A new-and-improved defense, a quarterback with a year under his belt and the chance to compete for the Sun Belt Conference championship are only a few reasons why Utah State football coach Mick Dennehy is ready for the 2004 season, which begins Tuesday when players report.
In the forefront, however, is the opportunity to improve on a miserable 3-9 record posted in 2003.
"It's time to go out and do it and get better," Dennehy said. "I think that is why everybody is so excited. I think they feel like they have a chance to be a better football team than we were in 2003 for a lot of reasons."
Most notably, the Aggie defense, which ranked 111th in yards allowed in 2002, jumped 66 spots in that area.
It went from allowing 471.1 yards per game to 360.1 in 2003 (45th in the nation).
The Aggies return three key starters from that defense in Ronald Tupea, Robert Watts and Terrance Washington. All three earned Sun Belt second-team honors last year. Also, the Aggies welcome Jerome Dennis back after missing most of the year with a blood clot in his shoulder.
"Defensively, we are in a situation where we have made some great strides," Dennehy said. "I think we have a chance to be a better team defensively, particularly in the area of depth."
Offensively, senior quarterback Travis Cox, who led the Sun Belt Conference in passing and total offense, is more familiar with the offense, as are backups Leon Jackson III and Matt Crivello.
"We are extremely excited to get started," Dennehy said. "It is a great time of year, in terms of everything is fresh, everybody is healthy, and everybody is excited."
Some 100 players, including 16 seniors, are expected to report Tuesday. The first official practice is Wednesday.
The Aggies open the year Sept. 4 at Alabama.
ON THE ROAD: With six trips to the south and another to Las Vegas, the Aggies will travel 23,338 round-trip miles. Along with Alabama and UNLV, the Aggies will play at Clemson, Troy, Middle Tennessee, UL-Monroe and Arkansas State. Last year, the Aggies traveled 12,606 miles in seven road trips.
HOME SWEET HOME: With seven road games, the Aggies will play just four at Romney Stadium — Idaho, Utah, North Texas and New Mexico State. The Aggies, who have played on natural grass for 106 seasons, will play on the newly installed artificial Sprintturf.
THE RECORD BOOKS: Cox is right on the verge of breaking into Utah State's top 10 passing list. He needs just 594 yards this year to reach that mark. Also, he needs 2,186 to become the seventh Aggie signal-caller to throw for 5,000 yards in his career. That number, if he stays healthy, is achievable. He threw for 2,791 yards last year.
Defensively,Wattsneeds 83 tackles to reach the top 10 list in career tackles. With 118 tackles last year, he is up to 231 total.
SUN BELT QUIRKS: Due to scheduling conflicts, the Aggies will not play Louisiana-Lafayette for the second straight season. The Aggies counted Troy as a league game last year (Troy wasn't a full-fledge member of the league yet). This year the Aggies' contest with UNLV is a Sun Belt counter.
LESS THAN GOOD: For the third time in their last 15 years of conference action, the Aggies finished with a losing record at 3-4. During the same 15 years, the Aggies have finished first or second in league play eight times.
The Aggies are 47-26-2 against members of the Sun Belt Conference and they don't have a losing record against any of the SBC teams.
TICKETS NOW ON SALE: Tickets for single home games are now on sale at the Smith Spectrum, by phone at 1-888-U-STATE-1 or online at www.UtahStateAggies.com.
General admission ticket prices for games against Idaho, North Texas and New Mexico State are $13, while east side tickets are $16 and west side $25.
Ticket prices for the Aggies' contest with rival Utah are general admission ($17), east side ($21) and west side ($30).
Also, season tickets are still available.
E-mail: jhinton@desnews.com