This preseason, two Utah State football players were late for meetings, and one went home.
That's it.That's the sum-total of the Really Terrible Distractions the Aggies have faced so far. There've been injuries, but you expect that, and the Ags have had enough depth to plug the holes.
Besides, injuries don't disrupt teams' mentality as much as lax behavior can, and Coach Chuck Shelton, in his fifth season, is clearly appreciative of the 1990 team's personal conduct.
"This team has taken awful good care of itself," he says.
The Aggies are still young but have many second- and third-year starters. They resolve the nagging little things so the coaching staff doesn't have to, and that lets Shelton know they care.
It's changed his coaching style. "I coach a little angry sometimes," Shelton says, "but I don't know if I've had an explosion this fall, maybe one or two."
Add that personal responsibility to what Shelton says is unquestionably his best team, throw in a more playable schedule that doesn't include Nebraska, Southern Cal or Illinois and that starts out with two home games for the first time since Shelton's been there, and there's just no reason to think this won't be an excellent Aggie season.
"Everything worries me," says Shelton, smiling about it. "I worry 24 hours a day." He has to work to find things to worry about now.
He could go back and review the lapses the Aggies had for a quarter or so in almost every game last year that kept them from reaching potential, but this seems a more cohesive club.
He could look at '89's Kirk Johnson, starting quarterback as a sophomore, and the shortcomings he had. Footwork and alignment when throwing were problems, but Johnson has improved, and Shelton now talks about his quarterback with the good feet. If Johnson falters, junior college transfer Ron Lopez could literally strongarm his way in. The Aggies are deep enough at quarterback to have moved Craig Sorensen to fullback, where there've been injuries and where freshman wide receiver Jim Ray has a starting job with Sean Hampton coming off injury.
Shelton could also look to running back. JC transfers Roger Grant and Floyd Foreman are untried in Division I, but they were outstanding in scrimmages against a very good Aggie defense.
Shelton says the Ags may run 60 percent of the time and take pressure off the quarterback - a big departure.
Ed Silva moves from starting guard to tackle and could be the best Shelton's had, says the coach.
Add tight end Ryan Duve and wideouts Rod Moore and Tracey Jenkins, and Utah State could live up to offensive coach Pat Behrns' vision of versatility. "Our variety comes in our formations," says Behrns. "The key is to create a team offensively to where you don't have to count on one player." The Aggies seem primed for that.
"It could give us an opportunity to not let people settle in," says Shelton. USU may be able to take advantage of what the defense gives.
Defensively, Shelton can rest easy. All-league candidates and two- and three-year vets abound. "You better be good on defense," he says, rationalizing a reason to worry, "and have a good kicking game, too." But he lists those as Utah State's strongest points.
Punter Rusty Carlsen was second-team all-league in '89; at placekicking, it's newcomers Doug Beach and Sean Jones (injured), but Shelton's satisfied.
Nine of 11 defensive starters are back, and the Aggies are strong enough at cornerback with Greg Haynes (Big West honorable mention), Ron Edwards and backup Atu Fihaki that defensive coordinator Fred Bleil has thrown in some man-to-man coverage for the first time. After sharing a cornerback spot last year, Scott Munson moved to free safety, and Shelton has often said that "revitalized his football life."
"Linebacker is probably the core of the defense," says Bleil, with starters Kevin Bouwman, Del Lyles, Tom Hansen and Stephen Robinson and letterman Piliki Tauteoli to choose from. Bouwman, a fourth-year starter, calls signals and knows as much about the D as the coaches, says Bleil. "Sometimes I just point to him and let him call it," Bleil says. Lyles was second-team all-league; Hansen's a third-year starter.
Up front, the names keep coming, starting with noseguard Rob VanDePol, a second-year starter who leads by example in practices. "Every (practice) play is a game to him," Shelton has said. Lettermen Steve Neeleman, Joe Jacobs, Mark Johnson and freshman Travis Wood are Bleil's other choices in the line.
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(ADDITIONAL INFORMATION)
Utah State
Date Opponent Time
Sept. 1. Utah 1 p.m.
Sept. 8 Long Beach State 1 p.m.
Sept. 15 at Missouri 12:30 p.m.
Sept. 22 Bye
Sept. 29 Bye
Oct. 6 at Oregon 2 p.m.
Oct. 13 at Fresno State 8 p.m.
Oct. 20 at San Jose State 7 p.m.
Oct. 27 UNLV 1 p.m.
Nov. 3 New Mexico State Noon
Nov. 10 at Fullerton 2 p.m.
Nov. 17 Pacific Noon
Nov. 24 at BYU Noon