Battered Aggies ready to hold the line
Battered by injuries and looking to start the season 2-2 for the first time since 2005, the Utah State (1-2, 0-1 WAC) will travel to San Diego on Saturday, doing battle with the Mountain West’s San Diego State Aztecs (2-1). It is the first meeting of the two teams since 1977, and arguably a ‘must win’ game for USU if the Aggies are to accomplish their goal of getting to the postseason this year.
Getting that win won’t be easy for head coach Gary Andersen’s Aggies, who are coming off a 41-24 loss to Fresno State at home. Like other opponents who have beaten USU this year, San Diego State has started off the 2010 season on the right foot, and comes into the game having nearly stunned No. 25 Missouri in the Aztecs’ last game. It’s an impressive start given San Diego State’s 4-8 record in 2009, and is a start not overlooked by Andersen.
“San Diego State is in my opinion a very improved football team,” Andersen said. “They had the number 25 team in the country beat …. They have some young kids in their program that have stepped up, and are making some nice plays for them.”
Chief among the players who have stepped up for second-year headman Hoke is running back Ronnie Hillman. While San Diego State ultimately lost to Missouri when the Tigers surged ahead on a 68-yard touchdown pass with under a minute to play, Hillman did his part lead the Aztecs to the near upset. The freshman sensation ran for 228 yards and two touchdowns on just 23 carries (9.9 yard average) during Saturday’s 27-24 loss, and currently leads the MWC in rushing yards.
According to Andersen, Hillman’s success on the ground so far this season is indicative of San Diego State’s renewed emphasis in the running game and establishing a physical presence up front. A defensive line coach by trade, Andersen was quick to praise the Aztec offensive line during his weekly press conference, and noted how this year’s Aztec team has a different look that past teams.
“This year their ability to run the football is what they do first,” Andersen said. “I believe it is the development of the program. They want to be able to run the football, and not be pass happy or however they did it in the past.”
Keeping the San Diego State run game in check has been among the main points of emphasis for USU’s defensive lineman this week. The Aggies stuffed Idaho State’s running game in week two, but have allowed big runs to both Oklahoma’s DeMarco Murray in week one and Fresno’s A.J. Ellis last week. Numbers however, according to USU defensive end Levi Koskan, can be deceiving. At Andersen’s weekly press conference, the junior defender pointed out that Utah State’s struggles against the run have been accentuated by one or two long runs a game.
“It’s frustrating that we have struggled to contain the ‘big run,’ it seems like in every game we let one go for 50 yards,” Koskan said.
“It always looks like there is a guy who is just missing making the play or misses his assignment and the runner is gone, but that’s Division I football,” he added.
Koskan added that USU’s struggles against the run weren’t due to lack of physicality or missed tackles.
“We are wrapping up well,” Koskan said. “In practice that is something that Coach Andersen is always stressing: ‘you wrap your man up.’ When we get to the ball, we wrap up and stop the play. It’s just those one or two plays that we miss our assignments that are hurting us the most.”
Other questions abound for Utah State going into the game against the Aztecs. After a disastrous special teams outing against Fresno State last week, Andersen said that Utah State will go back to the drawing board in addressing both punt coverage and kick return coverage. Among the new approaches Andersen is taking is switching up the team’s personnel packages and getting different players on the field for special teams plays.
“We will get the best kids out there, there may be a tweak or two,” Andersen said. “As coaches we need to be able to put ourselves in a position to coach that better and put kids in a position to make plays.”
Utah State’s special team questions aren’t just limited to the kick and punt coverage teams. The Aggies are facing a major question with their own kicking game after kicker/punter Peter Caldwell suffered an ankle injury last week. Caldwell is currently out of the brace he wore earlier in the week, but Andersen said his status is still uncertain for Saturday’s contest. Andersen said that Braeden Loveless would kick if Caldwell cannot, but also said freshman Nick Diaz could get a chance to contribute.
“Branden could do all the kicking this week, but we are also going to take a look at Nick Diaz and see what happens,” Andersen said. “Nick is going to have a chance to come out this week and practice and see what he can do. If he is ready to go, then we will pull off that red shirt and away he goes.”
Several other key Aggie performers on offense and defense remain uncertain for this week’s game. Starting running back Michael Smith, as well as defensive backs Chris Randle and Rajric Coleman, were all described as “questionable” during Monday’s press conference. While their absence from the lineup will hurt Utah State against San Diego State, Andersen said the team will have to find a way to move on.
“Those are tough blows as we go through, but again we will fight through and keep battling,” Andersen said. “It is an opportunity for another young man to step up and do some things for us.”
Andersen and his players aren’t letting Hillman, special teams or injuries get in their way as the team prepares for its third of four non-conference games. Yet with a challenging conference slate ahead and a nationally televised rivalry game with Brigham Young looming, the team has no other choice but to leave past mistakes in the past, and embrace the next game.
“We will move onward, but we will not forget it,” said Andersen. “We are not in a position to forget a loss, and move on. We will learn from it, and move in that direction.”
– adam.nettina@aggiemail.usu.edu