Utah State football starts fall camp on Thursday

Utah State head football coach Gary Andersen talks to his team at the end of Saturday's scrimmage at Maverik Stadium in Logan. — Utah State head football coach Gary Andersen talks to his team at the end of Saturday’s scrimmage at Maverik Stadium in Logan.

LOGAN — Under the direction of first-year head coach Gary Andersen, Utah State football will begin fall camp on Thursday, Aug. 1, at 2:45 p.m., on the USU practice field located between Maverik Stadium and the Stan Laub Indoor Training Center.

During the five-week period, the Aggies will participate in 24 fall practice sessions, including its annual Family Football Fun Day on Saturday, Aug. 17, on Merlin Olsen Field at Maverik Stadium at 5 p.m. In all, nine practices will be open to the public this fall on Aug. 1-3, Aug. 5-9 and Aug. 17. Furthermore, media interviews will be available upon request following any practice.

Practices on Aug. 1-2, will have players in helmets, practice jerseys and shorts as part of the five-day acclimation period before adding shoulder pads for practices on Aug. 3 and Aug. 5. USU will then be in full pads on Tuesday, Aug. 6.

Utah State is picked to finish second in the Mountain Division of the Mountain West as voted on by media members that cover the league. Furthermore, junior quarterback Jordan Love was named the conference’s Preseason Offensive Player of the Year, while senior defensive end Tipa Galeai, senior cornerback DJ Williams, junior kickoff returner Savon Scarver and junior linebacker David Woodward joined Love on the preseason all-MW team.

Utah State returns nine starters (O-2, D-7) as part of 31 letterwinners (O-13, D-16, S-2), including two All-Americans and eight players that earned various all-Mountain West honors, from last year's team that ended the season ranked 21st in the final Amway Coaches poll and 22nd in the final Associated Press poll as it tied the school record for wins and best record with an 11-2 mark following its 52-13 win against North Texas in the New Mexico Bowl.

Utah State's offense finished the 2018 season leading the nation in scoring drives under one minute with 29, was second in the nation in scoring at 47.5 points per game and third in average margin of victory at 25.3 points per game. USU's offense was also fourth nationally in sacks allowed with 10 (0.77 per game), 11th in total offense (497.4 yards per game), 12th in third down conversion percentage (.473), 14th in passes had intercepted (6) and team passing efficiency (154.39), 17th in passing offense (294.2 yards per game), 20th in completion percentage (.652) and 31st in rushing offense (203.2 ypg).

During the 2018 season, Utah State's offense set single-season school records with its four 60-point games, seven 50-point games, nine 40-point games, 60-plus points in back-to-back games, 50-plus points in three-straight games, 30-plus points in six straight games to start a season, 40-plus points in five straight games at any point in a season, 700-plus yards of total offense twice, 600-plus yards of total offense four times, 600-plus yards of total offense in three straight games, 52 first-half points versus New Mexico, 20 players with touchdowns, 79 touchdowns, 618 points, 47.5 points per game, 497.4 yards of total offense per game, 32 touchdown passes, 6.07 touchdowns per game, 6,466 yards of total offense, 3,825 passing yards, 303 completions, 6.84 yards per attempt, 164 passing first downs, 10 sacks allowed, 29 scoring drives under one minute, and 804 yards of total offense in a single game versus San José State.

Those 618 points scored in 13 games last season set the Mountain West record, which was previously held by BYU, which scored 608 points in 14 games in 2001.

Utah State's defense finished the 2018 season leading the nation in turnovers forced with 32, passes intercepted with 22, and three-and-outs forced with 5.69 per game. USU was also second in the nation in nonoffensive touchdowns (10), third in turnover margin (+1.08) and defensive touchdowns (6), 10th in blocked kicks (4), 16th in third down conversion percentage defense (.330) and 19th in team passing efficiency defense (113.76).

Defensively, Utah State set three school records in 2018 with its six interception returns for touchdowns, 475 interception return yards and 10 non-offensive touchdowns.

Utah State will open the 2019 season on Friday, Aug. 30, on the ACC Network at Wake Forest at 6 p.m. MT and begin its home season the following weekend against Stony Brook on Saturday, Sept. 7, at 5:30 p.m. Mountain West play begins for USU two weekends later at San Diego State on Saturday, Sept. 21, in a game that will be nationally televised on CBS Sports Network and begin at 8:30 p.m. (MT).

For Aggie football ticket information, fans can contact the USU Athletics Ticket Office over the phone by calling 1-888-USTATE-1 or 435-797-0305 during regular hours of operation. Fans can also buy their tickets in person at the USU Ticket Office inside the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum or online by clicking on the "Buy Tickets" tab at www.UtahStateAggies.com.

Fans can follow the Aggie football program at twitter.com/USUFootball or on Facebook at Utah State Football, as well as on Instagram at instagram.com/USUFootball. Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program at twitter.com/USUAthletics or on Facebook at Utah State University Athletics.

All practice reports during fall camp will be brought to you by Farm Bureau Insurance.

2019 Utah State football fall camp dates

Thursday, Aug. 1 — 2:45-5:15 p.m. — open to public and media

Friday, Aug. 2 — 2:45-5:15 p.m. — open to public and media

Saturday, Aug. 3 — 2:45-5:15 p.m. — open to public and media

Monday, Aug. 5 — 2:45-5:15 p.m. — open to public and media

Tuesday, Aug. 6 — 2:45-5:15 p.m. — open to public and media

Wednesday, Aug. 7 — 2:45-5:15 p.m. — open to public and media

Thursday, Aug. 8 — 2:45-5:15 p.m. — open to public and media

Friday, Aug. 9 — 2:45-5:15 p.m. — open to public and media

Saturday, Aug. 10 — closed

Monday, Aug. 12 — closed