous couple seasons, the American officially off the watch list and will retain the automatic bid indefinitely. A second place finish in the Bowl Challenge Cup with a 3-1 finish by the Mountain West, following last years 5-1 mark, means their BCS bowl bid is now considered officially safe unless they end up on watch status again due to poor records in future seasons.

The ACC is definitely safe after a perfect 7-0 record. The Pac-12 is still considered safe for the time being, but a closer eye will be kept as they suffer their second straight sub-.500 year. The Big Ten is officially safe thanks to their 6-3 record this year, breaking a streak of three straight years with .500 or worse records.

The SEC on the other hand, yikes. They're still safe since they had an above-.500 record last year, but going a pathetic 2-8 will definitely have them being watched in future seasons. If they can't turn it around in the next year or two, they might find themselves landing on watch status.
08-23-2015, 05:37 PM
jaymo76

2-8! Couldn't happen to a more desrving confernce. Nice!
08-23-2015, 07:03 PM
SmoothPancakes

Alright, unfortunately the final polls, the coaching carousel and the off-season summary will have to wait until Monday or Tuesday.

Probably because I was unable to stay asleep for more than three or four hours max between 7am Friday and 2am Sunday, my body has been rebelling this afternoon. For the last 5 or 6 hours, my entire body has been feeling fatigued, similar to how you start to feel right before the onset of the flu. I'm not feeling that bad anymore thankfully, after eating dinner, but I'm still calling it a night very early tonight.

Since I have to be up for work at 5am tomorrow morning, I want to be to bed by 10pm and am just going to take it easy and catch up on some recorded shows for the rest of the night. Depending on how I feel tomorrow after work, I may try to jump on later in the afternoon or evening and either finish everything up or at least try to get through coaching carousel for the night and then try and finish everything on Tuesday. It'll all depending on how I'm feeling. I'm not gonna push it because I have a crap ton of hours coming up later this week with our high school football broadcasts starting back up for another season on Thursday and Friday and I'm not trying to go through an entire football broadcast feeling like the walking dead.

2023 Final Top 25

Coaches Poll - Media Poll

Rank Team Record Team Record

1 :Ohio_State: 14-0 :Ohio_State: 14-0

2 :West_Virginia: 12-1 :West_Virginia: 12-1

3 :UCLA: 12-1 :UCLA: 12-1

4 :South_Carolina: 13-1 :South_Carolina: 13-1

5 :Arizona: 12-2 :Arizona: 12-2

6 :Ole_Miss: 12-2 :Ole_Miss: 12-2

7 :Georgia_Tech: 11-2 :Fresno_State: 13-1

8 :Auburn: 11-2 :Georgia_Tech: 11-2

9 :Fresno_State: 13-1 :Auburn: 11-2

10 :Michigan: 11-2 :Michigan: 11-2

11 :Oklahoma: 11-2 :Cincinnati: 12-2

12 :Cincinnati: 12-2 :Oklahoma: 11-2

13 :Miami: 10-3 :Miami: 10-3

14 :Florida_State: 10-3 :Baylor: 10-3

15 :Louisiana: 11-2 :Florida_State: 10-3

16 :Baylor: 10-3 :Louisiana: 11-2

17 :Clemson: 11-3 :Clemson: 11-3

18 :Kansas_State: 9-4 :Kansas_State: 9-4

19 :Boise_State: 9-4 :Boise_State: 9-4

20 :UTSA: 11-3 :UTSA: 11-3

21 :Utah_State: 10-4 :Utah_State: 10-4

22 :Marshall: 10-4 :Marshall: 10-4

23 :Air_Force: 9-4 :Air_Force: 9-4

24 :Texas_State: 9-4 :Texas_State: 9-4

25 :Texas: 9-4 :Texas: 9-4

2023 Coaching Carousel

Team Position Previous Coach Reason Left New Coach Previous Team Previous Position O/D Style

:Notre_Dame: Head Coach Brian Kelly Fired Willy Robinson :Louisiana: Head Coach Virginia Tech (Multiple) \ 4-3

:Ohio: Head Coach Matt Green Retired at age 70 Troy Reffett :Ohio: Defensive Coordinator UL Monroe (Spread) \ 3-3-5

:North_Carolina: Head Coach June Jones Fired John Klacik :Clemson: Offensive Coordinator Minnesota (Multiple) \ 4-3

:Louisiana: Head Coach Willy Robinson Left for Notre Dame HC job Kevin Rogers :Ohio_State: Offensive Coordinator FIU (Multiple) \ 4-3

:BYU: Head Coach Randy Clements Fired Clay Hendrix :West_Virginia: Offensive Coordinator West Virginia (Air Raid) \ 3-4

:Illinois: Head Coach Kevin Cosgrove Fired Dan Roushar :Ohio_State: Defensive Coordinator Michigan State (Pro) \ 4-3

:Arizona_State: Head Coach Dana Bible Fired Josh Sutton :UTSA: Head Coach Tulane (Pro) \ 4-3

:Colorado: Head Coach Jim Bollman Fired Bobby Hauck :South_Carolina: Offensive Coordinator Central Michigan (Multiple) \ 4-2-5

:Houston: Head Coach Dan Morrison Fired Kraig Paulson :UCLA: Defensive Coordinator UCLA (Spread) \ 3-4

:Texas_Tech: Head Coach Tommy Tuberville Fired Dave Cohen :Auburn: Defensive Coordinator West Virginia (Air Raid) \ 3-4

:Wake_Forest: Head Coach Jay Niemann Fired Tom Mason :Georgia_Tech: Defensive Coordinator Western Kentucky (Pro) \ 4-3

:Kansas: Head Coach Tim DeRuyter Fired Tim Banks :Boise_State: Defensive Coordinator Boise State (Multiple) \ 4-2-5

:Tulsa: Head Coach Andy Ludwig Fired Steven Elbert :Akron: Head Coach Stanford (Pro) \ 3-4

:East_Carolina: Head Coach Chad Glasgow Fired Pete Kwiatkowski :Fresno_State: Defensive Coordinator Fresno State (Spread) \ 3-4

:UTSA: Head Coach Josh Sutton Left for Arizona State HC job Eric Price :UTSA: Offensive Coordinator Kentucky (Air Raid) \ 4-3

:Ohio_State: Defensive Coordinator Dan Roushar Left for Illinois HC job Brent Venables :Oklahoma: Defensive Coordinator 3-4

:Georgia_Tech: Defensive Coordinator Tom Mason Left for Wake Forest HC job Randy Clements :BYU: Head Coach 3-4

:Ohio_State: Offensive Coordinator Kevin Rogers Left for Louisiana Lafayette HC job Mike Bajakian :Cincinnati: Offensive Coordinator Cincinnati (Multiple)

:LSU: Defensive Coordinator Paul Rhoads Fired Kevin Cosgrove :Illinois: Head Coach 4-3

:Notre_Dame: Offensive Coordinator Charley Molnar Fired Art Briles :Boise_State: Offensive Coordinator Boise State (Multiple)

:Oklahoma: Defensive Coordinator Brent Veneables Left for Ohio State DC job Greg Stewart :Stanford: Defensive Coordinator 3-4

:Clemson: Offensive Coordinator John Klacik Left for North Carolina HC job Brian Kelly :Notre_Dame: Head Coach Notre Dame (Spread)

:Auburn: Defensive Coordinator Dave Cohen Left for Texas Tech HC job Brent Guy :Penn_State: Defensive Coordinator 4-3

:South_Carolina: Offensive Coordinator Bobby Hauck Left for Colorado HC job Tyson Lewis :New_Mexico_State: Head Coach New Mexico State (Spread)

:UCLA: Defensive Coordinator Kraig Paulson Left for Houston HC job Bill Young :UTSA: Defensive Coordinator 4-3

:South_Alabama: Head Coach Joey Jones Fired Dan Morrison :Houston: Head Coach Houston (Air Raid) \ 3-4

:Stanford: Defensive Coordinator Greg Stewart Left for Oklahoma DC job June Jones :North_Carolina: Head Coach 4-2-5

:Texas_A&M: Defensive Coordinator Dan McCarney Fired Phil Bennett :Mississippi_State: Defensive Coordinator 4-3

:Wyoming: Head Coach Steve Kragthorpe Fired Mark Richt :Northwestern: Offensive Coordinator Northwestern (Spread) \ 4-3

:Boise_State: Defensive Coordinator Tim Banks Left for Kansas HC job Jay Niemann :Wake_Forest: Head Coach 3-4

:Ohio: Defensive Coordinator Troy Reffett Left for Ohio HC job Stephen Hairston None None 4-3

:Boise_State: Offensive Coordinator Art Briles Left for Notre Dame OC job Dana Bible :Arizona_State: Head Coach Arizona State (Spread)

:Penn_State: Defensive Coordinator Brent Guy Left for Auburn DC job Chuck Driesbach :Rice: Defensive Coordinator 4-2-5

:TCU: Defensive Coordinator Dick Bumpas Retired at age 67 Chad Glasgow :East_Carolina: Head Coach 3-4

:West_Virginia: Offensive Coordinator Clay Hendrix Left for BYU HC job Andy Ludwig :Tulsa: Head Coach Tulsa (Spread)

:Cincinnati: Offensive Coordinator Mike Bajakian Left for Ohio State OC job Tommy Tuberville :Texas_Tech: Head Coach Texas Tech (Air Raid)

:New_Mexico_State: Head Coach Tyson Lewis Left for South Carolina OC job Joey Jones :South_Alabama: Head Coach South Alabama (Spread) \ 3-4 Multiple

:Akron: Head Coach Steven Elbert Left for Tulsa HC job Ethan Wilson None None Multiple (Multiple) \ 3-4

:Fresno_State: Defensive Coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski Left for East Carolina HC job Phillip Estes Rhodes :North_Texas: Defensive Coordinator 3-4

:Buffalo: Head Coach Turner Gill Fired Will McCoy None None UTSA (Multiple) \ 4-3

:Iowa: Defensive Coordinator Bob Fraser Fired Dan McCarney :Texas_A&M: Defensive Coordinator 4-3

:Mississippi_State: Defensive Coordinator Phil Bennett Left for Texas A&M DC job Walter Jackson None None 4-3

:North_Carolina: Offensive Coordinator Kenny Edenfield Fired Jim Bollman :Colorado: Head Coach Ohio State (Spread)

:North_Carolina: Defensive Coordinator Will Muschamp Fired Ellis Johnson :MTSU: Defensive Coordinator 4-3

:Northwestern: Offensive Coordinator Mark Richt Left for Wyoming HC job Tim DeRuyter :Kansas: Head Coach Kansas (Pro)

:Rutgers: Defensive Coordinator Marcus Riley Fired Caleb Daniels None None 4-3

:Arizona_State: Offensive Coordinator Geoff Collins Fired Carl Torbush :Temple: Offensive Coordinator Temple (Multiple)

:Arizona_State: Defensive Coordinator Greg Cruz Fired Will Muschamp :North_Carolina: Defensive Coordinator 4-3

:Colorado: Offensive Coordinator Kurt Roper Parks Fired Steve Kragthorpe :Wyoming: Head Coach LSU (Pro)

:Kansas: Offensive Coordinator Jerry Kill Fired Turner Gill :Buffalo: Head Coach Buffalo (Spread)

:Kansas: Defensive Coordinator David Hayford Fired Paul Rhoads :LSU: Defensive Coordinator 4-3

:Illinois: Defensive Coordinator Todd Orlando Fired Bob Fraser :Iowa: Defensive Coordinator 4-3

:Southern_Miss: Defensive Coordinator Dan Disch Retired at age 68 Kevin Steele :Maryland: Defensive Coordinator 3-4

:North_Texas: Defensive Coordinator Phillip Estes Rhodes Left for Fresno State DC job Todd Orlando :Illinois: Defensive Coordinator 4-3

:Texas_Tech: Offensive Coordinator Jeff Casteel Fired Dave Yost :MTSU: Offensive Coordinator Mid Tennessee State (Air Raid)

:Texas_Tech: Defensive Coordinator Mike MacIntyre Fired Greg Cruz :Arizona_State: Defensive Coordinator 3-4

:Wake_Forest: Offensive Coordinator Dave Clawson Fired Charley Molnar :Notre_Dame: Offensive Coordinator Notre Dame (Spread)

:Maryland: Defensive Coordinator Kevin Steele Fired Kevin Sherrer :South_Alabama: Defensive Coordinator 3-4 Multiple

:Temple: Offensive Coordinator Carl Torbush Left for Arizona State OC job Chaz Pugh :UL_Monroe: Offensive Coordinator UL Monroe (Spread)

:Houston: Offensive Coordinator Eric Bieniemy Fired Brian Stinespring :Akron: Offensive Coordinator USF (Pro)

:Tulsa: Offensive Coordinator Kevin Johns Fired Kurt Roper Parks :Colorado: Offensive Coordinator Wyoming (Spread)

:Colorado: Defensive Coordinator Dustin Hamilton Fired Marcus Riley :Rutgers: Defensive Coordinator 4-3

:UTSA: Defensive Coordinator Bill Young Left for UCLA DC job Bill Busch :East_Carolina: Defensive Coordinator 3-4

:UTSA: Offensive Coordinator Eric Price Left for UTSA HC job Jeff Casteel :Texas_Tech: Offensive Coordinator Texas Tech (Air Raid)

:Colorado_State: Offensive Coordinator Pat Meyer Fired Eric Bieniemy :Houston: Offensive Coordinator Houston (Air Raid)

:Rice: Defensive Coordinator Chuck Driesbach Left for Penn State DC job Tommy West :UAB: Defensive Coordinator 4-3

:South_Alabama: Offensive Coordinator Michael Walker Fired Geoff Collins :Arizona_State: Offensive Coordinator Arizona State (Spread)

:South_Alabama: Defensive Coordinator Kevin Sherrer Left for Maryland DC job Mike MacIntyre :Texas_Tech: Defensive Coordinator 3-4

:UL_Monroe: Offensive Coordinator Chaz Pugh Left for Temple OC job Jerry Kill :Kansas: Offensive Coordinator San Jose State (Pro)

:MTSU: Offensive Coordinator Dave Yost Left for Texas Tech OC job Mike Washington :Western_Michigan: Offensive Coordinator Western Michigan (Pro)

:MTSU: Defensive Coordinator Ellis Johnson Left for North Carolina DC job Zach Everett :UMass: Defensive Coordinator 4-3

:Western_Michigan: Offensive Coordinator Mike Washington Left for MTSU OC job Kevin Johns :Tulsa: Offensive Coordinator Tulsa (Spread)

:Wyoming: Offensive Coordinator Doug Martin Fired Michael Walker :South_Alabama: Offensive Coordinator Arkansas (Pro)

:Wyoming: Defensive Coordinator Greg Mattison Fired David Hayford :Kansas: Defensive Coordinator 4-3

:East_Carolina: Offensive Coordinator Ralph Brewer Fired Kenny Edenfield :North_Carolina: Offensive Coordinator North Carolina (Spread)

:East_Carolina: Defensive Coordinator Bill Busch Fired Greg Mattinson :Wyoming: Defensive Coordinator 4-3

:Akron: Offensive Coordinator Brian Stinespring Left for Houston OC job Pat Meyer :Colorado_State: Offensive Coordinator Colorado State (One Back)

:Buffalo: Offensive Coordinator Alex Wood Fired Jason Ostrander None None UCLA (Spread)

:UAB: Defensive Coordinator Tommy West Left for Rice DC job Brian Dean None None 3-4

:UMass: Offensive Coordinator Craig Bray Fired Larry Vincent None None Western Kentucky (Pro)

:UMass: Defensive Coordinator Zach Everett Fired Chris Richardson None None 4-3

:Idaho: Defensive Coordinator Marty English Retired at age 65 Ben James None None 4-3

Jobs I Was in the Running For

Team Position Candidate Rank Offered Job

:North_Carolina: Head Coach Top 6 No

:Louisiana: Head Coach 2nd No

:BYU: Head Coach 3rd Yes

:Illinois: Head Coach Top 6 No

:Arizona_State: Head Coach Top 6 No

:Colorado: Head Coach Top 6 Yes

:Houston: Head Coach 3rd Yes

:Texas_Tech: Head Coach 2nd Yes

:Wake_Forest: Head Coach 1st Yes

:Kansas: Head Coach Top 6 Yes

:Tulsa: Head Coach Top 6 Yes

:East_Carolina: Head Coach 3rd Yes

:UTSA: Head Coach 2nd Yes

:Ohio_State: Offensive Coordinator 2nd Yes

:Notre_Dame: Offensive Coordinator Top 6 Yes

:Clemson: Offensive Coordinator 2nd Yes

:South_Carolina: Offensive Coordinator 3rd Yes

:South_Alabama: Head Coach Top 6 Yes

:Wyoming: Head Coach 2nd Yes

:Boise_State: Offensive Coordinator 1st Yes

:West_Virginia: Offensive Coordinator 2nd Yes

:Cincinnati: Offensive Coordinator Top 6 Yes

:New_Mexico_State: Head Coach Top 6 Yes

:Akron: Head Coach Top 6 Yes

:Buffalo: Head Coach 3rd Yes

:North_Carolina: Offensive Coordinator 3rd Yes

:Northwestern: Offensive Coordinator Top 6 Yes

:Arizona_State: Offensive Coordinator Top 6 Yes

:Colorado: Offensive Coordinator 1st Yes

:Kansas: Offensive Coordinator 2nd Yes

:Texas_Tech: Offensive Coordinator 3rd Yes

:Wake_Forest: Offensive Coordinator Top 6 Yes

:Temple: Offensive Coordinator 1st Yes

:Houston: Offensive Coordinator 1st Yes

:Tulsa: Offensive Coordinator 1st Yes

:UTSA: Offensive Coordinator 3rd Yes

:Colorado_State: Offensive Coordinator Top 6 Yes

:South_Alabama: Offensive Coordinator Top 6 Yes

:UL_Monroe: Offensive Coordinator 3rd Yes

:MTSU: Offensive Coordinator 2nd Yes

:Western_Michigan: Offensive Coordinator 3rd Yes

:Wyoming: Offensive Coordinator 1st Yes

:East_Carolina: Offensive Coordinator Top 6 Yes

:Akron: Offensive Coordinator 2nd Yes

:Buffalo: Offensive Coordinator 1st Yes

:UMass: Offensive Coordinator 2nd Yes

Notes of Interest

Multiple teams saw their entire coaching staffs shaken up, as the entire staffs are replaced at Arizona State, Colorado, East Carolina, Kansas, North Carolina, South Alabama, Texas Tech and Wyoming. UTSA would also end up seeing a coaching change from top to bottom, after their head coach left for Arizona State, their defensive coordinator left for UCLA and their offensive coordinator took over at head coach.

Other teams experiencing multiple changes were Buffalo (HC/OC), Houston (HC/OC), Illinois (HC/DC), MTSU (OC/DC), Tulsa (HC/OC), UMass (OC/DC) and Wake Forest (HC/OC).

For the third straight year, Louisiana Lafayette lost their head coach. Their head coach two years ago left for the head coach position at LSU, their newly hired coach last year left to become head coach at Penn State. Then this year, their new head coach bolts after one season to take over as head coach at Notre Dame. Louisiana Lafayette will be playing under their fourth head coach in fourth seasons.

It's tough to be the king, as successful seasons saw Ohio State lose both of their offensive coordinators, for the third straight year, to the head coach jobs at Louisiana Lafayette and Illinois, while Louisiana Lafayette's third straight head coach jumps for a higher rung on the ladder after one season. Clemson (OC), South Carolina (OC) and West Virginia (OC) would also see coordinators take advantage of recent success and leave for head coach slots elsewhere.

2023-24 Off-Season

Players Leaving

Player Position Overall Year Reason Overall of Next Player

David Douglas WR 95 Senior (RS) Graduation 84

Jason Barnes QB 94 Senior (RS) Graduation 80

Brian Paris HB 92 Senior (RS) Graduation 80

Ed Allen P 89 Senior (RS) Graduation 71

Derek Smith LT 86 Senior (RS) Graduation 67

Ryan Smith QB 86 Senior (RS) Graduation 80

Mike Moses CB 84 Senior (RS) Graduation 93

Jon Smith MLB 82 Senior (RS) Graduation 86

John Hale LOLB 80 Senior (RS) Graduation 75

Sean Baker LT 79 Senior (RS) Graduation ---

Aaron Allen WR 77 Senior (RS) Graduation 77

Jack Long TE 77 Senior (RS) Graduation 69

Leroy Fuqua RE 76 Senior (RS) Graduation 83

Lawrence Coker CB 75 Senior (RS) Graduation 84

Obi Rush LOLB 73 Senior (RS) Graduation 68

J.T. Gillett RG 67 Freshman Transfer (Playing Time) 85

NFL Draft

Player Position Overall Year Projected Round Drafted Round

--- --- --- --- --- ---

Transfer Requests

Player Position Transferring From Transferring To Year Overall Reason Admitted/Denied

J.T. Gillett RG Utah State Florida International Freshman 67 Playing Time Leaving

2023 Utah State Recruiting Class

Player Position Position Rank Tendency Star Ranking :sparq: Overall +/- Notes

Aaron Rush CB #33 Balanced :3star: 67.00 73 +3

Jay Love HB #10 Balanced :4star: 78.00 71 -2

Luke Jennings OLB #41 Run Stopper :3star: 64.00 70 +2

Bryce Lewis ATH #46 Athlete :4star: 76.00 70 +2

Matt Turner WR #63 Speed :3star: 67.00 69 0

Max Thompson K #45 Accurate :1star: 40.00 69 +10 Gem

Carnell Tidwell ATH #61 Athlete :3star: 67.00 69 +2

Brian Smith QB #50 Scrambler :3star: 65.00 68 +2

Matt Chavez WR #126 Speed :3star: 67.00 68 +3

Lamar Moore T #48 Balanced :3star: 57.00 68 0

Jeremy Brown CB #14 Coverage :4star: 76.00 68 +1

Tyler Powell FS #72 Balanced :2star: 59.00 68 +6 Gem

Anthony Williams OLB #99 Balanced :3star: 64.00 67 +3

Michael Lewis MLB #45 Run Stopper :3star: 64.00 67 +2

Todd Barclay CB #81 Balanced :3star: 67.00 67 +2

Jon Parks QB #9 Scrambler :4star: 73.00 66 -8 Bust

Jerod Burnette G #22 Run Block :3star: 57.00 66 -6 Bust

David Jenkins CB #53 Coverage :3star: 67.00 66 +1

Anthony Haumiller CB #88 Coverage :3star: 67.00 66 +2

Matt Weber FS #41 Coverage :3star: 67.00 66 0

Recruiting Class Rank

Rank: 35

Position Changes

Player Position Overall New Position Overall

Richard Andrews LG 67 RG 67

Anthony Williams ROLB 67 LOLB 67

Bryce Lewis ATH 70 FS 75

Carnell Tidwell ATH 69 SS 73

Training Results

Highest Overall Player - Leonard Hart - CB - 97 OVR (+4)
Largest Training Increase - Doug Marcus - K - 94 OVR (+6)

Cut Players

Player Position Depth Chart Rank Year Overall

David Jenkins CB 4th Freshman 66

Anthony Haumiller CB 4th Freshman 66

Matt Weber FS 5th Freshman 66

Brian Smith QB 3rd Freshman 68

Conference Changes

Team Old Conference New Conference

--- --- ---

BCS Bowl Tie Ins

Slots Conference Bowl

Automatic Qualifier :ACC: Orange Bowl

Automatic Qualifier :AAC: Any Bowl

Automatic Qualifier :Big_Ten: Rose Bowl

Automatic Qualifier :Big_12: Fiesta Bowl

Automatic Qualifier :Mountain_West: Any Bowl

Automatic Qualifier :Pac_12: Rose Bowl

Automatic Qualifier :SEC: Sugar Bowl

Open Slot At Large Any Bowl

2024 Utah State Football Schedule

Week Home/Away Team Result Score Record Game Notes

1 Away :Utah: Win 27-24 1-0 Season Opener
Battle of the Brothers
Beehive Boot

2 Neutral Site #7 :Michigan: Loss 31-48 1-1 at Sports Authority Field at Mile High Stadium

3 --- Bye Week --- --- ---

4 Away :Notre_Dame: Loss 23-31 1-2

5 Home :BYU: Win 49-7 2-2 Home Opener
The Old Wagon Wheel
Beehive Boot

6 Away :San_Diego_State: Loss 14-28 2-3 (0-1) Conference Opener

7 Home :San_Jose_State: Win 13-10
3-3 (1-1) Homecoming

8 Away :New_Mexico: --- --- ---

9 Home :Colorado_State: --- --- ---

10 Away :Boise_State: --- --- ---

11 Home :Air_Force: --- --- ---

12 --- Bye Week --- --- ---

13 Away :UNLV: --- --- ---

14 Home :Wyoming: --- --- --- Bridger's Battle
Senior Night

15 --- Bye Week --- --- ---

CCG :Mountain_West: --- --- --- --- Mountain West Championship Game

Bowl Game --- --- --- --- --- 2024 Bowl Game

--- The scores are hyperlinks to the posted game report of that game. Just click on the score/link to be taken to that game's posted report.

08-24-2015, 04:04 PM
SmoothPancakes

Utah State Five Year HC Contract Goals - Year Two

Goal Expectations Progress

Target Wins Per Season 8 3

Job Security Status

100%

--- Contract goal numbers and job security updated through Season 14, Week 7.

The following players have been redshirted for the 2024 season.

2024 Redshirt Players

Player Position Depth Chart Rank Year Overall

Kyle Hall HB 4th Sophomore 78

Raymond Watson FB 2nd Junior 78

Trent Allen WR 3rd Junior 75

Steve Sanders LG 2nd Junior 73

T.J. Bell RG 2nd Senior 77

Shaun Peterson RE 1st Senior 88

Lance Nash DT 2nd Junior 77

Michael Lewis MLB 3rd Freshman 67

Derrick Perez ROLB 2nd Senior 82

Leonard Hart CB 1st Senior 97

Allen Salyer FS 2nd Junior 76

Cole Brown SS 1st Sophomore 74

Doug Marcus K 1st Senior 94

2024 Preseason Top 25

Rank Team 2023 Record Overall Offense Defense Special Teams

1 :Ohio_State: 14-0 A (95) A+ (99) B+ (90) B+

2 :South_Carolina: 13-1 B+ (90) A- (93) B+ (88) B-

3 :Oklahoma: 11-2 A+ (99) A+ (99) A+ (99) A+

4 :UCLA: 12-1 A- (93) B+ (90) A+ (97) B-

5 :West_Virginia: 12-1 B- (83) B+ (90) C+ (76) D

6 :Miami: 10-3 A+ (97) A+ (99) B+ (88) A+

7 :Michigan: 11-2 A+ (97) A+ (97) A+ (99) C

8 :Florida_State: 10-3 A (95) A+ (99) B+ (88) B

9 :Ole_Miss: 12-2 B+ (91) A- (93) A- (92) B-

10 :Auburn: 11-2 A- (93) A+ (99) B+ (90) A

11 :Baylor: 10-3 B (86) B+ (88) B (87) C+

12 :Clemson: 11-3 B+ (91) A+ (97) B+ (88) A+

13 :Texas: 9-4 A- (93) A+ (99) B+ (90) A+

14 :Georgia_Tech: 11-2 B+ (91) A- (93) B+ (90) C+

15 :Arizona: 12-2 B (86) A- (93) B- (80) B

16 :Virginia_Tech: 10-4 A (95) A+ (99) A- (93) A

17 :Stanford: 9-5 B+ (88) B (86) B+ (90) A-

18 :USC: 8-5 A+ (97) A+ (99) A (95) C

19 :Michigan_State: 9-4 B+ (91) A- (93) B+ (90) A

20 :Cincinnati: 12-2 B- (83) B+ (90) C+ (76) C-

21 :Kansas_State: 9-4 B+ (88) B+ (88) B (87) B

22 :Florida: 7-6 A (95) A- (93) A+ (99) B+

23 :Oregon: 6-7 B+ (90) B+ (90) B+ (90) B+

24 :Fresno_State: 13-1 B- (83) B- (83) B (85) D-

25 :Arkansas: 7-6 B+ (90) A (95) B (85) C+

Mountain West Teams and 2024 Opponents

Rank Team 2023 Record Overall Offense Defense Special Teams

7 :Michigan: 11-2 A+ (97) A+ (97) A+ (99) C

24 :Fresno_State: 13-1 B- (83) B- (83) B (85) D

27 :Boise_State: 9-4 B (86) B+ (88) B (87) C

29 :Utah_State: 10-4 B (84) B (86) B- (82) C

34 :Utah: 7-6 B+ (90) B+ (91) B+ (90) A-

57 :Notre_Dame: 3-9 A+ (99) A+ (97) A+ (99) B

61 :Air_Force: 9-4 C+ (79) B- (81) C+ (76) A

74 :San_Diego_State: 5-7 B+ (90) B+ (91) B+ (88) C-

82 :Nevada: 5-7 C+ (77) C (75) B- (80) A

90 :Hawaii: 5-7 B (84) B+ (90) B- (82) D

91 :BYU: 3-9 B (84) B+ (88) B- (82) C-

93 :San_Jose_State: 5-7 B- (81) B (84) B- (80) D+

108 :New_Mexico: 4-8 C+ (79) B- (81) C+ (78) D-

111 :Colorado_State: 3-9 C (72) C+ (77) C- (70) D-

112 :Wyoming: 2-10 C+ (77) B- (83) C (75) D

123 :UNLV: 3-9 C+ (77) B- (81) C (75) D+

"For Our Readers" Teams

Rank Team 2023 Record Overall Offense Defense Special Teams

1 :Ohio_State: 14-0 A (95) A+ (99) B+ (90) B+

2 :South_Carolina: 13-1 B+ (90) A- (93) B+ (88) B-

5 :West_Virginia: 12-1 B- (83) B+ (90) C+ (76) D

10 :Auburn: 11-2 A- (93) A+ (99) B+ (90) A

35 :Navy: 9-4 B (84) B+ (88) B- (82) B-

37 :Louisiana: 11-2 B- (81) B- (83) B- (80) D-

45 :Arkansas_State: 9-4 B- (81) B- (83) B- (80) C

80 :Arizona_State: 3-9 B+ (88) B (86) B+ (90) D

84 :FIU: 5-7 B- (83) B (84) B- (82) D-

87 :Southern_Miss: 7-6 B- (83) B- (83) B (85) C+

103 :Tulsa: 3-9 B- (81) B (84) B- (80) C-

2024 Utah State Two Deep Roster

Offense

Spoiler: show

Position Rank Name Year Overall

QB 1 Pat Williams Junior (RS) 86

QB 2 Josh Jones Freshman (RS) 72

HB 1 Benjamin Silva Junior 85

HB 2 Tyson Taylor Sophomore (RS) 81

FB 1 Walter Johnson Junior (RS) 78

FB 2 John Waters Sophomore 71

WR 1 Adam Washington Junior 89

WR 2 Greg Miller Senior (RS) 81

WR 3 Tristan Muhammad Sophomore (RS) 76

WR 4 Jon Morris Junior (RS) 76

WR 5 Matt Turner Freshman 69

TE 1 Nate Williams Freshman (RS) 75

TE 2 Sam Livingston Sophomore 73

LT 1 Max Richard Freshman (RS) 72

LT 2 Lamar Moore Freshman 68

LG 1 Kevin Thomas Junior (RS) 78

LG 2 Jerod Burnette Freshman 66

C 1 Randy Thomas Junior 82

C 2 Paul Rodgers Junior (RS) 80

RG 1 Shelton Woods Junior (RS) 91

RG 2 Richard Andrews Freshman (RS) 73

RT 1 Justin Wallace Junior (RS) 83

RT 2 Freddie Williams Sophomore 72

Defense

Spoiler: show

Position Rank Name Year Overall

LE 1 Steve Jones Sophomore (RS) 77

LE 2 Jovon Blount Junior 76

RE 1 Steve Simpson Sophomore (RS) 76

RE 2 --- --- ---

DT 1 Scott Flanagan Senior (RS) 81

DT 2 J.R. Gray Sophomore 77

DT 3 Xavier Simmons Junior 76

DT 4 Drew Triplett Junior (RS) 75

LOLB 1 Joshua Porter Sophomore (RS) 79

LOLB 2 Ryan Taylor Freshman (RS) 72

MLB 1 Justin Dunn Junior (RS) 91

MLB 2 Johnny Sullivan Junior (RS) 84

ROLB 1 Jason Baker Junior (RS) 83

ROLB 2 Luke Jennings Freshman 70

CB 1 Jesse Breedlove Junior (RS) 88

CB 2 Aaron Rush Freshman 73

CB 3 Jeremy Brown Freshman 68

CB 4 Todd Barclay Freshman 67

FS 1 Kyle Mitchell Junior (RS) 80

FS 2 Bryce Lewis Freshman 75

SS 1 Carnell Tidwell Freshman 73

SS 2 Dwayne Thompson Sophomore (RS) 72

K 1 Max Thompson Freshman 69

K 2 Freddie Arnold Sophomore (RS) 78

P 1 Freddie Arnold Sophomore (RS) 78

P 2 Max Thompson Freshman 68

KR 1 Benjamin Silva Junior 97

KR 2 Jon Morris Junior (RS) 91

PR 1 Benjamin Silva Junior 97

PR 2 Jon Morris Junior (RS) 91

08-24-2015, 05:58 PM
SmoothPancakes

Alright, that should do it for all the preseason stuff. Looking over my schedule, this may very well be my toughest schedule yet this entire dynasty.

Running down the list of games and the expectations, based on the preseason rankings as well as team ratings:

Utah - Toss-up leaning towards a loss
vs Michigan (neutral field) - Guaranteed loss
at Notre Dame - Guaranteed loss (they sucked last year but I can't compete with 99 overall, 97 offense and 99 defense)
BYU - Toss-up
at San Diego State - Toss-up leaning towards a loss
San Jose State - Likely Win
at New Mexico - Likely Win
Colorado State - Damn well better Win
at Boise State - Toss-up leaning toward a loss
Air Force - Toss-up leaning toward a win (depends on how we defend the triple option)
at UNLV - Damn well better Win
Wyoming - Damn well better Win

Based on those expectation and predictions, I'm looking at 5 games I should expect to win without any problems, due in part to just how bad the 5 teams are. That number moves up to 6 if I include the toss-up leaning towards a win against Air Force. There are really technically only two games I should expect to lose, that being the neutral site game against Michigan and the road trip to Notre Dame, where I'll be lucky if I don't give up a combined 100+ points between those two. However, there are also three games that are a toss-up, leaning towards a loss. And then there is one game, the BYU game, that is a true toss-up that could go either way.

So logically, I'm looking at a potential record somewhere between 10-2 and 5-7 this season. Utah, as usual, has more skill and talent than us, and being a rival, it's a battle from start to finish regardless of the skill levels. Michigan and Notre Dame, I'll just be happy if I can keep them under 50. I don't have a chance in hell against those overpowered rosters. BYU could go either way, partly due to the rivalry aspect, but also due to the Cougars being essentially equal in talent, and in fact slightly better offensively. San Diego State, despite a sub-.500 win season, are actually better talented and are stronger across the board overall, on offense and on defense and will be a definite problem. San Jose State is a worse rated team, but they aren't that far behind Utah State, it is nowhere out of the realm of possibility that they could taste victory against us.

After their big breakout perfect regular season two years ago, New Mexico is quickly fallen off the ladder and faceplanted. They can still be a dangerous team, but we should have the talent to take care of business. Colorado State is probably the closest thing to a guaranteed win, they are just plain that terribly bad. Boise State is much improved this year, and with it being at Boise State, they will have the natural advantage. Air Force and that triple option will always be a toss-up, but our ratings advantage gives us the edge as they enter this season as bit weaker of a team. UNLV should be another cakewalk, as should Wyoming, both of them battling Colorado State for last place in the conference. However, with the rivalry with Wyoming, who knows. They seem to get themselves up for that last game against us no matter how poorly their season has gone, and have already tasted upset victory against us at least once in the last 4 seasons.

Unfortunately, we end up with technically only 5 home games for the second straight season. While we are considered the home team against Michigan, due to it being a neutral site game played at Sports Authority Field at Mile High Stadium, we essentially still only have 5 true home games, though our road schedule at least thankfully returns to a normal 6 game docket.
08-24-2015, 07:56 PM
jaymo76

No Smooth... say it ain't so. You were offered ASU and didn't accept? You could have been SunDevil salvation with you OC brilliance!

:Arizona_State:
08-24-2015, 08:06 PM
SmoothPancakes

:D Only way I'm going back to the nightmare that is offensive coordinator and being forced to helplessly watch our crap defense screw us over every game, is if I end up getting fired and am offered nothing but OC jobs. :)

I'm also sort of trying to avoid coaching any readers schools, just because I may not be able to live up to that reader's expectations. ;)
08-24-2015, 08:13 PM
SmoothPancakes

I also still haven't made up my mind if I am going to amend my coaching rules. I have given it some thought after recent comments by both you and souljahbill, but I've done nothing more than just toss the idea around in my mind. Otherwise, for the time being, I am still restricted to playing out my coaching contracts in full (or being fired) before I can move on to another school.

Regardless, even if I did change my rules, I'm not going anywhere anytime soon! I have some fun non-conference games coming up in future seasons, and I WANT that Mountain West Conference championship damnit! I haven't won a conference title since the 2016 season with Tulsa. I WILL win one at Utah State damnit! :D

Another reason I am sticking with Utah State for the next two seasons at least, I may have a VERY fun roster to play with in 2-3 seasons time. Doing my preseason recruiting, I had a 5* recruit and multiple 4* recruits that all had Utah State among their top 3 schools right from the very get go out of the gate. If I can somehow pull what could possibly be my greatest ever recruiting class out of my ass this season, there ain't a damn thing that is going to keep me from staying at Utah State to spend my time with those recruits on the field!
09-15-2015, 07:28 AM
SmoothPancakes

Just an update, it's probably going to be a while before I play the next season. Over the last two weeks, I've had some issues with my laptop. Since Saturday, I haven't even been able to successfully log in for more than a minute or two before it just stops cold. Best I can tell, the hard drive is either right in the middle of a full blown failure or on the edge of a failure. So until I can get a new hard drive into my laptop, typing up game summaries on Word is impossible, thus meaning this dynasty is on permanent hold until then.
09-15-2015, 08:09 AM
souljahbill

Get to it when you get it. We're not going anywhere.
09-15-2015, 08:12 AM
SmoothPancakes

Oh, I'm not going anywhere either. :D. But it'll be at least early October before I may be able to get my NCAA on again. Depending on work, maybe not until November. So just wanted to leave an update to not be surprised when this goes dead for another month or two. Utah State shall ride again, I just don't have the means to type about it. :)
01-18-2016, 07:09 PM
SmoothPancakes

Let this baby live again!!!

http://i766.photobucket.com/albums/x...ps9h1zxrxl.jpg

As I posted in the Merry Christmas thread, I got a Microsoft Surface 3 tablet for Christmas. Came with Windows 10 installed, I was able to get Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2016 ($399.99 retail) for $9.99 through the Microsoft Home Use Program thanks to working for a nice large global communications company, so I have the normal fully operational Microsoft Office on my tablet similar to a normal PC.

I bought a bluetooth mouse right after New Year's, and have a bluetooth keyboard arriving tomorrow morning from Amazon. Also have a padded "lap desk" arriving on Wednesday that I can set my tablet up on, along with the keyboard, and use it almost like a quasi-laptop.

As I have been sorely bitten by the NCAA Football bug since mid-December, I am anxiously looking forward to diving back into sweet glorious college football action.
01-30-2016, 10:22 PM
SmoothPancakes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tHQd7NIYAI

Game One

:Utah_State: :@: :Utah:

Game Story

--- After a long offseason of training, meetings and practices, the start of the 2024 football season had finally arrived. Fans and players would be going into a true unknown this season as the Aggies scrambled to replace nearly their entire offense from last season. Most teams could reasonably bounce back from losing one or two key players. Utah State, on the other hand, would have to replace the starting and backup quarterbacks, starting running back, #1 and #3 wide receivers, starting tight end, and the starting and backup left tackles. Defense and Special Teams weren’t untouched either, as losses impacted the #1 cornerback, two-thirds of the linebacker corps and the punter.

It wouldn’t be an easy start to the season as we tried to replace all those lost starters, as we would be dropped straight into the fire with a road game at rival Utah. We would also be officially kicking off the 2024 football season for the entire nation, playing a lone game by ourselves on Thursday night. We could only hope that redshirt junior quarterback Pat Williams, junior running Benjamin Silva, junior and redshirt senior wide receivers Adam Washington and Greg Miller and redshirt freshman tight end Nate Williams would be prepared and able to fill the holes in our young offense. We won the coin toss and elected to kick to start the season.

A 29 yard kickoff return would set Utah up at their 32 yard line for their first offensive drive of 2024. The Utes would waste little time in moving the ball on our defense, as Maurice Allen pulled in a 29 yard completion from senior quarterback Jonathan Harrell, giving the Utes a quick first down at our 39 yard line. A 6 yard pass to tight end Clint Lee would be followed with a 33 yard touchdown pass to Trey Riley, giving Utah a very fast 7-0 lead with 9:08 left in the first quarter.

Benjamin Silva would get us some great field position with a 46 yard kickoff return, lining our offense up at the 44 yard line. Our running game would be mediocre to start, as consecutive rushes by Silva would gain just 5 yards to leave third and 5. Taking our first shot through the air, Pat Williams was able to drop back from the shotgun and connect with Tyson Taylor for a 14 yard gain, keeping our drive alive at the Utah 38 yard line. We would slowly start to find more success on the ground, as a first down rush by Silva would go for a 6 yard gain, followed a four yard rush that would leave us facing third and inches. Silva would get the call on third down, and would get the job done with a 5 yard carry, moving the chains to the 23 yard line. Taking a chance through the air on first down, Williams would find Greg Miller over the middle, but the pass would end up dropped and incomplete. Lining up under center on second down, Williams would through a very ballsy pass over the middle between both inside linebackers, and into the hands of tight end Shaun Livingston for a 23 yard completion, giving us first and goal just inches from the goal line. Silva would get the play call and plow forward for a one yard touchdown, tying the game at 7-7 with 5:48 left in the first quarter.

Utah would again field the kickoff from inside their 5 yard line, a 23 yard return giving the Utes the ball at their 24 yard line. Donald Walker would get Utah started with a three yard rush, followed by a 5 yard pass to Riley to bring up third and two. A third down blitz by our defense would pay off huge as Harrell was forced to scramble and ultimately throw the ball away to avoid a sack, forcing the Utes to punt on fourth and two. A 22 yard punt return by Silva on the 41 yard kick would give us the ball at our 48 yard line to start our next drive.

Lining up near midfield following the great punt return, our offense looked to repeat their success of the previous drive and stake a claim for the lead in this game. A pair of rushes by Silva would go for gains of three and four yards, bringing up a quick third and three. Leaving our fate in Silva’s hands, he would just manage to prolong our drive with a four yard rush and a first down at the Utah 42 yard line. Taylor would take over on first down, plowing up the gut for a 9 yard carry, followed by a spinning washing machine spin cycle like run up the field for a second gain of 9 yards, giving us a first down at the 24. Despite Utah’s best efforts, including blitzing two linebackers, Silva would somehow avoid the rushers in the backfield and would shimmy his way out of one tackle attempt, on his way to a second consecutive 9 yard gain. A 6 yard rush on second down and one would move the chains as we would end up with first and goal from the Utah 9 yard line. With Utah unable to do anything this drive to stop our running game, we chose to just keep it in the hands of Silva on first down, who would plow ahead for a 7 yard carry, leaving second and goal at the two yard line. Silva tried to punch it in on second down, but was tackled for a gain of just one yard, bringing up third and goal from the one. Silva would again get the call on third down, taking the handoff and bouncing outside the right tackle, fighting through the defensive end and falling into the end zone for a one yard touchdown, his second of the day, to give us a 14-7 lead with 16 seconds left in the first quarter.

A 36 yard kickoff return, that came just two players away from being a near return to the house, would give Utah the ball at their 35 yard line. Utah’s drive would get off to a poor start with two straight very ugly incomplete passes, neither throw anywhere near a Utah receiver. Even despite completing a screen pass to Walker on third down, he would end up tackled shy of the first down marker for a gain of only 8 yards, forcing Utah to punt on fourth and two. That would be the final play of the first quarter as the clock ran out during action, Utah State leading 14-7.

Starting the second quarter, Utah’s punt team came out on fourth down. A 9 yard return on the 40 yard punt would give us the ball at our 27 yard line. Picking up where we left off last drive, Silva got the play call on first down, only to be instantly stood up for no gain on the play. Taking another crack at the Utah defense, Silva took the handoff up the middle and found much better success this time around, rushing for a gain of 8 yards to leave third and two. Despite running into red at the line of scrimmage, Silva was able to bounce past the defensive tackle and across the line of scrimmage for a 6 yard gain, giving us a first down at the 41 yard line. Taylor would take over on first down, fighting his way to a 5 yard gain around the left guard, followed by a pitch right to Silva for a gain of three yards, leaving us facing third and two. Once again leaving the drive in the hands of Silva, he would just barely find a hole through the blitz and pick up three yards on the carry, giving us a new set of downs at the Utah 48 yard line. Running a play action pass on first down, tight end Gerald Woods was able to come down with a quick pass from Williams for a 14 yard completion and a first down at the 34. Airing it out on first down, Williams dropped back from the shotgun and heaved a deep pass down the left sideline and into the end zone intended for Adam Washington, only to have the pass intercepted in the back of the end zone by cornerback Josh Dailey, the touchback giving Utah the ball at their 20 yard line.

Taking over on offense after the turnover, Walker would get the Utes moving with a 5 yard carry on first down, followed by a two yard gain to bring up third and three. Our defense would thankfully come through again, with a strong blitz and air tight man coverage forcing a bad pass from Harrell that would harmlessly land incomplete and force Utah to punt once more. A 10 yard return on the 46 yard punt would give us the ball back at our 36 yard line.

Returning to our ground game to start this next drive, Silva would stumble forward for a gain of four yards on first down, before being stood up for no gain on a second down rush attempt, leaving us facing third and 6. Going into the air on third down, Williams would drop back and fire a pass intended for Tristan Muhammad, only to overthrow the ball and force us to punt on fourth down. A 10 yard return on a poor 34 yard punt would set Utah up from their 35 yard line.

Liking up on offense following the punt return, the offensive struggles of the Utes would continue as consecutive passes by Harrell would end up incomplete to quickly bring up third down. A rushed third down pass would likewise end up incomplete, and Utah was forced to punt once more. An 8 yard return on the 43 yard punt would give us the ball at our 29 yard line.

Starting once more on the ground, Silva would get the call on first down, diving forward for a gain of 5 yards, followed by a 7 yard carry to give us a new first down at the 41 yard line. Another first down rush by Silva would see him stood up for a gain of just two yards, before plowing ahead on an 8 yard dash over the top of multiple Utah defenders to bring up third and inches. Silva would get the first down and then some with a big 10 yard rush, giving us a first down at the Utah 39 yard line. With time running short, it was into the air on first down as Williams dropped back on a play action pass, finding fullback Walter Johnson for a gain of 12 yards and a new set of downs at the 27 yard line. Lining up in the shotgun on first down, Williams was able to connect with Washington over the middle for a 16 yard completion, giving us a first down at the 11 yard line with a minute and a half left on the clock. Putting the drive back in the hands of Silva on first down, he would get the handoff, find a huge hole outside the right guard and stumble and bumble his way all the way into the end zone for an 11 yard touchdown rush, his third rushing TD of the game, giving us a 21-7 lead with 1:13 left in the second quarter.

A 21 yard kickoff return would give Utah the ball at their 22 yard line, 1:09 remaining on the clock. Despite a forced incomplete pass on first down, the Utes would not go quietly, as Harrell connected with Lee for an 11 yard gain and a first down at the 33, the Utes calling their first timeout with exactly one minute remaining. A questionable pass over the middle to Allen would result in him quickly being tripped up for a gain of just 5 yards, leaving second and 5 and forcing Utah to burn their second timeout. An incomplete pass down the left sideline would bring up third and 5 for the Utes, just 52 seconds left on the clock. Despite our defensive pressure, Harrell was able to complete a pass to Jerrell Lewis for a gain of 20 yards and a first down at our 42 yard line. Going no huddle on first down, the Utes tried to fire a pass over the middle to Joey McMahan, only to have it broken up incomplete, leaving second down and the clock stopped with 38 seconds remaining. With yet another year’s defense collapsing at the worst times, the defense would fold on second down as Harrell connected with a double covered Allen down the left sideline for a 27 yard gain, giving Utah a first down at our 15 yard line with 32 seconds to go. With their backs against the wall, our defense would make probably their two best plays of the game thus far, as a first down blitz would reach Harrell and sack him for an 8 yard loss. Going no huddle on second and 18, despite getting caught out of position while trying to line up at the snap, our defense was able to force Harrell overthrow his pass down the left sideline out of bounds, leaving the Utes facing third and 18 with 9 seconds left on the clock. Despite nearly blowing it as our cornerback got beat down the right sideline, Harrell would again overthrow the pass under pressure, forcing Utah to settle for a field goal. The 40 yard kick by Sam Mayhew was good, cutting our lead to 21-10 with one second left until halftime.

Silva was only able to manage a 21 yard kickoff return before being tackled, sending us into halftime with a 21-10 lead.

Opening up the second half, a questionable 18 yard kickoff return by Jon Morris would give us the ball at the 12 yard line to start the third quarter. Silva would get our drive off and running with a 7 yard carry on first down, followed by an initial three yard gain. However, during the play, Silva would fumble the football, the ball scooped up by fullback Johnson, who would be credited with the three yard carry and a first down at the 22 yard line. The fumble would be reviewed, with it ultimately being determined that Silva was down by contact before the ball came loose, the credit for the three yard gain instead going back to Silva, though we would still have a first down at the 22 yard line either way. Silva would keep us moving with another 7 yard carry, followed by a four yard gain to move the chains to the 34 yard line. Silva would keep plowing ahead on first down, finding a hole along the right tackle for a gain of 8 yards, before being quickly brought down for no gain to leave us facing third and two. Leaving our faith and trust in Silva, he would get the handoff and find a gap in the defense for a 6 yard gain, moving the chains to the 48 yard line. Calling a play action pass on first down, Williams would connect with Woods for a gain of 5 yards. Lining up under center on second down, the pass attempt intended for Livingston would end up batted away, leaving us with third and 5. Coming out in the shotgun on third down, Muhammad would get the call, pulling in a 14 yard pass from Williams for a first down at the Utah 33 yard line. Returning to the ground game on first down, Silva would fight his way forward for a gain of four yards, followed by a second four yard rush to leave us facing third and two. Taylor would get the ball on third down, just barely picking up two yards before being flattened, giving us a first down at the Utah 23. A first down pass intended for Washington was nearly intercepted by the outside linebacker, followed by a another incomplete pass, this time intended for Miller, to leave us facing third and long. Taylor would get his number called on third down, just beating the safety to the ball for a 22 yard completion, giving us first and goal at the one yard line. Taylor would try to punch it in on the ground on first down, but he would end up tackled for a two yard loss, leaving second and goal from the three. Taylor would take another crack, only to be stood up for no gain, bringing up third and goal. Taylor would try once again, but would only gain a single yard on the play, leaving us kicking on fourth and goal from the two yard line. Freshman kicker Max Thompson would cap off the 18 play drive with a 19 yard field goal, increasing our lead to 24-10 with 2:46 left in the third quarter.

A 24 yard kickoff return would give Utah the ball at their 25 yard line. Walker would get the Utes started with a 12 yard rush for a first down. Another rush would result in a loss of two yards on the play, followed by maybe the worst shovel pass in history to Charlie Smith, resulting in another two yard loss to bring up third and 14. The third down pass over the middle was very nearly intercepted by our middle linebacker, forcing Utah to punt. A 6 yard return on the 38 yard punt would give us the ball from our 34 yard line.

Lining up under center on first down, Taylor got the call with a four yard carry, before being stood up for no gain on second down, leaving us facing third and 6. Trying to go into the air on third down, Williams would end up throwing his second interception of the game, picked off by middle linebacker MarquesReid, who would return it 5 yards to our 46 yard line.

Taking over possession inside our half of the field following the interception, Utah came out passing with a play action pass, only to gain a single yard as they failed to fool our defense. The Utes would instead come punching right back on second down, as Harrell found Josh Griffith for an open 14 yard completion and a first down at our 32 yard line. That would be the final play of the third quarter, our lead standing at 24-10.

Opening up the fourth quarter, the Utes lined up on first down from our 32 yard line, and promptly handed the ball off to Walker for a gain of 9 yards on the play. Anticipating the run on second and short, the Utes would instead run a flawless play action pass, leaving Riley completely uncovered for a 23 yard touchdown, cutting our lead to 24-17 with 9:31 left in the game.

A 27 yard kickoff return by Jesse Breedlove would give us the ball at our 23 yard line, just 9:28 away from victory, if we could hold on. Coming out running the ball on first down, Taylor took the handoff up the middle for a gain of 6 yards, followed by an 8 yard rush to pick up a quick first down at the 34 yard line. Taylor would keep plugging away on the ground, fighting his way to a gain of three yards on first down, followed by a three yard carry to leave us facing third and four. Taking a chance through the air on third down, Williams was able to connect with Muhammad for a 12 yard completion, giving us a new set of downs at the Utah 47 yard line. Taylor would resume his rushing attack on first down, sprinting outside the right tackle for a 5 yard gain, before being quickly spun down at the line of scrimmage for no gain, bringing up third and 5. Lining up under center on third down, Williams would find Livingston over the middle for a gain of 13 yards and a new first down at the 30 yard line. Resuming our rushing attack, Taylor would only manage a two yard gain on first down, followed by a three yard rush that would again leave us facing third and 5. Coming out in the shotgun on third down, Williams would connect with Zach Coleman for a gain of 16 yards over the middle, giving us first and goal at the 9 yard line. Coleman would take over in the backfield on first down, rushing his way to a gain of four yards, followed by a three yard rush by Taylor to leave third and goal from the two yard line. Coleman would get the call on third down, only to be tackled for a loss of one yard to bring up fourth and goal at the three yard line. Thompson would split the uprights on the 20 yard field goal, increasing our lead to 27-17 with 2:51 left in the game.

A 30 yard kickoff return by Riley would give Utah the ball at their 36 yard line. Throwing under pressure on first down, Harrell’s pass intended for Griffith would land incomplete, before Harrell was forced to throw the ball away to avoid a sack on second down, bringing up third and long. Another overthrown pass on third down would essentially bring up the play of the game, as Utah would go for it on fourth and 10. A stop right here, with a 10 point lead and only 2:33 left on the clock would make it all but impossible for Utah to mount any possible comeback. Our defense would step up to the job as the blitz forced a woefully underthrown pass by Harrell, the ball landing over 15 yards behind the closest receiver, forcing the turnover on downs.

Taking over after the forced turnover on downs, our offense got lined up from the Utah 36 yard line. Taylor would get us started on the ground, but he would only manage a single yard gain on the play, Utah calling their first timeout immediately after. Another rush by Taylor would pick up three yards, leaving third and 6, Utah calling their second timeout following the play. Playing the strategy of the situation, instead of passing to try and get the first down, we elected to run on third and 6. If we got the first down, all the better, but if we failed, Utah would be forced to either call their third timeout, or watch the clock keep ticking down from 2:12 and well underneath two minutes, while we took our sweet time lining up for a field goal. Taylor would take the handoff on third down, managing only a three yard gain to bring up fourth and three at the Utah 29 yard line. Utah would call their third and final timeout, stopping the clock with 2:10 remaining. We would line up for the 46 yard field goal, looking to make this a 13 point game, The ungodly ugly kick from Thompson never had a chance, both going wide left, as well as landing over 5 yards short in the actual end zone, clearly Thompson not having jack crap for length strength.

With the missed field goal, Utah would take over at their 29 yard line, lining up with 2:06 remaining on the clock and no timeouts left, needing 10 points, two possessions, to tie. Unbelievably, they would almost instantly get 7 of those needed 10 points, as Harrell found Walker over the middle, and after three broken tackles, it was a 71 yard footrace for a touchdown, cutting our lead to 27-24 with 1:53 left in the game.

Lining up for the onside kick, our hands team would make damn sure not to be responsible for us blowing it, as Miller snatched the ball out of the air off the bounce, giving us possession at the Utah 43 yard line with 1:52 remaining in the game. Taylor would get the ball on first down, fighting forward for a gain of four yards, followed by a 5 yard rush to bring up third and one, with one minute remaining on the clock. A 5 yard rush by Taylor would seal the deal, picking up a first down at the Utah 29 yard line. A single kneel down by Williams would 15 seconds left would ice the game and our 27-24 victory over rival Utah.

With the win, we open our 2024 season at 1-0. With the loss, Utah opens their year 0-1. Up next, we head to Denver, Colorado and Sports Authority Field at Mile High Stadium to face the #7 Michigan Wolverines in a neutral site contest. Michigan enters the game 1-0 followed a 45-24 win over Mississippi State in week one.

Final Score

:Utah_State: 27, :Utah: 24

Stats of the Game:

Utah State Offense - A rough first start for Williams. While he did go 11-18 for 160 yards, he also had no touchdowns and two interceptions. Rushing, Silva led the way with 175 yards and three touchdowns on 37 carries. Taylor finished with 73 yards on 23 rushes and Coleman gained three yards on two carries. Receiving, Livingston ended up the top receiver with 36 yards on two catches. Right behind him was Taylor with 35 yards on two receptions. In total, seven receivers caught at least one pass today, and all seven receivers ended with double digit yards.

Utah State Defense/Special Teams – Not a terrible day by the defense. Despite a rough opening drive and a very rough fourth quarter, the defense was actually pretty damn well shut down all game and kept the Utah offense pretty well under wraps. Between a mix of timely blitzes, a stifling man-to-man defense and a damn good four man pass rush, the defense was able to keep Harrell off his game most of the day, leading to a lot of overthrow and underthrown passes that repeatedly doomed offensive drives for the Utes.

Utah State Kicking – Unfortunately, freshman Max Thompson would very much prove to not be in the same league as former kick Doug Marcus. While Marcus had his own struggles once reaching the 50+ yard range, Thompson was woefully short on a 46 yard attempt today, that very well may have still been short even from 40 yards. Unfortunately, that is going to screw our strategies this season as we can no longer rely on our field goal unit from 40-50 yards out, instead we're going to essentially be limited to kicks from 35 yards or less, leading to either an increase in punts on the opponent's half of the field, or some ballsy fourth down attempts.

Now it wasn't entirely terrible. While that 46 yard miss was extremely ugly, Thompson was able to nail two field goals from 19 and 20 yards out (as would be expected), so he still finished a respectable 2-3 today, along with 3-3 on extra points.

Scoring Summary

Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score

:Utah_State: 14 7 3 3 27

:Utah: 7 3 0 14 24

Time Team Result Play Score

First Quarter

9:08 :Utah: Touchdown T. Riley, 33 yard pass from J. Harrell (S. Mayhew kick) :Utah: 7-0

5:48 :Utah_State: Touchdown B. Silva, 1 yard run (M. Thompson kick) TIED 7-7

0:16 :Utah_State: Touchdown B. Silva, 1 yard run (M. Thompson kick) :Utah_State: 14-7

Second Quarter

1:13 :Utah_State: Touchdown B. Silva, 11 yard run (M. Thompson kick) :Utah_State: 21-7

0:01 :Utah: Field Goal S. Mayhew, 40 yard field goal :Utah_State: 21-10

Third Quarter

2:46 :Utah_State: Field Goal M. Thompson, 19 yard field goal :Utah_State: 24-10

Fourth Quarter

9:31 :Utah: Touchdown T. Riley, 23 yard pass from J. Harrell (S. Mayhew kick) :Utah_State: 24-17

2:51 :Utah_State: Field Goal M. Thompson, 20 yard field goal :Utah_State: 27-17

1:53 :Utah: Touchdown D. Walker, 71 yard pass from J. Harrell (S. Mayhew kick) :Utah_State: 27-24

Game Stats

Utah State Stat Utah

27 Score 24

24 First Downs 6

409 Total Offense 272

63- 249 - 3 Rushes - Yards - TD 7- 21 - 0

11- 18 - 0 Comp - Att - TD 14- 31 - 3

160 Passing Yards 251

0 Times Sacked 1

15- 20 (75%) 3rd Down Conversion 1- 8 (12%)

0 - 0 (0%) 4th Down Conversion 0- 1 (0%)

0 - 0 (0%) 2-Point Conv 0 - 0 (0%)

5- 3 - 2 (100%) Red Zone - TD - FG 1- 0 - 1 (100%)

2 Turnovers 0

0 Fumbles Lost 0

2 Intercepted 0

52 Punt Return Yards 10

112 Kick Return Yards 162

573 Total Yards 444

1 – 35.0 Punts - Average 5- 41.8

0 - 0 Penalties 0 - 0

28:08 Time of Possession 11:52

Utah State Coach Goals

Goal XP Reward Completed

Win a Game 100 x1

Score a Touchdown 25 x3

Rush for 100 Yards 25 x1

Kneel Last Minute Q4 While Ahead 10 x1

Opponent Under 150 Rush Yards 50 x1

Beat a Rival School 50 x1

Opponent Under 300 Pass Yards 50 x1

Pass Completion Over 50% 30 x1

100% Red Zone Efficiency 50 x1

Score 21 Or More Points 50 x1

350+ Offensive Yards 50 x1

10+ First Downs 50 x1

4+ 3rd Down Conversions 25 x1

Utah State Contract Goals Update

Goal Expectations Progress

Target Wins Per Season 8 1

Job Security Status

100%

02-04-2016, 11:42 PM
SmoothPancakes

Taking a look around the nation, in the Top 25, it was a barn burner in the Cowboys Classic, as #1 Ohio State would outscore #25 Arkansas 21-3 in the fourth quarter, allowing the Buckeyes to pull off the improbably comeback and come from behind to defeat Arkansas 42-41. That victory keeps Ohio State's winning streak alive, now standing at 57 straight games.

In the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game, #2 South Carolina scored 10 points in the final 2:12 for the 24-21 come from behind win over #8 Florida State. #4 UCLA beat Rutgers 35-17. #5 West Virginia escaped East Carolina 38-31. #7 Michigan smoked Mississippi State 45-24. #9 Ole Miss topped South Alabama 31-14. #11 Baylor survived SMU 33-28. #12 Clemson doubled up Kent State 42-21. #15 Arizona smacked UTEP 41-10. #17 Stanford hammered Rice 49-24. #19 Michigan State needed overtime to survive Alabama 38-31.

For our readers, JeffHCross, #1 Ohio State opens the year 1-0 (0-0 Big Ten) with an amazing 42-41 win over #25 Arkansas. Morsdraconis, #5 West Virginia opens 1-0 (0-0 Big 12) with a 38-31 win over East Carolina. Souljahbill, Southern Miss drops to 0-1 (0-0 C-USA) with a 45-10 hammering at Tennessee. Jaymo, Arizona State remains 0-0 (0-0 Pac-12) with a bye week. LeeSO, Auburn remains 0-0 (0-0 SEC) with a bye week. SCClassof93, #2 South Carolina opens the year 1-0 (0-0 SEC) with a come from behind 24-21 win over #8 Florida State. Other teams of interest, Arkansas State remains 0-0 (0-0 Sun Belt) with a bye week. Florida International remains 0-0 (0-0 C-USA) with a bye week. Navy remains 0-0 (0-0 American) with a bye week. Tulsa remains 0-0 (0-0 American) with a bye week.

In Mountain West action, Utah State knocked off Utah 27-24, Boise State escapes Troy 31-28, Texas A&M demolished New Mexico 56-35, Colorado State lost the Rocky Mountain Showdown to Colorado 28-18 and Washington State topples Nevada 41-31.

Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, somehow, South Carolina (36 first place votes) jumps one to #1, Ohio State (22 first place votes) drops to #2, Oklahoma (2 votes) remains #3, UCLA (1 vote) remains #4 and West Virginia remains #5. Miami remains #6, Michigan remains #7, Ole Miss climbs one to #8, Auburn moves up one to #9 and Baylor climbs one to #10. Clemson jumps one to #11, Texas climbs one to #12, Georgia Tech moves up one to #13, Florida State drops six to #14 and Arizona remains #15. Virginia Tech remains #16, Stanford remains #17, USC remains #18, Michigan State remains #19 and Cincinnati remains #20. Kansas State remains #21, Florida remains #22, Oregon remains #23, Fresno State remains #24 and Louisville (210 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week was Arkansas (from #25). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Boise State (177 points) is #26 followed by Utah State (122), Arkansas (115), Tennessee (83) and Kentucky (54). Other teams getting points this week include Oklahoma State (26), Georgia (20) and Louisiana Lafayette (16).

An early season look at the Heisman race, Arizona QB Adam Parrish is #1, NC State HB Steven Osborn is #2, Michigan QB Brian Brewster is #3, Central Florida QB Will Robinson is #4 and Ohio State QB James Gates is #5.

Game Two

#7 :Michigan: VS :Utah_State:

At Sports Authority Field at Mile High Stadium

Game Story

--- Coming off a big upset victory over Utah to open the season, the challenges would not let up as we would be instantly tested again, this time in a neutral site game against #7 Michigan. We could only hope that the confines of Sports Authority Field at Mile High Stadium would afford us some kind of advantage against a by far superior Wolverines squad. There’s not much to say as not much good is expected in this contest, nor does anyone in the media give us much hope of being within 30 points by the end. Utah State would win the coin toss and elect to kick.

A 24 yard kickoff return by Nick Rogers would set Michigan up at their 26 yard line to start the game. Xavier Merritt would get the call on first down, fighting his way up the middle for a gain of just two yards on the play. Dropping back to pass on second down, Brian Brewster’s pass downfield would be overthrown and incomplete to bring up third and 8. Trying to force a throw on third down, Brewster would commit the first mistake of the day as his pass intended for tight end Jon Ford would be intercepted by cornerback Todd Barclay, giving us the ball at the Michigan 48 yard line.

Taking over following the interception, Benjamin Silva would get us off and running on first down with a strong 6 yard gain on the ground, followed by a three yard scramble around the right tackle to leave us facing third and inches. Leaving things in the hands of Silva, he would fail to convert, ending up tackled for no gain to bring up fourth and inches from the 38 yard line. With a field goal out of the question from this distance, we were forced to punt on fourth down, a 20 yard pooch punt by Freddie Arnold flying out of bounds at the Michigan 17 yard line.

Returning to the field following the punt, Michigan would come out passing on first down, with Brewster finding Merritt for a 7 yard gain. A pass broken up over the middle would bring up third and three, where a pitch left attempt would go up in flames, Merritt tackled for a two yard loss to force Michigan to punt on fourth and 5. A 9 yard return by Silva on the 38 yard punt gave us the ball at our 47 yard line.

Again starting our offensive drive around midfield, our end result would be much better than the first time around, despite Silva being blown up on first down for no gain on the play. Tight end Nate Williams would get us moving on second down as he pulled in a pass over the middle for a gain of 22 yards and a first down at the Michigan 31 yard line. Another rush by Silva would go for positive yards this time with a gain of four, followed by a second four yard rush to leave us looking at third and two. This time Silva would manage to convert on third down as he would just manage to pick up three yards on the play, moving the chains to the 21 yard line. Running a play action pass on first down, Michigan wasn’t fooled in the slightest, the pass thankfully being knocked down instead of intercepted. Dropping back in the shotgun on second down, Pat Williams connected with Greg Miller over the middle for a gain of 12 yards, giving us first and goal from the 9 yard line. Silva would get the call on first down, tackled after a gain of four yards. Another rush by Silva would be blown up for no gain on the play, leaving third and goal at the 5. A quick pass from under center to Adam Washington would connect at the goal line for a 5 yard touchdown, giving us a 7-0 lead with 3:10 left in the first quarter and shocking the entire stadium.

A 22 yard kickoff return by J.P. Miller would give Michigan back the ball at their 24 yard line. A first down screen pass to Rogers would go for a big, quick gain of 17 yards, giving Michigan an immediate first down at their 41 yard line. The beast doth woketh, Hakim Watson pulled in a second straight 17 yard pass from Brewster, moving the Wolverines to our 42 yard line. Even the running game came alive as Merritt rumbled straight up the middle for a 15 yard carry for a first down at our 27 yard line. The drive would continue with an 11 yard pass to James Sears and a new set of downs at our 16 yard line. Another pass to Watson would pick up 13 more yards and yet another first down, giving Michigan first and goal at our three yard line, Michigan having traveled 73 yards in just 5 plays. Merritt would need only one attempt to finish the drive, taking a pitch from Brewster and racing for the right pylon for a three yard touchdown carry, tying the game at 7-7 with 1:46 left in the first quarter.

A 33 yard kickoff return by Silva would at least give us some positivity, starting our next drive from our 37 yard line. Starting the drive on the ground, Silva would take the handoff and rumble ahead for a gain of 5 yards, followed by an 8 yard rush to pick up a quick first down right at midfield. Michigan would start to key in on Silva after a third straight rush, limiting him to a gain of just one yard on the play. Lining up under center on second down, the pass over the middle intended for Williams would be broken up to leave third and 9. Coming out in the shotgun on third down, Williams would be forced to rush his throw to avoid a sack, in the process widely overthrowing Tristan Muhammad and leaving us punting on fourth down. No return on a 28 yard punt by Arnold would leave Michigan lining up from their 20 yard line, only 7 seconds remaining in the first quarter.

Coming out on offense with time for just one play left in the first quarter, Michigan would hand the ball off to Merritt, but our defense would win the battle with a tackle for a two yard loss, leaving Michigan facing second and 12. That would end the first quarter, the game all tied up at 7-7.

Opening up the second quarter, the Wolverines came out passing on second and long. Brewster would find an open Rogers over the middle for a gain of 21 yards and the new set of downs from the 39 yard line. Running the ball on first down, Merritt would finish the drive off on just its third play, finding a gap around the right tackle and sprinting up the field untouched for a 61 yard touchdown, giving Michigan a 14-7 lead with 9:33 left in the second quarter.

A HUGE 61 yard kickoff return by Silva, that came two players away from being broken for a touchdown, would give us amazing field position, starting our drive at the Michigan 36 yard line. Reenergized from that return, Silva would get the ball on first down, fighting his way forward for a gain of 6 yards, followed by a 5 yard carry to move the chains to the 25 yard line. Another rush by Silva would pick up 5 more yards, followed by a four yard rush to leave us facing third and one. Silva would convert the third down and then some with a 6 yard carry up the middle, giving us a first down at the 10 yard line. Michigan would finally step up on defense on first down, standing Silva up for gain of just one yard, leaving second and 9. Attempting a play action pass on second down, tight end Gerald Woods would be left completely uncovered on an out route into the end zone, giving us an easy 9 yard touchdown pass and tying the game at 14-14 with 6:28 left in the second quarter.

A horrible kickoff would sail straight out of bounds, Michigan taking over at their 35 yard line following the penalty and just killing all momentum we had built up. Merritt would start the drive for the Wolverines with a 5 yard carry on first down, followed by an incomplete pass. However, the Wolverines would get bailed out as right outside linebacker Jason Baker would be flagged for pass interference on the play, giving Michigan a new first down at their 46 yard line. Merritt would take the ball on first down, nearly breaking free for a touchdown before being dragged down from behind for a gain of 16 yards, moving the chains to our 37 yard line in the process. A quick first down pass to Sears would go for a gain of 6 yards, followed by a QB run by Brewster that would end in no gain, bringing up third and four. Merritt would try and get the conversion on a delayed handoff, but instead of running up the field, he would run toward the left sideline, allowing a couple defenders to close in on him and bring him down for a gain of just one yard on the play. Instead of attempting the 48 yard field goal, Michigan would elect to go for it on fourth and three. Maybe they should have tried the three points as our defense would buckle down in man coverage, leaving Brewster scrambling in a collapsing pocket and ultimately sacked for a 7 yard loss, forcing the turnover on downs at our 38 yard line.

Taking over following the turnover on downs, our offense came out with a shot to recapture the lead. Instead Silva would end up blown up at the line of scrimmage for no gain and a quick second and long. Dropping back in the shotgun on second down, Williams would rifle a pass to Miller for gain of 16 yards and a first down at the Michigan 46 yard line. Another rush by Silva would end in utter disaster, as he would fumble the ball during the play, the fumble scooped up by Michigan middle linebacker Marcus Keyes and returned 9 yards to our 44 yard line.

Lining up in our half of the field following the fumble recovery, Michigan’s offense seemed poised to strike for blood this time around. After an incomplete pass on first down, Brewster would initially connect with a wide open Rogers, only to have the snail mail delivered pass dropped by Rogers upon being hit in the back by a quick closing cornerback. Lining up on third and long, the long day would continue for our defense as a simple screen pass to Merritt would result in a 44 yard touchdown, thanks to a number of missed tackles by our incompetent defense, giving Michigan a 21-14 lead with 3:07 left in the second quarter.

A 25 yard kickoff return by Silva would give us the ball at our 29 yard line. Coming out running on first down, Silva would get the chance to make up for his previous fumble. He would get us off and running with a 5 yard gain on first down, followed by a three yard rush to bring up third and two. Leaving it in the hands of Silva, he would pick up the third down conversion with a 6 yard rush, moving the chains to the 43 yard line. Another first down rush by Silva would this time result in no gain, leaving second and long. Lining up in the shotgun on second down, a pass intended for Washington was thrown nowhere near him, resulting in third and 10. Staying in the shotgun on third down, a pass up the middle intended for Muhammad would be intercepted by safety Nick Jones and returned 16 yards to our 45 yard line.

Michigan would line up at our 45 yard line following the interception, just 1:06 left on the clock until halftime. A quick first down pass to Rogers would go for 11 yards and a first down at the 34 yard line. Thankfully our defense would make a stand on the next play and force Brewster to throw the ball away, bringing up second and 10. A second down pass intended for Heath McAfee would be overthrown and land out of bounds to leave third and long. Yet another screen pass would result in yet another Michigan touchdown as Merritt caught the screen pass from Brewster and raced into the end zone untouched for a 34 yard touchdown, giving Michigan a 28-14 lead with 35 seconds left until halftime.

An 18 yard return by Silva would leave us starting from our 21 yard line, just 31 seconds left in the half. Taking a shot through the air on first down, the pass intended for Jon Morris would be deflected incomplete. Another pass down the field, again intended for Morris, would end up intercepted by cornerback Mark Byers, giving Michigan the ball at our 41 yard line with 20 seconds left in the quarter.

Taking over following the second straight interception, the Wolverines would waste no time torching our defense as McAfee pulled in a 34 yard pass from Brewster, giving Michigan first and goal from our 7 yard line, their first timeout called to stop the clock with 13 seconds remaining. The first down pass intended for Sears would be broken up at the goal line, just three seconds coming off the clock. Brewster would be forced to throw the ball away on second down thanks to a combination of our man defense and a timely delayed blitz, leaving Michigan facing third and goal from the 7 yard line, just 8 seconds remaining on the clock. Despite our best efforts, McAfee would stretch outside the end zone and pull in a wide pass available only for him along the left edge of the end zone for a 7 yard touchdown catch, giving Michigan a 35-14 lead with four seconds left until halftime.

An 18 yard kickoff return by Morris would run out and the clock and send us into halftime, Michigan leading 35-14 at the break.

Opening up the second half, a 21 yard kickoff return by Morris would give us the ball at our 26 yard line to start the third quarter. Coming out running on first down, Silva would manage just a one yard gain before running into a brick wall and ending up flat on his back. A second down rush by Silva would find more success, going for a gain of 7 yards to bring up third and two. Leaving it in the hands of Silva on third down, he would end up blown up in the backfield for a one yard loss, forcing us to punt on fourth and three. A 12 yard return on the 37 yard punt would give Michigan the ball at their 41 yard line.

Lining up for the first time in the second half, Michigan nearly added to their lead with just one play, as McAfee pulled in a pass from Brewster and found himself looking at nothing but grass after shedding a tackle attempt. Thankfully, a desperation ankle tackle would just manage to trip McAfee up, resulting in only a 40 yard completion, giving Michigan a first down at our 19 yard line. Still throwing the ball on first down, Brewster’s pass intended for Rogers was broken up to bring up second down. A second down rush by Merritt meanwhile would result in no gain on the play thanks to quick defensive penetration, bringing up third and 10. Despite nearly letting him escape, our defense wouldn’t stop fighting on third down and would eventually sack Brewster for a two yard loss, forcing the Wolverines to settle for a field goal attempt on fourth and 12. The 38 yard field goal by Garrett Smith would split the uprights, giving Michigan a 38-14 lead with 7:17 left in the third quarter. While the drive may have still resulted in points, it was at least a bit of a moral victory, holding them to only three points instead of 7.

A 40 yard kickoff return by Silva would give us the ball at our 44 yard line, giving us a bit of boost on the sideline. Starting our next drive on the ground, Silva would fight his way forward for a gain of three yards, followed by a 5 yard gain to bring up third and two. Again taking a chance on the ground on third and short, Silva this time would come through for us with a 6 yard carry, moving the chains to the Michigan 41 yard line. Running a play action pass on first down, the Michigan defense would again bite on the run fake, leaving Woods wide open for a 19 yard pass and a first down at the 23 yard line. Returning to the ground on first down, Silva would find nowhere to run as he was quickly flattened for no gain on the play. Lining up in the shotgun on second and 10, William’s pass intended for Washington would be nearly intercepted, bringing up third and long. Williams would manage to connect with Muhammad on third down, but it wouldn’t be enough as he would be quickly tackled for gain of just 9 yards, leaving us facing fourth and one at the 13 yard line. Desperately needing a touchdown, we would attempt to go for it on fourth down, only to be hit with a delay of game penalty as the play clock ran out just a half a second before we could snap the ball. Stuck facing fourth and 6, we now had no choice but to settle for the field goal. The 35 yard field goal by Max Thompson would sail through to the uprights, cutting Michigan’s lead to 38-17 with 4:11 left in the game.

A 36 yard kickoff return by Miller would give Michigan the ball at their 40 yard line. Taking off scrambling on first down, Brewster would slide for a gain of three yards. A quick pass to Watson along the sideline would gain just three yards, bringing up third and four. This time our defense would rise to the occasion, sacking Brewster for a loss of one yard and forcing the Wolverines to punt on fourth and 5. Silva would get flattened for no return on the 40 yard punt, leaving us starting our next drive at our 14 yard line.

Taking over deep inside our own territory, Silva would get the call on first down, rushing around the left end for a 6 yard gain on the play, followed by a four yard gain that would leave us just short of the first, lining up facing third and inches. Silva would get the call on third down and plunge ahead for a gain of 5 yards, picking up the first down at the 29 yard line. Lining up under center on first down, Williams would drop back to pass and rifle a throw to his tight end counterpart, Nate Williams, good for a gain of 17 yard and a quick first down at the 46. Lining up in the shotgun on first down, the pass intended for Washington would be nearly intercepted over the middle, leaving second down. A pass to Miller on a comeback route would go for a gain of 15 yards and a new set of downs at the Michigan 39 yard line. Another shotgun pass, this one intended for Muhammad, would be swatted down by the outside linebacker. Aiming for Miller on second down, the pass would be nearly intercepted by the cornerback, leaving us with third and 10. A third down pass to Muhammad would finally find the target this time, good for a gain of 17 yards to keep the drive alive at the 23 yard line. Returning to the ground game on first down, Silva would get the call, clawing and digging his way to a 9 yard gain. That would be the final play of the third quarter, Michigan holding a 38-17 lead, but our offense driving to try and close the gap.

Opening up the fourth quarter, Silva would again get the ball on second and one. While he would be credited with a one yard gain, he would be marked short of the first down marker, bringing up third and inches. Plowing straight ahead, Silva would get the conversion and extend the drive with a four yard carry, giving us first and goal from the 9 yard line. Staying on the ground, Silva would rush forward for a gain of four yards on first down. The second down carry by Silva would pick up three more yards, leaving third and goal from the two yard line. Silva would need just one more play to finish the drive, punching it in for a three yard touchdown rush, cutting Michigan’s lead to 38-24 with 8:20 left in the game.

A 33 yard kickoff return by Miller would set Michigan up at their 41 yard line for their next drive. A surprising first down option keeper by Brewster would result in a 9 yard carry, followed by a four yard rush by Merritt to pick up the first down at our 45 yard line. Josh Warren would keep things moving with a 10 yard completion and a first down at the 35. A first down rush by Merritt would gain just one yard, followed by a second one yard rush to leave third and 8 for the Wolverines. Thankfully, despite a defensive mismatch, the third down pass intended for McAfee would be thrown behind him and incomplete to bring up fourth and 8. Again forgoing the 50 yard field goal, Michigan would attempt another fourth down conversion. Unbelievably, despite being double covered, Sears would haul in a pass from Brewster for a gain of 17 yards and a first down at our 16 yard line. Keeping the ball himself on a QB read, Brewster would race around the right tackle for a 7 yard gain. Going into the air on second down, a leaping Merritt would nearly come down with a high pass at the four yard line, but the defense would manage to break it up, leaving Michigan with third and three. Refusing to let Michigan convert, our defensive line would close on Brewster and sack him for a loss of 7 yards, finally forcing Michigan to kick the field goal on fourth and 10. The 34 yard field goal by Smith would sail through, extending Michigan’s lead to 41-24 with 5:18 left in the game.

With another HUGE momentum booster, Silva would dam near take the ensuing kickoff all the way for a touchdown, racing up the left sideline for a massive 83 yard kickoff return before a last second ankle tackle by the only Michigan player with a hope would trip Silva up at the Wolverine 15 yard line. Starting our offensive drive just 15 yards away from pay dirt, we would call on Tyson Taylor on first down, who would rush forward for a gain of 5 yards on the play. Another rush by Taylor would gain three yards, leaving third and two. Keeping it on the ground on third down, Taylor would get the conversion and then some with a 5 yard rush up the middle, setting us up with first and goal from the two yard line. Plowing forward on first down, Taylor would be stopped for no gain on the play. The Wolverines wouldn’t able to contain him on second down as he would squirm into the end zone for a two yard touchdown, cutting Michigan’s lead to 41-31 with 3:19 left in the game.

Despite wanting to kickoff deep, trailing a fast scoring, high octane Michigan offense by two possession with only just over three minutes left to play, we had no choice but to attempt the onside kick. In a shocking turn of events, the Aggies would attempt and actually convert the onside kick, as kickoff kicker Arnold would absolutely drill the ball straight into the 42 yard line, the bounce quickly ricocheting the ball right into the hands and facemask of Sears, who would end up bobbling the ball back towards the kickoff team, the ball rolling back to the 39 yard line. Watson, Sears and Rivers would all try, and fail, to dive on the loose ball for the Wolverines. Somehow, despite four different white jerseys all surrounding the ball, Barclay would miraculously come up with the football for the Aggies, recovering it at the 39 yard line.

Lining up on offense after the miraculous onside kick recovery, we got right back to work, coming out in the shotgun on first down at our 39 yard line. The miracle nearly imploded as a first down pass intended for Miller was almost intercepted. Staying in the shotgun on second down, another pass would be almost intercepted, leaving us facing third and 10. Third time would prove to be the charm for Michigan as after two near misses, the defense WOULD intercept Williams on third down. Not only would the pass be intercepted, but outside linebacker Davon Barr would take it 44 yards for a pick six touchdown, increasing Michigan’s lead to 48-31 and likely killing our hopes with 3:02 left in the game.

Jesse Breedlove would manage just a 14 yard return on the kickoff, leaving us starting at our 20 yard line for our next drive. With limited time remaining, we would once again be forced into the air. This time Williams would find Miller for a 16 yard completion and a first down at the 36 yard line. Another pass to Miller would be knocked incomplete, but a facemask penalty on Byers would give us 15 free yards and a free first down at the Michigan 49 yard line. Taking a shot deep down the field on first down, the pass would end up intercepted by safety Dwayne Fowler, who would return it 12 yards to the 41 yard line, officially sticking the knife in our comeback hopes.

Taking over on offense following the interception, Michigan would hand of the ball off to Merritt for a gain of one yard. Another one yard rush by Merritt would leave third and 8, as we would opt to take our first timeout with 1:39 left in the game. Merritt would manage two yards on third down, our second timeout called with 1:36 to play. Punting the ball on fourth and 6, Morris would manage a 6 yard return on the 39 yard punt by Michigan, giving us the ball at our 21 yard line.

Just 1:28 left in the game, we would again pin our nonexistent hopes on the air attack. Dropping back on first down, Williams would be hit from behind as he tried to throw, resulting in an incomplete pass. Throwing on second down, Williams would connect with Muhammad for a 17 yard gain, Muhammad getting out of bounds to stop the clock with 1:20 to play. In a surprising first down play, Williams would try to throw to Miller on an out route, only to have the pass swatted by the cornerback and right into the hands of Washington for a 15 yard gain and a first down. Going no huddle on first down, Williams would throw an incredibly ballsy pass deep down the middle of the field to a tightly double covered Muhammad, who would go up and catch it for a big 33 yard gain and a first down at the Michigan 14 yard line. Again going no huddle on first down, Williams would be forced to take off scrambling, only to be sacked for a 10 yard loss, our offense forced to burn our final timeout with 58 seconds remaining. Lining up in the shotgun on second and 20, Williams would hit Muhammad for a gain of 16 yards, leaving third and four at the 8 yard line. Going no huddle with the clock ticking, Williams would try to fire off a quick pass to Washington on the slant route, only to have the pass intercepted by Barr, his second of the game, giving Michigan the ball at their one yard line with 26 seconds left in the game. Sending the house on first down, Merritt would still get past our goal line defense for a four yard gain on the play. That would be the final play as the Wolverines would run out the final 22 seconds without another snap, walking away with the 48-31 victory.

With the loss we drop to 1-1 on the season. With the win, #7 Michigan improves to 2-0 on the year. Up next, we get a bye week to rest up before our next challenge, a road game at Notre Dame. The Irish opened the year with a 31-24 win over Temple, hammered Syracuse 49-13 and then escaped NC State 28-27.

Final Score

#7 :Michigan: 48, :Utah_State: 31

Stats of the Game:

Utah State Offense - The day started off good for Williams, then went to crap. He would end up going 15-33 for 238 yards and two touchdowns in the first quarter and a half, but would end with 5 interceptions the rest of the game. Rushing, Silva led the way with 134 yards and one touchdown on 39 carries. Taylor finished with 19 yards and one touchdown on 6 rushes. Receiving, Muhammad was the top dog with 92 yards on five catches. Woods and Washington had the two receiving touchdowns. In all, five receivers caught passes today, all of them with at least two receptions. All would end with double digit yards, all with 20 or more yards for the game.

Utah State Defense/Special Teams – Damn great first quarter. Worst goddamn second quarter ever seen. Pretty solid third quarter. Somewhat decent fourth quarter. Pretty much sums up the day.

Utah State Kicking – It would be a perfect day for Thompson, who would go 1-1 in field goals with a 35 yard kick, along with going 4-4 in PATs.

Scoring Summary

Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score

:Michigan: 7 28 3 10 48

:Utah_State: 7 7 3 14 31

Time Team Result Play Score

First Quarter

3:10 :Utah_State: Touchdown A. Washington, 5 yard pass from P. Williams (M. Thompson kick) :Utah_State: 7-0

1:46 :Michigan: Touchdown X. Merritt, 3 yard run (G. Smith kick) TIED 7-7

Second Quarter

9:33 :Michigan: Touchdown X. Merritt, 61 yard run (G. Smith kick) :Michigan: 14-7

6:28 :Utah_State: Touchdown G. Woods, 9 yard pass from P. Williams (M. Thompson kick) TIED 14-14

3:07 :Michigan: Touchdown X. Merritt, 44 yard pass from B. Brewster (G. Smith kick) :Michigan: 21-14

0:35 :Michigan: Touchdown X. Merritt, 34 yard pass from B. Brewster (G. Smith kick) :Michigan: 28-14

0:04 :Michigan: Touchdown H. McAfee, 7 yard pass from B. Brewster (G. Smith kick) :Michigan: 35-14

Third Quarter

7:20 :Michigan: Field Goal G. Smith, 38 yard field goal :Michigan: 38-14

4:11 :Utah_State: Field Goal M. Thompson, 35 yard field goal :Michigan: 38-17

Fourth Quarter

8:20 :Utah_State: Touchdown B. Silva, 2 yard run (M. Thompson kick) :Michigan: 38-24

5:18 :Michigan: Field Goal G. Smith, 34 yard field goal :Michigan: 41-24

3:19 :Utah_State: Touchdown T. Taylor, 2 yard run (M. Thompson kick) :Michigan: 41-31

3:02 :Michigan: Touchdown D. Barr, returned interception 44 yards (G. Smith kick) :Michigan: 48-31

Game Stats

Michigan Stat Utah State

48 Score 31

13 First Downs 21

407 Total Offense 381

25 - 115 - 2 Rushes - Yards - TD 46 - 143 - 2

16 - 28 - 3 Comp - Att - TD 15 - 33 - 2

292 Passing Yards 238

4 Times Sacked 1

3 - 11 (27%) 3rd Down Conversion 10 - 17 (58%)

1 - 2 (50%) 4th Down Conversion 0 - 0 (0%)

0 - 0 (0%) 2-Point Conv 0 - 0 (0%)

4 - 2 - 2 (100%) Red Zone - TD - FG 6 - 4 - 1 (83%)

1 Turnovers 6

0 Fumbles Lost 1

1 Intercepted 5

15 Punt Return Yards 15

115 Kick Return Yards 308

537 Total Yards 704

2 –40.0 Punts - Average 3 - 30.3

1 - 15 Penalties 3 - 13

13:39 Time of Possession 26:21

Utah State Coach Goals

Goal XP Reward Completed

Score a Touchdown 25 x4

Force a Turnover 25 x1

Rush for 100 Yards 25 x1

3+ Sacks 50 x1

Opponent Under 150 Rush Yards 50 x1

Opponent Under 300 Pass Yards 50 x1

Score 21 or More Points 50 x1

350+ Offensive Yards 50 x1

10+ First Downs 50 x1

4+ 3rd Down Conversions 25 x1

Utah State Contract Goals Update

Goal Expectations Progress

Target Wins Per Season 8 1

Job Security Status

100%

02-09-2016, 04:03 PM
SmoothPancakes

Taking a look around the nation, in the Top 25, in the upset of the week, Georgia destroyed #1 South Carolina 44-13. In the game of the week, #2 Ohio State toppled #3 Oklahoma 41-29 to win their 58th straight game. Washington State shocked #4 UCLA 31-28. Texas Tech knocked off #5 West Virginia 49-42. #6 Miami (FL) smoked FCS Midwest 42-9. #7 Michigan outpaced Utah State 48-31.

#8 Ole Miss just escaped Kentucky 38-35. Washington shocked #9 Auburn 27-20. #10 Baylor hammered UTSA 52-6. #11 Clemson slipped past Army 42-37. #18 USC embarrassed #12 Texas 48-24. #15 Arizona outlasted FCS West 30-17. #16 Virginia Tech handled Wisconsin 35-10. #17 Stanford leveled Virginia 37-7. #19 Michigan State survived Miami (OH) 56-46, scoring 29 fourth quarter points to come from behind.

FCS West STUNNED #20 Cincinnati 35-21. #21 Kansas State beat FCS Midwest 28-12. #22 Florida escaped Texas A&M 19-13. #23 Oregon topped FCS Midwest 35-6. #24 Fresno State got by FCS West 28-17. And #25 Louisville survived FCS Est 38-24.

For our readers, JeffHCross, #2 Ohio State improves to 2-0 (0-0 Big Ten) with a big 41-29 win over #3 Oklahoma. Morsdraconis, #5 West Virginia drops to 1-1 (0-1 Big 12) with a 49-42 loss to Texas Tech. Souljahbill, Southern Miss improves to 1-1 (0-0 C-USA) with a 48-14 hammering of FCS East. Jaymo, Arizona State opens the season 1-0 (1-0 Pac-12) with a 48-34 win over Cal. LeeSO, #9 Auburn drops to 0-1 (0-0 SEC) with a 27-20 loss to Washington. SCClassof93, #1 South Carolina drops to 1-1 (0-1 SEC) with a 44-13 hammering from Georgia. Other teams of interest, Arkansas State opens the year 1-0 (0-0 Sun Belt) with a 42-10 whooping of FCS Northwest. Florida International opens the year 1-0 (0-0 C-USA) with a 35-28 win over Eastern Michigan. Navy remains 0-0 (0-0 American) with a bye week. Tulsa opens the year 0-1 (0-0 American) with a 45-14 loss to New Mexico.

In Mountain West action, #24 Fresno State beat FCS West 28-17, Air Force hammered MTSU 35-6, New Mexico whooped Tulsa 45-14, Colorado State blanked FCS Midwest 24-0, San Jose State knocked off Colorado 34-31 in overtime, Hawaii beat FCS West 34-10, #7 Michigan manhandled Utah State 48-31, Missouri topped Wyoming 49-28, Idaho destroyed UNLV 55-28 and Toledo blitzed Nevada 45-21.

Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, Ohio State (40 first place votes) climbs one to #1, Miami (21 votes) jumps four to #2, Michigan leaps four to #3, Ole Miss moves up four to #4 and Oklahoma drops two to #5. Baylor leaps four to #6, Clemson moves up four to #7, South Carolina drops seven to #8, Georgia Tech moves up four to #9 and Arizona climbs five to #10. USC leaps seven to #11, Virginia Tech jumps four to #12, Florida State moves up one to #13, Stanford climbs three to #14 and Auburn drops six to #15. Michigan State moves up three to #16, UCLA plummets thirteen spots to #17, Texas drops six to #18, Kansas State climbs two to #19 and Florida jumps two to #20. West Virginia freefalls sixteen spots to #21, Oregon moves up one to #22, Washington enters the poll at #23, Georgia enters the poll at #24 and Fresno State (377 points) drops one to #25. Dropping out of the poll this week was Cincinnati (from #20) and Louisville (from #25). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Louisville (338 points) is #26, followed by Boise State (298), Nebraska (233), Arkansas (183) and Vanderbilt (90) to round out the Top 30. Other teams getting points this week include Utah State (74) and Navy (58).

An early season look at the Heisman race, Arizona QB Adam Parrish is #1 (LW: #1), NC State HB Steven Osborn is #2 (LW: #2), Michigan QB Brian Brewster is #3 (LW: #3), Michigan HB Xavier Merritt is #4 (LW: NR) and Ole Miss HB Randy Wright is #5 (LW: NR). Dropping off the Heisman Watch list this week was Central Florida QB Will Robinson (LW: #4) and Ohio State QB James Gates (LW: #5).
02-14-2016, 04:58 PM
SmoothPancakes

On a bye week this week, so lets get to it.

Taking a look around the nation, in the Top 25, #1 Ohio State, in one of the closest games of their winning streak, would score with less than 30 seconds left in the game to pull out of their asses a 35-31 win over North Carolina, extending their all time record winning streak to 59 games.

#2 Miami (FL) dominated Old Dominion 56-16. #4 Ole Miss survived Missouri 42-39. #5 Oklahoma dismantled FCS Southeast 38-3. In the game of the week, #8 South Carolina topped #9 Georgia Tech 28-18. #10 Arizona got past California 38-28. #23 Washington knocked off #11 USC 51-48 in triple overtime. #13 Florida State upset #12 Virginia Tech 31-17. #17 UCLA smacked #14 Stanford 40-17.

#15 Auburn beat Mississippi State 35-14. #16 Michigan State beat South Florida 49-28. #18 Texas escaped Central Florida 52-45 in overtime. #19 Kansas State took down Syracuse 37-24. Alabama stunned #20 Florida 45-38. #21 West Virginia smoked FCS Northwest 45-17. #22 Oregon handled Wyoming 34-10. #24 Georgia barely slipped past FCS East 26-21. #25 Fresno State hammered Louisiana Lafayette 48-3.

For our readers, JeffHCross, #1 Ohio State improves to 3-0 (0-0 Big Ten) with a last second 35-31 win over North Carolina. Morsdraconis, #21 West Virginia improves to 2-1 (0-1 Big 12) with a 45-17 win over FCS Northwest. Souljahbill, Southern Miss improves to 1-1 (0-0 C-USA) with a 48-14 hammering of FCS East. Jaymo, Arizona State drops to 1-1 (1-0 Pac-12) with a 38-10 loss to San Diego State. LeeSO, #15 Auburn improves to 1-1 (1-0 SEC) with a 35-14 win over Mississippi State. SCClassof93, #8 South Carolina improves to 2-1 (0-1 SEC) with a 28-18 win over #9 Georgia Tech. Other teams of interest, Arkansas State improves to 2-0 (0-0 Sun Belt) with a 38-35 win over Ball State. Florida International remains 1-0 (0-0 C-USA) with a bye week. Navy remains 0-0 (0-0 American) with a bye week. Tulsa drops to 0-2 (0-0 American) with a 28-23 loss to Toledo.

In Mountain West action, #25 Fresno State hammered Louisiana Lafayette 48-3, San Diego State knocked off Arizona State 38-10, Hawaii escaped Georgia State 31-26, Boise State upset Washington State 38-36, Illinois topped New Mexico 31-28, FCS East stunned San Jose State 24-14, Oregon smoked Wyoming 34-10, Utah beat UNLV 34-28 and Oregon State destroyed Nevada 34-6.

Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, Ohio State (39 first place votes) remains #1, Miami (21 votes) remains #2, Michigan (1 vote) remains #3, Ole Miss remains #4 and South Carolina climbs three to #5. Oklahoma drops one to #6, Baylor falls one to #7, Clemson drops one to #8, Arizona climbs one to #9 and Florida State moves up three to #10. UCLA leaps six to #11, Georgia Tech drops three to #12, Michigan State moves up three to #13, Auburn climbs one to #14 and USC drops four to #15. Kansas State jumps three to #16, Virginia Tech drops five to #17, Texas remains #18, Washington climbs four to #19 and Stanford falls six to #20. West Virginia remains #21, Oregon remains #22, Georgia climbs one to #23, Fresno State moves up one to #24 and Louisville (245 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week was Florida (from #20). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Boise State (215 points) was #26, followed by Nebraska (177), Florida (138), Arkansas (132), Navy (77) and Utah State (77) to round out the Top 30. Other teams getting points this week include Arkansas State (57), Alabama (54) and TCU (24).

An early season look at the Heisman race, Arizona QB Adam Parrish is #1 (LW: #1), NC State HB Steven Osborn is #2 (LW: #2), West Virginia QB Kevin Gates is #3 (LW: NR), Ole Miss HB Randy Wright is #4 (LW: #5) and Michigan State QB Jordan Norton is #5 (LW: NR). Dropping off the Heisman Watch list this week was Michigan QB Brian Brewster (LW: #3) and Michigan HB Xavier Merritt (LW: #4).

Game Three

:Utah_State: :@: :Notre_Dame:

Game Story

--- After failing our previous test, a neutral site game against then #7 Michigan, the hits would keep right on coming with another very challenging contest, this time a true road game at Notre Dame. Going into one of the most storied stadiums in college football, this would be the first make or break game of the season for the team, as a win here would very likely propel the squad into the Top 25 rankings and give them a massive momentum boost ahead of the game with BYU. A loss meanwhile would leave them under .500 and looking to try and turn things around before having to face the rival Cougars next week and a tough Mountain West schedule looming on the horizon. We won the coin toss and elected to kick.

A 31 yard return by Henry Owens, followed by a fumble that would be recovered by Notre Dame, would set the Irish up at their 38 yard line to start the game. There would be a booth review on the play, determining that the ball came out AFTER Owens was down, pushing the Irish back to their 34 yard line. A misfired, incomplete pass would start the drive for Notre Dame, followed by an 8 yard pass to Matt Hill to bring up third and two. Despite the blitz, Shannon Holland would take the handoff and rush straight up the middle for an 11 yard gain, dragging a Utah State defender with him for half of those yards, giving Notre Dame a first down at our 47 yard line. Holland would get the call on first down, going for a gain of 5 yards, followed by a huge 17 yard carry to pick up a first down at our 25 yard line. Charlie Goddard would get the ball on first, only able to gain one yard on the rush. We would blow up a screen pass on second down as Holland was quickly tackled by the middle linebacker for a two yard loss, leaving Notre Dame facing third and 11. Thanks to our shut down man defense, the Irish would never have a chance on third down as Brandon Walker would end up sacked for a 10 yard loss, forcing Notre Dame to kick it on fourth and 21 from the 36 yard line. The 53 yard field goal attempt would never have a chance as it would never curl, instead going straight the entire way and ending up well to the left of the upright.

Taking over at our 36 yard line following the missed field goal, Benjamin Silva would get the call on first down, fighting to a two yard gain before quickly being smothered. A second rush by Silva would find much better success, shooting the hole around the right guard and racing up the field for an 8 yard gain and a first down at the 46. Silva would keep plugging away on first down, picking up 5 yards on the play, followed by a 6 yard rush to move the chains to the Notre Dame 43 yard line. Lining up under center on first down, Pat Williams dropped back and fired an inside pass over the middle to tight end Sam Livingston, good for a big 25 yard gain and a first down at the 18 yard line. Lining up in the shotgun on first down, Williams would try to connect with Adam Washington on first down, only to throw the ball right into the hands of cornerbacker Jason Moss for an interception, the 5 yard return giving Notre Dame the ball at their 13 yard line.

Holland would get the Irish off and running with a 5 yard gain on first down, followed by a 9 yard rush out of bounds to pick up a first down at the 27 yard line. Our defense would finally slow down Holland on first down, stopping him for no gain on the play. The victory would be short lived however as Goddard chewed our defense up for a 15 yard carry to move the chains to the 42 yard line. We would manage to put a dent in the momentum as our four man rush completely overwhelmed Notre Dame’s offensive line on first down, quickly sacking Walker for a 7 yard loss to leave second and 17. The hits would keep right on coming as Walker would try to take off running on second down, only to end up sacked for the second play in a row, this time for a 6 yard loss to bring up third and 23. Despite having three defenders in front of the receiver on the underthrown pass, none of them were able to come up with the interception, forcing Notre Dame to punt on fourth and very long. Silva would only manage a 5 yard return on the 37 yard punt, giving us the ball at our 38 yard line.

Taking over following the punt, we would throw Williams right back into the hot seat, his pass intended for Tristan Muhammad overthrown and out of bounds. Another pass on second down, this time intended for Jon Morris, would end up batted down, leaving third and 10. Williams would apparently continue to remain rattled for that previous interception as his third down pass intended for Muhammad would be underthrown and swatted down by the defense, forcing us to punt on fourth down. Just barely getting the punt off, a fair catch on the 42 yard boot would leave Notre Dame at their 19 yard line.

Lining up following the punt, the Irish would come out running the ball, only to watch Holland stuffed and driven backwards for a two yard loss on the first down carry. A second down pass to Hill would be completed for a gain of 11 yards, leaving the Irish just third and one. Despite the blitz, Holland would still easily rush for a gain of 10 yards and a first down at the 39 yard line. A first down carry by Holland would get stopped for no gain, followed by a 13 yard rush by Goddard to again undo any success our defense had, giving Notre Dame a new set of downs at our 48 yard line. Holland would keep the ball moving on first down with a three yard rush, followed by an incomplete pass from Walker to leave third and 7. A diving tackle at the ankles would miraculously trip up Holland for a gain of just two yards on a screen pass, going from an almost assured first down to Notre Dame being forced to punt on fourth and 5. A touchback on the 42 yard punt would be the final play of the first quarter, the game stilled deadlocked at 0-0 as neither offense was able to keep drives alive long enough to put points on the board.

Starting the second quarter, our offense lined up from our 20 yard to start our drive following the touchback at the end of the first quarter. This time we would start on the ground, Silva fighting very hard for a minimal two yard gain. Trying a play action pass on second down, the pass to tight end Gerald Woods would fool the defense just enough for a 9 yard gain and a first down at the 31 yard line. Returning to the ground on first down, Silva would fight forward for a gain of four yards, followed by a 6 yard rush to leave third and inches. Silva would get the call on third down, blasting through the hole for a 7 yard gain and a new set of downs at the 48 yard line. Silva would try to keep us moving forward on first down, only to be blasted at the line for a single yard gain. Going under center on second and long, Williams would drop back and fire a pass to tight end Nate Williams for a solid 19 yard completion, giving us a first down at the Notre Dame 32 yard line. Dropping back into the shotgun on first down, Williams would halfback Tyson Taylor out of the backfield for an 11 yard gain, moving the chains to the 21 yard line. Returning to the ground game, Silva would rumble ahead on first down for a 6 yard carry, followed by a four yard rush to once again bring up third and inches. Silva would again get the call, picking up two yards on the play to keep the drive alive and give us first and goal from the Notre Dame 9 yard line. We would find the end zone just one play later as the Irish defense would again bite hook, line and sinker on the play action fake, giving Williams a simple little league toss to a completely alone and uncovered Woods in the corner of the end zone for a 9 yard touchdown, giving us a 7-0 lead with 5:03 left in the second quarter.

A 20 yard return by Owens would give Notre Dame the ball at their 23 yard line. It would take Notre Dame exactly one play to respond as a QB read by Walker would result in three broken tackles and a 77 yard touchdown rush by the signal caller to tie the game at 7-7 with 4:45 left in the first half.

A touchback on the following kickoff would leave us starting at our 25 yard line. Coming out passing on first down, Williams would rifle a pass over the middle intended for Miller, only to have it nearly intercepted on the play. A second down pass to Washington on a comeback route would go for a huge 25 yard gain, thanks to a couple of shed tackles, giving us a first down at the Notre Dame 49 yard line. Lining up under center on first down, the pass from Williams intended for Livingston would be broken up. Looking to catch the defense sleeping, a pitch left to Silva would only go backwards for a loss of two yards on the play, leaving third and 12. Muhammad would thankfully keep our drive alive on third down with a 16 yard reception from Williams, giving us a new set of downs at the Notre Dame 36 yard line. Turning back to the ground game on first down, Silva would fight his way to a four yard gain on the play, followed by a 5 yard rush to leave us facing third and one. Somehow, the Irish defense would put the brakes on our drive as Silva would be blown up at the line of scrimmage for no gain, bringing up fourth and one at the 27 yard line. Opting for the points, the 44 yard field goal by Max Thompson would just barely squeak over the crossbar, giving us a 10-7 lead with 1:30 left in the second quarter.

A 31 yard return by Owens would give the Irish the ball at their 36 yard line. A quick first down pass to Roger Thornburg would gain 11 yards and a new first down at the 47. A short pass to Hill would go for a 5 yard gain, Notre Dame calling their first timeout with 1:08 remaining. Walker would try to connect with a wide open Thornburg on second down, but the pass would be overthrown and incomplete to leave third and 5. A third down screen pass would come up short as Holland would be tackled for only a four yard gain, leaving the Irish facing fourth and two at our 44 yard line. Notre Dame would elect to go for it on fourth down, and with the absolute worst time for a penalty, the hard count would get our defense to jump, resulting in a 5 yard penalty for encroachment and a free first down for the Irish at our 39. Yet another screen pass would go all the way this time as Holland would race untouched into the end zone for a 39 yard touchdown pass, giving Notre Dame a 14-10 lead with 28 seconds left until halftime.

A 24 yard kickoff return by Silva would leave us starting at our 20 yard line, just 24 seconds to play. Looking for a deep pass out of the shotgun, Williams would take his sweet time and end up sacked for an 11 yard loss, leaving second and 21 and our first timeout called with 20 seconds to play. Muhammad would come through on second down, hauling in a pass from Williams for a gain of 24 yard and a first down at the 32 yard line. Unfortunately, after racing to the line, a first down pass attempt would again result in Williams being sacked, this time for a loss of 9 yards, leaving second and 19 and forced to call our second timeout with just 11 seconds remaining. Taking a shot on a Hail Mary from our 23 yard line, Muhammad would manage to outsprint his defender and Williams would sail a pass that would hit Muhammad perfectly in stride for a 45 yard completion and a first down at the 32 yard line, our final timeout called with just four seconds left to play. Lining up for a 49 yard field goal on the final play of the half, the kick would never make it to the goal post and instead would be returned by the Irish clear out to the 30 yard line before our squad could finally make the tackle. That would be the end of the second quarter, sending us into halftime trailing Notre Dame 14-10.

Opening up the second half, a huge 47 yard kickoff return up the right sideline by Morris would give us the ball at our 42 yard line to start the third quarter. Silva would get the ball to start our first drive of the second half, rushing for a gain of three yards on the play, followed by a four yard rush to leave us facing third and three. Taking a chance on the ground, Silva would get the ball and the first down with a 5 yard rush, moving the chains to the Notre Dame 46 yard line. Taylor would take over on first down, fighting his way up the middle for an 8 yard carry, followed by a three yard dash by Silva to get the first down at the 35. Silva would end up rushing to consecutive three yard gains, leaving us with third and four. Trying our luck a third time, we came out with a play action pass on third down. This time the defense would read us like a book and Williams was forced to check down and throw to fullback Walter Johnson, the play only resulting in a single yard gain to set up fourth and three from the Irish 29 yard line. Trying our luck on a 46 yard field goal, the kick by Thompson would hook wide left, giving Notre Dame the ball at their 29 yard line.

Taking over following the failed field goal attempt, Holland would get the Irish moving with a 6 yard rush on first down. Walker would take off scrambling on a second down pass attempt, only to scramble right into two defenders and end up sacked for a two yard loss, leaving third and 6. Holland would continue to be an annoying son of a bitch to our defense, coming from out of nowhere to pull down a last second pass from Walker, nearly 5 yards behind the line of scrimmage, and race up the field for a 12 yard gain, giving Notre Dame a first down at their 46 yard line. First down would see our defense get a chance of their own to blow up a pitch play, as the Holland would be quickly brought down for a loss of five yards. Notre Dame would surprisingly run the ball on second and very long, gaining just two yards on the rush by Goddard to leave third and 13. Taking a chance deep down the left sideline, the pass from Walker would be jumped by cornerback Jesse Breedlove and intercepted as he fell out of bounds, giving us the ball at our 39 yard line.

Lining up following the interception, Silva would take the ball on first down but only gain two yards before being violently ripped down from behind. Going through the air on second down, the pass intended for Miller would end up swatted down by the middle linebacker, leaving third and 8. Another pass, this one intended for Morris, would again be broken up and nearly intercepted over the middle, forcing us to punt the ball away on fourth down. A 23 yard return by Owens on the 39 yard punt would give Notre Dame the ball at their 42 yard line.

Starting their next drive near midfield, the Irish seemed to be primed to take control of this game as the third quarter ticked down. Walker would again get twitchy in the backfield and take off scrambling on the first down pass attempt, only to yet again run right into the arms of a defender and end up sacked for a four yard loss. Once again, despite blitzing, Holland would just moon walk his fat ass to a 10 yard gain, giving the Irish third and four. Another rush by Holland would gain four more yards and a first down at our 48 yard line. Holland would keep plowing right over our defense, rushing for 7 yards on first down, followed by three shed tackles and a 10 yard carry to move the chains to our 30 yard line. Yet again, a first down blitz wouldn’t do crap, as Goddard had a huge hole for a gain of 7 yards, followed by a 6 yard rush by Holland to get a first down at our 17. The Irish would continue making a fucking mockery of our defense as Goddard would get the world’s biggest hole, for the 10th play in a row no matter what blitz, non-blitz or formation we called, rushing for a gain of 10 yards to leave second and inches. Even despite bringing literally the entire damn defense, Holland would still end up rushing for a one yard gain, giving the Irish first and goal from our 7 yard line. Despite the blitz, Goddard would easily pick up 6 yards to move the ball to our one yard line. The goal line blitz would be literally worthless on second down as our defense would literally run right past Walker and let him stroll into the end zone on a QB read for a one yard touchdown, giving Notre Dame a 21-10 lead with 15 seconds left in the third quarter.

A 36 yard kickoff return by Silva would give us the ball at our 27 yard line. Needing to get back into this game, we would come out passing on first down, the pass jumped and batted down by Superman at cornerback, leaving second down. Going four wide on second down, Williams would sneak out up the middle from the tight end spot and haul in a pass by the quarterback Williams, good for a gain of 21 yards and a first down at the 49 yard line. That would be the final play of the third quarter, Notre Dame leading 21-10.

Opening up the fourth quarter, we came out on first down with a handoff to Silva, who would gain 6 yards on the play. Another rush by Silva would pick up three yards, leaving third and one. Looking to keep our drive alive, Silva would get the call on third down and make the most of it with an 8 yard carry, giving us a first down at the Notre Dame 34 yard line. Continuing to plug along on the ground, Silva would manage just a two yard gain on first down, followed by a 7 yard rush up the middle to bring up third and one. Taylor would get the call on third down this time, fighting for a gain of four yards and a new set of downs at the 21 yard line. Taking another shot on the play action pass on first down, it would end up wasted as the defense would bite, allowing Woods to get open and initially pull in the pass from Williams. But the hit and tackled by the safety would end up knocking the ball loose, resulting in an incomplete pass and ruin a potential 13 yard gain. Lining up in the shotgun on second down, somehow, (I have no clue how the hell…), Williams would thread the bloody needle as he would rifle the ball through the arms and hands of three different defenders and into the hands of Washington, who would fall backwards and end up tackled into the end zone for a 21 yard touchdown, cutting Notre Dame’s lead to 21-17 with 7:12 left in the game.

Notre Dame wouldn’t even need an offensive play to respond to that touchdown, as Owens would receive the kickoff at his three yard line and proceed to race up the right sideline completely untouched, going all the way for a 97 yard kickoff return for a touchdown, instantly boosting Notre Dame’s lead to 28-17 with 7:00 left in the game.

Morris would manage just a pedestrian 21 yard kickoff return on the following kick, leaving us starting at our 18 yard line. Coming out in the shotgun on first down, a very poorly timed interception attempt by the outside linebacker would leave Matt Turner with a completed pass and nothing but green in front of him. While the much faster Notre Dame defense would eventually chase him down, it would be until after he had run for a 51 yard completion, tackled at the Notre Dame 31 yard line. Trying to induce a heart attack at the end of the play, Turner would fumble the ball as he was being tackled, thankfully another Utah State player, sprinting up the field behind the play, would leap on the fumble before any of the three nearby Notre Dame players could even react to it. There would be a booth review on the fumble, and it would be ultimately reversed. Turner would be ruled down before the fumble, resulting in one yard being taken off the play. So Turner instead would be credited with a 50 yard reception and we would get a first down at the Notre Dame 32 yard line. Turning to our ground game on first down, Silva would get the handoff for a 5 yard gain, followed by a 7 yard rush to get a new set of downs at the 20 yard line. Another first down rush by Silva would gain 5 more yards, followed by a two yard rush that would leave us facing third and three. Leaving our drive in the hands of Taylor, he would get the first down and then some with a 7 yard rush, giving us first and goal from the Notre Dame 5 yard line. Silva would take the ball on first down, rushing for a gain of two yards. Silva would find the end zone on his second try, rushing through a gap and into the end zone for a three yard touchdown to make it 28-23. With only 3:56 left in the game, we decided to gamble on the two point conversion and try and make this just a three point game. Calling the increasingly ballsy play action pass, it would set up perfectly, as the defense would initially defend Woods coming off the line, only to bite on the play action fake. With a complete undefended Woods AND Walter off in the left half of the end zone, all Williams had to do was just toss another little league pass. Instead due to pressure from a blitz, Williams would throw off his back foot and the pass would sail right in the middle between both Walter and Woods and land in the end zone incomplete, leaving Notre Dame’s lead at 28-23 with 3:56 remaining in the game.

We would kickoff deep and pray our defense could make a stop. It nearly didn’t matter as Holland returned the kickoff and had a chance of breaking loose, thankfully a second tackle would limit him to just a gain of 29 yards and keep him from reaching the sideline with a wall of blockers. Lining up at their 36 yard line, the Irish came out on first down running the ball, but Holland would be quickly brought down for no gain on the play. Second down would again see Holland get the ball, gaining only two yards on the play to bring up third and 8. The defense would come through huge on fourth down as Notre Dame would run a play action pass of their own, leaving a receiver open in a coverage gap along the right sideline. Thankfully the pass would be slow and aired out instead of a direct strike, allowing the safety to crash down and leap in front of the pass, deflecting the ball out of bounds with his entire body. Not only would Notre Dame be forced to punt on fourth and 8 from their 39 yard line, but the incomplete pass would stop the clock at 2:39 and keep the Irish from running the clock down any further. An 8 yard return by Silva on the 44 yard punt would give us the ball at our 24 yard line with just 2:28 remaining in the game.

Coming out lining up under center on first down, Williams would end up hit as he tried to throw to Livingston, bringing up second down. Lining up in the shotgun on second down, the pass intended for Miller would be intercepted by cornerback BrianAndrews and returned 23 yards up the right sideline, giving Notre Dame the ball at our 22 yard line with 2:15 remaining.

Taking over at our 22 yard line following the interception, the Irish came out rushing the ball, as Holland would rumble for a 9 yard gain on the play, forcing us to call our first timeout with 2:08 to go. Another rush by Holland would go for a gain of 7 yards, setting Notre Dame up with first and goal from our 5 yard line, our second timeout taken with 2:04 to play. Another rush by Holland would go for a gain of two yards, leaving second and goal at our three yard line, our final timeout called with 1:58 remaining. The Irish would try to pass on second down, but our goal line blitz would leave Walker instantly scrambling for his life and ultimately sacked for a 5 yard loss, bringing up third and goal from the 8 yard line. A third down screen pass would result in Holland being tackled for a two yard loss, leaving Notre Dame with fourth and goal from the 10 yard line and 1:01 remaining on the clock. Running the play clock down to two seconds, Notre Dame would kick a 27 yard field goal to increase their lead to 31-23 with 31 seconds left in the game.

A 38 yard kickoff return by Morris would give us the ball at our 31 yard line, just 25 seconds remaining on the clock. A first down pass intended for Williams was broken up with 20 seconds to go. A second down Hail Mary intended for Washington was nearly intercepted, just 13 seconds remaining. A third down Hail Mary intended for Muhammad would be batted down, leaving fourth down and 7 seconds left in the game. With one last hope, the fourth down Hail Mary pass intended for Washington would end up underthrown nearly 15 yards before the group of receivers and incomplete with no time remaining, giving Notre Dame the 31-23 victory.

With the loss we drop to 1-2 on the season. With the win, Notre Dame improves to 4-0 on the year. Up next, we close out our non-conference schedule with a home game against rival BYU. The Cougars enter the game 2-2, opening the season with a 52-35 win over Wisconsin, a 41-35 overtime loss at Temple, a 45-34 win at East Carolina and a 38-21 loss against Air Force.

Final Score

:Notre_Dame: 31, :Utah_State: 23

Stats of the Game:

Utah State Offense - Some positive and some negative for Williams. He would end up 13-29 for 277 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. He could have had a two point conversion as well if he wouldn't throw off his back foot. Rushing, Silva led the way with 133 yards and one touchdown on 34 carries. Taylor ended with 19 yards on three rushes. Receiving, Muhammad had the top yards with 85 yards on three catches. In total, eight receivers caught at least one pass, seven receivers ended with double digits in yards receiving. Woods and Washington would have the two receiving touchdowns. Woods would also have the only drop, a drop that ended up being a drive killer.

Utah State Defense/Special Teams – Damn great first quarter. Worse second quarter ever seen. Decent third quarter. Bad fourth quarter. Pretty much sums up the day. Two interceptions however did help to stall some Notre Dame drives and keep us in the game.

Utah State Kicking – It would be a horrid day for Thompson, who would go 1-3 in field goals with a 44 yard kick, misses from 46 and 49 yards, along with going 2-2 in PATs. At this rate, we're either only going to be able to kick field goals from 45 yards or less with ANY confidence, or just forgo field goal altogether from now on. Thompson is useless.

Scoring Summary

Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score

:Utah_State: 0 10 0 13 23

:Notre_Dame: 0 14 7 10 31

Time Team Result Play Score

First Quarter

--- --- --- --- ---

Second Quarter

5:03 :Utah_State: Touchdown G. Woods, 9 yard pass from P. Williams (M. Thompson kick) :Utah_State: 7-0

4:45 :Notre_Dame: Touchdown B. Walker, 77 yard run (K. White kick) TIED 7-7

1:30 :Utah_State: Field Goal M. Thompson, 44 yard field goal :Utah_State: 10-7

0:28 :Notre_Dame: Touchdown S. Holland, 39 yard pass from B. Walker (K. White kick) :Notre_Dame: 14-10

Third Quarter

0:15 :Notre_Dame: Touchdown B. Walker, 1 yard run (K. White kick) :Notre_Dame: 21-10

Fourth Quarter

7:12 :Utah_State: Touchdown A. Washington, 21 yard pass from P. Williams (M. Thompson kick) :Notre_Dame: 21-17

7:00 :Notre_Dame: Touchdown H. Owens, returned kickoff 97 yards (K. White kick) :Notre_Dame: 28-17

3:56 :Utah_State: Touchdown B. Silva, 3 yard run (2-point conversion pass failed) :Notre_Dame: 28-23

0:31 :Notre_Dame: Field Goal K. White, 27 yard field goal :Notre_Dame: 31-23

Game Stats

Utah State Stat Notre Dame

23 Score 31

19 First Downs 13

409 Total Offense 303

39 - 132 - 1 Rushes - Yards - TD 38 - 215 - 2

13 - 29 - 2 Comp - Att - TD 10 - 16 - 1

277 Passing Yards 88

2 Times Sacked 6

7 - 12 (58%) 3rd Down Conversion 4 - 11 (36%)

0 - 1 (0%) 4th Down Conversion 0 - 0 (0%)

0 - 1 (0%) 2-Point Conv 0 - 0 (0%)

3 - 2 - 0 (66%) Red Zone - TD - FG 2 - 1 - 1 (100%)

2 Turnovers 1

0 Fumbles Lost 0

2 Intercepted 1

13 Punt Return Yards 22

163 Kick Return Yards 200

585 Total Yards 525

2 –40.5 Punts - Average 3 - 41.3

1 - 5 Penalties 0 - 0

21:37 Time of Possession 18:23

Utah State Coach Goals

Goal XP Reward Completed

Score a Touchdown 25 x3

Force a Turnover 25 x1

Pass for 250 Yards 25 x1

Rush for 100 Yards 25 x1

3+ Sacks 50 x1

Opponent Under 300 Pass Yards 50 x1

Score 21 or More Points 50 x1

350+ Offensive Yards 50 x1

10+ First Downs 50 x1

4+ 3rd Down Conversions 25 x1

Utah State Contract Goals Update

Goal Expectations Progress

Target Wins Per Season 8 1

Job Security Status

100%

02-16-2016, 03:38 PM
SmoothPancakes

Taking a look around the nation, in the Top 25, #1 Ohio needed a 15-point fourth quarter to get past Northwestern 25-21, running the Buckeyes record win streak to 60 straight games. #4 Ole Miss hammered Vanderbilt 40-14. #5 South Carolina fisted LSU 45-17. #7 Baylor outlasted Duke 35-28. #8 Clemson survived #17 Virginia Tech 26-21. #9 Arizona escaped #25 Louisville 36-33. #12 Georgia Tech stung #10 Florida State 30-3.

#11 UCLA fended off #19 Washington 24-17. Minnesota knocked off #13 Michigan State 38-35. #14 Auburn topped Arkansas State 37-17. #15 USC handled Washington State 56-34. #18 Texas embarrassed FCS East 40-3. Colorado shocked #20 Stanford 35-34. #21 West Virginia escaped Maryland 31-28. #23 Georgia beat Alabama 42-28. #24 Fresno State survived winless Georgia State 31-28.

For our readers, JeffHCross, #1 Ohio State improves to 4-0 (1-0 Big Ten) with a come from behind 25-21 win over Northwestern. Morsdraconis, #21 West Virginia improves to 3-1 (0-1 Big 12) with a 31-28 win over Maryland. Souljahbill, Southern Miss drops to 1-2 (0-0 C-USA) with a 34-27 loss to Illinois. Jaymo, Arizona State drops to 2-1 (1-0 Pac-12) with a 49-35 win over New Mexico State. LeeSO, #14 Auburn improves to 2-1 (1-0 SEC) with a 37-17 win over Arkansas State. SCClassof93, #5 South Carolina improves to 3-1 (1-1 SEC) with a 45-17 win over LSU. Other teams of interest, Arkansas State drops to 2-1 (0-0 Sun Belt) with a 37-17 loss to #14 Auburn. Florida International improves to 2-0 (0-0 C-USA) with a 28-21 win over Akron. Navy opens their season 1-0 (1-0 American) with a 24-21 win over Temple. Tulsa improves to 1-2 (1-0 American) with a 28-27 win over East Carolina.

In Mountain West action, #24 Fresno State escaped Georgia State 31-28, Wyoming doubled up Rutgers 48-24, Hawaii topped Louisiana Monroe 31-14, UNLV dispatched Louisiana Lafayette 34-14, San Diego State survived Houston 30-24 in overtime, Air Force hammered BYU 38-21, Boise State knocked off Virginia 48-45, Colorado State edged out UTSA 38-35 in overtime, San Jose State upset Iowa State 28-21, and in the ONLY loss for the Mountain West this week, Notre Dame defeats Utah State 31-23.

The Mountain West as a whole had one of their best weeks, likely ever, as they would combine to go 9-1, Utah State the only team keeping them from going perfect for the week.

Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, Ohio State (36 first place votes) remains #1, Miami (23 votes) remains #2, Michigan (1 vote) remains #3, Ole Miss (1 vote) remains #4 and South Carolina remains #5. Clemson climbs two to #6, Oklahoma drops one to #7, Baylor falls one to #8, Arizona remains #9 and Georgia Tech climbs two to #10. UCLA remains #11, Auburn climbs two to #12, USC moves up two to #13, Kansas State jumps two to #14 and Florida State falls five to #15. Texas climbs two to #16, West Virginia leaps four to #17, Oregon moves up four to #18, Georgia climbs four to #19 and Virginia Tech drops three to #20. Fresno State climbs three to #21, Washington drops three to #22, Boise State enters the poll at #23, Nebraska enters the poll at #24 and Michigan State (226 points) plummets twelve spots to #25. Dropping out of the poll this week was Stanford (from #20) and Louisville (from #25). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Louisville, (180 points) is #26, followed by Notre Dame (144), Navy (143), Texas A&M (36) and Stanford (23) to round out the Top 30. Other teams getting points this week include Tennessee (15), Oklahoma State (12) and Arkansas State (10).

Taking a look at the first Top 25 Media Poll of the year, Ohio State (43 first place votes) is #1, Miami (21 votes) is #2, Michigan (1 vote) is #3, Baylor is #4 and Clemson is #5. Ole Miss is #6, South Carolina is #7, Oklahoma is #8, Georgia Tech is #9 and Arizona is #10. UCLA is #11, Georgia is #12, Auburn is #13, USC is #14 and Texas is #15. Florida State is #16, Kansas State is #17, West Virginia is #18, Washington is #19 and Oregon is #20. Virginia Tech is #21, Fresno State is #22, Boise State is #23, Nebraska is #24 and Louisville (208 points) is #25. Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Michigan State (153 votes) is #26, followed by Navy (145), Notre Dame (86), Texas A&M (61) and Tennessee (35) to round out the Top 30. Other teams getting points this week include Alabama (19), Kentucky (15), Arkansas State (8) and Oklahoma State (7).

An early season look at the Heisman race, West Virginia QB Kevin Gates is #1 (LW: #3), Michigan State QB Jordan Norton is #2 (LW: #5), Arizona QB Adam Parrish is #3 (LW: #1), Ohio State QB James Gates is #4 (LW: NR) and Ole Miss HB Randy Wright is #5 (LW: #4). Dropping off the Heisman Watch list this week was NC State HB Steven Osborn (LW: #2).
08-07-2017, 03:52 PM
SmoothPancakes

What's that I hear? The sound of whistles? What time is it? It's game time!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tF3fsQwKp1k
08-07-2017, 07:01 PM
souljahbill

YESSSSSSSSSSS!!!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Game Four

:BYU: :@: :Utah_State:

Game Story

--- Coming off a second straight loss, this time at the hands of Notre Dame, we would return back to Utah licking our wounds with a 1-2 record, and looking to try and right the ship with a home game against BYU. The year so far had been up and down for the Cougars, as they defeated a weak Wisconsin in the first week of the season, only to drop an overtime contest at Temple. They would recover with a win over East Carolina, then get smacked around by Air Force. They may have two wins, but both of those wins came against teams currently sitting at 0-3 in the standings. The combined level of play thus far only added up to a record of 3-8, so trying to gather some knowledge from their previous contests would be almost impossible. Besides, with this game being the Battle for the Beehive Boot, records and past games didn’t matter as both teams would show up for a fight regardless. BYU would win the coin toss and elect to kick off first.

Returner Jon Morris would get us off to a fantastic start with a huge 52 yard kickoff return that would set us up at our 47 yard line to start the game. Trusted workhorse Benjamin Silva would get the call on first down, taking the handoff and rushing around the right guard for a 10 yard gain and a quick first down at the BYU 43. A halfback toss to Silva on first down would nearly end in disaster with a big loss on the play, but a missed tackle would allow Silva to salvage the play and turn it into an 8 yard gain. Taking our first crack through the air on second down, Adam Washington would pull down a quick rocket from Pat Williams up the left sideline, good for a gain of 10 yard and a new set of downs at the BYU 25 yard line. Another first down rush by Silva would go for a gain of four yards, followed by an 8 yard rush to move the chains to the 13 yard line. Silva would try to keep us moving forward on first down, but would quickly end up tackled for a gain of just one yard. Taking a chance out of the shotgun on second down, Williams would connect with Greg Miller on a shallow slant, good for a 9 yard gain and what should have been first and goal, until Miller fumbled the ball during a hit and the ball was recovered by BYU on their own five yard line. We would take a gamble and challenge the fumble on the play, as it seemed like a bang-bang play, but the ruling on the field would stand, and BYU would take over in the shadows of their own end zone.

Starting at their own five yard line following the fumble recovery, the Cougars would come out passing, but the rushed pass by Kenneth Sharp was well wide of any receivers and incomplete. Unfortunately for Sharp and the Cougars, that would be the most positive play of their drive as our front line would break through on second down and sack Sharp in the end zone for a safety, giving us a 2-0 lead with 7:10 left in the first quarter.

A 21 yard return for Silva on the safety punt would get us back in action from our 43 yard line. Silva would get the drive started on the ground with a pair of rushes for gains of three and two yards, leaving us facing third and five. Going into the air on third down, Williams would connect with Miller and this time he would hold onto the ball, good for a 20 yard pass and a first down at the BYU 32 yard line. Staying with the air game, Tyson Taylor would pull in a pass from Williams good for a gain of 13 yards, moving the chains to the 19 yard line. Silva would get a couple more cracks on the ground, plowing forward for a gain of five yards, followed by an 8 yard rush that would set us up with first and goal from the BYU 6. Silva would get the call again on first and goal, dashing through the lines for a four yard carry to move the ball to the two yard line. Silva would finish the drive off on the next play with a two yard touchdown plunge, giving us a 9-0 lead with 3:27 left to go in the first quarter.

A 19 yard kickoff return by Clinton Harrison would set the Cougars up at their 23 yard line for their next drive. After an incomplete pass to start the drive, Sharp would finally complete a pass, connecting with Kevin Neal for a gain of 26 yards, followed by a 16 yard strike to Taylor Hayes over the middle, giving the Cougars a first down at our 35 yard line and their offense pushing us to our limit with a no-huddle offense. We would get a temporary respite as the next pass would end up dropped incomplete, giving us a chance to huddle, substitute and catch our breath before facing the no-huddle onslaught once more. A second down pass to Brandon Irby would end up going for a loss of one yard, while a quick toss to John Sims would gain 10 yards, but leave the Cougars looking at fourth and one from our 26 yard line. While conventional wisdom would suggest kick the field goal, BYU was apparently not playing it conventional today as they lined up to go for it on fourth down, and would promptly convert with a 25 yard strike to Eric Pettit to set up first and goal at our one yard line. A one yard pitch to Neal on first down would end the drive with a touchdown, cutting our lead to 9-7 with 2:03 left in the first quarter.

A 24 yard kickoff return by Silva would leave us lining up at our 20 yard line for our next drive. Silva would get us started with a 6 yard carry on first down, followed by a three yard gain on an option pitch to bring up third and one. Silva would get the call on third down, and just barely fall across the line while being tackled for a two yard gain to move the chains. Going into the air on first down, Tristan Muhammad would pull in a pass from Williams for a gain of 11 yards and a quick first down at the 42. An 8 yard rush by Silva would bring the first quarter to a close, with a narrow 9-7 lead.

Opening up the second quarter, Silva would again be the workhorse of the drive, going for a gain of three yards and a new set of downs at the BYU 46. Walter Johnson would move the ball forward with a five yard reception, followed by a pass to Miller for a big 21 yard gain and a first down at the 21 yard line. A first down play action pass would work to perfection as tight end Gerald Woods would slip off the line of scrimmage, haul in a pass from Williams around the 10 yard line and then shoulder his way through a defender and into the end zone for a 21 yard touchdown completion and a 16-7 lead with 8:41 left in the second quarter.

A wind-aided touchback on the following kickoff would result in the Cougars starting at their 25 yard line. A lot of pressure by the defense and some incomplete passes would be all it would take to sink BYU’s drive and force them to bring out their punt team. A 10 yard return by Silva on the 38 yard punt would give us the ball at our 46 yard line to start our drive.

Coming out on the ground, a two yard rush by Silva would give way to an attempted pass to tight end Shaun Livingston, only to have the ball broken up to bring up third and long. Falling back in the shotgun, Williams would keep us alive with an 11 yard strike to Muhammad, giving us a new set of downs at the BYU 41. A first down pass to Jon Morris would go for a big gain of 25 yards and instantly move the chains down to the 15 yard line. Silva would get the call on first down, plowing forward for a gain of 7 yards, followed by a second 7 yard rush that would give us first and goal at, essentially, the goal line. Silva would get the call again, plunging forward for a one yard touchdown and increasing our lead to 23-7 with 5:39 left in the second quarter.

A 24 yard kickoff return would see the Cougars start from their 23 yard line on their next drive. Hayes would get the drive started with a 16 yard reception, and then the no huddle offense would pretty much begin to just ram it right down our throats, with a four yard pass to Joe Outlaw, a 13 yard pass to Hayes, a three yard pass to Sims, a 7 yard pass to Sims and a 13 yard pass to Brandon Smith, giving BYU a first down at our 21 yard line before finally going to the goddamn huddle for the first time since starting the drive. A first down rush by Harrison would go for 10 yards to leave second and inches. Once again going no huddle, this time it would bite BYU in the ass as a poor pass over the middle would be thrown right at, and easily intercepted by, middle linebacker Justin Dunn, returned two yards to give us possession of the ball at our own 10 yard line.

Taking over deep in our territory following the interception, Silva would again get the call to start us off, plowing forward for a 6 yard gain, before getting immediately leveled for no gain on the next play to leave us with third and four. Lining up in the shotgun, Williams would manage to connect with Muhammad for a 15 yard gain, giving us a fresh set of downs at the 31. Going over the middle on first down, Williams would try to connect with Miller, but the pass would end up broken up. Another pass, this time intended for Morris, would likewise be swatted down to leave third and long. Muhammad would again come through in the clutch, taking advantage of the heavy blitz to pull in a quick pass and gain 22 yards on the play, moving the chains to the BYU 47 yard line. Another pass, this time to Livingston over the middle, dropped beautifully right in the middle of the coverage, would go for a gain of 34 yards and set us up with a first down at the 14 yard line. Coming out on the ground on first down, Silva would plow ahead for a gain of four yards on the carry, followed by a five yard rush to leave us with third and one at the four yard line, just under a minute left in the half. Silva would need just one more play to finish it off, scrambling through the hole and over a defender for a four yard touchdown rush, giving us a 30-7 lead with 24 seconds left until halftime.

A touchback on the kickoff would leave BYU starting at their 25 yard line, just 24 seconds left to play in the second quarter. Not even attempting to make a push for a score before half, a one yard rush by Neal would be the final play as the Cougars would settle for running out the clock, sending us into halftime with a 30-7 lead over BYU.

Opening up the second half, a touchback on the kickoff would give BYU the ball at their 25 yard line to start the third quarter. A first down play action pass would go nowhere as Sharp was forced to thrown the ball away. Second down would see the Cougars go backwards as Sharp would end up sacked for an 8 yard loss after failing to escape the blitz. The third and 18 pass attempt would nearly be completed to Outlaw a good 30 yards downfield, but our secondary would thankfully break it up and force BYU to punt. No return on the 36 yard punt would start our next drive from our 46 yard line.

Lining up near midfield following the punt, Silva would need one play to add to the score as he would get the handoff, turn the corner and race up the left sideline for a 54 yard touchdown run, increasing our lead to 37-7 over BYU.

Another kickoff, another touchback, another drive for BYU starting at their 25. Another first down, another incomplete pass via a dropped ball. A dump pass to Neal on second down would again see BYU going backwards, this time for a four yard loss to bring up third and 14. Sharp would once again attempt to throw a deep pass down the left sideline, a good 30-35 yards downfield intended for Outlaw, but it was not meant to be as cornerback Jesse Breedlove, the sole player between Outlaw and the end zone, would cut off the pass and intercept the ball, giving us possession at our 47 yard line. It would come at a high price however, as Breedlove would bruise his ribs on the play, resulting in him being pulled out for the remainder of the game, a huge casualty for our defense to lose one of their best players.

Taking over near midfield following the interception, Silva would get us rolling on first down with a 7 yard rush, followed by a one yard gain that would leave us facing third and two. Leaving the fate of the drive in Silva’s hands, he would get the job done and then some with a 7 yard carry, moving the chains to the BYU 38 yard line. Keeping it on the ground on first down, as we looked to chew up some clock with our big lead, Silva would just keep shredding the defense with a 6 yard gain, followed by a second 6 yard carry to move the chains. Silva would cross the 200 yard plateau, rushing for a five yard gain on first down, then adding to it with a gain of 6 to refresh the down marker. If they can’t stop it, why change it? Silva would get the ball again on first down and plow forward for a five yard gain, followed by a two yard rush to leave third and three. Silva would again get the call on third down, only to be met for no gain, forcing us to settle for a field goal on fourth down from the 8. Max Thompson would nail the 25 yard field goal and we would increase our lead to 40-7 with 3:06 left in the third quarter.

No return on the kickoff would give BYU the ball once more at their 25 yard line. A first down pass to Neal behind the line of scrimmage would result in a loss of three yards, instantly sending BYU in the wrong direction once again. After a thrown away ball to bring up third down, Sharp would end up sacked for a loss of 6 yards and another BYU drive would come to a quick and futile conclusion. A 5 yard return by Silva on the 35 yard punt would give us the ball at the BYU 47 yard line.

Starting our next drive inside BYU’s half of the 50, Silva would again pick up where he left off, dashing through the line for a 14 yard gain and a first down. A three yard rush on first down would be followed by a second three yard gain, leaving us facing third and four. Going into the air on third down, Muhammad would just pull in a pass through the outstretched hands of the defender, good for a gain of 11 yards and a first down at the 15 yard line. Silva would get the call on the final play of the third quarter, rushing for a gain of 6 yards as we headed into the break with a 40-7 lead.

Opening up the fourth quarter, we lined up at the BYU 9 yard line on second and four. Silva would again keep us moving forward with a five yard rush to give us first and goal at the four yard line. A first down carry by Silva would gain one yard, followed by a three yard plunge into the end zone, giving Silva his fifth touchdown of the game and extending our lead to 47-7 with 9:03 left in the game.

A 25 yard kickoff return by Harrison gave BYU the ball at their 29 yard line for their next drive. An incomplete pass, followed by a completion to Neal for no gain would leave the Cougars again facing third and long. BYU would almost manage to pick up a first down with a pass right at the first down marker, but a wide open Hayes would bobble and drop the catch, forcing the punt team out once more. A muffed punt return would nearly turn disastrous for us, but Silva would manage to regain the ball and save possession for us at our 27 yard line.

Taking over after the nearly lost punt return, Silva would get the ball, rush for an 8 yard gain, and dash his way over the 250 yards rushing mark for the game. Another rush by Silva would gain four more yard and get the first down. A five yard rush by Silva on first down would be followed with a 6 yard carry to move the chains to the 50 yard line. The drive would quickly come to an end as Taylor would take over for Silva on first down, rushing for a pair of three yard gains, before being met for a one yard loss and forcing us to punt on fourth and four. An AMAZING punt by Frank Arnold would land at the five yard line, spin down near the goal line and be touched down at the BYU one yard line, forcing the Cougars right up against it for their next drive.

Taking over at their own one yard line following the downed punt, BYU would come out running the ball, only to see Neal swarmed in the end zone for the second safety of the game, increasing our lead to 49-7 with 5:18 left in the game.

A 17 yard return by Washington on the safety punt would give us the ball at our 38 yard line. A first down rush by Taylor would go for a 10 yard gain to leave second and inches, followed by a gain of three yards to move the chains to the BYU 49 yard line. First down would see Zack Coleman tackled for a one yard loss, followed by a three yard gain to leave us facing third and 8. A third down pass to Muhammad would result in a gain of only 7 yards, leaving us facing fourth and inches from the BYU 40 yard line with 3:19 remaining and ticking. Unfortunately, Arnold’s second coffin corner punt would roll into the end zone, giving BYU the ball at their 20 yard line.

Starting at the 20 yard line, this drive for BYU would begin much the same as previous drives, as the Cougars would see first down quickly turn to second down with a thrown away pass. Second down would turn to third down on an incomplete pass, while third down would see the drive end altogether as Sharp’s pass intended for Outlaw would be intercepted for the third time today.

Taking over at the BYU 32 yard line following the interception, Taylor would advance the ball with a three yard rush, followed by a carry for no gain that would leave us looking at third and 7 with two minutes remaining. Going into the air on third down, the pass intended for Muhammad would end up incomplete to bring up fourth and 7 at the 29 yard line. Shockingly, the 46 yard field goal attempt by Thompson was short of the crossbar and no good (it likely would have made it if not for kicking into a 12 MPH wind) and BYU took over at their 29 yard line with 1:33 left in the game.

Lining up following the failed field goal try, the Cougars would opt to run the ball this time, with Neal dashing for a 9 yard gain on first down, followed by a thrown away pass to leave third and one (even down by 42 points with one minute left, the assholes still insist on going no huddle). Third and one would see a much familiar sight, as the pass attempt would end up incomplete thanks to the ball being dropped by Hayes on a crossing route. That would result in fourth and one and the punt team coming onto the field with 1:08 to go. A 12 yard return by Morris on the 43 yard punt would give us the ball at our 30 yard line with exactly one minute left to play in the game. Williams would step up under center on first down and drop to a knee. He would take one more knee on second down with 19 seconds left in the game and that would be the last play of the game as we celebrated an abusive 49-7 thrashing of rival BYU.

With the win, we improve to 2-2 on the year. With the loss, BYU drops to 2-3. Up next, we kick off Mountain West Conference play for the year as we travel to San Diego State. San Diego State enters the game at 4-0, 0-0 in Mountain West action. The Aztecs opened the season with a 38-13 hammering of Jacksonville State, then a 38-10 whooping of Arizona State. They topped Houston on the road 30-24 in overtime and then handled Pittsburgh 34-17 heading into our game.

Final Score
:Utah_State: 49, :BYU: 7

Stat(s) of the Game:

Utah State Offense - A great day by Williams, going 15-19 for 235 yards and a touchdown. Silva was a beast today, ending with 272 yards rushing and 5 touchdowns on 47 carries. Receiving, Muhammad led the way with 6 receptions and 77 yards. In all, 8 receivers caught at least one pass and 7 of them ended up with double digit yards.

Utah State Defense/Special Teams – That first quarter was ugly as hell and had me sweating. BYU's reliance on the no-huddle, our complete incompetence to stop the no-huddle that one touchdown drive by the Cougars, plus some stupid angling and routes by our defenders gave up some free yards that should have never been given up. But they turned it around, completely shut BYU down the rest of the game and tacked on three more interceptions to their total so far this season.

Utah State Kicking – A 50/50 day for Thompson, as he would nail a 25 yard field goal, but then come up short on a 46 yard attempt (though kicking dead straight on into a 12 MPH wind didn't help). He did manage to go 6-6 in PATs.

Scoring Summary

Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score

:BYU: 7 0 0 0 7

:Utah_State: 9 21 10 9 49

Time Team Result Play Score

First Quarter

7:14 :Utah_State: Safety Team Safety, K. Sharp sacked in end zone for safety :Utah_State: 2-0

3:27 :Utah_State: Touchdown B. Silva, 2 yard run (M. Thompson kick) :Utah_State: 9-0

2:03 :BYU: Touchdown K. Neal, 2 yard run (J. McCarthy kick) :Utah_State: 9-7

Second Quarter

8:41 :Utah_State: Touchdown G. Woods, 21 yard pass from P. Williams (M. Thompson kick) :Utah_State: 16-7

5:39 :Utah_State: Touchdown B. Silva, 1 yard run (M. Thompson kick) :Utah_State: 23-7

0:24 :Utah_State: Touchdown B. Silva, 4 yard run (M. Thompson kick) :Utah_State: 30-7

Third Quarter

9:11 :Utah_State: Touchdown B. Silva, 54 yard run (M. Thompson kick) :Utah_State: 37-7

3:06 :Utah_State: Field Goal M. Thompson, 25 yard field goal :Utah_State: 40-7

Fourth Quarter

9:03 :Utah_State: Touchdown B. Silva, 3 yard run (M. Thompson kick) :Utah_State: 47-7

5:21 :Utah_State: Safety Team Safety, K. Neal tackled in end zone for safety :Utah_State: 49-7

Game Stats

BYU Stat Utah State

7 Score 49

6 First Downs 25

125 Total Offense 526

8 - 0 - 1 Rushes - Yards - TD 58 - 291 - 5

14 - 33 - 0 Comp - Att - TD 15 - 19 - 1

125 Passing Yards 235

3 Times Sacked 0

1 - 9 (11%) 3rd Down Conversion 8 - 12 (66%)

1 - 1 (100%) 4th Down Conversion 0 - 0 (0%)

0 - 0 (0%) 2-Point Conv 0 - 0 (0%)

2 - 1 - 0 (50%) Red Zone - TD - FG 6 - 4 - 1 (83%)

3 Turnovers 1

0 Fumbles Lost 1

3 Intercepted 0

0 Punt Return Yards 27

67 Kick Return Yards 112

192 Total Yards 665

5 – 39.8 Punts - Average 2 - 42.0

0 - 0 Penalties 0 - 0

12:03 Time of Possession 27:57

Utah State Coach Goals

Goal XP Reward Completed

Win a Game 100 x1

Score a Touchdown 25 x6

Force a Turnover 25 x3

Rush for 100 Yards 25 x1

Kneel Last Minute Q4 While Ahead 10 x1

3+ Sacks 50 x1

Opponent Under 10 Points 75 x1

Opponent Under 150 Rush Yards 50 x1

Beat a Rival School 540 x1

Opponent Under 300 Pass Yards 50 x1

Pass Completion Over 50% 30 x1

Score 21 or More Points 50 x1

350+ Offensive Yards 50 x1

10+ First Downs 50 x1

4+ 3rd Down Conversions 25 x1

School Record: Rush TD/Game (5) 200 x1

Utah State Contract Goals Update

Goal Expectations Progress

Target Wins Per Season 8 2

Job Security Status

100%

08-07-2017, 09:00 PM
SmoothPancakes

Taking a look around the nation, in the Top 25, #2 Miami (FL) topped NC State 42-26. #3 Michigan came back to beat Purdue 35-24. #4 Ole Miss got past Alabama 35-28. In the game of the week, #12 Auburn shellacked #5 South Carolina 42-23. #6 Clemson needed overtime to escape Virginia 41-38. Washington State knocked off #9 Arizona 42-41. #10 Georgia Tech massacred Syracuse 41-10. #11 UCLA held off Oregon State 35-25.

California knocked off #13 USC 42-32. Wake Forest upset #15 Florida State 35-28. #17 West Virginia had to go to double overtime to fend off Oklahoma State 55-49. #18 Oregon topped Southern Miss 42-25. #19 Georgia hammered Florida International 38-10. East Carolina stunned #20 Virginia Tech 31-28. #21 Fresno State fought off Air Force 24-20. #22 Washington slipped past Arkansas State 32-27. #23 Boise State survived Northern Illinois 35-28. #25 Michigan State toppled #24 Nebraska 35-28.

For our readers, JeffHCross, #1 Ohio State remains 4-0 (1-0 Big Ten) with a bye week. Morsdraconis, #17 West Virginia improves to 4-1 (1-1 Big 12) with a 55-49 double OT win over Oklahoma State. Souljahbill, Southern Miss drops to 1-3 (0-0 C-USA) with a 42-25 loss to #18 Oregon. Jaymo, Arizona State drops to 2-2 (1-1 Pac-12) with a 42-20 loss to Stanford. LeeSO, #12 Auburn improves to 3-1 (2-0 SEC) with a 42-23 win over #5 South Carolina. SCClassof93, #5 South Carolina drops to 3-2 (1-2 SEC) with a 42-23 loss to #12 Auburn. Other teams of interest, Arkansas State drops to 2-2 (0-0 Sun Belt) with a 32-27 loss to #22 Washington. Florida International drops to 2-1 (0-0 C-USA) with a 38-10 loss to #19 Georgia. Navy drops to 1-1 (1-1 American) with a 27-21 loss to Central Florida. Tulsa improves to 2-2 (2-0 American) with a 38-31 win over Cincinnati

In Mountain West action, #21 Fresno State escaped Air Force 24-20, #23 Boise State topped Northern Illinois 35-28, New Mexico beat UNLV 40-35, Utah State hammered BYU 49-7, San Jose State edged out Colorado State 34-33, Hawaii toppled Wyoming 28-21 and San Diego State knocked off Pittsburgh 34-17.

Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, Ohio State (33 first place votes) remains #1, Miami (25 votes) remains #2, Ole Miss (1 vote) climbs one to #3, Michigan (1 vote) drops one to #4, and Clemson (1 vote) jumps one to #5. Oklahoma moves up one to #6, Baylor climbs one to #7, Auburn leaps four to #8, Georgia Tech climbs one to #9 and UCLA moves up one to #10. South Carolina drops six to #11, Kansas State climbs two to #12, Texas moves up three to #13, West Virginia jumps three to #14 and Oregon climbs three to #15. Arizona drops seven to #16, Georgia jumps two to #17, Fresno State climbs three to #18, Washington moves up three to #19 and Boise State rises three to #20. Michigan State jumps four to #21, Louisville enters the poll at #22, Notre Dame enters the poll at #23, Washington State enters the poll at #24 and USC (185 points) plummets twelve spots to #25. Dropping out of the poll this week was Florida State (from #15), Virginia Tech (from #20) and Nebraska (from #24). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Texas A&M (152 points) is #26, followed by Nebraska (123), Stanford (104), Florida State (93) and Tennessee (81) to round out the top 30.

Taking a look at the new Top 25 Media Poll of the year, Ohio State (40 first place votes) remains #1, Miami (21 votes) remains #2, Michigan (1 vote) remains #3, Baylor (1 vote) remains #4 and Clemson (1 vote) remains #5. Ole Miss (1 vote) remains #6, Auburn climbs six spots to #7, Oklahoma remains #8, Georgia Tech remains #9 and UCLA moves up one to #10. Georgia climbs one to #11, Texas leaps three to #12, South Carolina falls six to #13, Kansas State jumps three to #14 and West Virginia climbs three to #15. Arizona drops six to #16, Oregon moves up three to #17, Washington rises one to #18, Fresno State jumps three to #19 and Boise State climbs three to #20. Michigan State enters the poll at #21, Louisville climbs three to #22, Notre Dame enters the poll at #23, Washington State enters the poll at #24 and Texas A&M (178 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were USC (from #13), Florida State (from #16), Virginia Tech (from #21) and Nebraska (from #24). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, USC (178 points) is #26, followed by Nebraska (140), Tennessee (130), Florida State (87) and Florida (86) to round out the Top 30.

An early season look at the Heisman race, West Virginia QB Kevin Gates is #1 (LW: #1), Michigan State QB Jordan Norton is #2 (LW: #2), Washington State QB Lee Foster is #3 (LW: NR), Arizona QB Adam Parrish is #4 (LW: #3) and Georgia HB Chris Walters is #5 (LW: NR). Dropping off the Heisman Watch list this week was Ohio State QB James Gates (LW: #4) and Ole Miss HB Randy Wright (LW: #5).
08-08-2017, 06:29 PM
jaymo76

Didn't miss a beat hey buddy? Nice victory and good to see you posting again. I struggled with the controls and graphics a little bit last I played but it's shocking to see how much better NCAA 14 is than Madden 17. Man I miss college football video games...
08-08-2017, 07:32 PM
souljahbill

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaymo76

Didn't miss a beat hey buddy? Nice victory and good to see you posting again. I struggled with the controls and graphics a little bit last I played but it's shocking to see how much better NCAA 14 is than Madden 17. Man I miss college football video games...

No kidding. It's amazing the amount of people information he types. And I read every single word.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
08-08-2017, 10:30 PM
SmoothPancakes

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaymo76

Didn't miss a beat hey buddy? Nice victory and good to see you posting again. I struggled with the controls and graphics a little bit last I played but it's shocking to see how much better NCAA 14 is than Madden 17. Man I miss college football video games...

Yeah, I was shocked how that game turned out. I hadn't played NCAA since early 2016, so I thought I'd be rusty as hell, but I didn't miss a beat. Even the playbook was just as I remembered. I knew exactly where to go for which plays I wanted both on offense and defense, even after not even looking at the playbooks for a year and a half.

As for graphics, honestly, I didn't even really pay attention to or notice the decrease compared to current Gen games. As long as it sounded, looked and felt exactly like the NCAA Football that know and love, I'm happy.

Quote:

Originally Posted by souljahbill

No kidding. It's amazing the amount of people information he types. And I read every single word.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I'm glad to hear that. Even though it's a LOT of text, and it does extend the amount of time it takes to play and post one week in the game, I feel the play by play narrative really helps the reader submerse themselves into the highs and lows of the game.

That and I'm terrible at summaries. I always feel like I'm leaving important information out, and not quite capturing the excitement and the feeling of do or die moments during individual drives. And since I don't have the set up to record the game like I can with MLB the Show or FIFA.

Also, forgive any typos, incorrect words or incorrect numbers. I bought a type pad for my Surface tablet (one side is a keyboard, the other a cover to protect the screen when closed) and this game was my first time using it at length, so it took some getting use to.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

Game Five

:Utah_State: :@: :San_Diego_State:

Game Story

--- Heading back on the road after our surprisingly easy blowout win over rival BYU, it was off to San Diego State and a date with the 4-0 Aztecs. Sporting a schedule that included wins over Arizona State, Pitt and Houston, this contest was going to be far from an easy one, and with difficult contests ahead against the likes of San Jose State, New Mexico, #20 Boise State and Air Force, all with winning records, this would be a must win game if we had any hopes of reaching the Mountain West Conference Championship Game for a second year in a row. San Diego State won the coin toss and elected to kickoff first.

A 29 yard kickoff return by Benjamin Silva would get us off and running from our own 26 yard line. Coming to the line on first down to the pounding beat of Seven Nation Army, the ball would end up handed off to Silva for a five yard gain, followed by a four yard rush that would leave us facing third and one. Leaving our first drive in the hands of Silva, he would just manage to fight his way across the line for a three yard gain, giving us a first down at the 38 yard line. Coming out in a shotgun formation on first down, Pat Williams dropped back and fired a laser pass to Adam Washington for a 14 yard completion to move the chains to the SDSU 48 yard line. Going deep on first down, Williams would attempt to find Greg Miller on a nearly 50 yard bomb, but the pass would get bobbled and broken up at the goal line. Coming back on second down, Silva would get the call on the ground, bouncing outside to the left and finding a gap for a 10 yard carry and a new set of downs at the 38 yard line. A three yard first down carry by Silva would be followed by a 6 yard dive, leaving us facing third and one. This time Silva would fail to keep the drive alive, as he would be dragged for a loss of one yard on the play, bringing up fourth and two from the 29. Attempting a 46 yard field goal, the kick from Max Thompson wouldn’t even make it to the end zone before falling out of the air like a wounded duck.

With the missed field goal, San Diego State would take over at their own 29 yard line for their first offensive drive of the game. Tim Sanders would get the call on first down, but his rush around the left side would result in no gain on the play. Another rush by Sanders would this time go for a gain of two yards, leaving third and 8. Marcus Pitts would drop back to pass on third down, and had a wide open receiver for what would have been a first down, but the ball would end up dropped incomplete and kill the Aztecs drive. A 7 yard return by Silva on the 40 yard punt would give us the ball at our 34 yard line.

Taking over following the punt, Silva would once again get the call on first down, finding five yards up the middle, before being tackled for no gain on the next play to leave us facing third and five. Trying a play action pass on third down, Williams would find tight end Gerald Woods in the flats for a gain of 10 yards and a first down at the 49 yard line. Lining up in the shotgun on first down, Williams would beat the blitz and connect with Adam Washington for a gain of 16 yards and a new set of downs at the Aztecs 35 yard line. Silva would gain four yards on the ground on first down, before being blown up for no gain on second down to bring up third and five. Lining up on center on third down, Williams would connect with fullback Walter Johnson out of the backfield for a 12 yard completion and a first down at the SDSU 19 yard line. Continuing to mix things up, Silva would get the ball on first down, but would only manage a gain of two yards before being brought down. Lining up once more in the shotgun on second down, Williams would thread the needle over the middle to Jon Morris, who would be left with a wide open run to the end zone for a 17 yard touchdown after the linebacker dived and failed to intercept the pass. The PAT by Thompson would make it 7-0 Utah State with 1:46 remaining in the first quarter.

A 26 yard kickoff return by Drew Scott would give the Aztecs the ball at their 28 yard line. Sanders would get the call on first down, picking up five yards on the carry, before a pass from Pitts to Wesley Lane would connect for a gain of 10 yards and a first down at the 42 yard line. The Aztec offense would start to come to life as another pass from Pitts to Lane would go for a gain of 11 yards, moving the chains once more to our 47 yard line. Going back to the ground on first down, Sanders would rush forward for a gain of five yards, followed by another 11 yard strike to Lane to move the ball to our 32. Another first down rush by Sanders would go for a gain of five yards as the first quarter came to a close, Utah State leading 7-0, but the Aztecs pounding on the door.

Starting the second quarter, San Diego State lined up on second and five from our 27 yard line. Looking to go into the air, Pitts never got a chance to get the pass off as our blitz broken through like a flood and flattened Pitts like a pancake. Middle linebacker Justin Dunn was credited for the sack for a loss of seven yards, leaving the Aztecs facing third and 12. Pitts would drop back to pass, but a hurried pass to avoid the blitz would end in disaster as it was immediately intercepted by cornerback Jesse Breedlove for a three yard return, giving us possession at our 36 yard line.

Taking over following the interception, we would try to get quickly to work on first down, but Silva would be met at the line of scrimmage for zero gain on the carry. Silva would find better results on second down, rushing for a gain of four yards to leave third and six, followed by Silva pulling in a play action pass from Williams for a gain of 13 yards and a first down at the SDSU 47 yard line. Staying in the air on first down, the pass intended for Washington would be nearly intercepted by three different Aztec defenders as the ball was bobbled around, before finally dropping incomplete to the turf. Turning to Silva on second down, he would end up quickly dragged down from behind for a gain of only two yards, bringing up third and long. Another pass over the middle would be nearly intercepted again, leaving us with fourth and long and bringing out the punt team. The 45 yard punt would land at the five yard and bounce into the end zone for a touchback.

Lining up at their own 20 yard line following the touchback, the Aztecs came out looking to build off of their last drive. It instead would get off to a slow start as Pitts would roll out to pass on first down, but after shaking off a sack attempt, he would be forced to get rid of the ball. A perfectly timed screen pass, as we brought a heavy blitz on the play, allowed Pitts to find a wide open Sanders with nothing but green in front of him. The defense would run Sanders down from behind but not until the play had turned into a 44 yard gain that gave SDSU a first down at our 36 yard line on either the best timed screen pass or the worse timed blitz in the history of football. Sanders would get the ball again on first down, rushing around the right end for a gain of four yards. Our defense would respond back on second down, as our middle linebacker blitzed through untouched and sacked Pitts for a loss of seven yards, leaving the Aztecs facing third and 12. Another screen pass to Sanders would come close to breaking open, but we would manage to drive Sanders into the sideline and out of bounds after only a gain of six yards and force SDSU to punt on fourth and seven. The 25 yard coffin corner punt would sail out of bounds at our seven yard line.

Starting our next drive in the shadows of our own goalposts, we lined up from our seven yard on first down. The Aztecs brought such a blitz on first down, that even though the play was a designed handoff to Silva, Williams never even had time to get the ball out of his hands before one of the defenders plowed through the line and tackled Williams for a loss of three yards on the play. Going into the shotgun on second and 13, a late pass to halfback Tyson Taylor would go for a five yard gain, giving us a little breathing room with third and eight from the nine yard line. Williams would attempt to connect with Washington over the middle, but the ball would be knocked loose on contact and we would be forced to punt on fourth down. A 13 yard return by Scott on the 39 yard punt would give San Diego State the ball at our 34 yard line.

Coming out on offense with fantastic field position, the Aztecs would need just a single play to tie the game up as Sanders would get the handoff out of the shotgun, and with three missed tackles, followed by a wall of blockers, he would race all the way to the end zone for a 34 yard touchdown to tie the game at 7-7 with 4:19 left in the second quarter.

A huge 42 yard kickoff return by Silva would get us a good starting position for our next drive, lining up from our 39 yard line. Coming to the line to a deafening roar by the Aztec fans, Silva would get the handoff for a gain of four yards on first down, followed by a second four yard dive to bring up third and two. Silva would again get the call on third down, but this time he would be met and dragged down for no gain, bringing out drive to a crashing halt and forcing us to punt. A 16 yard return by Scott on the 33 yard punt would give the Aztecs the ball on their own 34 yard line.

Looking to repeat the success of their previous drive, the Aztecs came out on first down in an I-formation, giving the ball to Sanders for a six yard carry, followed by a second six yard rush to move the chains to the 46 yard line. Sanders would get a pitch to the right and attempt to break free, but our defense would drive him toward the sideline and eventually drag him down for no gain on the play. Following their first timeout of the half, the Aztecs would come to the line on second and 10 in the shotgun. A pass over the middle from Pitts to Scott would go for a gain of six yards to leave third and four. Another pass to Scott would go for a gain of nine yards and give the Aztecs a first down at our 40 yard line. Pitts would sail a rainbow pass to a wide open Scott along the left sideline, but he would butterfingers the ball and drop it incomplete to leave second and long with just over a minute left on the clock. The fourth consecutive pass to Scott would again be dropped after hitting him right in the hands, leaving the Aztecs suddenly facing third and 10. Bringing the blitz on third down, we would twice nearly sack Pitts before he was able to throw the ball away and leave things in the hands of the punt team. The punt would sail 40 yards into the end zone, giving us the ball at our 20 yard line.

Lining up from our own 20 following the punt, we were left with 55 seconds remaining until halftime. Going straight into the shotgun on first down, Williams would get hit from behind as he went to pass, the ball making a wounded duck landing just yards away. The second down pass would end in disaster as it would be intercepted by Joe Williams and returned 10 yards to our 14 yard line.

After receiving a lifetime’s worth of Christmas gifts, the Aztecs would line up from our 14 yard line on first down with 46 seconds remaining on the clock. A delayed quarterback keeper by Pitts would see him break two tackles and go 14 yards into the end zone to give San Diego State a 14-7 lead with 40 seconds left until halftime.

A 31 yard kickoff return by Silva would give us the ball at our 27 yard line. Having no choice but to stay in the shotgun, the first down pass from Williams to Morris would end up swatted down. The second down pass would in disaster for the second straight drive, as it was intercepted by cornerback Jarrett Dobzinski and returned seven yards to our 37 yard line with 24 seconds left in the half.

Starting in our territory following the interception, Pitts would drop back to pass out of the shotgun, but he would be hit as he went to throw, resulting in a much needed incomplete pass on first down. A quick pass to Sanders on second down would result in a loss of four yards on the play, leaving San Diego State facing third and 14 and calling their second timeout with 15 seconds left on the clock. A third down pass to Lane would go for a gain of 12 yards, bringing up fourth and three and leaving the clock ticking. Despite having one timeout remaining, the Aztecs would seemingly settle for the seven point lead and just let the clock expire, sending us into halftime trailing 14-7.

Opening up the second half, a 26 yard kickoff return by Scott would give the Aztecs the ball at their 26 yard line to start the third quarter. A first down run straight up the middle by Sanders would go for a gain of six yards, followed by a frustrating 16 yard rush by Chris Christensen that saw four different defenders fail to tackle him, giving SDSU a first down at the 48 yard line. Our defense would rise up and make a huge play on first down, as cornerback Jeremy Brown would intercept a pass by Pitts and return it 36 yards all the way down to the San Diego State 14 yard line.

Taking over as the Aztecs 14 yard line following the big interception return, Silva got the call on first down, rushing right up the gut for a seven yard carry, followed by a gain of six yards on the next play. During the tackle at the one yard line, the defender would drag Silva down by his facemask, resulting in a penalty flag. We declined the penalty as it ultimately had zero effect on anything as we would end up with first and goal from the one yard line whether we accepted it or not. Silva would need just one more play to punch it into the end zone for a one yard touchdown, tying the game back up at 14-14 with 8:30 left in the third quarter.

A surprising 50 yard kick return by Danny Rutledge would give the Aztecs outstanding field position, starting their next drive from our own 45 yard line. Sanders would get the drive started on the ground with a five yard carry, followed by a four yard gain that would bring up third and one. Even though we should have had Sanders contained for a loss of yards on third down, he would manage to slip through and pick up a nine yard gain on the play instead, giving SDSU a first down at our 27 yard line. Sanders would pick up two yards on the first down carry, before a second down shotgun pass to Aaron Houston would be completed for a gain of 14 yards and a first down at our 11 yard line. Sanders would get the ball on first down, rushing for a gain of seven yards on the play, with five of those yards coming while stiff arming one of our linebackers and driving him backwards. Pitts would attempt to keep the ball himself on second down, but would end up quickly brought down for a loss of one yard on the play, leaving third and five. A late pass to Houston right at the goal line would result in a five yard touchdown and a 21-14 lead for San Diego State with 5:45 left in the third quarter.
A 42 yard kickoff return by Morris would give us good starting position at our 42 yard line. Once again hearing a loud and raucous crowd, backed up by an equally load Seven Nation Army, Silva would take the first down handoff up the middle for a gain of two yards. Dropping back to pass from under center on second down, the pass intended for Johnson was broken up to leave third and eight. A third down pass to Tristan Muhammad would go for a lackluster gain of two yards and force us to punt on fourth and six. Scott would call for a fair catch on the 37 yard punt, giving the Aztecs the ball at their own 16 yard line.

Starting deep in their territory following the punt, the Aztecs would quickly start moving down the field as Sanders took the handoff on first down and sprinted for a gain of 24 yards and a first down at the 41 yard line. Another rush by Sanders would go for a gain of three yards, followed by a 10 yard carry to move the chains to our 47 yard line. Sanders would keep it going on first down, diving forward for a two yard gain, followed by a massively failed screen pass that would see Pitts sacked for a giant loss of 11 yards, forcing the Aztecs into a third and 19 situation. It wouldn’t get any better on third down as our defense would again ultimately drag down Pitts after wearing down the offensive line, sacking him for a loss of eight yards and forcing SDSU to punt on fourth and 27. A six yard return by Silva on the 43 yard punt would give us the ball at our 26 yard line.

Taking over on offense following the punt, Silva would get the ball on back to back plays, rushing forward for gains of three yards and two yards, leaving us looking at a third and five. Going into the air on third down, Nate Williams would pull down a pass over the middle for a gain of 14 yards and a first down at the 45. Another first down rush by Silva would result in a gain of six yards, followed by a four yard rush to leave us looking at third and inches. The clock would expire before we could get lined up again, resulting in that being the final play of the third quarter with San Diego State leading 21-14.

Starting the fourth quarter, we would line up on third and inches from the SDSU 45 yard line. Silva would get the call and get the job more than done, rushing for a gain of seven yards and a new set of downs at the 38. Silva would get another crack, clawing his way to a three yard gain on the play. Calling a play action pass on second and seven, the pass to Johnson would go for no gain on the play, leaving us facing third down. Coming out in the shotgun on third down, Muhammad would be tackled for a loss of one yard on the play, killing out drive in the process. The 36 yard punt would sail into the end zone for a touchback.

The Aztecs would start their next drive lined up from their own 20 following the touchback and come out in the shotgun from the outset. A quick first down pass to Houston would gain 10 yards and give them second and inches. Sanders would get the call and rush for a gain of 10 yards, giving SDSU a first down at their 40 yard line. We would finally stuff Sanders on first down, bringing him down for no gain on the play following a rush up the middle. Second down would see that jackass just stiff arm his way right through three different defenders, turning what should have been an automatic loss of yards into a 17 yard gain because it’s apparently impossible to tackle him with less than three players at the same time. Another run by Sanders would gain six yards, followed by a four yard option keeper by Pitts to leave the Aztecs looking at third and inches. Despite the blitz, Sanders would still gain five yards on the play, giving San Diego State a first down at our 28 yard line. Another rush by Sanders, where he just drove my defender backwards for more than 10 yards like he was pushing a kid, went for a gain of 13 yards and another first down at our 15 yard line. Finally we would manage to bring Sanders down for no gain on the first down play, followed by a loss of two yards on a second down keeper by Pitts, leaving third and 12. Emptying out the backfield on third down, Pitts would sling a pass over the middle to Joe Johnson for a 15 yard gain, giving the Aztecs first and goal from our two yard line. Despite bringing the entire house, Sanders would run into the end zone completely untouched for a two yard touchdown, giving San Diego State a 28-14 lead with 4:05 left in the game.

A measly 18 yard return by Morris on the kickoff would leave us starting at our own 16 yard line for our next drive. Coming out in the shotgun on first down, Williams would connect with Washington for a gain of 18 yards and a quick first down at the 34. The next play, another pass to Washington, would be broken up at the last second. A 23 yard strike to Muhammad on second down would move the chains to the SDSU 43 yard line. Another pass to Muhammad would go for a gain of 14 yards to get us down to the 29. Instead of finishing the drive for a touchdown, the drive would crash into a brick wall on the next play as a late pass thrown behind Washington would end up intercepted by outside linebacker Maurice Mills and returned nine yards to the SDSU 25 yard line.

The Aztecs would line up at their own 25 yard line following the interception, just 2:43 standing between them and victory. Sanders would waste zero time once again making us his bitch as he would clothesline one defender and bull rush another on his way to a 20 yard gain, once again making our defense look like incompetent dumbshits who couldn’t tackle a blade of grass. That gain would result in first down at the 45 yard line and the clock killing would commence. Another rush by Sanders would go for four yards to leave second and six, with our first timeout called with 1:56 remaining. Another four yard rush by Sanders would leave third and two, our second timeout freezing the clock with 1:48 remaining. Another rush by Sanders would go for a gain of 8 yards, after breaking three tackles along the way, and with that, any hope for actually even just simply getting the ball back were lost and we didn’t even bother to use our last timeout. A three yard rush by Sanders would be followed by a gain of four yards to leave third and three. A third down rush by Sanders for two yards would leave the Aztecs lining up on fourth and one from our 30 yard line. Just as a final fuck you to San Diego State, we opted to use our final timeout to stop the clock with nine seconds remaining. We may lose, but at least we delayed those asshole from celebrating and forced them to play out the final seconds. Of course, even then we couldn’t stop Sanders, as he would rush for a gain of five yards and give SDSU a first down at our 25 yard line on the final play of the game. With that, the last seconds would tick off the clock and San Diego State would walk away with a 28-14 victory.

With the loss, we drop to 2-3, 0-1 in Mountain West action. With the win, San Diego State improves to 5-0, 1-0 in Mountain West play. Up next, it's back home to take on a tough San Jose State. The Trojans enter the game with a 4-1 record, 1-0 in Mountain West action. San Jose State opened their year with a 34-31 overtime win over Colorado, followed by a stunning 24-14 loss to Delaware State. They got back on the winning track however, beating Iowa State 28-21, Colorado State 34-33 and toppling Cal 44-41 in overtime.

Final Score

:San_Diego_State: 28, :Utah_State: 14

Stats of the Game:

Utah State Offense - A poor day for Williams, as he would end up going 14-25 for a pathetic 157 yards, only one touchdown and three interceptions. Silva was decent, but far from a career day, only gaining 97 yards and one touchdown on 28 carries for a 3.4 yard/play average. Washington ended up being the leading receiver with 48 yards on three receptions. Muhammad had the most receptions with four to go along with 38 yards. In all, eight receivers caught a pass today, with seven of them reaching double digit yards.

Utah State Defense/Special Teams – Absolutely terrible showing today. Sure, the two interceptions by cornerbacks Jeremy Brown and Jesse Breedlove were great, but the defense also gave up 388 yards of offense and 239 yards of rushing, with Tim Sanders having a career day against us, rushing for 242 yards and two touchdowns on 36 carries, good for an absurd 6.7 yard/carry average. And it's not even the fact he was running for a bunch of yards, but how he was doing it. Every single play, he was stiff arming, clotheslining, or just driving our defenders backwards like he was rushing against a 10 year old kid. It legitimately took three or more defenders to tackle him every play. If only one or two tried, he would either break the tackle with ease or just start pushing them back like he was taunting a fist swinging kid by holding him back with a simple straight arm to the head. Never has an opposing running back just bitch slapped our defense like that.

Utah State Kicking – A terrible day for Thompson as he couldn't even reach the end zone on a 46 yard field goal, much less actually have a hope of making it to the uprights. We need a new kicker and badly, can't even attempt a field goal anymore unless it's inside the 20 yard line, at which point it's essentially a glorified PAT.

Scoring Summary

Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score

:Utah_State: 7 0 7 0 14

:San_Diego_State: 0 14 7 7 28

Time Team Result Play Score

First Quarter

1:46 :Utah_State: Touchdown J. Morris, 17 yard pass from P. Williams (M. Thompson kick) :Utah_State: 7-0

Second Quarter

4:19 :San_Diego_State: Touchdown T. Sanders, 34 yard run (D. Taylor kick) TIED 7-7

0:40 :San_Diego_State: Touchdown M. Pitts, 14 yard run (D. Taylor kick) :San_Diego_State: 14-7

Third Quarter

8:30 :Utah_State: Touchdown B. Silva, 1 yard run (M. Thompson kick) TIED 14-14

5:45 :San_Diego_State: Touchdown A. Houston, 5 yard pass from M. Pitts (D. Taylor kick) :San_Diego_State: 21-14

Fourth Quarter

4:05 :San_Diego_State: Touchdown T. Sanders, 2 yard run (D. Taylor kick) :San_Diego_State: 28-14

Game Stats

Utah State Stat San Diego State

14 Score 28

13 First Downs 19

251 Total Offense 388

29 - 94 - 1 Rushes - Yards - TD 45 - 239 - 3

14 - 25 - 1 Comp - Att - TD 13 - 21 - 1

157 Passing Yards 149

Times Sacked

6 - 12 (50%) 3rd Down Conversion 6 - 13 (46%)

0 - 0 (0%) 4th Down Conversion 0 - 0 (0%)

0 - 0 (0%) 2-Point Conv 0 - 0 (0%)

2 - 2 - 0 (100%) Red Zone - TD - FG 3 - 3 - 0 (100%)

3 Turnovers 2

0 Fumbles Lost 0

3 Intercepted 2

12 Punt Return Yards 28

160 Kick Return Yards 101

423 Total Yards 517

5 –38.2 Punts - Average 4 - 37.5

0 - 0 Penalties 0 - 0

20:28 Time of Possession 19:32

Utah State Coach Goals

Goal XP Reward Completed

Score a Touchdown 25 x2

Force a Turnover 25 x2

3+ Sacks 50 x1

Opponent Under 300 Pass Yards 50 x1

Pass Completion Over 50% 30 x1

100% Red Zone Efficiency 50 x1

10+ First Downs 50 x1

4+ 3rd Down Conversions 25 x1

Utah State Contract Goals Update

Goal Expectations Progress

Target Wins Per Season 8 2

Job Security Status

100%

Show 40 post(s) from this thread on one page

Bowl Game	Conference	Record	Team	Results	Team	Record	Conference
:New_Mexico_Bowl:	:Pac_12:	7-6 (4-5)	:Oregon_State:	27-14	:Iowa_State:	6-7 (4-5)	:Big_12:
:Famous_Idaho_Bowl:	:AAC:	9-4 (6-3)	:Temple:	20-10	:Ball_State:	6-7 (6-3)	:MAC:
:Poinsettia_Bowl:	:Mountain_West:	9-4 (6-2)	:Air_Force:	52-44	:Tennessee:	6-7 (3-6)	:SEC:
:Beef_O_Bradys_Bowl:	:Pac_12:	8-5 (4-5)	:Washington:	30-27 OT	:Rice:	6-7 (4-4)	:CUSA:
:New_Orleans_Bowl:	:Sun_Belt:	9-4 (5-2)	:Texas_State:	31-20	:Southern_Miss:	7-6 (5-3)	:CUSA:
:Las_Vegas_Bowl:	:Mountain_West:	10-4 (7-2)	:Utah_State:	73-33	:Cal:	6-7 (5-4)	:Pac_12:
:Hawaii_Bowl:	:Mountain_West:	9-4 (5-3)	(23) :Boise_State:	34-26	:Western_Kentucky:	8-5 (6-2)	:CUSA:
:LittleCaesars_Bowl:	:Big_Ten:	7-6 (4-5)	:Northwestern:	42-38	:Toledo:	8-6 (7-3)	:MAC:
:Military_Bowl:	:MAC:	9-4 (6-3)	:Northern_Illinois:	28-23	:New_Mexico_State:	6-7 (4-4)	:Sun_Belt:
:Holiday_Bowl:	:Big_12:	9-4 (5-4)	(20) :Kansas_State:	45-41	(24) :Stanford:	9-5 (6-4)	:Pac_12:
:Belk_Bowl:	:ACC:	8-5 (6-3)	:Louisville:	38-31	:Missouri:	6-7 (3-6)	:SEC:
:Independence_Bowl:	:ACC:	7-6 (5-4)	:NC_State:	35-24	:SMU:	8-6 (7-3)	:AAC:
:Russell_Athletic:	:ACC:	10-4 (7-3)	:Virginia_Tech:	50-14	:Oklahoma_State:	6-7 (3-6)	:Big_12:
:Meineke_Texas_Bowl:	:Big_Ten:	7-6 (4-5)	:Indiana:	35-21	:TCU:	6-7 (5-4)	:Big_12:
:Armed_Forces_Bowl:	:CUSA:	10-4 (6-3)	:Marshall:	35-23	(22) :Navy:	9-4 (6-3)	:AAC:
:Fight_Hunger_Bowl:	:AAC:	9-4 (6-3)	:USF:	34-24	:Oregon:	6-7 (4-5)	:Pac_12:
:Alamo_Bowl:	:Big_12:	10-3 (6-3)	(17) :Baylor:	42-37	:Utah:	7-6 (6-3)	:Pac_12:
:BWW_Bowl:	:Big_Ten:	7-7 (5-5)	:Wisconsin:	24-17	(15) :Texas:	9-4 (6-3)	:Big_12:
:Music_City_Bowl:	:ACC:	10-3 (6-3)	(16) :Florida_State:	27-14	:Mississippi_State:	7-6 (4-5)	:SEC:
:Sun_Bowl:	:ACC:	10-3 (6-3)	(14) :Miami:	27-17	(25) :USC:	8-5 (5-4)	:Pac_12:
:Liberty_Bowl:	:CUSA:	11-3 (8-1)	:UTSA:	35-30	:Kentucky:	6-7 (4-5)	:SEC:
:Chick_fil_A_Bowl:	:ACC:	11-2 (7-2)	(10) :Georgia_Tech:	21-7	:Arkansas:	7-6 (4-5)	:SEC:
:Heart_of_Dallas:	:Big_Ten:	8-5 (4-5)	:Penn_State:	48-38	:Miami_OH:	7-6 (5-4)	:MAC:
:TaxSlayer_Gator:	:Big_Ten:	7-6 (5-4)	:Nebraska:	35-21	:Alabama:	6-7 (4-5)	:SEC:
:Capital_One_Bowl:	:SEC:	12-2 (8-2)	(9) :Ole_Miss:	34-24	(18) :Michigan_State:	9-4 (6-3)	:Big_Ten:
:Outback_Bowl:	:SEC:	11-2 (7-2)	(12) :Auburn:	41-7	:Purdue:	6-7 (5-4)	:Big_Ten:
:Cotton_Bowl:	:Big_12:	11-2 (7-2)	(13) :Oklahoma:	42-35	:Florida:	7-6 (5-4)	:SEC:
:BBVA_Compass_Bowl:	:AAC:	8-5 (5-4)	:UCF:	38-31	:Troy:	6-7 (4-4)	:Sun_Belt:
:GoDaddycom_Bowl:	:Sun_Belt:	9-4 (5-3)	:Arkansas_State:	28-23	(19) :Ohio:	11-3 (8-2)	:MAC:

Rank	Conference	Bowl Teams	Bowl Record	Percentage	Teams in AP Poll
1	:ACC:	7	7-0	1.000
2	:Mountain_West:	4	3-1	.750
3	:Big_Ten:	9	6-3	.660
4	:Big_12: (1)	8	4-4	.500
5	:AAC: (1)	6	3-3	.500
6	:Pac_12:	9	4-5	.440
7	:Sun_Belt: (2)	5	2-3	.400
8	:CUSA: (2)	5	2-3	.400
9	:MAC:	5	1-4	.250
10	:SEC:	10	2-8	.200
11	Independents	0	0-0	.000

Team	Position	Previous Coach	Reason Left	New Coach	Previous Team	Previous Position	O/D Style
:Notre_Dame:	Head Coach	Brian Kelly	Fired	Willy Robinson	:Louisiana:	Head Coach	Virginia Tech (Multiple) \ 4-3
:Ohio:	Head Coach	Matt Green	Retired at age 70	Troy Reffett	:Ohio:	Defensive Coordinator	UL Monroe (Spread) \ 3-3-5
:North_Carolina:	Head Coach	June Jones	Fired	John Klacik	:Clemson:	Offensive Coordinator	Minnesota (Multiple) \ 4-3
:Louisiana:	Head Coach	Willy Robinson	Left for Notre Dame HC job	Kevin Rogers	:Ohio_State:	Offensive Coordinator	FIU (Multiple) \ 4-3
:BYU:	Head Coach	Randy Clements	Fired	Clay Hendrix	:West_Virginia:	Offensive Coordinator	West Virginia (Air Raid) \ 3-4
:Illinois:	Head Coach	Kevin Cosgrove	Fired	Dan Roushar	:Ohio_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Michigan State (Pro) \ 4-3
:Arizona_State:	Head Coach	Dana Bible	Fired	Josh Sutton	:UTSA:	Head Coach	Tulane (Pro) \ 4-3
:Colorado:	Head Coach	Jim Bollman	Fired	Bobby Hauck	:South_Carolina:	Offensive Coordinator	Central Michigan (Multiple) \ 4-2-5
:Houston:	Head Coach	Dan Morrison	Fired	Kraig Paulson	:UCLA:	Defensive Coordinator	UCLA (Spread) \ 3-4
:Texas_Tech:	Head Coach	Tommy Tuberville	Fired	Dave Cohen	:Auburn:	Defensive Coordinator	West Virginia (Air Raid) \ 3-4
:Wake_Forest:	Head Coach	Jay Niemann	Fired	Tom Mason	:Georgia_Tech:	Defensive Coordinator	Western Kentucky (Pro) \ 4-3
:Kansas:	Head Coach	Tim DeRuyter	Fired	Tim Banks	:Boise_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Boise State (Multiple) \ 4-2-5
:Tulsa:	Head Coach	Andy Ludwig	Fired	Steven Elbert	:Akron:	Head Coach	Stanford (Pro) \ 3-4
:East_Carolina:	Head Coach	Chad Glasgow	Fired	Pete Kwiatkowski	:Fresno_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Fresno State (Spread) \ 3-4
:UTSA:	Head Coach	Josh Sutton	Left for Arizona State HC job	Eric Price	:UTSA:	Offensive Coordinator	Kentucky (Air Raid) \ 4-3
:Ohio_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Dan Roushar	Left for Illinois HC job	Brent Venables	:Oklahoma:	Defensive Coordinator	3-4
:Georgia_Tech:	Defensive Coordinator	Tom Mason	Left for Wake Forest HC job	Randy Clements	:BYU:	Head Coach	3-4
:Ohio_State:	Offensive Coordinator	Kevin Rogers	Left for Louisiana Lafayette HC job	Mike Bajakian	:Cincinnati:	Offensive Coordinator	Cincinnati (Multiple)
:LSU:	Defensive Coordinator	Paul Rhoads	Fired	Kevin Cosgrove	:Illinois:	Head Coach	4-3
:Notre_Dame:	Offensive Coordinator	Charley Molnar	Fired	Art Briles	:Boise_State:	Offensive Coordinator	Boise State (Multiple)
:Oklahoma:	Defensive Coordinator	Brent Veneables	Left for Ohio State DC job	Greg Stewart	:Stanford:	Defensive Coordinator	3-4
:Clemson:	Offensive Coordinator	John Klacik	Left for North Carolina HC job	Brian Kelly	:Notre_Dame:	Head Coach	Notre Dame (Spread)
:Auburn:	Defensive Coordinator	Dave Cohen	Left for Texas Tech HC job	Brent Guy	:Penn_State:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:South_Carolina:	Offensive Coordinator	Bobby Hauck	Left for Colorado HC job	Tyson Lewis	:New_Mexico_State:	Head Coach	New Mexico State (Spread)
:UCLA:	Defensive Coordinator	Kraig Paulson	Left for Houston HC job	Bill Young	:UTSA:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:South_Alabama:	Head Coach	Joey Jones	Fired	Dan Morrison	:Houston:	Head Coach	Houston (Air Raid) \ 3-4
:Stanford:	Defensive Coordinator	Greg Stewart	Left for Oklahoma DC job	June Jones	:North_Carolina:	Head Coach	4-2-5
:Texas_A&M:	Defensive Coordinator	Dan McCarney	Fired	Phil Bennett	:Mississippi_State:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Wyoming:	Head Coach	Steve Kragthorpe	Fired	Mark Richt	:Northwestern:	Offensive Coordinator	Northwestern (Spread) \ 4-3
:Boise_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Tim Banks	Left for Kansas HC job	Jay Niemann	:Wake_Forest:	Head Coach	3-4
:Ohio:	Defensive Coordinator	Troy Reffett	Left for Ohio HC job	Stephen Hairston	None	None	4-3
:Boise_State:	Offensive Coordinator	Art Briles	Left for Notre Dame OC job	Dana Bible	:Arizona_State:	Head Coach	Arizona State (Spread)
:Penn_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Brent Guy	Left for Auburn DC job	Chuck Driesbach	:Rice:	Defensive Coordinator	4-2-5
:TCU:	Defensive Coordinator	Dick Bumpas	Retired at age 67	Chad Glasgow	:East_Carolina:	Head Coach	3-4
:West_Virginia:	Offensive Coordinator	Clay Hendrix	Left for BYU HC job	Andy Ludwig	:Tulsa:	Head Coach	Tulsa (Spread)
:Cincinnati:	Offensive Coordinator	Mike Bajakian	Left for Ohio State OC job	Tommy Tuberville	:Texas_Tech:	Head Coach	Texas Tech (Air Raid)
:New_Mexico_State:	Head Coach	Tyson Lewis	Left for South Carolina OC job	Joey Jones	:South_Alabama:	Head Coach	South Alabama (Spread) \ 3-4 Multiple
:Akron:	Head Coach	Steven Elbert	Left for Tulsa HC job	Ethan Wilson	None	None	Multiple (Multiple) \ 3-4
:Fresno_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Pete Kwiatkowski	Left for East Carolina HC job	Phillip Estes Rhodes	:North_Texas:	Defensive Coordinator	3-4
:Buffalo:	Head Coach	Turner Gill	Fired	Will McCoy	None	None	UTSA (Multiple) \ 4-3
:Iowa:	Defensive Coordinator	Bob Fraser	Fired	Dan McCarney	:Texas_A&M:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Mississippi_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Phil Bennett	Left for Texas A&M DC job	Walter Jackson	None	None	4-3
:North_Carolina:	Offensive Coordinator	Kenny Edenfield	Fired	Jim Bollman	:Colorado:	Head Coach	Ohio State (Spread)
:North_Carolina:	Defensive Coordinator	Will Muschamp	Fired	Ellis Johnson	:MTSU:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Northwestern:	Offensive Coordinator	Mark Richt	Left for Wyoming HC job	Tim DeRuyter	:Kansas:	Head Coach	Kansas (Pro)
:Rutgers:	Defensive Coordinator	Marcus Riley	Fired	Caleb Daniels	None	None	4-3
:Arizona_State:	Offensive Coordinator	Geoff Collins	Fired	Carl Torbush	:Temple:	Offensive Coordinator	Temple (Multiple)
:Arizona_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Greg Cruz	Fired	Will Muschamp	:North_Carolina:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Colorado:	Offensive Coordinator	Kurt Roper Parks	Fired	Steve Kragthorpe	:Wyoming:	Head Coach	LSU (Pro)
:Kansas:	Offensive Coordinator	Jerry Kill	Fired	Turner Gill	:Buffalo:	Head Coach	Buffalo (Spread)
:Kansas:	Defensive Coordinator	David Hayford	Fired	Paul Rhoads	:LSU:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Illinois:	Defensive Coordinator	Todd Orlando	Fired	Bob Fraser	:Iowa:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Southern_Miss:	Defensive Coordinator	Dan Disch	Retired at age 68	Kevin Steele	:Maryland:	Defensive Coordinator	3-4
:North_Texas:	Defensive Coordinator	Phillip Estes Rhodes	Left for Fresno State DC job	Todd Orlando	:Illinois:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Texas_Tech:	Offensive Coordinator	Jeff Casteel	Fired	Dave Yost	:MTSU:	Offensive Coordinator	Mid Tennessee State (Air Raid)
:Texas_Tech:	Defensive Coordinator	Mike MacIntyre	Fired	Greg Cruz	:Arizona_State:	Defensive Coordinator	3-4
:Wake_Forest:	Offensive Coordinator	Dave Clawson	Fired	Charley Molnar	:Notre_Dame:	Offensive Coordinator	Notre Dame (Spread)
:Maryland:	Defensive Coordinator	Kevin Steele	Fired	Kevin Sherrer	:South_Alabama:	Defensive Coordinator	3-4 Multiple
:Temple:	Offensive Coordinator	Carl Torbush	Left for Arizona State OC job	Chaz Pugh	:UL_Monroe:	Offensive Coordinator	UL Monroe (Spread)
:Houston:	Offensive Coordinator	Eric Bieniemy	Fired	Brian Stinespring	:Akron:	Offensive Coordinator	USF (Pro)
:Tulsa:	Offensive Coordinator	Kevin Johns	Fired	Kurt Roper Parks	:Colorado:	Offensive Coordinator	Wyoming (Spread)
:Colorado:	Defensive Coordinator	Dustin Hamilton	Fired	Marcus Riley	:Rutgers:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:UTSA:	Defensive Coordinator	Bill Young	Left for UCLA DC job	Bill Busch	:East_Carolina:	Defensive Coordinator	3-4
:UTSA:	Offensive Coordinator	Eric Price	Left for UTSA HC job	Jeff Casteel	:Texas_Tech:	Offensive Coordinator	Texas Tech (Air Raid)
:Colorado_State:	Offensive Coordinator	Pat Meyer	Fired	Eric Bieniemy	:Houston:	Offensive Coordinator	Houston (Air Raid)
:Rice:	Defensive Coordinator	Chuck Driesbach	Left for Penn State DC job	Tommy West	:UAB:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:South_Alabama:	Offensive Coordinator	Michael Walker	Fired	Geoff Collins	:Arizona_State:	Offensive Coordinator	Arizona State (Spread)
:South_Alabama:	Defensive Coordinator	Kevin Sherrer	Left for Maryland DC job	Mike MacIntyre	:Texas_Tech:	Defensive Coordinator	3-4
:UL_Monroe:	Offensive Coordinator	Chaz Pugh	Left for Temple OC job	Jerry Kill	:Kansas:	Offensive Coordinator	San Jose State (Pro)
:MTSU:	Offensive Coordinator	Dave Yost	Left for Texas Tech OC job	Mike Washington	:Western_Michigan:	Offensive Coordinator	Western Michigan (Pro)
:MTSU:	Defensive Coordinator	Ellis Johnson	Left for North Carolina DC job	Zach Everett	:UMass:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Western_Michigan:	Offensive Coordinator	Mike Washington	Left for MTSU OC job	Kevin Johns	:Tulsa:	Offensive Coordinator	Tulsa (Spread)
:Wyoming:	Offensive Coordinator	Doug Martin	Fired	Michael Walker	:South_Alabama:	Offensive Coordinator	Arkansas (Pro)
:Wyoming:	Defensive Coordinator	Greg Mattison	Fired	David Hayford	:Kansas:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:East_Carolina:	Offensive Coordinator	Ralph Brewer	Fired	Kenny Edenfield	:North_Carolina:	Offensive Coordinator	North Carolina (Spread)
:East_Carolina:	Defensive Coordinator	Bill Busch	Fired	Greg Mattinson	:Wyoming:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Akron:	Offensive Coordinator	Brian Stinespring	Left for Houston OC job	Pat Meyer	:Colorado_State:	Offensive Coordinator	Colorado State (One Back)
:Buffalo:	Offensive Coordinator	Alex Wood	Fired	Jason Ostrander	None	None	UCLA (Spread)
:UAB:	Defensive Coordinator	Tommy West	Left for Rice DC job	Brian Dean	None	None	3-4
:UMass:	Offensive Coordinator	Craig Bray	Fired	Larry Vincent	None	None	Western Kentucky (Pro)
:UMass:	Defensive Coordinator	Zach Everett	Fired	Chris Richardson	None	None	4-3
:Idaho:	Defensive Coordinator	Marty English	Retired at age 65	Ben James	None	None	4-3

Team	Position	Candidate Rank	Offered Job
:North_Carolina:	Head Coach	Top 6	No
:Louisiana:	Head Coach	2nd	No
:BYU:	Head Coach	3rd	Yes
:Illinois:	Head Coach	Top 6	No
:Arizona_State:	Head Coach	Top 6	No
:Colorado:	Head Coach	Top 6	Yes
:Houston:	Head Coach	3rd	Yes
:Texas_Tech:	Head Coach	2nd	Yes
:Wake_Forest:	Head Coach	1st	Yes
:Kansas:	Head Coach	Top 6	Yes
:Tulsa:	Head Coach	Top 6	Yes
:East_Carolina:	Head Coach	3rd	Yes
:UTSA:	Head Coach	2nd	Yes
:Ohio_State:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:Notre_Dame:	Offensive Coordinator	Top 6	Yes
:Clemson:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:South_Carolina:	Offensive Coordinator	3rd	Yes
:South_Alabama:	Head Coach	Top 6	Yes
:Wyoming:	Head Coach	2nd	Yes
:Boise_State:	Offensive Coordinator	1st	Yes
:West_Virginia:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:Cincinnati:	Offensive Coordinator	Top 6	Yes
:New_Mexico_State:	Head Coach	Top 6	Yes
:Akron:	Head Coach	Top 6	Yes
:Buffalo:	Head Coach	3rd	Yes
:North_Carolina:	Offensive Coordinator	3rd	Yes
:Northwestern:	Offensive Coordinator	Top 6	Yes
:Arizona_State:	Offensive Coordinator	Top 6	Yes
:Colorado:	Offensive Coordinator	1st	Yes
:Kansas:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:Texas_Tech:	Offensive Coordinator	3rd	Yes
:Wake_Forest:	Offensive Coordinator	Top 6	Yes
:Temple:	Offensive Coordinator	1st	Yes
:Houston:	Offensive Coordinator	1st	Yes
:Tulsa:	Offensive Coordinator	1st	Yes
:UTSA:	Offensive Coordinator	3rd	Yes
:Colorado_State:	Offensive Coordinator	Top 6	Yes
:South_Alabama:	Offensive Coordinator	Top 6	Yes
:UL_Monroe:	Offensive Coordinator	3rd	Yes
:MTSU:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:Western_Michigan:	Offensive Coordinator	3rd	Yes
:Wyoming:	Offensive Coordinator	1st	Yes
:East_Carolina:	Offensive Coordinator	Top 6	Yes
:Akron:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:Buffalo:	Offensive Coordinator	1st	Yes
:UMass:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes

Player	Position	Overall	Year	Reason	Overall of Next Player
David Douglas	WR	95	Senior (RS)	Graduation	84
Jason Barnes	QB	94	Senior (RS)	Graduation	80
Brian Paris	HB	92	Senior (RS)	Graduation	80
Ed Allen	P	89	Senior (RS)	Graduation	71
Derek Smith	LT	86	Senior (RS)	Graduation	67
Ryan Smith	QB	86	Senior (RS)	Graduation	80
Mike Moses	CB	84	Senior (RS)	Graduation	93
Jon Smith	MLB	82	Senior (RS)	Graduation	86
John Hale	LOLB	80	Senior (RS)	Graduation	75
Sean Baker	LT	79	Senior (RS)	Graduation	---
Aaron Allen	WR	77	Senior (RS)	Graduation	77
Jack Long	TE	77	Senior (RS)	Graduation	69
Leroy Fuqua	RE	76	Senior (RS)	Graduation	83
Lawrence Coker	CB	75	Senior (RS)	Graduation	84
Obi Rush	LOLB	73	Senior (RS)	Graduation	68
J.T. Gillett	RG	67	Freshman	Transfer (Playing Time)	85

Player	Position	Transferring From	Transferring To	Year	Overall	Reason	Admitted/Denied
J.T. Gillett	RG	Utah State	Florida International	Freshman	67	Playing Time	Leaving

Player	Position	Position Rank	Tendency	Star Ranking	:sparq:	Overall	+/-	Notes
Aaron Rush	CB	#33	Balanced	:3star:	67.00	73	+3
Jay Love	HB	#10	Balanced	:4star:	78.00	71	-2
Luke Jennings	OLB	#41	Run Stopper	:3star:	64.00	70	+2
Bryce Lewis	ATH	#46	Athlete	:4star:	76.00	70	+2
Matt Turner	WR	#63	Speed	:3star:	67.00	69	0
Max Thompson	K	#45	Accurate	:1star:	40.00	69	+10	Gem
Carnell Tidwell	ATH	#61	Athlete	:3star:	67.00	69	+2
Brian Smith	QB	#50	Scrambler	:3star:	65.00	68	+2
Matt Chavez	WR	#126	Speed	:3star:	67.00	68	+3
Lamar Moore	T	#48	Balanced	:3star:	57.00	68	0
Jeremy Brown	CB	#14	Coverage	:4star:	76.00	68	+1
Tyler Powell	FS	#72	Balanced	:2star:	59.00	68	+6	Gem
Anthony Williams	OLB	#99	Balanced	:3star:	64.00	67	+3
Michael Lewis	MLB	#45	Run Stopper	:3star:	64.00	67	+2
Todd Barclay	CB	#81	Balanced	:3star:	67.00	67	+2
Jon Parks	QB	#9	Scrambler	:4star:	73.00	66	-8	Bust
Jerod Burnette	G	#22	Run Block	:3star:	57.00	66	-6	Bust
David Jenkins	CB	#53	Coverage	:3star:	67.00	66	+1
Anthony Haumiller	CB	#88	Coverage	:3star:	67.00	66	+2
Matt Weber	FS	#41	Coverage	:3star:	67.00	66	0

Player	Position	Depth Chart Rank	Year	Overall
David Jenkins	CB	4th	Freshman	66
Anthony Haumiller	CB	4th	Freshman	66
Matt Weber	FS	5th	Freshman	66
Brian Smith	QB	3rd	Freshman	68

Slots	Conference	Bowl
Automatic Qualifier	:ACC:	Orange Bowl
Automatic Qualifier	:AAC:	Any Bowl
Automatic Qualifier	:Big_Ten:	Rose Bowl
Automatic Qualifier	:Big_12:	Fiesta Bowl
Automatic Qualifier	:Mountain_West:	Any Bowl
Automatic Qualifier	:Pac_12:	Rose Bowl
Automatic Qualifier	:SEC:	Sugar Bowl
Open Slot	At Large	Any Bowl

Week	Home/Away	Team	Result	Score	Record	Game Notes
1	Away	:Utah:	Win	27-24	1-0	Season Opener Battle of the Brothers Beehive Boot
2	Neutral Site	#7 :Michigan:	Loss	31-48	1-1	at Sports Authority Field at Mile High Stadium
3	---	Bye Week	---	---	---
4	Away	:Notre_Dame:	Loss	23-31	1-2
5	Home	:BYU:	Win	49-7	2-2	Home Opener The Old Wagon Wheel Beehive Boot
6	Away	:San_Diego_State:	Loss	14-28	2-3 (0-1)	Conference Opener
7	Home	:San_Jose_State:	Win	13-10	3-3 (1-1)	Homecoming
8	Away	:New_Mexico:	---	---	---
9	Home	:Colorado_State:	---	---	---
10	Away	:Boise_State:	---	---	---
11	Home	:Air_Force:	---	---	---
12	---	Bye Week	---	---	---
13	Away	:UNLV:	---	---	---
14	Home	:Wyoming:	---	---	---	Bridger's Battle Senior Night
15	---	Bye Week	---	---	---
CCG	:Mountain_West:	---	---	---	---	Mountain West Championship Game
Bowl Game	---	---	---	---	---	2024 Bowl Game

Goal	Expectations	Progress
Target Wins Per Season	8	3

Rank	Team	2023 Record	Overall	Offense	Defense	Special Teams
1	:Ohio_State:	14-0	A (95)	A+ (99)	B+ (90)	B+
2	:South_Carolina:	13-1	B+ (90)	A- (93)	B+ (88)	B-
3	:Oklahoma:	11-2	A+ (99)	A+ (99)	A+ (99)	A+
4	:UCLA:	12-1	A- (93)	B+ (90)	A+ (97)	B-
5	:West_Virginia:	12-1	B- (83)	B+ (90)	C+ (76)	D
6	:Miami:	10-3	A+ (97)	A+ (99)	B+ (88)	A+
7	:Michigan:	11-2	A+ (97)	A+ (97)	A+ (99)	C
8	:Florida_State:	10-3	A (95)	A+ (99)	B+ (88)	B
9	:Ole_Miss:	12-2	B+ (91)	A- (93)	A- (92)	B-
10	:Auburn:	11-2	A- (93)	A+ (99)	B+ (90)	A
11	:Baylor:	10-3	B (86)	B+ (88)	B (87)	C+
12	:Clemson:	11-3	B+ (91)	A+ (97)	B+ (88)	A+
13	:Texas:	9-4	A- (93)	A+ (99)	B+ (90)	A+
14	:Georgia_Tech:	11-2	B+ (91)	A- (93)	B+ (90)	C+
15	:Arizona:	12-2	B (86)	A- (93)	B- (80)	B
16	:Virginia_Tech:	10-4	A (95)	A+ (99)	A- (93)	A
17	:Stanford:	9-5	B+ (88)	B (86)	B+ (90)	A-
18	:USC:	8-5	A+ (97)	A+ (99)	A (95)	C
19	:Michigan_State:	9-4	B+ (91)	A- (93)	B+ (90)	A
20	:Cincinnati:	12-2	B- (83)	B+ (90)	C+ (76)	C-
21	:Kansas_State:	9-4	B+ (88)	B+ (88)	B (87)	B
22	:Florida:	7-6	A (95)	A- (93)	A+ (99)	B+
23	:Oregon:	6-7	B+ (90)	B+ (90)	B+ (90)	B+
24	:Fresno_State:	13-1	B- (83)	B- (83)	B (85)	D-
25	:Arkansas:	7-6	B+ (90)	A (95)	B (85)	C+

Position	Rank	Name	Year	Overall
QB	1	Pat Williams	Junior (RS)	86
QB	2	Josh Jones	Freshman (RS)	72

HB	1	Benjamin Silva	Junior	85
HB	2	Tyson Taylor	Sophomore (RS)	81

FB	1	Walter Johnson	Junior (RS)	78
FB	2	John Waters	Sophomore	71

WR	1	Adam Washington	Junior	89
WR	2	Greg Miller	Senior (RS)	81
WR	3	Tristan Muhammad	Sophomore (RS)	76
WR	4	Jon Morris	Junior (RS)	76
WR	5	Matt Turner	Freshman	69

TE	1	Nate Williams	Freshman (RS)	75
TE	2	Sam Livingston	Sophomore	73

LT	1	Max Richard	Freshman (RS)	72
LT	2	Lamar Moore	Freshman	68

LG	1	Kevin Thomas	Junior (RS)	78
LG	2	Jerod Burnette	Freshman	66

C	1	Randy Thomas	Junior	82
C	2	Paul Rodgers	Junior (RS)	80

RG	1	Shelton Woods	Junior (RS)	91
RG	2	Richard Andrews	Freshman (RS)	73

RT	1	Justin Wallace	Junior (RS)	83
RT	2	Freddie Williams	Sophomore	72

Team	1st Quarter	2nd Quarter	3rd Quarter	4th Quarter	Final Score
:Utah_State:	14	7	3	3	27
:Utah:	7	3	0	14	24

Time	Team	Result	Play	Score
First Quarter
9:08	:Utah:	Touchdown	T. Riley, 33 yard pass from J. Harrell (S. Mayhew kick)	:Utah: 7-0
5:48	:Utah_State:	Touchdown	B. Silva, 1 yard run (M. Thompson kick)	TIED 7-7
0:16	:Utah_State:	Touchdown	B. Silva, 1 yard run (M. Thompson kick)	:Utah_State: 14-7

Second Quarter
1:13	:Utah_State:	Touchdown	B. Silva, 11 yard run (M. Thompson kick)	:Utah_State: 21-7
0:01	:Utah:	Field Goal	S. Mayhew, 40 yard field goal	:Utah_State: 21-10

Third Quarter
2:46	:Utah_State:	Field Goal	M. Thompson, 19 yard field goal	:Utah_State: 24-10

Fourth Quarter
9:31	:Utah:	Touchdown	T. Riley, 23 yard pass from J. Harrell (S. Mayhew kick)	:Utah_State: 24-17
2:51	:Utah_State:	Field Goal	M. Thompson, 20 yard field goal	:Utah_State: 27-17
1:53	:Utah:	Touchdown	D. Walker, 71 yard pass from J. Harrell (S. Mayhew kick)	:Utah_State: 27-24

Utah State	Stat	Utah
27	Score	24
24	First Downs	6
409	Total Offense	272
63- 249 - 3	Rushes - Yards - TD	7- 21 - 0
11- 18 - 0	Comp - Att - TD	14- 31 - 3
160	Passing Yards	251
0	Times Sacked	1
15- 20 (75%)	3rd Down Conversion	1- 8 (12%)
0 - 0 (0%)	4th Down Conversion	0- 1 (0%)
0 - 0 (0%)	2-Point Conv	0 - 0 (0%)
5- 3 - 2 (100%)	Red Zone - TD - FG	1- 0 - 1 (100%)
2	Turnovers	0
0	Fumbles Lost	0
2	Intercepted	0
52	Punt Return Yards	10
112	Kick Return Yards	162
573	Total Yards	444
1 – 35.0	Punts - Average	5- 41.8
0 - 0	Penalties	0 - 0
28:08	Time of Possession	11:52

Goal	XP Reward	Completed
Win a Game	100	x1
Score a Touchdown	25	x3
Rush for 100 Yards	25	x1
Kneel Last Minute Q4 While Ahead	10	x1
Opponent Under 150 Rush Yards	50	x1
Beat a Rival School	50	x1
Opponent Under 300 Pass Yards	50	x1
Pass Completion Over 50%	30	x1
100% Red Zone Efficiency	50	x1
Score 21 Or More Points	50	x1
350+ Offensive Yards	50	x1
10+ First Downs	50	x1
4+ 3rd Down Conversions	25	x1

Michigan	Stat	Utah State
48	Score	31
13	First Downs	21
407	Total Offense	381
25 - 115 - 2	Rushes - Yards - TD	46 - 143 - 2
16 - 28 - 3	Comp - Att - TD	15 - 33 - 2
292	Passing Yards	238
4	Times Sacked	1
3 - 11 (27%)	3rd Down Conversion	10 - 17 (58%)
1 - 2 (50%)	4th Down Conversion	0 - 0 (0%)
0 - 0 (0%)	2-Point Conv	0 - 0 (0%)
4 - 2 - 2 (100%)	Red Zone - TD - FG	6 - 4 - 1 (83%)
1	Turnovers	6
0	Fumbles Lost	1
1	Intercepted	5
15	Punt Return Yards	15
115	Kick Return Yards	308
537	Total Yards	704
2 –40.0	Punts - Average	3 - 30.3
1 - 15	Penalties	3 - 13
13:39	Time of Possession	26:21

Utah State	Stat	Notre Dame
23	Score	31
19	First Downs	13
409	Total Offense	303
39 - 132 - 1	Rushes - Yards - TD	38 - 215 - 2
13 - 29 - 2	Comp - Att - TD	10 - 16 - 1
277	Passing Yards	88
2	Times Sacked	6
7 - 12 (58%)	3rd Down Conversion	4 - 11 (36%)
0 - 1 (0%)	4th Down Conversion	0 - 0 (0%)
0 - 1 (0%)	2-Point Conv	0 - 0 (0%)
3 - 2 - 0 (66%)	Red Zone - TD - FG	2 - 1 - 1 (100%)
2	Turnovers	1
0	Fumbles Lost	0
2	Intercepted	1
13	Punt Return Yards	22
163	Kick Return Yards	200
585	Total Yards	525
2 –40.5	Punts - Average	3 - 41.3
1 - 5	Penalties	0 - 0
21:37	Time of Possession	18:23

BYU	Stat	Utah State
7	Score	49
6	First Downs	25
125	Total Offense	526
8 - 0 - 1	Rushes - Yards - TD	58 - 291 - 5
14 - 33 - 0	Comp - Att - TD	15 - 19 - 1
125	Passing Yards	235
3	Times Sacked	0
1 - 9 (11%)	3rd Down Conversion	8 - 12 (66%)
1 - 1 (100%)	4th Down Conversion	0 - 0 (0%)
0 - 0 (0%)	2-Point Conv	0 - 0 (0%)
2 - 1 - 0 (50%)	Red Zone - TD - FG	6 - 4 - 1 (83%)
3	Turnovers	1
0	Fumbles Lost	1
3	Intercepted	0
0	Punt Return Yards	27
67	Kick Return Yards	112
192	Total Yards	665
5 – 39.8	Punts - Average	2 - 42.0
0 - 0	Penalties	0 - 0
12:03	Time of Possession	27:57

Utah State	Stat	San Diego State
14	Score	28
13	First Downs	19
251	Total Offense	388
29 - 94 - 1	Rushes - Yards - TD	45 - 239 - 3
14 - 25 - 1	Comp - Att - TD	13 - 21 - 1
157	Passing Yards	149
	Times Sacked
6 - 12 (50%)	3rd Down Conversion	6 - 13 (46%)
0 - 0 (0%)	4th Down Conversion	0 - 0 (0%)
0 - 0 (0%)	2-Point Conv	0 - 0 (0%)
2 - 2 - 0 (100%)	Red Zone - TD - FG	3 - 3 - 0 (100%)
3	Turnovers	2
0	Fumbles Lost	0
3	Intercepted	2
12	Punt Return Yards	28
160	Kick Return Yards	101
423	Total Yards	517
5 –38.2	Punts - Average	4 - 37.5
0 - 0	Penalties	0 - 0
20:28	Time of Possession	19:32