Football team looks to bounce back after loss

Homecoming on Saturday afternoon at Romney Stadium.

“As a team, we did not execute,” Aggie linebacker DJ Brookter said. “The coaches were calling the right plays and putting us in the right places, but as a defense as a whole, we were not making the plays or getting the stops.”

Utah State Head Coach Brent Guy was pleased with the third quarter effort put forth by the Aggies, but in order to be able to win, the team will have to play better as a whole.

“We are going to win by being a team and that means 11 guys doing their job,” Guy said. “We are not going to be a team that can win with 10 guys doing their job and we are not going to be a team where one guy wins the game for us. We are a team that wins when everybody hits on all cylinders.”

The two teams are pretty similar both statistically and organizationally. Both head coaches were hired over the off-season and both are defensive minded. Dick Tomey, the Spartans’ head coach, used his flex defensive scheme to lead the Arizona football program to success from 1987-2000.

The flex defense changes blocking assignments so its a tough scheme to defend since it isn’t as common a defense, Guy said. Basically, there is a player at 3 yards behind the line and inserts himself in the line of scrimmage if the play is at him if not he becomes a linebacker-type player. Along with a more traditional middle linebacker another 5 yards behind him the five players near the line keep things bottled up, he said.

The five players break up blocking schemes for the offense, Guy said, because the flex players can count as linemen or linebackers.

The Spartans are still getting comfortable with the defense, as are the Aggies with their offense and defense, which has contributed to some of the early season problems defensively for the Spartans. Statistically, though, they played their best defensive game last week, similar to the Aggies.

The Spartans average eight fewer rushing yards per game than the Aggies, 120-112. Passing the ball has been better for the Spartans, though, since they average almost 234 yards per game throwing.

The Spartans may have had to throw the ball more than they liked, as they have been outscored in the first quarter 62-28. Guy said much of that could be contributed to early turnovers that led to easy points for the opposing team.

“Turnovers will be significant factors and also where those turnovers occur,” Guy said. “The teams that have gotten up and out in front of San Jose have shortened the field on them. What we have to do when we get our opportunities is shorten the field a little bit more with our turnovers.”

So far this season, Guy said the Aggies have been getting bailed out by their turnovers. The Ags are getting out of trouble with their turnovers and the fumbles and interceptions need to shorten the field a little bit more, Guy said.

Aggie quarterback Leon Jackson III may be used a little more sparingly in the running game against the Spartans as his throwing decision-making has declined in recent games in accordance with his increase in rushes, Guy said.

Against UNLV, Jackson didn’t run as many times – 13 – and threw the ball well, but against Utah and Idaho, he ran the ball 18 times and his decision making near the end of the game wasn’t as sharp, Guy said.

“It wears on you,” Guy said of using Jackson as the main running threat. “He was physically spent after the game. We have got to find other ways to still have Leon as a threat, but not for Leon have to carry the load and be the only play that you know will get four or five yards.”

This Saturday will also mark the 76th Homecoming game for the Aggies. Their all-time Homecoming record is 47-26-2 and their record against SJSU in Homecoming games is 1-3. The game will kick off at 1:05 p.m. at Romney Stadium.