The Utah State Aggies host the Boise State Broncos Saturday night, a rivalry — at least from the Aggies’ perspective — renewed.
Both teams are 5-5 with two games remaining, meaning bowl eligibility will be on the line in Logan.
Both teams are also still alive in the Mountain West Conference championship race, if only mathematically in Utah State’s case. The Broncos are still very much alive, only a game behind conference leaders Air Force and UNLV.
Boise State has dominated the series with Utah State, winning 19 of last the 20 matchups, including seven in a row, but the 2023 Broncos aren’t your ordinary Broncos.
Not after struggling this season, in and out of conference play, and especially not after the in-season termination of now-former head coach Andy Avalos.
Avalos, who was in his third season as the head coach at his alma mater, was fired Sunday following the Broncos’ blowout win against New Mexico.
Said BSU athletic director Jeremiah Dickey, “I am grateful for the passion, effort and dedication Andy has given to our community and his alma mater while serving as our head coach. Andy will always be a Bronco and we wish him and his family all the best in their next steps.”
Defensive coordinator Spencer Danielson will serve as BSU’s interim head coach for the remainder of the season, starting with the game against the Aggies.
What kind of impact will Avalos’ termination have on the game?
As far as Utah State coach Blake Anderson believes, any impact from the firing will be negligible at best.
“We won’t prepare any differently,” he said. “Both coordinators are still intact, that are running both the offense and the defense and don’t feel like that will affect anything with those guys. They will probably prepare the same way physically, and the same guys are going to play. As we know, they’re super, super talented.”
Anderson noted that in Boise State’s case, record isn’t everything. While the Broncos are 5-5 overall, they are 4-2 in MW play. Their losses have come against legitimate competition, including two Power Five opponents and another against a high-level Group of Five team (Memphis).
In conference, Boise State played Fresno State close on the road before coming up short, and the Broncos’ only other loss came via a Hail Mary against Colorado State.
“They’ve played some difficult opponents,” Anderson said. “They’ve been close in some of their games. Their record could be way different than it is.”
Anderson is also keenly aware of Utah State’s futility against Boise State, both with him as head coach and in previous eras of Aggies football.
“We’ve lost seven in a row to these guys. And if I’m right, 19 of the last 20,” he said. “This is a huge game for us. It will really, I think, tell us a lot about who we are. I know their season has not gone the way they wanted. They’ve got a coaching change in the mix. But coach Avalos was not going to play on Saturday. And those guys that do go out are skilled, physical and talented. It’s a huge test for us to see where we’re at.”
There is confidence among the Aggies, though, that Boise State is vulnerable.
Said wide receiver Micah Davis: “They have been showing a lot of weaknesses and we have the weapons and the capability to take advantage of them.”
Linebacker MJ Tafisi was recruited by both Utah State and Boise State when he left Washington and entered the transfer portal. He chose the Aggies, ultimately, which makes playing Boise State a little special.
“(My choice) was between Utah State and Boise State,” he said, “so that gives me a little drive to just do my best.”
In-season firings of head coaches are no longer rare in college football.
Also on Sunday, Texas A&M head coach Jimbo Fisher was fired and on Monday, Mississippi State coach Zach Arnett was let go. (San Diego State head coach Brady Hoke wasn’t fired, but announced Monday that he is retiring at the end of the season, with SDSU 2-7 overall with two games remaining.)
It is the nature of the sport, Anderson said, and shouldn’t really have much of an effect on the game between the Aggies and Broncos.
“I don’t know that I expected (Avalos to get fired),” Anderson said. “But I know they have tremendously high expectations at that place. And if things don’t go exactly where they want, they’re gonna be pretty short-tempered in that sense. I don’t know that that surprises me anymore in any place.”
“I don’t see much changing this week (at Boise State),” Anderson continued. “Guys are prepared, systems are in place and the schedule probably stays relatively the same. I wouldn’t think what’s happened will have really much of an impact at all.
“This game is going to be 11 guys playing each other in the middle of the field and the matchups and the skillsets on the field are going to have a much bigger impact on this game than whether or not the defense coordinator has to call a timeout here or there. He’s more than capable of doing the job and we gotta expect them to play their very best football.”
