Finding a new way to lose
Somehow, someway, the USU football team did it again – but this time in a very unusual way.
The Aggies lost another fourth-quarter lead Saturday, as well as another game, 23-20, to the San Jose State Spartans.
The unexpected part came with 56 seconds left and USU down by three. The Spartans had just scored a touchdown and were kicking off from their own 15-yard line – having been moved back 15 yards because of a penalty after the extra point.
Jared Strubeck’s kick went high into a strong northbound wind, landing near midfield in the midst of a host of navy blue jerseys. Unfortunately for USU, nobody picked up the ball – which, on kickoffs, is live after it goes more than 10 yards.
The Spartans recovered on the USU 49-yard line with 48 ticks on the clock.
And so it goes. The Aggies are now 0-4 (0-1 in Western Athletic Conference play), and the Spartans moved to 1-3 (1-0).
USU is the only WAC team without a win.
“We had no idea it would go like this,” Aggie junior safety Caleb Taylor said. “At the end it was big. Our team was really hurt by this one.”
A very similar situation occurred in the season-opener against the University of Nevada-Las Vegas when Aggie wideout Kevin Robinson fumbled on the final kickoff return as he tried to make a play to get the Aggies back in the lead.
Against the Wyoming Cowboys two weeks ago, USU held a lead in the fourth quarter but could not hold on.
Aggie senior quarterback Leon Jackson III, who threw two interceptions on the night, tried to shed positive light on Saturday’s loss.
“We competed,” Jackson said. “We showed a lot of courage. Irregardless as to what happened in the first three quarters or however long into the fourth quarter, we gave ourselves a chance to win the game.”
With consecutive road games coming up at the University of Utah (Sept. 29) as well as at Hawaii (Oct. 6), how do the Aggies regroup at this point?
“We just gotta keep fighting,” said Taylor, who recorded nine tackles. “All we got is our team, the Aggies. Forget about the fans. A lot of people may turn on us after this one. We’re gonna keep fighting and continue to be a family.”
Head Coach Brent Guy said, “Every guy’s got to look in the mirror and say, ‘What could I have done on a certain play somewhere down the line in that second half that could have made a diff in the three points we got beat by?'”
The Spartans had their best game of the season in more ways than one: Their 23 points, 524 yards of total offense (426 passing, 98 rushing) and 30 first downs.
SJSU also converted 7-of-16 third-downs and had possession of the ball for 33:40 to USU’s 26:20.
Spartan quarterback Adam Tafralis entered the game with an average of just more than 100 yards passing in his team’s previous three losses.
CELEBRATING TOO EARLY?
The game seemed all but wrapped for the Aggies after the Spartan’s second to last drive.
USU had just gone up 20-16 after completing an 18-play scoring drive that was finished by a one-yard rushing touchdown from redshirt freshman Dervin Speight.
The Spartans’ proceeding drive began with 6:12 on the clock. They marched 50 yards down field before Tafralis was picked off by Taylor at the USU 25 with 3:50 left. The Aggies would just need to get at least one first down to keep the clock moving and force the Spartans to use all their timeouts.
Amazingly, the Aggies failed to get a first down on their next drive, moving only eight yards in 33 seconds.
Jackson then launched a 50-yard punt to let the Spartans begin a six-play, 83-yard drive into the end zone to take the lead for good.
“I think we thought when we intercepted the ball we made the critical play,” Guy said. “There was enough time left on the clock and (the Spartans) had enough timeouts that it wasn’t the most critical play of the game. You’ve got to play it until the last second is off the clock. We haven’t learned that yet. I’ve got to find a way to teach them somehow.”
AGGIE HIGHLIGHTS
Though the Spartans had put the Aggies in a 9-0 hole early in the second quarter, USU found its way back very quickly.
Robinson returned a kickoff 82 yards for a touchdown with 13:26 left in the second frame to narrow the Spartan lead to two.
Peter Caldwell hit two field goals late in the first half to narrow the lead to three points before intermission.
Speight ended with 99 yards rushing. The Aggies combined for 253 yards of total offense.
Robinson tallied 197 yards on punt and kick returns.
Linebacker De’von Hall had a team-high 11 tackles.
JORGENSEN AND McCORMICK
Offensive lineman Pace Jorgensen, the heaviest and most experienced player the Aggies have, was out for the majority of the game due to cramping in his back.
Guy did not comment on Jorgensen’s status for next week.
Though earlier in the week Guy said junior quarterback Jase McCormick would be used again, he wasn’t in spite of the fact Jackson threw two interceptions.
-samuel.hislop@aggiemail.usu.edu