State Your Case: Which team will win the Battle of the Brothers?
by Tavin Stucki
sports editor
Let’s be honest. Just because the Aggies beat up on Southern Utah means absolutely nothing in terms of how well they will play against the team from down south.
Aggie loss comes down to a missed field goal, 20-17.
There are two reasons Utah is going to win the battle of the brothers for the seven billionth time in Romney Stadium.
First, the Utes have one of the best defensive lines in the country and will win the turnover battle. Utah State’s offensive line performed well against SUU last week, but Tyler Larsen and the big hefties lined up on his left and right will soon learn how much better a Pac-12 team plays than an FCS squad.
This won’t only affect the fatigue levels of USU’s O-line, it’ll make it so Kerwynn Williams and Joe Hill won’t be able to bust out hundreds of rushing yards like they did last week.
Secondly, when the USU offense stalls there will be no kicker on the roster to hit 100 percent of his attempts. It’s a little ridiculous to have a kickoff specialist, an extra-point specialist, a long-field-goal specialist and a short-field-goal specialist. If Gary Andersen had faith in one of the kickers, he would have said kicker assigned to do everything but punt – and be the backup punter.
Don’t overlook penalties. Jumanne Robertson and Nevin Lawson will both be targeted and flagged for playing defense.
I fully expect the HURD to tear me apart via Twitter for this, but someone had to play Whittingham’s advocate.
– tavin.stucki@aggiemail.usu.edu
Twitter: @Stuckiaggies
by Curtis Lundstrom
senior sports writer
This is our year, Aggies win 27-23
The Aggies are hungry – hungry for that big win that has eluded them. Count on them exploiting Utah’s weaknesses and winning this game in the trenches. Here’s how they’re going to do it:
The Utes offensive line is their Achilles’ heel. The USU defense has put an emphasis on creating turnovers to put the ball in the capable hands of Chuckie Keeton. If the front three can get into Utah’s backfield, Jordan Wynn will have the same kind of game SUU’s Brad Sorensen did last week – and Sorensen is an NFL prospect while Wynn is a second-year QB.
While the defense will be looking to keep Utah out of sync, we saw last week just how quickly Keeton and the offense can get on the scoreboard. Matt Austin and the USU receivers should be able to outmaneuver a Utah defense that is without safety Brian Ble
chen to allow Keeton to move the ball downfield and put points on the board with a balanced offensive attack.
Granted, SUU is no Utah, but 265 rushing yards and 304 passing yards is pretty balanced. Kerwynn Williams and Joe Hill each had carries for more than 20 yards, while Austin and Jacobs each had receptions of 35 yards or more.
Yep, the Aggies have the whole package this year.
But just for good measure, let’s add in that the Aggies are playing at home, where Coach Anderson is 4-0 against in-state opponents.
– curtis.lundstrom@aggiemail.usu.edu
Twitter: @curtislundstrom