LOGAN — Heading into Saturday night’s game against Colorado State, these Utah State Aggies, as opposed to previous teams, could have been described as a dominant home team.
In each of the previous eight contests played within the confines of Maverik Stadium, these Aggies had been victorious and in convincing fashion no less.
In their only home game this season, they routed Stony Brook, 62-7.
“You have to be fortunate when you have five turnovers and you win a football game. We were fortunate to win. They were put in poor spots tonight, but kept on battling, kept making plays. It was good to see the resilience of the football team.” — Utah State coach Gary Andersen
Go back to 2018 and the Aggies were perfect at home and won all six contests by double digits, scoring 40 or more points every single time.
That Aggie team, the team that boasted one of the best offensive attacks in the nation through the first four weeks of the season, was nowhere to be seen on Merlin Olsen Field Saturday.
Utah State was instead plagued by turnovers — four in total, along with a blocked punt — miscues and any number of additional shortcomings.
Quarterback Jordan Love had an uncharacteristic outing, to say the least, with two interceptions thrown, including a pick-six.
Standout running back Jaylen Warren hardly played, knocked out of the game by injury.
Senior running back Gerold Bright fumbled, as did Love — on a botched snap — and punter Pierce Callister had a punt blocked deep in Aggie territory.
There were dropped passes, botched coverages and untimely penalties.
Through it all, including a never-ending deluge of freezing rain, the Aggies battled, and while it wasn’t ever pretty, this Utah State team once again proved unbeatable at home.
Utah State took down Colorado State 34-24 Saturday night, and improved to 3-1, 2-0 in the Mountain West.
The win was the team’s ninth straight at Maverik Stadium, and the Aggies’ second consecutive victory over the Rams.
“That was a fight for sure,” Utah State head coach Gary Andersen said. “Those kids battled through a lot of things. They battled through a weather delay, through five turnovers. They fought and they battled. It was not perfect by any means, there is a lot to work on, but ultimately it was a great team victory.”
For all the bad, there were positives, with Andersen noting “all three phases did positive things, and all three phases have things we can do better.”
On offense, Love threw for 204 yards and two touchdowns, while Bright carried the ball 36 times for 179 yards, both career highs.
Defensively, the Aggies were paced by junior linebacker David Woodward, who finished with a game-high 14 tackles, two forced fumbles and a scoop-and-score.
Safety Troy Lefeged Jr. also had a standout performance, racking up 11 tackles, three tackles for loss and a pass breakup.
As for special teams, kicker Dominik Eberle was a perfect 2 for 2 on field goal attempts, including a 48-yarder to put the Aggies ahead for good.
That kick came toward the end of the third quarter, after the Aggies and Rams had battled, neck and neck, for nearly 42 minutes.
Colorado State was first on the board, courtesy of a 2-yard touchdown run by Jaylen Thomas midway through the first quarter.
Utah State had an answer, however, in the form of a 100-plus-yard kick return for a touchdown by All-American Savon Scarver.
That score led to hardly any momentum, though, as the Rams and Aggies would trade multiple scores until just over six minutes remained in the second quarter.
It was then that Love found tight end Caleb Repp for a 40-yard touchdown pass, a touchdown that gave the Aggies their first lead of the game at 24-21.
“That was my favorite play. That was nice,” said Bright.
Colorado State kicker Cayden Camper would tie the game at 24 points apiece with a 45-yard field goal just after halftime, which made the 48-yard attempt by Eberle, with 2:57 remaining in the third, all the more important.
The finalist for the 2017 Lou Groza award made good on the try, which was just at the edge of his range on a good day.
“That was right at the end of his range on a nice day with no wind,” Andersen said. “Today was not that day.”
The Aggies would get a game-sealing touchdown early in the fourth quarter, when Woodward wrestled the ball away from CSU star running back Marvin Kinsey and then ran into the end zone for a touchdown.
“He is a playmaker,” said Andersen. “He is always around the ball and does so many things that you can’t teach and you can’t coach.”
Woodward made a similar play earlier in the season against Wake Forest, but that touchdown was called back due to penalty.
On Saturday, the Aggies were more fortunate, as no yellow flags were thrown following the score.
That was the order of the day though, despite the team’s many mistakes — good fortune.
“You have to be fortunate when you have five turnovers and you win a football game,” said Andersen. “We were fortunate to win. They were put in poor spots tonight, but kept on battling, kept making plays. It was good to see the resilience of the football team.”