Utah State (5-5, 3-3) at Fresno State (7-3, 4-2)
- Kickoff: Saturday, 8:30 p.m. MDT
- Venue: Valley Children’s Stadium (40,727)
- TV: CBS Sports Network
- Radio: Aggie Sports Network (KZNS 1280 The Zone)/Sirius XM Ch. 382
- Series: Fresno State leads the all-time series with a 19-13 record. Utah State lost both of the last two meetings, and hasn’t beaten the Bulldogs since 2019.
The trends
For Utah State: Starting with the positive, the Aggies’ defense has come to life in the past few games. It dominated Nevada, holding it to just 14 points, then held UNLV to a season-low 29 points, despite the loss.
Though the elephant in the room remains, Utah State is still without a single road win this year, and Saturday is its last chance to get one.
It should be noted, however, that its loss to UNLV was by far the most prepared that the Aggies have looked on the road all season.
“(It) really gave our team a great glimpse of what really hard preparation can look like and that it does travel and can travel,” Utah State coach Bronco Mendenhall said.
One area that Utah State is lacking in heavily is the offensive line. In its loss last week to UNLV, it flat out did not do its job in protecting Bryson Barnes as he was sacked six times.
For Fresno State: The Bulldogs are coming off two strong wins after two disastrous losses to Colorado State and San Diego State. It got arguably its biggest win of the season in the beginning of November in a dominant 30-7 road win over Boise State.
In its past two games, Fresno State has heavily relied on the run game while its pass game has been lackluster. In its win over Boise State, 189 of its 224 total yards were on the ground. The following week against Wyoming 107 of its 184 total yards were rushing.
Starting QB E.J. Warner has been benched ever since Fresno State’s 49-21 loss to Colorado State in October. Warner threw three interceptions in that game.
In the three games since, sophomore Carson Conklin has taken his place; however, Conklin has not been the savior of the Bulldogs’ offense. In three games as a starter, he’s thrown for an average of 104 yards with just a 47% completion percentage. He’s thrown two interceptions while scoring only one touchdown.
What to watch for
Can the USU defense choke the Bulldogs by stopping the run? As mentioned, there are two trends from Utah State and Fresno State that could bode well for the Aggies. The USU defense is playing hot, and Fresno State seems to only be able to generate offense on the ground.
The Aggies will need to play physical and not allow Fresno State to run over them. If it can do that, the Bulldogs have not shown they have the confidence in their QB room to succeed by relying on its pass game.
Weird special teams issues: Generally, Utah State’s special teams have been reliable. Prior to the UNLV loss, kicker Tanner Rinker was 10 of 10, but he missed three attempts last week. The week prior against Nevada, the only blemish on an otherwise nearly perfect night was a handful of kickoffs that went out of bounds.
Will the offense break through? Fresno State is on a defensive tear the past two games. It has given up only a single touchdown and a total of 10 points.
The Bulldogs were already the statistical second-best defense in the conference, only behind San Diego State. They have now gone six quarters without giving up a single touchdown.
Quotable
“Fresno has, the word I use is a complementary style. Their offensive scheme and currently how they’re doing it with the quarterback change that happened four weeks ago, the way they’re playing offensively, complements their defensive style and vice versa. So, you’re playing an entire team and an entire strategy or strategic intent. That’s working really well in terms of number of plays, possessions, time of possession and there’s a very specific style there.” —Utah State coach Bronco Mendenhall
“Another great opponent this week, going to cause some challenges on both sides of the football. They do a lot defensively. They jump in and out of multiple fronts, multiple coverages, multiple schemes. Then offensively, they got a quarterback that’s a really good, talented player. (He’s got a) run game, throw game, and then they complement him with a lot of nice pieces around him. Bronco’s done a really good job of getting his feet on the ground and making a big impact with that program right off the bat.” —Fresno State coach Matt Entz
Next up
- Utah State: vs. Boise State, Friday, Nov. 28, 2 p.m.
- Fresno State: at San Jose State, Saturday, Nov. 29, 8:30 p.m.
Utah State schedule/results
- Aug. 30 — Utah State 28, UTEP 16
- Sept. 6 — Texas A&M 44, Utah State 22
- Sept. 13 — Utah State 49, Air Force 30
- Sept. 20 — Utah State 47, McNeese State 7
- Sept. 27 — Vanderbilt 55, Utah State 35
- Oct. 11 — Hawaii 44, Utah State 26
- Oct. 17 — Utah State 30, San Jose State 25
- Oct. 25 — New Mexico 33, Utah State 14
- Nov. 8 — Utah State 51, Nevada 14
- Nov. 15 — UNLV 29, Utah State 26
- Nov. 22 — at Fresno State
- Nov. 28 — Boise State