AGGIE OF THE WEEK: Riley Nelson

Utah Statesman: You won the Aggie of the Week award, what does this honor mean to you?

Riley Nelson: It means a lot, it’s a real honor being chosen to represent the university. It was a collective team effort getting the win on Saturday but I’ll take it.

USU: Were you worried about disrupting team chemistry when you took over at quarterback as a true freshman?

RN: Not with this group of guys. Leon handled it really well; he was a great help to me last week in practice and as I’m sure everyone saw in the game. He was on the sideline keeping me mentally in it and giving me positive reinforcement constantly. As well as being a great athlete and a football player he’s a great person too and I really admire him.

USU: Was Saturday night a high point of your football career?

RN: I think so. Coming in and getting the opportunity to play as a true freshman and getting a win in the first start was probably a high point.

USU: Last year you played on a Logan High team that won the 3A state championship and beat the 5A state champion Skyline Eagles yet didn’t get a shot at the 4A champ from just up the road, Mountain Crest. What do you think would have happened if the teams had met on the field?

RN: No comment.

USU: Your football team is 1-1 in the WAC and anything is possible at this point. Do you guys talk about that opportunity?

RN: Oh yeah. We’re still in a position to win the WAC championship. Everyone around us wanted to jump off the ship when we started off 0-4 in preseason and lost the opening game in the WAC but sitting at 1-1 we’re right in the thick of things. It’s still early on and we still have six games to play. Our goal is to win every game we can so we definitely feel we still have a shot at the championship.

USU: Has the media attention since the Idaho game been overwhelming at all?

RN: A little bit; I’m always flattered that people are interested in me; but not really. It’s just one of those things you have to deal with. I think some other guys on the team deserve a little more media attention than they’re getting.

USU: Are you tired of being asked about your LDS mission in every single interview?

RN: You know what, if people want to know about it, I’m just going to keep telling them the same answer, that I’m going and that’s not going to change.

USU: Do you find you get recognized more on campus now?

RN: Surprisingly not really. My close friends on campus always say what’s up to me. Nothing much has changed.

USU: If you were on death row, what would your last meal be?

RN: Probably just steak and some mashed potatoes.

USU: How did you go from completing three passes all game to going six-for-six on your final drive against Fresno?

RN: I don’t know. We went to a lot more quick stuff on that final drive. I should have completed a lot more passes; the O-line was giving me all day to throw; I had receivers open. I think I let my emotions get a little bit the best of me in that a lot of my throws were high and my footwork was a little sloppy. I didn’t have that fine-tune focus. Obviously as everyone saw Kevin made nice catches, Otis made that nice catch that he got undercut on and then Marcus coming out of the backfield made a lot of nice plays for me.