USU Football embraces new era at MW Media Days
Utah State head coach Bronco Mendenhall, senior quarterback Bryson Barnes and senior defensive tackle Gabriel Iniguez represented the Aggies at the 2025 Mountain West Football Media Days on July 16–17, marking a new chapter in the program’s ongoing transformation.
Mendenhall and his players took the stage for extensive interviews following the decision to keep spring practices closed to the public — an intentional move to limit exposure during the post-spring transfer portal window. Mendenhall said fall camp will be more accessible but balancing program security with public engagement remains a priority.
“Before we played, it just made no sense for anyone to know who we had,” Mendenhall said in an interview with KSL. “[At] fall camp, there will be opportunities for people to come see scrimmages and things, but as long as the second window is post-spring practice, then I think as the steward of the program, I have to do that.”
Hired last December, Mendenhall has overseen one of the most significant roster rebuilds in the country, bringing in 87 new players through recruits, transfers and carryovers from his time at New Mexico. With the 2025 roster expected to include over 105 players, more than 75% will be newcomers.
Despite the turnover, Mendenhall expressed confidence in the direction of the program and the players leading it.
“I love my team,” Mendenhall said. “They’re working like crazy. They’re hopeful, optimistic and have really good leadership and alignment. It hasn’t felt like 87 new guys because of their maturity and commitment.”
Mendenhall’s tenure began with what some players described as one of the most physically demanding spring camps they’ve ever experienced. The veteran coach acknowledged the intensity was by design, a tool for building team identity and endurance.
“The harder things they do, the more it galvanizes relationships — the more it solidifies the investment after the initial who’s in and who’s out,” Mendenhall said. “And so, my approach is: the harder the better. Those relationships and that identity is forged faster, and we were under the clock.”
Amid the challenges of player retention and the all-out war of spring camps, Mendenhall said an unlikely outcome has emerged: stability. Unlike many programs navigating the modern transfer portal era, Utah State saw fewer spring departures than anticipated. Mendenhall believes his proactive communication with returning players and vetting of incoming transfers helped keep his offseason roster intact.
“Usually, about a third of the team leaves after the first offseason,” Mendenhall said. “That number was significantly less here because of the front work we did. Probably the lowest turnover I’ve ever had going through an offseason was here.”
Among the leaders helping shape the new team are the seniors Barnes and Iniguez, both of whom bring experience and toughness to the roster. Barnes, a transfer from Utah, has quickly become the presumed leader on offense.
“If I went out and just tried to pick someone to be our quarterback or the leader of the team, I couldn’t have picked better,” Mendenhall said.
JACK LEWIS BURTON Kyrese White, 23, and Bryson Barnes, 16, celebrate a touchdown at Maverik Stadium on Aug 31, 2024.
Barnes praised his new coach for setting the bar high and creating a winning environment.
“He came in and brought a culture and structure with him,” Barnes said in an interview on The Big Mountain Podcast. “He set the expectations and told us, ‘It’s probably going to be the hardest thing you’ve ever done.’ And he weeded out the dudes that didn’t want to buy into it, so we got a team chock full of dudes that believe in Bronco.”
Defensively, Iniguez brings tenacity and physicality to the front line. He’ll anchor a group that also features returning safety Ike Larsen, who was recently named to the Mountain West’s preseason all-defensive team.
Iniguez and Barnes, among a short list of returning Aggies, are looking to make the most of their individual talents in their senior season.
“I would like to have 10-plus TFLs [tackles for loss] and 8-plus sacks this year,” Iniguez said. “That’s going to help the team by having the offense lose yards and getting the ball back on third downs.”
“One of the individual goals I have is first-team all-conference,” Barnes said. “If I’m playing at a first-team all-conference level, our team is more than likely going to be having success because of that.”
When it comes to team goals, Barnes made it clear only one outcome will be acceptable.
“To me, if we’re not holding that championship trophy up, we failed,” Barnes said. “There’s nothing that’s going to be satisfactory about taking second, taking third, eight-win season, nine-win season. We want to be holding that trophy up at the end of the year.”
To achieve that, the team will have to defy preseason voters’ expectations. Utah State ranked only ninth in the Mountain West preseason poll, but Mendenhall and his players are focusing on internal expectations rather than external projections.
“We didn’t really put ourselves in the position last year to be ranked any higher, but at the end of the day, nobody’s won yet,” Barnes said. “Everybody is zero and zero right now, so regardless of what those rankings are, it’s all about what it looks like after week 12.”
Utah State opens its season at home against UTEP, and Mendenhall is eager to see how his newly forged team responds.
“This is a brand-new team and a brand-new roster,” Mendenhall said. “But the kids have been tough and resilient and gritty.”