Ags ready for Boise
Up until last week, the Utah State football team had accomplished its goal of being better than before after every game they had played.
In the 53-21 loss to Fresno State the Aggies looked “frenzied,” Head Coach Brent Guy said. Neither the score nor the many mistakes were the worst part of the loss. It was the overall step back the Ags took.
“We took a step forward two weeks ago against San Jose State,” Guy said. “I felt like we took a step back [against Fresno]. I hadn’t felt like that all year until this game.”
The Aggies will have a chance to take a step forward as they will take on Boise State Saturday at 4:30 p.m. in Romney Stadium.
The problem lies in the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde aspect of this year’s team. When playing at home and on the road, there looks to be two different teams taking the field.
“We’re at the halfway mark of the season,” Guy said. “We have to decide which football team we’re going to be – the one we see at home or the one we see on the road.”
The home team is undefeated, winning against San Jose State and UNLV.
The road team blew an early first half lead against Utah, couldn’t quite tie the game against Idaho and was dominated by Fresno State.
“It’s very frustrating to lose on the road like we have,” Aggie center Nick George said. “The frustrating thing about the road is that we’ve made the mistakes on the little things.”
Saturday’s game against Boise State should show what team is the real Utah State Aggies. The Broncos are the defending Western Athletic Conference champions and have won four straight after losing their first two games to Georgia and Oregon State.
The Boise State running attack leads the WAC in rushing with 220 yards per game. Even with all the yards they’re piling up, not one Boise State tailback averages more than 100 yards per game as their leading rusher gains around 65 yards each game.
Their second-year starter, quarterback Jared Zabransky, also averages just under 40 yards per game rushing to add another dimension to the Bronco rushing attack.
The Aggie rushing attack sits sixth in the WAC at 97 yards per game. Against Fresno State, tailback Ryan Bohm sat out with injuries but should see time this week as should Marcus Crawford and Lynwood Johnson. Johnson, a fullback, carried the ball three times against Fresno fumbling once, but Guy said he practiced well last week so he could continue to get touches.
Tailback Chris Forbes, who was carted off the field after sustaining a neck injury in the Fresno game, will be questionable for Boise State.
Guy said the injury wasn’t as serious as it first looked so Forbes should improve and may have a chance to play against the Broncos Saturday.
Having Boise State come to Logan will let the Aggie fans see what kind of program Guy is trying to build as the Broncos have built what Guy said he would like to see the Aggies become.
“Boise State is exactly what we’re trying to be, which is a great team,” Guy said. “They’re a bunch of guys who know how to win and execute under all situations.”
“The best example is that they’re leading the league in rushing and don’t have anyone averaging over 100 yards. Everyone chips in and makes them the best rushing team in the league.”
The main obstacle for the Aggies is leadership. Without leaders, the team may not be going in the same direction after their 32-point loss to Fresno.
“We’ve got some guys trying to lead, but we need more leadership,” Guy said. “They’re leading by their play but they’re going to have to lead vocally to hold the group together because that’s a tough embarrassing loss to take.”
The Aggies have lost the last four games they have played against Boise State. The two teams haven’t met since Boise’s 66-38 win in 2002, the Bronco’s second year in the WAC.
-krn@cc.usu.edu