Aggies face defending champs
Despite a 1-5 start marked by inconsistent play, Utah State football players and coaches hope to leave their non-conference woes in the dust and contend for the Sun Belt title.
But the road ahead of the Aggies leads to Denton, Texas, where the Aggies will take on two-time defending conference champ North Texas on Saturday.
The Mean Green (3-3, 2-0) boast a 13-game winning streak in conference games and the preseason picks for Sun Belt offensive and defensive players of the year, running back Patrick Cobb and defensive tackle Brandon Kennedy.
Utah State tight end Chris Cooley said he knows what this game means for the Aggies.
“I think everyone on our team feels like this is by far the most important game of the year for us,” Cooley said. “Especially in the situation that we are in right now, where we really need a win.”
With a 1-0 record in conference play and all of their remaining games against Sun Belt opponents, USU can still contend for the trip to the New Orleans Bowl.
The Aggies played well at times against ranked teams like Nebraska and Arizona State, but breakdowns in all three aspects of their game cost them chances to come away with wins.
The Mean Green had the nation’s toughest preseason schedule. Their three losses were against No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 11 Arkansas, and Mountain West-leading Air Force.
Utah State Head Coach Mick Dennehy said the Aggies will have to overcome mistakes to beat North Texas.
“We have got to play our best football game all around, as a team if we are going to have a chance to win this thing,” he said.
With only one win on the season, USU’s confidence level was waning after the Homecoming loss to Wyoming.
The Aggies held a three-hour meeting Sunday to discuss the team’s direction, hoping to get things turned around after the disappointing start.
“The bottom line is this: We have got to steer the course and stay on track,” Dennehy said. “You compound the fact we haven’t won and that makes it even more difficult. Somehow, someway we have got to get back to the very basics and fundamentals of what it takes to win.”
With two Sun Belt wins, the Mean Green are in the driver’s seat of the conference race, while Utah State and Middle Tennessee trail with one win each. All other Sun Belt teams have at least one conference loss.
“The conference championship is going to go through Denton,” Dennehy said.
The Mean Green have won twostraight games, beating Louisiana-Lafayette 44-23 and coming back from a two-touchdown deficit to beat Idaho 24-14.
Against Idaho, Cobb set a school and Sun Belt record, rushing for 249 yards and three touchdowns. It was the second straight week Cobb had a personal best for rushing yards.
North Texas quarterback Scott Hall’s favorite target is freshman wide receiver Johnny Quinn with 18 receptions. Quinn averages 20.5 yards per catch.
Hall shared playing time with Andrew Smith through the first four games but was the lone QB in the Mean Green’s last two outings.
The Mean Green lead the conference in total defense, highlighted by Kennedy, whose brother Kenoy plays for the Denver Broncos, and linebacker Chris Hurd, who is first on the team in tackles.
Against Louisiana-Lafayette the Mean Green tied a NCAA record by forcing three safeties.
Punter Ben Chaet said Utah State won’t be intimidated.
“They are a good team, but I think we are just as good,” Chaet said. “A big part of our season rotates on this game. We are going to treat it like another work week – go out and prepare Tuesday through Friday and show up on Saturday and give them everything we have got.”
Aggie quarterback Travis Cox leads the conference in passing yards per game as well as total offense. Cox averages 208 yards per contest.
The Aggies also have Cooley back from a foot injury that held him out of two games.
Cooley caught five passes for 72 yards against Wyoming to lead the team in his first game since the injury.
Utah State running back David Fiefia is second in the Sun Belt in rushing.
The Aggies continued to battle field position problems in their loss to Wyoming. The Cowboys’ average starting position was their own 49-yard line.
In Utah State’s five losses this season their opponents’ average starting position was the 43, while the Aggies averaged the 25-yard line.
In USU’s lone win, roles reversed as the Aggies held Louisiana-Monroe to starting at the 23 while they started at ULM’s 37.
-royburton@cc.usu.edu