Smooth Pancakes' Coaching Carousel Career

And so there you go. Ohio State is your 2021 national champion, winning their second national title in a row, and the American Athletic Conference goes 4-1 in bowl games to win the 2021 Bowl Challenge Cup.

On the other side of the coin, the Conference USA is held winless, going 0-5 for the bowl season to claim the "we suck" conference title of 2021.

For readers teams, East Carolina knocks off Arizona State 37-28 in the New Mexico Bowl, Nevada routs Southern Miss 30-7 in the Hawaii Bowl, Nebraska beats West Virginia 24-17 in the Meineke Car Care Bowl, #22 South Carolina edges out #20 Virginia Tech 41-37 in the Chick-fil-A Bowl, #18 Texas upsets #15 Auburn 29-10 in the Cotton Bowl, #24 Ohio University beats Arkansas State 21-14 in the GoDaddy.com Bowl and and #1 Ohio State claims the National Championship, topping #2 Michigan State 42-28 in the national title game.

The American claimed the Bowl Challenge Cup this year, going 4-1, though Central Florida did lose to Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl. Because of the best record during the bowl season, the American will keep their automatic bid secured for at least the next two seasons. An abysmal 3-2 finish by the Mountain West has saved their automatic bid for another year, as they had to finish at least .500. While 3-2 is a huge improvement over last season, they will still be watched closely over the next few years.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jaymo76

Strange to see Alabama at the Rose Bowl. I would have figured AF would go there and Ala would face Miami at the Orange Bowl. Anyways... go Huskies!

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Hell, I'm still trying to wrap my head around how a 9-3 Michigan State got into the national title game over the likes of an 11-1 Oklahoma, a 12-1 UCF, a 12-2 Texas A&M, 11-2 Miami (FL) and a 10-2 USC. :D

Overall, this was one extremely weird bowl season with some of the match-ups that were made.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SmoothPancakes

Hell, I'm still trying to wrap my head around how a 9-3 Michigan State got into the national title game over the likes of an 11-1 Oklahoma, a 12-1 UCF, a 12-2 Texas A&M, 11-2 Miami (FL) and a 10-2 USC. :D

Overall, this was one extremely weird bowl season with some of the match-ups that were made.

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How close was the BCS ratings between the teams? three losses for a NC team is truly bizarre. Was the BIG the #1 rated conference for 2021?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jaymo76

How close was the BCS ratings between the teams? three losses for a NC team is truly bizarre. Was the BIG the #1 rated conference for 2021?

---

These were my last BCS rankings update before going into the CCGs.

Quote:

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Taking a look at the new BCS rankings: #1 Ohio State (1.000), #2 UCLA (0.995), #3 Michigan State (0.989), #4 Texas A&M (0.979), #5 Alabama (0.976), #6 USC (0.976), #7 Louisville (0.974), #8 Miami (0.963), #9 Notre Dame (0.955) and #10 Oklahoma (0.943). [B]Others: #14 Auburn (0.914), #21 South Carolina (0.868).

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And no. The SEC was the #1 conference (A+ grade, 16.7 avg. rank), followed by the ACC (A, 20.2) and then the Big Ten (A-, 21.5).

2021 Final Top 25

Coaches Poll - Media Poll

Rank	Team	Record		Team	Record
1	:Ohio_State:	14-0		:Ohio_State:	14-0
2	:Texas_A&M:	12-2		:Texas_A&M:	12-2
3	:Alabama:	10-3		:Miami:	12-2
4	:Miami:	12-2		:Alabama:	10-3
5	:USC:	11-2		:USC:	11-2
6	:Oklahoma:	12-1		:Oklahoma:	12-1
7	:UCLA:	12-2		:UCLA:	12-2
8	:Michigan:	10-3		:Michigan:	10-3
9	:Louisiana:	12-1		:Georgia_Tech:	10-3
10	:Michigan_State:	9-4		:Michigan_State:	9-4
11	:Texas:	10-3		:Louisiana:	12-1
12	:Georgia_Tech:	10-3		:UCF:	12-2
13	:Army:	11-2		:Texas:	10-3
14	:UCF:	12-2		:Army:	11-2
15	:Notre_Dame:	9-4		:Notre_Dame:	9-4
16	:South_Carolina:	9-4		:Stanford:	8-5
17	:Stanford:	8-5		:South_Carolina:	9-4
18	:Ohio:	12-2		:Ohio:	12-2
19	:Auburn:	9-4		:Louisville:	10-4
20	:Louisville:	10-4		:Connecticut:	10-3
21	:Connecticut:	10-3		:Auburn:	9-4
22	:Penn_State:	9-4		:Florida:	9-4
23	:Florida:	9-4		:Florida_State:	8-5
24	:Florida_State:	8-5		:Penn_State:	9-4
25	:BYU:	7-5		:BYU:	7-5

Utah State Coach Goals

Goal	XP Reward	Completed
Rank First in Red Zone %	250	x1
Rank First in Rush Yards Allowed	250	x1
Rank Top 5 in Sacks	125	x1
1st-Team All-Conference	75	x3
Rank Top 10 in Rushing TDs	75	x1
2nd-Team All-Conference	50	x1
Freshman All-American	50	x1

2021 Coaching Carousel

Team	Position	Previous Coach	Reason Left		New Coach	Previous Team	Previous Position	O/D Style
:Georgia:	Head Coach	Kirby Smart	Fired		Todd Grantham	:UCF:	Head Coach	UCF (Multiple) \ 4-3
:LSU:	Head Coach	Steve Kragthorpe	Fired		Steve Brown	:Louisiana:	Head Coach	North Carolina (Spread) \ 4-2-5
:South_Carolina:	Head Coach	Mark Dantonio	Retired at age 68		Matt Campbell	:Kentucky:	Head Coach	Toledo (Spread) \ 4-3
:Wisconsin:	Head Coach	Bret Bielema	Fired		Doc Holiday	:Marshall:	Head Coach	Marshall (Spread) \ 4-3
:Arkansas:	Head Coach	Howard Schnellenberger	Fired		Brian Bohannon	:Fresno_State:	Head Coach	Fresno State (Spread) \ 3-4
:UCF:	Head Coach	Todd Grantham	Left for Georgia HC job		Dan Mullin	:Ohio_State:	Offensive Coordinator	Missouri (Spread) \ 4-3
:Marshall:	Head Coach	Doc Holiday	Left for Wisconsin HC job		Gary Emanuel	:Ohio_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Marshall (Spread) \ 4-3
:Rutgers:	Head Coach	Derek Mason	Fired		Josh Heupel	:Oklahoma:	Offensive Coordinator	Oklahoma (Multiple) \ 3-4
:Kentucky:	Head Coach	Matt Campbell	Left for South Carolina HC job		Brent Pease	:USC:	Offensive Coordinator	USC (Pro) \ 4-3
:Fresno_State:	Head Coach	Brian Bohannon	Left for Arkansas HC job		Mark Stoops	:Western_Kentucky:	Head Coach	Georgia Tech (Option) \ 4-3
:Minnesota:	Head Coach	Jim Bollman	Fired		Rob Ianello	:Texas_A&M:	Offensive Coordinator	Texas A&M (Air Raid) \ 4-3
:Colorado:	Head Coach	Dan Enos	Fired		Jim Bollman	:Minnesota:	Head Coach	Ohio State (Spread) \ 4-3
:Miami_OH:	Head Coach	Dave Steckel	Fired		Ruffin McNeil	:Ohio:	Defensive Coordinator	Ohio (Pistol) \ 4-3
:Louisiana:	Head Coach	Steve Brown	Left for LSU HC job		Matt Canada	:Louisiana:	Offensive Coordinator	UL Lafayette (Spread) \ 4-3
:Western_Kentucky:	Head Coach	Mark Stoops	Left for Fresno State HC job		Charlie Taaffe	:UCF:	Offensive Coordinator	UCF (Multiple) \ 4-3
:Purdue:	Head Coach	Kevin Sumlin	Fired		Todd Bradford	:Washington:	Offensive Coordinator	Washington (Pro) \ 4-2-5
:Iowa_State:	Head Coach	Scott Shafer	Fired		Chuck Heater	:San_Jose_State:	Head Coach	San Jose State (Pro) \ 4-3
:SMU:	Head Coach	Hugh Freeze	Fired		Mark D'Onofrio	:Miami:	Defensive Coordinator	Miami (Pro) \ 4-3
:San_Jose_State:	Head Coach	Chuck Heater	Left for Iowa State HC job		Gary Nord	:UCLA:	Offensive Coordinator	UCLA (Spread) \ 3-4
:Miami:	Defensive Coordinator	Mark D'Onofrio	Left for SMU HC job		Tyrone Williams Anderson	:Western_Kentucky:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Wyoming:	Head Coach	Kurt Roper Parks	Fired		Steve Kragthorpe	:LSU:	Head Coach	LSU (Pro) \ 4-3
:Ohio_State:	Offensive Coordinator	Dan Mullin	Left for UCF HC job		Kirby Smart	:Georgia:	Head Coach	Georgia (Pro)
:Ohio_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Gary Emanuel	Left for Marshall HC job		Nick Howell	:Arkansas_State:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Oklahoma:	Offensive Coordinator	Josh Heupel	Left for Rutgers HC job		Howard Schnellenberger	:Arkansas:	Head Coach	FIU (Multiple)
:USC:	Offensive Coordinator	Brent Pease	Left for Kentucky HC job		Bob Toledo	:Stanford:	Offensive Coordinator	Stanford (Pro)
:Texas_A&M:	Offensive Coordinator	Rob Ianello	Left for Minnesota HC job		Bill Lazor	:Nevada:	Offensive Coordinator	Nevada (Pistol)
:Washington:	Offensive Coordinator	Todd Bradford	Left for Purdue HC job		Butch Jones	:Army:	Offensive Coordinator	Army (Option)
:LSU:	Offensive Coordinator	David Shaw	Fired		Blake Whitaker	None	None	Ole Miss (Spread)
:Stanford:	Offensive Coordinator	Bob Toledo	Left for USC OC job		Mike Shultz	:East_Carolina:	Offensive Coordinator	ECU (Air Raid)
:UCLA:	Offensive Coordinator	Gary Nord	Left for San Jose State HC job		Dave Steckel	:Miami_OH:	Head Coach	Miami University (One Back)
:UTSA:	Head Coach	Kevin Brown	Retired at age 65		Bret Bielema	:Wisconsin:	Head Coach	Wisconsin (Pro) \ 3-4
:Missouri:	Defensive Coordinator	Marcus Riley	Fired		Mark Banker	:Oregon_State:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Oregon_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Mark Banker	Left for Missouri DC job		Darrell Hazell	:Kent_State:	Head Coach	4-3
:UNLV:	Head Coach	Doug Marrone	Fired		Ray Humphrey	None	None	Southern Miss (Air Raid) \ 4-3
:Wisconsin:	Defensive Coordinator	Pat Fitzgerald	Fired		Chris Thomas	None	None	4-2-5
:UCF:	Offensive Coordinator	Charlie Taaffe	Left for Western Kentucky HC job		Kevin Sumlin	:Purdue:	Head Coach	Purdue (Pro)
:Iowa:	Offensive Coordinator	Steve Sarkisian	Retired at age 69		Dan Enos	:Colorado:	Head Coach	Colorado (Multiple)
:Oklahoma_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Bob Diaco	Retired at age 65		Pete Rekstis	:Houston:	Defensive Coordinator	3-4
:Kansas_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Steve Stanard	Retired at age 69		Scott Shafer	:Iowa_State:	Head Coach	4-3
:Arkansas:	Offensive Coordinator	Steve Fairchild	Fired		Charlie Benson	None	None	Nevada (Pistol)
:Arkansas:	Defensive Coordinator	Norm Chow	Fired		Josh Koch	:Indiana:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Army:	Offensive Coordinator	Butch Jones	Left for Washington OC job		Hugh Freeze	:SMU:	Head Coach	SMU (Run and Shoot)
:BC:	Offensive Coordinator	Dave Clawson	Fired		Todd Fitch	:Rice:	Offensive Coordinator	Rice (Spread)
:Houston:	Defensive Coordinator	Pete Rekstis	Left for Oklahoma State DC job		Derek Mason	:Rutgers:	Head Coach	4-3
:Ohio:	Defensive Coordinator	Ruffin McNeil	Left for Miami University HC job		Troy Reffett	:UL_Monroe:	Defensive Coordinator	3-3-5
:Western_Kentucky:	Defensive Coordinator	Tyrone Williams Anderson	Left for Miami (FL) DC job		Ryan Glover	None	None	4-3
:Arkansas_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Nick Howell	Left for Ohio State DC job		Keon Edwards	None	None	3-4
:Colorado:	Offensive Coordinator	George O'Leary	Fired		Kurt Roper Parks	:Wyoming:	Head Coach	Wyoming (Spread)
:Colorado:	Defensive Coordinator	Lamar Gaines	Fired		Dustin Hamilton	:Kansas:	Defensive Coordinator	3-4
:Indiana:	Defensive Coordinator	Josh Koch	Left for Arkansas DC job		Kevin Pierce	None	None	4-3
:Kansas:	Defensive Coordinator	Dustin Hamilton	Left for Colorado DC job		David Hayford	None	None	4-3
:Kent_State:	Head Coach	Darrell Hazell	Fired		Joker Phillips	:Louisiana_Tech:	Offensive Coordinator	Louisiana Tech (Spread) \ 4-3
:Louisiana_Tech:	Offensive Coordinator	Joker Phillips	Left for Kent State HC job		Caleb Thomas	None	None	BYU (Air Raid)
:Miami_OH:	Offensive Coordinator	Ralph Brewer	Fired		David Shaw	:LSU:	Offensive Coordinator	LSU (Pro)
:Miami_OH:	Defensive Coordinator	Ron Zook	Fired		Doug Marrone	:UNLV:	Head Coach	4-3
:Minnesota:	Offensive Coordinator	John Pennington	Fired		David Lee	:Wake_Forest:	Offensive Coordinator	Wake Forest (Spread)
:Minnesota:	Defensive Coordinator	Jimmy Burrow	Fired		Pat Fitzgerald	:Wisconsin:	Defensive Coordinator	3-4
:Nevada:	Offensive Coordinator	Bill Lazor	Left for Texas A&M OC job		Matt Limegrover	:Rutgers:	Offensive Coordinator	Rutgers (Pro)
:Wake_Forest:	Offensive Coordinator	David Lee	Left for Minnesota OC job		Dave Clawson	:BC:	Offensive Coordinator	Boston College (Multiple)
:Rutgers:	Offensive Coordinator	Matt Limegrover	Fired		Todd Berry	:UTSA:	Offensive Coordinator	UTSA (Multiple)
:Rutgers:	Defensive Coordinator	Kerry Lowe	Fired		Marcus Riley	:Missouri:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Louisiana:	Offensive Coordinator	Matt Canada	Left for Louisiana-Lafayette HC job		Rob Phenicie	:Kent_State:	Offensive Coordinator	Kent State (Multiple)
:Wyoming:	Offensive Coordinator	Steve Axman	Retired at age 65		John Pennington	:Minnesota:	Offensive Coordinator	Minnesota (Multiple)
:Wyoming:	Defensive Coordinator	Dan Brown	Retired at age 66		Kerry Lowe	:Rutgers:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Iowa_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Mark Helfrich	Retired at age 66		Neal Neathery	:UTSA:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:San_Jose_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Anton Hagen	Retired at age 68		Jim Moore	:Kent_State:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Iowa_State:	Offensive Coordinator	Gary Pinkel	Fired		George O'Leary	:Colorado:	Offensive Coordinator	Colorado (Multiple)
:Rice:	Offensive Coordinator	Todd Fitch	Left for Boston College OC job		Nick Rolovich	:SMU:	Offensive Coordinator	SMU (Run and Shoot)
:UL_Monroe:	Defensive Coordinator	Troy Reffett	Left for Ohio University DC job		Jon Heacock	:SMU:	Defensive Coordinator	3-4
:East_Carolina:	Offensive Coordinator	Mike Schultz	Left for Stanford OC job		Ralph Brewer	:Miami_OH:	Offensive Coordinator	Miami University (One Back)
:SMU:	Offensive Coordinator	Nick Rolovich	Fired		Steve Fairchild	:Arkansas:	Offensive Coordinator	Colorado State (One Back)
:SMU:	Defensive Coordinator	Jon Heacock	Fired		Ron Zook	:Miami_OH:	Defensive Coordinator	Multiple D
:Kent_State:	Offensive Coordinator	Rob Phenicie	Fired		Gary Pinkel	:Iowa_State:	Offensive Coordinator	Iowa State (Spread)
:Kent_State:	Defensive Coordinator	Jim Moore	Fired		Norm Chow	:Arkansas:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Old_Dominion:	Defensive Coordinator	Rich Nagy	Fired		Jimmy Burrow	:Minnesota:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:UTSA:	Offensive Coordinator	Todd Berry	Fired		Frank Cignetti	:Memphis:	Offensive Coordinator	Memphis (Spread)
:UTSA:	Defensive Coordinator	Neal Neathery	Fired		Rich Nagy	:Old_Dominion:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:UNLV:	Offensive Coordinator	Dana Holgorsen	Fired		Josh Silva	None	None	Kansas State (Multiple)
:UNLV:	Defensive Coordinator	Brian Stewart	Fired		Lamar Gaines	:Colorado:	Defensive Coordinator	4-3
:Memphis:	Offensive Coordinator	Frank Cignetti	Fired		Dana Holgorsen	:UNLV:	Offensive Coordinator	UNLV (Spread)

Jobs I Was in the Running For

Team	Position	Candidate Rank	Offered Job
:Iowa_State:	Head Coach	1st	No
:SMU:	Head Coach	1st	No
:San_Jose_State:	Head Coach	2nd	No
:Wyoming:	Head Coach	2nd	Yes
:Ohio_State:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:Oklahoma:	Offensive Coordinator	3rd	Yes
:USC:	Offensive Coordinator	4th	Yes
:Texas_A&M:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:Washington:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:LSU:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:Stanford:	Offensive Coordinator	1st	Yes
:UCLA:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:UTSA:	Head Coach	2nd	Yes
:UNLV:	Head Coach	2nd	Yes
:UCF:	Offensive Coordinator	1st	Yes
:Iowa:	Offensive Coordinator	3rd	Yes
:Arkansas:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:Army:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:BC:	Offensive Coordinator	4th	Yes
:Colorado:	Offensive Coordinator	4th	Yes
:Kent_State:	Head Coach	1st	Yes
:Louisiana_Tech:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:Miami_OH:	Offensive Coordinator	1st	Yes
:Minnesota:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:Nevada:	Offensive Coordinator	4th	Yes
:Wake_Forest:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:Rutgers:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:Louisiana:	Offensive Coordinator	3rd	Yes
:Wyoming:	Offensive Coordinator	3rd	Yes
:Iowa_State:	Offensive Coordinator	3rd	Yes
:Rice:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:East_Carolina:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:SMU:	Offensive Coordinator	2nd	Yes
:Kent_State:	Offensive Coordinator	3rd	Yes
:UTSA:	Offensive Coordinator	1st	Yes
:UNLV:	Offensive Coordinator	1st	Yes
:Memphis:	Offensive Coordinator	1st	Yes

Notes of Interest

• Multiple teams saw their entire coaching staffs shaken up, as the entire staffs are replaced at Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa State, Kent State, Miami University, Minnesota, Rutgers, SMU, UNLV, UTSA and Wyoming.

• Despite only going 4-8 this year, I saw a lot of offers come my way, primarily for offensive coordinator positions, and at schools not necessarily coming off great seasons. The OC offers at Ohio State, USC, Washington, LSU, Oklahoma and UCLA were VERY tempting.

• It's tough to be the king, as successful seasons saw Ohio State lose both of their offensive coordinators to head coach jobs in the American Athletic Conference and Conference USA, while Louisiana-Lafayette's head coach hit the road for the head coach position at LSU.

2021-22 Off-Season


Players Leaving

Player	Position	Overall	Year	Reason	Overall of Next Player
Kevin Moore	CB	90	Senior (RS)	Graduation	78
Kevin Tolbert	RE	89	Senior (RS)	Graduation	73
Preston Roberson	HB	89	Senior (RS)	Graduation	80
Al Washington	LOLB	84	Senior (RS)	Graduation	77
Adam Grant	DT	81	Senior (RS)	Graduation	78
Sam Vinson	SS	80	Senior (RS)	Graduation	76
Travis Munoz	WR	80	Senior (RS)	Graduation	83
Ryan Conley	WR	76	Senior (RS)	Graduation	83
Dante May	HB	76	Senior (RS)	Graduation	80
Adam Jefferson	C	75	Senior (RS)	Graduation	70
Arthur Lee	ROLB	75	Senior (RS)	Graduation	81
Jason Oliver	RG	74	Senior (RS)	Graduation	---
Brian Johnson	LG	73	Senior (RS)	Graduation	73
Jeremy Thurman	CB	72	Senior (RS)	Graduation	78
Maurice Martin	TE	71	Senior (RS)	Graduation	68
Craig Cruz	CB	69	Freshman	Transfer	78
Freddie Wilson	LE	66	Senior (RS)	Graduation	77

NFL Draft

Player	Position	Overall	Year	Projected Round	Drafted Round
Kevin Moore	CB	90	Senior (RS)	4th	4th
Kevin Tolbert	RE	89	Senior (RS)	7th	7th

Transfer Requests

Player	Position	Transferring From	Transferring To	Year	Overall	Reason	Admitted/Denied
Craig Cruz	CB	Utah State	Temple	Freshman	69	Playing Time	---

2020 Utah State Recruiting Class

Player	Position	Position Rank	Tendency	Star Ranking	:sparq:	Overall	+/-	Notes
Adam Washington	WR	#6	Possession	:5star:	76.00	79	+2
Tyson Taylor	HB	#29	Speed	:3star:	69.00	70	+3
Randy Thomas	C	#13	Balanced	:4star:	66.00	70	-3
Joshua Porter	MLB	#48	Coverage	:3star:	64.00	70	+3
Benjamin Silva	HB	#67	Speed	:3star:	69.00	68	+3
Raymond Watson	FB	#13	Blocking	:2star:	60.00	68	-4
T.J. Bell	G	#109	Balanced	:2star:	50.00	68	+1
Steve Jones	DE	#110	Pass Rusher	:3star:	63.00	68	+3
Allen Salyer	FS	#14	Balanced	:3star:	67.00	68	-1
Tristan Muhammad	WR	#96	Possession	:3star:	67.00	67	+1
Steve Simpson	DE	#145	Run Stopper	:3star:	63.00	67	+4
Lance Nash	DT	#56	Balanced	:3star:	57.00	67	+1
Freddie Arnold	P	#19	Accurate	:2star:	50.00	67	---
Zack Coleman	HB	#42	Power	:3star:	69.00	66	---
Trent Allen	WR	#56	Speed	:4star:	76.00	66	-3
Seth Dawson	WR	#104	Possession	:3star:	67.00	66	---
Xavier Simmons	DT	#31	Run Stopper	:3star:	57.00	66	-1
Leroy Phillips	WR	#52	Balanced	:3star:	69.00	65	-3
Steve Sanders	G	#82	Pass Block	:3star:	57.00	63	-2
Dwayne Thompson	SS	#40	Balanced	:3star:	67.00	63	-2

Recruiting Class Rank

Rank: 19




Position Changes

Player	Position	Overall	New Position	Overall
Joshua Porter	MLB	70	LOLB	70
Derrick Perez	MLB	71	ROLB	69

Training Results

Highest Overall Player - Adam Powers - QB - 96 OVR (+4)
Largest Training Increase - Ryan Smith - QB - 78 OVR (+7)




Cut Players

Player	Position	Depth Chart Rank	Year	Overall
Darrell Archie	FB	3rd	Sophomore	55
Seth Dawson	WR	6th	Freshman	66
Leroy Phillips	WR	6th	Freshman	65

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

Utah State Inks Series with Miami University, Michigan

By Staff Reports on June 16, 2022, at 6:25 AM

LOGAN — As the summer heats up and football practices begin, the coaches and players of Utah State found out just exactly who they'd be playing this upcoming season, as the final pieces of the 2022 schedule were put together, with Utah State agreeing to a home and home series with Miami University, while signing an agreement with Michigan for a "two for one" series, with Michigan hosting two games at The Big House, while playing a third game at a neutral site.

With the new additions to the future schedule, Miami University will visit Utah State in 2022, with the Aggies visiting Oxford, Ohio in 2023. Utah State will travel to Michigan in 2022 and 2023, wrapping up the three game slate in 2024 with a neutral site game at a location to be determined at a future date.

The Utah State athletic department also announced extensions to the annual Beehive Boot series with both BYU and Utah, extending both of those series through the 2027 season.

The new series with Michigan extends the list of highly competitive non-conference opponents on the future schedules of the Aggies, that have seen Utah State in recent years play the likes of Auburn, BYU, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas A&M, Tulsa, USC, Utah and Wisconsin.

With the addition of Miami University and Michigan, Utah State has filled out their 2022 and 2023 non-conference schedules and set the groundwork for the 2024 season. Listed below are the upcoming and future non-conference schedules for Utah State:


2022
at Utah
at Michigan
BYU
Miami University

2023
Utah
at Michigan
at BYU
at Miami University

2024
at Utah
Michigan (at neutral site)
BYU

2025
Utah
at BYU

2026
at Utah
BYU

2027
Utah
at BYU

2022 Utah State Football Schedule

Week	Home/Away	Team	Result	Score	Record	Game Notes
1	Away	:Utah:	Win	17-15	1-0	Season Opener Battle of the Brothers Beehive Boot
2	---	Bye Week	---	---	---
3	Away	#9 :Michigan:	Loss	28-49	1-1
4	---	Bye Week	---	---	---
5	Home	:BYU:	Win	33-10	2-1	Home Opener The Old Wagon Wheel Beehive Boot
6	Away	:Nevada:	Win	21-3	3-1 (1-0)	Conference Opener
7	Home	:Fresno_State:	Win	35-25	4-1 (2-0)
8	Away	:New_Mexico:	Loss	17-21	4-2 (2-1)
9	Home	:Colorado_State:	Win	52-0	5-2 (3-1)	Homecoming
10	Away	:Boise_State:	Win	31-28	6-2 (4-1)
11	Home	:Air_Force:	Win	24-7	7-2 (5-1)
12	Home	:Miami_OH:	Win	38-14	8-2 (5-1)
13	Away	:UNLV:	Win	34-7	9-2 (6-1)
14	Home	:Wyoming:	Win	24-7	10-2 (7-1)	Senior Night Bridger's Battle
15	---	Bye Week	---	---	---
CCG	:Mountain_West:	Bye Week	---	---	---	Mountain West Championship Game
Bowl Game	:Las_Vegas_Bowl:	:Washington:	Win	19-13	11-2 (7-1)	Las Vegas Bowl

--- 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.

Utah State Three Year HC Contract Goals - Year Three

Goal	Expectations	Progress
Target Wins Per Season	7	11

Job Security Status

100%

--- Contract goal numbers and job security updated through Season 12, End of Season.

The following players have been redshirted for the 2022 season.

2022 Redshirt Players

Player	Position	Depth Chart Rank	Year	Overall
Brian Paris	HB	1st	Senior	85
David Douglas	WR	2nd	Senior	82
Aaron Allen	WR	3rd	Senior	73
Kevin Thomas	LG	2nd	Sophomore	68
Justin Wallace	RT	2nd	Sophomore	75
Steve Jones	LE	2nd	Freshman	68
Scott Flanagan	DT	2nd	Junior	71
Joshua Porter	LOLB	3rd	Freshman	70
Johnny Sullivan	MLB	3rd	Sophomore	76
Jason Baker	ROLB	3rd	Sophomore	73
Jesse Breedlove	CB	2nd	Sophomore	78
Kyle Mitchell	FS	2nd	Sophomore	71
Dwayne Thompson	SS	2nd	Freshman	63
Ed Allen	P	1st	Senior	82

2022 Preseason Top 25

Rank	Team	2021 Record	Overall	Offense	Defense	Special Teams
1	:Ohio_State:	14-0	A+ (97)	A+ (97)	A (95)	C-
2	:Alabama:	10-3	A+ (99)	A+ (99)	A+ (97)	A
3	:Texas_A&M:	12-2	A+ (97)	A+ (99)	A- (92)	A+
4	:USC:	11-2	A (95)	A+ (99)	A- (92)	A
5	:Miami:	12-2	A+ (97)	A+ (97)	A+ (97)	A+
6	:Oklahoma:	12-1	A- (93)	A+ (99)	B+ (90)	C+
7	:Michigan_State:	9-4	B+ (91)	A (95)	B+ (90)	C
8	:Notre_Dame:	9-4	A+ (97)	A (95)	A+ (97)	D
9	:Michigan:	10-3	A (95)	A+ (97)	A- (92)	D-
10	:Texas:	10-3	A+ (99)	A+ (99)	A (95)	B-
11	:South_Carolina:	9-4	A- (93)	A (95)	A- (93)	B-
12	:Stanford:	8-5	A (95)	A+ (99)	A- (92)	C-
13	:UCLA:	12-2	A (95)	A+ (97)	A- (93)	B-
14	:Florida_State:	8-5	A+ (97)	A (95)	A+ (99)	B-
15	:Georgia_Tech:	10-3	B+ (91)	B+ (91)	A- (92)	A-
16	:Florida:	9-4	A- (93)	A- (93)	A (95)	B+
17	:Louisville:	10-4	B+ (88)	B+ (90)	B (87)	C
18	:Clemson:	8-5	A- (93)	A (95)	A- (92)	B+
19	:UCF:	12-2	B (84)	B (86)	B- (82)	C
20	:Washington:	9-5	B+ (91)	B+ (90)	A- (93)	A+
21	:Auburn:	9-4	B+ (91)	B+ (91)	B+ (90)	C-
22	:Virginia_Tech:	8-5	A- (93)	A (95)	A- (93)	A-
23	:Oregon_State:	8-5	B (86)	B+ (91)	B- (82)	D-
24	:Nebraska:	7-6	A- (93)	A (95)	A- (93)	A
25	:Virginia:	7-6	B+ (88)	B+ (90)	B (87)	B+

Mountain West Teams and 2022 Opponents

Rank	Team	2021 Record	Overall	Offense	Defense	Special Teams
9	:Michigan:	10-3	A (95)	A+ (97)	A- (92)	D-
36	:San_Diego_State:	10-3	B (86)	B+ (90)	B- (83)	B
37	:BYU:	7-6	B- (83)	B- (83)	B- (82)	D-
43	:Utah:	6-7	B (86)	B+ (88)	B (85)	B+
54	:Fresno_State:	9-5	B (84)	B+ (88)	B- (82)	A
61	:Nevada:	8-5	B- (83)	B (84)	B- (82)	C+
63	:Air_Force:	9-5	C (75)	C+ (77)	C (75)	C
65	:Hawaii:	5-7	C+ (79)	C+ (79)	C+ (76)	C
84	:Boise_State:	5-7	B (86)	B+ (90)	B- (83)	B
89	:Utah_State:	4-8	B (84)	B (84)	B- (83)	D
90	:San_Jose_State:	7-6	C+ (77)	B- (81)	C (75)	C
95	:Colorado_State:	5-7	B- (81)	B- (81)	B- (82)	D
110	:Miami_OH:	2-10	C+ (77)	C+ (77)	C+ (78)	D-
112	:Wyoming:	1-11	C (75)	C (74)	C+ (78)	D+
114	:New_Mexico:	4-8	C (74)	C+ (77)	C (73)	D-
121	:UNLV:	0-12	C (74)	C (77)	C- (71)	C

"For Our Readers" Teams

Rank	Team	2021 Record	Overall	Offense	Defense	Special Teams
1	:Ohio_State:	14-0	A+ (97)	A+ (97)	A (95)	C-
11	:South_Carolina:	9-4	A- (93)	A (95)	A- (93)	B-
21	:Auburn:	9-4	B+ (91)	B+ (91)	B+ (90)	C-
44	:Arizona_State:	7-6	A- (93)	A (95)	B+ (90)	C-
53	:Arkansas_State:	9-4	B- (83)	B (86)	B- (80)	B-
56	:West_Virginia:	6-7	A- (93)	A- (93)	A- (93)	C
78	:Tulsa:	6-6	B- (81)	B (84)	C+ (78)	C
79	:Navy:	6-6	B- (83)	B (84)	B- (82)	C+
86	:FIU:	5-7	B (84)	B (86)	B- (83)	B-
102	:Southern_Miss:	7-6	C+ (77)	B- (81)	C (75)	C+

2022 Utah State Two Deep Roster



Offense

Spoiler: show

Position	Rank	Name	Year	Overall
QB	1	Adam Powers	Senior (RS)	96
QB	2	Jason Barnes	Junior (RS)	91
HB	1	Matt Leierer	Senior (RS)	76
HB	2	Tyson Taylor	Freshman	70
FB	1	Walter Johnson	Sophomore	68
FB	2	Raymond Watson	Freshman	68
WR	1	Eric McGuire	Senior (RS)	87
WR	2	Dre Martin	Senior (RS)	83
WR	3	Max Rhodes	Senior (RS)	82
WR	4	Adam Washington	Freshman	79
WR	5	Greg Miller	Junior	72
TE	1	Jack Long	Junior (RS)	73
TE	2	Cedric McKinney	Senior (RS)	71
LT	1	Derek Smith	Junior (RS)	80
LT	2	Sean Baker	Junior (RS)	76
LG	1	Tim Peterson	Senior (RS)	79
LG	2	Steve Sanders	Freshman	63
C	1	Randy Thomas	Freshman	70
C	2	Paul Rodgers	Freshman (RS)	69
RG	1	Shelton Woods	Freshman (RS)	81
RG	2	T.J. Bell	Sophomore	68
RT	1	Jake Lee	Senior (RS)	79
RT	2	---	---	---

Defense

Spoiler: show

Position	Rank	Name	Year	Overall
LE	1	Caleb McBride	Senior (RS)	81
LE	2	---	---	---
RE	1	Shaun Peterson	Sophomore	78
RE	2	Leroy Fuqua	Junior (RS)	72
DT	1	Ernest Sims	Senior (RS)	84
DT	2	Lance Nash	Freshman	67
DT	3	Xavier Simmons	Freshman	66
DT	4	Drew Tripplett	Sophomore	65
LOLB	1	Perry Johnson	Senior (RS)	81
LOLB	2	John Hale	Junior (RS)	75
MLB	1	Justin Dunn	Sophomore	81
MLB	2	Sean Edwards	Senior (RS)	80
ROLB	1	Casey Hunter	Senior (RS)	86
ROLB	2	Derrick Perez	Sophomore	74
CB	1	Leonard hart	Sophomore	82
CB	2	Buck Castillo	Senior (RS)	78
CB	3	Mike Moses	Junior (RS)	78
CB	4	Lawrence Coker	Junior (RS)	69
FS	1	Charles Noble	Senior (RS)	78
FS	2	Allen Salyet	Freshman	68
SS	1	Sam Richwalski	Senior (RS)	81
SS	2	---	---	---
K	1	Doug Marcus	Sophomore	76
K	2	Freddie Arnold	Freshman	66
P	1	Freddie Arnold	Freshman	66
P	2	Doug Marcus	Sophomore	76
KR	1	Eric McGuire	Senior (RS)	99
KR	2	Leonard Hart	Sophomore	91
PR	1	Eric McGuire	Senior (RS)	99
PR	2	Leonard Hart	Sophomore	91

Alright, that should do it for all the preseason stuff. Looking over my schedule, it will be another challenging year, especially with the addition of #9 Michigan.

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

at Utah - Toss-up leaning toward a loss
at Michigan - Loss
BYU - Toss-up
at Nevada - Toss-up
Fresno State - Toss-up leaning toward a loss
at New Mexico - Win
Colorado State - Toss-up
at Boise State - Toss-up leaning toward a loss
Air Force - Toss-up leaning toward a win
Miami U - Win
at UNLV - Win
Wyoming - Win

Based on those expectation and predictions, I'm looking at 4 games I should expect to win (5 if I include the toss-up leaning towards a win against Air Force). There is really technically only one game I should expect to lose, that being the road trip to Michigan. However, there are also four games that are a toss-up, leaning towards a loss. And then there are three games that are a true toss-up that could go either way.

So logically, I'm looking at a potential record somewhere between 8-4 and 4-8 this season. Of course, this is NCAA Football, and all logic gets hanged, shot, drawn, quartered and thrown out the window the second you fire up any given game, so I very well likely could go anywhere from 14-0 to 0-12. :D :fp:

Also, three new teams on the schedule this year, as Coach Ramius, for the first time, faces Michigan, Nevada and Miami University. With those three game, Ramius has now played 58 different teams across the FBS landscape. That puts him just over 46% of all teams in the NCAA that he has coached against at least once thus far.

FYI Air Force is a tough team in my dynasty. The games are usually ultra-competitive.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by jaymo76

FYI Air Force is a tough team in my dynasty. The games are usually ultra-competitive.

---

That's why I have them as a toss-up. :D Comparing my team to their team in regards to ratings, I should have an edge, but they are a tough pain in the ass to play, so it's gonna be a battle either way.

I'm hoping to get the new season kicked off later this week. I was busy as hell last week. HS basketball broadcasts, I was filling in on the afternoon air shift on our country station, I had a bunch of stuff going on at home, so I never got any games played. The only thing I did all week in regards to my Xbox One or 360 was firing up Netflix a couple times throughout the week.

Not sure, doubt, I'll get any games played today or tomorrow (for obvious reasons). Not sure if I'll get the chance on Thursday either, since I'll be going into work on Thursday to work on weekend shows and church programs, getting them ready to go for Saturday and Sunday. Friday may be my best bet. I don't have basketball Friday, essentially, I don't have anything to do on Friday. Only thing this entire weekend is my Saturday morning air shift and then basketball at 6pm Saturday night. Other than that, my entire Friday, Saturday and Sunday will be free. So other than watching college football bowl games, I should be able to get some games in.

One thing I just realized as I type up my intro to the Utah game, I think we are going to be a very pass heavy team this year. :fp:

Halfbacks Preston Roberson (1st string last year) and Dante May (3rd string last year) both graduated. Brian Paris (2nd string last year) is sitting out this season as a redshirt. So that leaves senior Matt Leierer as my 1st string halfback this year, who has run the ball a grand total of twice in my three years at Utah State. After him, it's all true freshmen. True freshman Tyson Taylor as backup, true freshman Benjamin Silva as my 3rd stringer and true freshman Zack Coleman as my 4th stringer. :fp:

Game One

:Utah_State: :@: :Utah:



Game Story

--- The wait was over, no more practices, no more two-a-days, no more sweating away in the August heat. The start of another season had arrived, and with it, we jumped right into the fire in our first game with hatred renewed, as we headed down the highway to take on the Utes of Utah for the Battle of the Brothers, with both teams looking to get a leg up in the tri-battle for the Beehive Boot with BYU. Despite being on the road, and despite coming off a very poor season last year, we had some confidence heading into this contest, as we were much more evenly matched with Utah this time around.

We had a quite respectably ranked defense this year, and our offense was going to be back to almost full speed, with senior Adam Powers back under center to lead our offensive attack after sitting out last year with a redshirt. While we lost some talented receivers in Travis Munoz and Ryan Conley, as well as tight end Maurice Martin, to go along with some hits to the offensive line, we were able to fill the holes with the return of some players who sat out with redshirts last season, including receivers Eric McGuire and Dre Martin. The biggest question mark would be our running game. Losing star halfback Preston Roberson to graduation was going to be a tough hole to fill. That hole was made even tougher to fill with the loss of third-stringer Dante May to graduation, as well as second-stringer Brian Paris being sidelined this year with a redshirt. That would leave senior Matt Leierer, who has rushed the ball a grand total of two times in his entire collegiate career, as our starting halfback, true freshman Tyson Taylor as our backup halfback and true freshman Benjamin Silva filling in as third-string halfback. Utah won the coin toss and elected to kick.

A 30 yard kickoff return by Leonard Hart gave us the ball at our 29 yard line to start the season. Starting the drive on the ground, Matt Leierer took the handoff from Adam Powers for a four yard rush, followed by a four yard gain to leave us looking at third and two. Leaving the ball in the hands of Leierer, he would get the job done with a three yard rush to pick up the first down at the 40 yard line. A first down dive by Tyson Taylor from the wingback slot went for a big gain of 8 yards, before a two yard rush by Leierer left us just short of the first down, lining up on third and inches. Powers would do the honors himself, taking the snap and pushing forward for a one yard rush, moving the chains to the Utah 49 yard line. Another wingback dive, this time by Leierer, went for a gain of 12 yards and another quick first down at the 36. Going into the air on first down, Powers dropped back and rifled a pass to Dre Martin, complete for a 14 yard gain and a new set of downs at the 22. Another first down pass, this time intended for Eric McGuire, was nearly intercepted, leaving second and 10. Lining up under center, Powers dropped back and hit tight end Cedric McKinney over the middle for a 15 yard gain, setting us up with first and goal from the 7 yard line. A first down rush by Leierer resulted in a three yard gain, followed by a four yard rush that left us with third and goal just inches from the goal line. It would not be meant to be, as Leierer was met at the line of scrimmage and stood up for no gain, leaving fourth and goal just outside the goal line. Taking the gamble and going for it on fourth down, potentially setting up a rhythm for this season, we would fail to gain even 6 inches, as the fourth down QB sneak by Powers ended in failure, Utah’s defense stopping us twice from inside the one yard line to force the turnover on downs and take over at the one.

Lining up in their own end zone after the turnover on downs, Utah came out running on first down, as Jason McNeil kept the ball on first down for a two yard gain, giving the Utes a little bit of breathing room. That trickle would turn into a waterfall as Michael Chavez took the second down handoff straight up the middle for a 55 yard gain, torching our defense to a first down at our 42 yard line. A first down screen pass intended for Matt Dahl was dropped, setting up second and 10. A carry by Chavez went for a gain of 5 yards to leave third and 5. Lining up on a big third down, McNeil would find Clint Lee near the right sideline, but he would get tackled for a minor gain of just two yards, bringing up fourth and three for Utah. Going for it on fourth down as well, Utah lined up in the shotgun for the play. The Utes would also see failure on their fourth down attempt, as our coverage left no one open for McNeil to throw to, defensive end Leroy Fuqua able to break through his blocker and get the coverage sack on McNeil for a 5 yard loss, forcing the turnover on downs at our 40 yard line.

Beginning our next drive on the ground, Leierer got us started with a 5 yard rush around the left end, followed by a dash up the middle for a 5 yard carry, giving us a quick first down at midfield. Another rush by Leierer would pick up just two yards, setting up second and 8. Running a play action pass on second down, the throw to fullback Raymond Watson was on-target, but a hit by the cornerback knocked the ball loose and incomplete to leave third down. Max Rhodes would keep us breathing on third down, pulling in the pass from Powers for a gain of 13 yards, moving the chains to the Utah 35 yard line. A quick pass over the middle on first down, intended for fullback Walter Johnson, ended up sailing behind him and incomplete, setting up a quick second down. Powers would recover on second down, finding Martin coming across the middle on a slant route for a 13 yard completion and another first down at the 22 yard line. Everything would come crashing to a halt on first down however, as Powers took a shot into the end zone, the pass intended for McGuire, only to have it intercepted by cornerback Alvin Jackson, Jackson falling out of the back of the end zone for a touchback to give Utah the ball at their 20 yard line.

Forced back onto the field after the interception, our defense wasn’t about to take it easy on the Utes offense, as a first down handoff to Chavez resulted in a four yard loss in the face of our blitz, leaving second and 14. That would be the final play of the first quarter, the score still knotted up at 0-0.

Starting the second quarter, our defensive victory would be short lived as Utah came out with a screen pass on second down, McNeil connecting with Chavez for a 16 yard gain and a first down at the 32 yard line. Another pass to Chavez resulted in another big gain, this time for 23 yards, and Utah lined up on first down from our 45 yard line. McNeil was forced to throw the ball away on a first down play action pass to avoid a sack, leaving second and 10. A pass to Clint Lee along the left sideline would result in two different defenders shaken off and a run up the sideline for an 18 yard gain, moving the chains to our 27. Derrick Johnson took the handoff on first down, only gaining two yards on the play to leave second and 8. A second down handoff to Chavez would again be blown up by the defense for a four yard loss, setting up third and 12. Despite Hart falling down on the coverage, a rushed pass to McNeil to avoid the pressure, intended for Maurice Allen fell well short of the receiver and incomplete, leaving Utah with fourth and long from our 29. Utah would settle for a 46 yard field goal by Sam Mayhew, giving the Utes a 3-0 lead with 7:11 left in the second quarter.

A 32 yard kickoff return by McGuire gave us the ball at our 25 yard line. Leierer got our drive started with a three yard rush, followed by a pitch to the right that resulted in an 11 yard gain and a first down at the 38 yard line. A first down pass over the middle intended for Martin ended in disaster again, as cornerback Erik Collins intercepted the pass, returning it 7 yards to our 40 yard line.

Taking over at our 40 yard line after the interception, McNeil dropped back to pass on first down and lofted the ball to Dahl. Our defense nearly got us the ball back as safety Charles Noble almost intercepted the pass, ultimately dropping it incomplete as he hit the ground to bring up second down for the Utes. Our defense would keep putting up their best efforts, as McNeil would end up sacked for a 5 yard loss on the second down pass attempt, leaving Utah with third and 15. McNeil dropped back to pass on third down, and this time our defense would get the ball back for us, as the pass intended for Chavez was intercepted along the right sideline by Hart, returned two yards before going out of bounds at our 35 yard line.

Lining up on first down after our defense got the ball back, Leierer started our drive with a 7 yard dash, followed by a one yard rush that left us with third and two. Taking our chances on the ground, a third down dive by Leierer from the wingback slot would pick up three yards and get the first down at the 47. An attempted option play on first down was utterly blown up by the defense, as both Powers and Leierer was instantly taken out by the defense, Powers tackled for a two yard loss on the play. A play action pass to tight end Jack Long went for an 11 yard gain, leaving third and one. Leierer took the ball on third down, rumbling for a 9 yard gain and a first down to keep us in action at the Utah 35 yard line. A two yard rush by Leierer was followed with a pass from Powers to Johnson over the middle for an 11 yard gain, moving the chains to the 22 yard line. Lining up under center on first down, the pass over the middle intended for McKinney was nearly intercepted by the middle linebacker, leaving second and 10. Greg Miller would keep the ball moving for us with a 10 yard reception near the left hash, giving us a first down at the 12 yard line. Leierer took the ball straight up the middle on first down, pumping his way to an 8 yard gain, before being stood up for no gain on the next play to leave third and two at the four yard line. Taylor would take the ball on third down, but could only manage a single yard as Utah’s defense again would shut us down inside the red zone, leaving fourth and one from the Utah three yard line, just 29 seconds left on the clock. We had gambled already and lost, but hoping our luck would turn around, we took the gamble once more, calling timeout to stop the clock with 27 seconds to play. Lining up on fourth and one, Leierer took the handoff and would succeed this time, fighting his way to a two yard gain to give us first and goal at the one yard line. We called our second timeout with 23 seconds to play, looking for at least two attempts at punching it in. We would end up only needing a single try, as Leierer took the first down handoff, found a gap to the left of the center and laid out, diving into the end zone for the one yard touchdown to give us a 7-3 lead with 21 seconds left before halftime.

A 23 yard kickoff return by Chavez gave Utah the ball at their 24 yard line, 17 seconds to work with. A first down screen pass to Chavez gained 16 yards and a first down at the 41 yard line, but tackled inbounds, forcing Utah to call their first timeout with 9 seconds left. Another screen pass to Chavez gained 7 yards, getting out of bounds at the 48 yard line with just four seconds remaining. McNeil would never even get the chance to throw the final pass, as McBride broke off his block and managed to get to McNeil right as he was winding up to throw, sacking him for a 7 yard loss that brought the second quarter to an end. With that, we headed into halftime holding onto a surprising 7-3 lead.

Opening up the second half, Johnson returned the kickoff 21 yards to give Utah the ball at their 25 yard line to start the third quarter. A diving deflection by safety Sam Richwalski broke up a first down pass attempt intended for Lee, bringing up an immediate second down for the Utes. A screen pass over the middle to Roger Armstrong went for a 9 yard gain, leaving Utah with third and one. A quick pass on third down connected with Dahl for a 6 yard gain and a first down at the 41 yard line, the Utes taking advantage of our run-cheating defense. Put under immediate pressure by our blitzing defense, McNeil was left dancing on his first down pass attempt, before throwing an on the move, off-balanced pass across his body, intended for Armstrong clear across the field along the opposite sideline. Instead of finding Armstrong, the very poorly thrown pass found its way right into the arms of cornerback Buck Castillo, who returned it 9 yards to give us the ball at the Utah 41 yard line.

Leierer started our offensive drive on the ground with a 7 yard carry, followed by a three yard rush that left us facing third and inches. Taylor would take the third down handoff, fighting his way to a four yard gain to pick up the first down at the 27 yard line. A four yard rush by Leierer was followed by a 10 yard dash up the middle to move the chains to the Utah 13 yard line. Taylor took the ball on first down, but was immediately dragged down by the blitzing cornerback for no gain, leaving second and 10. Lining up under center on second down, Utah completely sold out on the play action pass, leaving Watson completely uncovered along the right sideline, hauling in the pass from Powers and trotting into the end zone for a 13 yard touchdown, increasing our lead to 14-3 with 5:19 left in the third quarter.

A 24 yard kickoff return by Johnson gave Utah the ball at their 26 yard line. A bullet pass to Ronnie Wilson ended up sailing out of bounds behind the receiver and incomplete, leaving an early second down. A failed interception attempt by Noble allowed Dahl to haul in the second down pass from McNeil, taking it for a gain of 19 yards and giving Utah a first down at the 45 yard line. Chavez took the ball on first down for a one yard gain, followed by a 10 yard completion to Allen, the ball from McNeil thrown across his body, and Allen somehow picking that ball up before it hit the ground, resulting in a first down at our 44 yard line. A dropped pass by a wide open Wilson turned what would have been a sure first down into an incompletion, resulting in second down. McNeil would end up meeting our defensive line on the next play, as defensive tackle Ernest Sims broke through the block by the center and tripped up McNeil, credited with a sack for a 7 yard loss to leave Utah facing third and 17. The third down pass over the middle intended for Allen was broken up by Richwalski, and Utah was forced to punt on fourth down, our defense holding despite the early success by the Utes. The 51 yard punt would land at the four yard line and bounce into the end zone for a touchback.

Lining up after the touchback, Leierer got us off and running with a first down carry for a gain of 7 yards, followed by a rush for no gain to leave us looking at third and three. Dropping back into the shotgun on third down, Powers connected with Benjamin Silva out of the backfield for a huge 12 yard gain, picking up the first down at the 39 yard line. Turning back to the ground game, Leierer picked up four yards on the first down handoff, before Taylor was brought down by the blitz for a one yard loss to leave us with third and 7. Blown coverage by the defense allowed Max Rhodes to get open along the left hash, the pass complete for a 10 yard gain and a new set of downs at the Utah 48 yard line. Taylor took the handoff on first down, fighting his way to a 6 yard gain, followed by a three yard rush by Silva to set up third and one. Taylor would get the third down conversion, taking the handoff straight up the gut for a three yard carry, moving the chains to the 36 yard line. A first down carry by Taylor would pick up three yards, leaving us with second and 7. That would be the final play of the third quarter, our lead holding at 14-3 and looking to add on to it.

Opening up the fourth quarter, we lined up at the Utah 34 yard line facing second and 7. Lining up under center, Powers dropped back and rifled a pass to McKinney, but it was broken up, nearly intercepted, by the middle linebacker, leaving third down. The third down pass from Powers to Martin was on the mark, but while Martin was initially able to pull the ball in, he would end up dropping it as the hit from behind by the safety jarred the ball loose and incomplete. Out of field goal (for our kicker at least) and forced to go for it on fourth down, we would fail to convert as Powers was forced to dump the ball off underneath to Rhodes, a completion that would gain only two yards and give the ball back to Utah at their 32 yard line.

McNeil dropped back to pass on first down, Utah looking to close the 11 point gap right now, but his pass heaved deep down the right sideline intended for Wilson sailed long and out of bounds, bringing up second down. A second down screen pass to Chavez resulted in a 12 yard gain and a first down, Chavez shoved out of bounds at the 44 yard line. Handing the ball off on first down, Chavez picked up just two yards before our defense brought him down. A missed open field tackle by Hart allowed Allen to pull in the second down pass from McNeil, nearly taking it all the way to the house until a diving ankle tackle by Richwalski tripped him up for a 54 yard gain, setting Utah up with first and goal from our one yard line. Chavez would need just one play to punch it in for the one yard touchdown. Looking to further cut our lead down, the Utes went for the two point conversion, but the pass from McNeil to Armstrong in the corner of the end zone was overthrown and incomplete, our lead only cut to 14-9 with 7:49 left in the game.

A 21 yard kickoff return by McGuire left us lining up from our 19 yard line. Taylor got our drive started with a 6 yard rush around the left tackle, followed by a 6 yard dive up the middle, picking up a first down at the 31. Another handoff to Taylor resulted in a three yard gain, leaving second and 7, as we tried to chew up as much clock as we could. Naturally, we would throw our lead away as the second down pass intended for Rhodes was intercepted by outside linebacker Ben McKenzie, who returned it 39 yards for a touchdown. Utah would again go for the two point conversion, but the pass to Allen, completed this time, would result in the play being no good as he was brought down at the two yard line, leaving Utah’s lead at just 15-14 with 5:45 left in the game.

A 25 yard kickoff return by Hart gave us the ball at our 24 yard line for our next drive. After a three yard rush by Taylor on first down, we were able to catch Utah with the play action pass, Powers connecting with Watson for an 11 yard gain and a first down at the 38. Another rush by Taylor gained 5 yards, followed by a wingback dive by Taylor for a one yard gain, leaving third and four. Lining up in the shotgun on third down, blown coverage by the defense allowed Rhodes to get open and haul in the pass this time, complete for a 12 yard gain and a first down at the Utah 44 yard line. Taylor kept us moving with a three yard rush, before a pass over the middle to Johnson was broken up by the middle linebacker, leaving third and 7. Rhodes would come through for us yet again on third down, this time hauling in an 11 yard completion to move the chains to the 30 yard line and keep the clock ticking away. Taylor took the ball on first down for a 7 yard carry, followed by a three yard rush that left us facing third and inches, Utah calling their first timeout to stop the clock with 1:08 left in the game. Lining up for a huge third down play, Taylor was able to get the first down and then some, rushing for a gain of 7 yards to move the sticks to the 13 yard line. Utah didn’t bother to call a timeout this time, and the clock kept ticking under a minute. Trying to get us lined up for the game-winning field goal attempt, Taylor took the ball on first down for a three yard gain, followed by a second three yard rush to leave third and four. Silva then came on third down and fought his way to a two yard gain, setting up fourth and two at the 5 yard line, as we called our first timeout with four seconds left in the game. As expected, as we lined up for the 22 yard field goal attempt, Utah called their second timeout to try and freeze our kicker. They would do the same thing again as we lined up a second time, calling their final timeout. Lining up for the third time, the chip shot 22 yard field goal by Doug Marcus sailed through the uprights, giving us a 17-15 lead with one second left on the clock.

A squib kick up the middle was picked up by tight end Matthew Brown and returned 14 yards, the game seemingly over. As usual, the game couldn’t end there as we tried to find new ways to screw ourselves out of wins, this time by middle linebacker Sean Edwards being flagged for a facemask penalty during the tackle on the return, the 15 yards giving Utah the ball at our 38 yard line and an untimed down to screw us out of victory. McNeil lined up in the shotgun and chucked up the Hail Mary pass. Miraculously, we would not blow it, as safety Allen Salyer went up at the 5 yard line and intercepted the pass, returning it 5 yards before falling to the ground to seal our 17-15 season opening win over rival Utah and claim the Battle of the Brothers for 2022.

With the win, we open our 2022 season 1-0, 0-0 in Mountain West action. With the loss, Utah starts their year 0-1, 0-0 in Pac-12 play. Up next, we get a bye week to rest before it's back on the road as we play our biggest game of the season, a trip to the Big House to face #9 Michigan.

Final Score

:Utah_State: 17, :Utah: 15




Stats of the Game:
Utah State Offense - A rough return to action for Powers, going 14-24 for 158 yards and one touchdown, but also three interceptions. Rushing, Leierer led the way with 127 yards and one touchdown on 29 carries. Taylor ended with 74 yards on 20 rushes, Silva had 6 yards on two carries and Powers had zero yards rushing on three carries. Receiving, Rhodes was the top receiver with 48 yards on five receptions. Watson had 24 yards and the lone receiving touchdown on two catches. In all, eight receivers caught at least one pass during the game, all eight ending with double digit yards.

Utah State Defense/Special Teams – Surprisingly very good. Despite being put into tough situations by our offense, the defense held Utah scoreless in the first and third quarter, held them to only a field goal in the second quarter, and it wasn't until the fourth quarter that Utah's offense started to finish drives with touchdowns. A big part of that was some key stops and sacks on third downs, as well as three interceptions, one each by Salyer, Castillo and Hart. This could be a great season if the defense can keep playing like every game the entire year.

Utah State Kicking – A perfect day for Marcus, going 1-1 in field goal attempts, connecting on the game-winning 22 yard attempt, as well as going 2-2 in PATs.




Scoring Summary

Team	1st Quarter	2nd Quarter	3rd Quarter	4th Quarter	Final Score
:Utah_State:	0	7	7	3	17
:Utah:	0	3	0	12	15

Time	Team	Result	Play	Score
First Quarter
---	---	---	---	---
Second Quarter
7:14	:Utah:	Field Goal	S. Mayhew, 46 yard field goal	:Utah: 3-0
0:21	:Utah_State:	Touchdown	M. Leierer, 1 yard run (D. Marcus kick)	:Utah_State: 7-3
Third Quarter
5:19	:Utah_State:	Touchdown	R. Watson, 13 yard pass from A. Powers (D. Marcus kick)	:Utah_State: 14-3
Fourth Quarter
7:49	:Utah:	Touchdown	M. Chavez, 1 yard run (2-point conversion failed)	:Utah_State: 14-9
5:45	:Utah:	Touchdown	B. McKenzie, returned interception 39 yards (2-point conversion failed)	:Utah: 15-14
0:01	:Utah_State:	Field Goal	D. Marcus, 22 yard field goal	:Utah_State: 17-15

Game Stats

Utah State	Stat	Utah
17	Score	15
24	First Downs	10
365	Total Offense	228
54 - 207 - 1	Rushes - Yards - TD	13 - 36 - 1
14 - 24 - 1	Comp - Att - TD	12 - 24 - 0
158	Passing Yards	192
0	Times Sacked	4
12 - 16 (75%)	3rd Down Conversion	1 - 5 (20%)
1 - 3 (33%)	4th Down Conversion	0 - 1 (0%)
0 - 0 (0%)	2-Point Conv	0 - 2 (0%)
4 - 2 - 1 (75%)	Red Zone - TD - FG	1 - 1 - 0 (100%)
3	Turnovers	3
0	Fumbles Lost	0
3	Intercepted	3
0	Punt Return Yards	0
107	Kick Return Yards	82
472	Total Yards	310
0 – 0.0	Punts - Average	1 - 51.0
1 - 15	Penalties	0 - 0
22:56	Time of Possession	13:04

Utah State Coach Goals

Goal	XP Reward	Completed
Win a Game	100	x1
Score a Touchdown	25	x2
Force a Turnover	25	x3
Rush for 100 Yards	25	x1
3+ Sacks	50	x1
Play in an ESPN Classic Game	75	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
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	7	1

Job Security Status

100%

Taking a look around the nation, in the Top 25, in the game of the week, #11 South Carolina stunned #2 Alabama 24-22. #3 Texas A&M beat Georgia 55-31. #5 Miami barely escaped Toledo 27-24. #8 Notre Dame topped #10 Texas 48-23. #9 Michigan fought off #23 Oregon State 28-21. #12 Stanford whooped Northwestern 48-7. #13 UCLA manhandled #25 Virginia 52-7. #14 Florida State survived Texas State 31-28 Boise State knocked off #21 Auburn 35-28. And #24 Nebraska thumped BYU 45-13. In non-top 25 action, in the 2022 Texas Kickoff Classic, it was Texas Tech defeating Arkansas 33-26.

For our readers, JeffHCross, #1 Ohio State remains 0-0 (0-0 Big Ten) with a bye week. Morsdraconis, West Virginia remains 0-0 (0-0 Big 12) with a bye week. Souljahbill, Southern Miss opens the year 0-1 (0-0 C-USA) with a 41-17 loss to Mississippi State. Jaymo, Arizona State opens the year 0-1 (0-0 Pac-12), with a shocking 34-24 loss to New Mexico. LeeSO, #21 Auburn opens the year 0-1 (0-0 SEC) with a 35-28 loss to Boise State. SCClassof93, #11 South Carolina opens the year 1-0 (1-0 SEC) with a stunning 24-22 upset of #2 Alabama. 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, Boise State stunned #21 Auburn 35-28, Utah State knocked off Utah 17-15, Colorado State took the Rocky Mountain Showdown over Colorado 48-17 and New Mexico shocked Arizona State 34-24.

Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, Ohio State (32 first place votes) remains the #1 team, Texas A&M (26 votes) climbs one to #2, USC (2 votes) climbs one to #3, Miami (1 vote) jumps one to #4 and Oklahoma moves up one to #5. Notre Dame jumps two to #6, Michigan State remains #7, South Carolina jumps three to #8, Michigan remains #9 and Alabama drops eight to #10. Stanford climbs one to #11, UCLA jumps one to #12, Florida State moves up one to #13, Georgia Tech rises one to #14 and Florida jumps one to #15. Louisville jumps one to #16, Texas drops seven to #17, Clemson remains #18, Central Florida remains #19 and Washington remains #20. Virginia Tech climbs one to #21, Nebraska jumps two to #22, Oregon enters the poll at #23, Kentucky enters the poll at #24 and Oregon State (145 points) drops two to #25. Dropping out of the poll this week was Auburn (from #21) and Virginia (from #25). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, LSU (89 points) is #26, followed by Connecticut (58), San Diego State (43), Ole Miss (28) and Virginia (25) to round out the Top 30.

An early season look at the Heisman race, Texas A&M QB Zac Hopkins is #1, UCLA QB Mark Wilson is #2, Notre Dame QB Mike Harper is #3, Alabama HB Derek Scott is #4 and Miami HB Tony Martinez is #5.