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 Weekly football release (Nov. 25).
Nov. 25, 2001
Complete Release in PDF Format
UTAH STATE FOOTBALL RELEASE Nov. 25, 2001 Game #11 at Fresno State Sat., Dec. 1, 1 p.m. (MT) Bulldog Stadium (41,031) Fresno, Calif. 2001 Utah State (4-6) Sept. 1 at Utah L 19-23 Sept. 8 at #13 LSU L 14-31 Sept. 22 WYOMING L 42-43 Sept. 29 #6 OREGON L 21-38 Oct. 5 (Fri.) at #20 BYU L 34-54 Oct. 13 Bye Oct. 20 IDAHO ST. W 28-27 Oct. 27 C. FLORIDA W 30-27 Nov. 3 Bye Nov. 10 at Connecticut W 38-31 Nov. 17 WEBER ST. W 56-43 Nov. 24 at South Fla. L 13-34 Dec. 1 *at Fresno State 1:00 (* - moved from Sept. 15) (all times are Mountain)Weekly Press Conferences Logan - Mondays, 11:30 a.m. at the Coppermill Restaurant Salt Lake City - Tuesdays, 11:30 a.m. at Green Street * * * * * USU On The Air * Game Broadcasts Play-by-Play - Al Lewis Analysis - Chris Tunis KVNU (610 AM), Logan KLZX (95.9 FM), Logan KWLW (700 AM), SLC Web: UtahStateAggies.com * Mick Dennehy Radio Show Thursday, 6 p.m. * Aggie Update Radio Show Tuesday, 5:30 p.m. * Mick Dennehy on KFAN Tuesday, 6:10 p.m. * * * * * DID YOU KNOW? -- USU's only win against a ranked team in school history was its 20-19 win against 25th-ranked Fresno State in 1991. QUICKLY -- Utah State (4-6) had its four-game winning streak stopped when South Florida (8-3) made big plays in a game that was statistically dominated by the Aggies... USU will be meeting its fourth ranked team this season, which marks the most teams in the top 25 of the AP poll, the Aggies have played in a season... Surprisingly, USU is making its first trip to the nearby state of California since a 1995 game at San Jose State when both were in the Big West Conference... USU's last non-conference game in the state of California was a 1989 trip to Southern California... USU boasts 35 players on its roster from the state of California, the most of any state (Utah is second with 19) and in fact 28 Californians were on USU's travel roster to South Florida last Saturday... USU will be meeting a team with a winning record at game time for the ninth time in 11 games this season... USU's Division I opponents are a combined 58-26 (.690), while all 11 opponents are 67-50 (.528) this year... Since 1957 USU is 4-3 all-time in games played in the month of December and Saturday's game against Fresno State will be just the second regular season game USU has played in this month since 1957 (won 48-6 at Hawai'i on Dec. 11 in 1959). ON THE AIR -- All Utah State football games are carried on the Aggie Radio Network with Al "His eyes said yes, but his mouth said Fresno" Lewis as the play-by-play announcer and Chris "Beware of the Fresno Fog" Tunis providing analysis (for the listeners, not Al). Pregame is 50 minutes prior to kickoff. The games are carried on KVNU (610 AM) and KLZX (95.9 FM) in Logan, KWLW (700 AM) in Salt Lake City and on USU's web site at www.UtahStateAggies.com. MEDIA SERVICES -- All Utah State player and coach interview requests should be made through Mike Strauss at (435) 797-1361. Interviews should be completed no later than Wednesday on game week. Information on Utah State will be updated on the web site at www.UtahStateAggies.com and releases will be e-mailed and faxed per request. USU holds its weekly press conference on Mondays and quotes will be available that night. LAST TIME OUT -- Utah State dominated the game, but made too many mistakes and fell 34-13 at South Florida after leading 7-0 at halftime and being tied tied 13-13 after three quarters on Saturday. The Aggies reached the USF 21-yard three times in the first half, but came away with just seven points. USU then led 13-7 late in the third quarter before USF scored the game's final 27 points, including 21 in the final quarter. USU out-gained USF 422 to 270 yards and held a decisive time of possession advantage (40:14 to 19:46), but penalties (15-110), turnovers (five) and big special teams play (USF scored ona blocked punt and a punt return) did the Aggies in. USF also scored on a fumble recovery while scoring just twice offensively (one pass and one rush). USF's first eight possessions ended with six punts, a fumble and one intercepton and in fact USF went three and out on five of those possessions. The Bulls' only two offensive scores were on drives of just 49 and 46 yards. Individually for USU, Jose Fuentes hit 24-of-44 pass attempts for 333 yards and two touchdowns, with the nation's leading receiver Kevin Curtis pulling in 11 receptions for 221 yards and one score. Gary Coleman also had a big day receiving with six catches for 61 yards, while Emmett White, rushed for 108 yards on 30 carries and caught four passes for 30 more yards. Defensively, Nate Barber andTony Newson were both credited with six tackles, while Ade Jimoh recorded his first interception of the year and the team's 10th of the season. COACH MICK DENNEHY - In his second year at Utah State is Mick Dennehy (Montana, 1973), who was hired on Dec. 3, 1999. He compiled a 39-12 record in four years at Montana and his 76.5 winning percentage is the best at that school for coaches with more than two years. His five wins in his first year at Utah State tied for the best mark by a first-year Aggie coach since Phil Krueger won seven games in 1973 (Dennehy is the seventh coach since then). Dennehy played safety at Montana in 1971 and 1972. Prior to assuming the head coaching role at Montana, he served as the school's offensive coordinator for five seasons, producing one of the nation's top offenses. In Dennehy's nine years overall at Montana, the Grizzlies ranked in the top four in the country in passing offense every year and in the top five in scoring and total offense in five of his last seven seasons. Before going to Montana, Dennehy revived the program at Western Montana, which had dropped football in 1987. In three years he improved the team from a 1-6 record to a 5-3 mark. Year School Overall Pct. Conf. Pct. Notes 1988 West. Montana 1-6 .143 1-5/5th .167 Revived Program 1989 West. Montana 4-4 .500 2-4/4th .333 1990 West. Montana 5-3 .625 3-3/3rd .500 1996 Montana 14-1 .933 8-0/1st 1.00 3-1 (2nd in I-AA) 1997 Montana 8-4 .667 6-2/2nd .750 0-1 in playoffs 1998 Montana 8-4 .667 6-2/1st .750 0-1 in playoffs 1999 Montana 9-3 .750 7-1/1st .875 0-1 in playoffs 2000 Utah State 5-6 .455 4-1/2nd .800 1 win from bowl 2001 Utah State 4-6 .400 N/A N/A Western Montana (3 yrs.) 10-13 .435 6-12 .333 Revived Program Montana (4 yrs.) 39-12 .765 27-5 .844 Four playoffs Utah State (2nd yr.) 9-12 .429 4-1 .800 50th career win Totals (9th year) 58-37 .611 37-18 .673 3-4 in playoffsTHE USU-FS SERIES (Just like kissing your sister) -- Utah State and Fresno State are tied in the all-time series with a 9-9-1 record. Fresno State leads 7-2 in games played in Fresno, including the last meeting in the series, a 30-14 Bulldog win on Sept. 25, 1993. The teams met three times in the 90s and just like the series, were tied as the teams tied 24-24 in 1990 at Fresno, USU won 20-19 at Logan in 1991 and FS won 30-14 in 1993. That win by USU was its only win against a ranked team in school history as the Bulldogs were ranked 25th at game time. The teams met four times from 1952-55, but then did not face each other until both were members of the Big West, playing every year between 1978-93. USU's two wins at Fresno were 41-31 in 1979 and 14-0 in 1980, but since then the Aggies are 0-5-1 there. USU head coach Mick Dennehy has never faced Fresno State. USU-FS THE LAST TIME -- Fresno State posted a 30-14 win against USU on Sept. 25, 1993 in front of what was then a record crowd of 41,031 at Bulldog Stadium. FS scored on its first four possessions to build a 23-7 halftime lead. FS was led by Trent Dilfer, who threw for 295 yards, while Ron Rivers gained 106 yards to become the school's all-time leading rusher. For USU, Anthony Calvillo threw for 219 yards and James Dye ran for 112 yards. USU VS. THE WAC -- Utah State owns a 34-43-2 record against current members of the Western Athletic Conference with its nine wins against Fresno State matching its nine wins against San Jose State, for the most wins against teams in the league. USU is 4-6 vs. Boise State, 9-9-1 vs. Fresno State, 4-1 vs. Hawai'i, 2-0 vs. Louisiana Tech, 4-10 vs. Nevada, 9-17-1 vs. San Jose State, and 2-0 vs. Texas-El Paso. The Aggies have never met Rice, SMU or Tulsa. DID YOU KNOW? -- Ex-Fresno State golfer David Sutherland won the Buy.Com tour event earlier this year in Utah. Even less interesting is the fact that USU assistant basketball coach Don Verlin played high golf against Sutherland and his brother Kevin, who is on the PGA Tour. USU AND FS WERE BIG WEST LEADERS -- Both Utah State and Fresno State were in the Big West Conference for 23 years. USU's 82 all-time league wins ranked second only to San Jose State (100 in 27 years), while Fresno State's 78 victories were third. VS. RANKED TEAMS -- Utah State has not fared well in its history against teams that were ranked at game time and in fact is 1-34 all-time, including an 0-3 mark this year (lost to #13 LSU, #6 Oregon, and #20 Brigham Young). The lone win was a 20-19 victory against then 25th-ranked Fresno State on Nov. 2, 1991. Since that victory, USU has lost nine straight games against ranked teams. Five of USU's last six games against ranked teams have come against teams listed in the top 15, including a 25-6 loss to 15th-ranked Colorado in 1998, a 38-7 loss to 12th-ranked Georgia in 1999, a 40-0 loss to ninth-ranked Kansas State in 1999 and a 31-14 loss to 13th-listed Louisiana State and a 38-21 loss to #6 Oregon this year. LEADS IN EVERY GAME -- USU has held a lead in each of its nine games. Here is a look at the Aggies' biggest leads and deficits in each game: Opponent Lead Deficit Final Score Utah 3 (3-0 in 1st) 17 (6-23 in 4th) L 19-23 LSU 7 (7-0 in 1st) 17 (14-31 in 4th) L 14-31 Wyoming 11 (36-25 in 3rd) 7 (36-43 in 4th) L 42-43 Oregon 7 (7-0 in 2nd) 17 (21-38 in 4th) L 21-38 BYU 13 (34-21 in 3rd) 20 (34-54 in 4th) L 34-54 Idaho State 1 (28-27 in 4th) 27 (0-27 in 3rd) W 28-27 C. Florida 17 (17-0 in 1st) Never Trailed W 30-27 Connecticut 28 (38-10 in 3rd) Never Trailed W 38-31 Weber State 21 (56-35 in 4th) Never Trailed W 56-43 South Florida 7 (7-0 in 1st) 21 (13-34 in 4th) L 13-342002 AND 2003 SCHEDULES RELEASED -- Here is a quick look at USU's opponents for the 2002 and 2003 season: 2002 Home -- Utah, Idaho State, Brigham Young, New Mexico, South Florida, New Mexico State 2002 Road -- Nebraska, Iowa, Boise State, Louisiana-Monroe, Troy State, TBA 2003 Home -- Idaho State, Wyoming, Idaho, Connecticut, Troy State, TBA 2003 Road -- Utah, Nebraska, Iowa State, New Mexico, San Jose State, New Mexico State CURTIS WAS ONE OF FINAL 10 ON BILETNIKOFF WATCH -- Walkon WR Kevin Curtis, who had not played in a game since suiting up at Snow (Utah) JC in 1996 and 97 (went on an LDS church mission in 1998 and 1999 and redshirted as a walkon at USU in 2000) has made a mark in his first major college season this year. Here is a look: * On USU's first play of the year he caught a 46-yard pass against Utah. * His 11 catches for 171 yards vs. Utah marked the best debut in USU history. * Set a school record with six straight 100-yard games. * His six 10-plus catch games are a school season record. * His eight 100-yard receiving games are second in an USU season (record is nine by Nakia Jenkins in 1996). * Owns school records for season receptions (93) and yardage (1421). * Leads the nation in receptions (9.3 per game) and is second in receiving yards (142.1). He is also 18th in all-purpose yardage (144.2). * Bidding to become just the fifth player since 1990 to lead the nation in receptions and receiving yards in the same season. * Attempting to join Tom Forzani (1972) as the only Aggies to ever lead the country in receiving. * In three games against ranked opponents (LSU, Oregon, BYU) he has averaged 11.0 receptions for 131.7 yards per contest. * His 252 yards against Weber State were the second most in school history. * His 221 yards against South Florida were the seventh most in school history. * Became the first player in USU history with back-to-back 200-yard games. * Was a final 10 selection for the Biletnikoff Award candidate for top receiver in the country. MULLINS ON RAY GUY LIST -- P Steve Mullins is one of 10 finalists for the Ray Guy Award given to the nation's top punter. Here is a look: * Ranks fifth in the NCAA in punting average at 44.8. * His 44.8 average is currently tied for the school season record (44.8 by Jerry Arguello in 1997). * Has at least one 50-yard punt in every game this season (45 total punts). * Has three 60-plus yard punts this season. * Has placed 13 punts inside the 20-yard line this year (45 total punts). WHITE WAS DOAK WALKER CANDIDATE -- RB Emmett White was a Doak Walker Award candidate before they named eight semifinalists on Nov. 11. Here is a look at his season: * Leads the nation in all-purpose yardage with 200.9 yards per game (Levron Williams of Indiana is second at 199.7 with Fresno State's Bernard Berrian third at 198.5). * Also ranks sixth in rushing, 13th in scoring, 64th in points responsible for, 66th in receptions, and 82nd in punt returns. * His 4.7 receptions per game are fourth among non-wide receivers or tight ends. * Has 249 of USU's 273 rushing attempts by non-quarterbacks (91.2 percent) and has lost just 31 yards on his 249 attempts. * Needs three receptions in his last game to become one of just 11 players in NCAA history and the first since 1991 to record 1,000 yards rushing and have at least 50 receptions in a season (was three receptions shy of this feat last year). * Has reached the 1,000 career receiving yardage mark. * Has moved into the top 25 in NCAA history in career all-purpose yardage. * Has recorded 13 100-yard rushing games in two years and has a school record tying four career 200-yard rushing games, including two this year. * Had rushed for at least one touchdown in eight consecutive games (streak was stopped against South Florida last week). DID YOU KNOW? -- In late October Erick Smith, USATODAY.com's college football editor handed out his midseason awards and listed Utah State's Emmett White as the "Best Player You Haven't Heard Of." FUENTES GOING STRONG -- QB Jose Fuentes is on pace to etch his name high on many USU season and career records by the end of this season. * Despite starting just 18 games and playing in 24 in his career, he ranks fourth on the USU career passing yardage list, fifth in completions, fifth in attempts, second in completion percentage and third in touchdown passes. This season he is fifth in passing yards, third in percentage and first in touchdown passes. * His 437 yards passing against Weber State were the fourth most in school history. * Has thrown for at least 300 yards in three games this year, including each of last two games, and six times in his two years as a starter. * Has thrown a touchdown pass and thrown for at least 200 yards in 15 consecutive games as well as in 19 of the last 20 contests. WHAT A TRIO -- This year USU's trio of RB Emmett White, QB Jose Fuentes and WR Kevin Curtis has been extremely productive. In fact, this marks just the third time in school history USU has produced a 2,000-yard passer, a 1,000-yard rusher and a 1,000-yard receiver in the same season. Year Rushing Passing Receiving 2001* Emmett White, 1360 Jose Fuentes, 2862 Kevin Curtis, 1421 2000 Emmett White, 1322 Jose Fuentes, 2709 Aaron Jones, 1159 1995 Abu Wilson, 1476 Patrick Mullins, 2774 Kevin Alexander, 1400 * - One game remaining this seasonNCAA RECORD BOOK LOOK -- Here is a look at some NCAA record book lists that USU players are already on or could find their way on before the end of the year: Season Receptions Per Game -- Kevin Curtis (9.3) is tied for 16th. Season Receptions -- Kevin Curtis (93) is 33rd (only 21 players have 100+) Season Rec. Yards -- Kevin Curtis (1401) needs 43 for 20th. Career All-Purpose Yards -- Emmett White (5858) is 22nd. Season All-Purpose Yards -- Emmett White (2009) needs 123 for 38th. Other * Jose Fuentes needs 138 passing yards for USU to become the 20th team to have a 3,000-yard passer, 1,000-yard rusher and 1,000-yard receiver in the same year. * Emmett White needs three receptions to become the 11th player in NCAA history to have 50 receptions and rush for 1,000 yards in a season. * White has already tied NCAA record for most season with 2,000 all-purpose yards with two (shared by nine others). * Kevin Curtis needs a 200-yard receiving game against Fresno State to tie the NCAA record for consecutive 200-yard games (3 by Howard Twilley of Tulsa in 1965 and Trevor Insley of Nevada in 1999). STREAKS -- Here is a look at several active USU streaks: QB Jose Fuentes has thrown for at least 200 yards in 15 straight games and has thrown for a touchdown pass in 15 straight games as well...P Steve Mullins has hit at least one 50-yard punt in 10 straight games and in 26 of 32 games in his career... RB Emmett White and OT Jim Newton have started a team-best 21 consecutive games... WR Kevin Curtis has two straight 200-yard receiving games. OFFENSIVE NOTES -- USU had its streak of five straight 100-yard rushing games stopped with a 59-yard effort against South Florida last week (the 59 yards were the fewest since rushing for just 51 yards against Idaho State in the 2000 finale)... USU has produced two of its top three passing games of the year in the last two games with 441 yards against Weber State and 363 at South Florida (had 378 in game four against Oregon)... USU has produced 1,106 yards of total offense in the last two games... USU had five turnovers at South Florida to match its season most turnovers (five in season opener at Utah)... USU had a season-high 15 penalties (for 110 yards) against USF, its most penalties since committing 15 at Colorado in 1998... USU's 40.14 time of possession against USF was its most in at least six years... USU's 13 points against USF were its fewest since losing 14-6 to New Mexico State in 1999 and came one week after netting 56 points against Weber State... USU's 292.8 yards per game passing this season is third in school history... USU's 429.1 yards of total offense per game ranks seventh in school history... USU's 295 points with one game remaining are the most the Aggies have scored in the last four years... USU has spread the ball around on offense with 10 players having a rushing attempt, six throwing a pass, and 13 recording a reception... Despite the fact that Kevin Curtis leads the nation with 93 receptions, five different Aggies have at least 20 catches this year, the most USU players with at least 20 receptions totals since 1998... The last time more than five USU players had at least 20 receptions was 1988 (six players). The Opponent Defenses Nationally Rushing Defense -- #15 Utah, #16 Fresno State, #21 S. Florida, #30 LSU Pass Defense -- #13 Central Florida Total Defense -- #17 Central Florida, #19 Utah Scoring Defense -- #9 Utah, #17 Central Florida, #28 South Florida OFFENSIVE DID YOU KNOW? -- USU had six possessions with at least eight plays against USF, but scored just one touchdown on those opportunities (three turnovers, one punt, one missed field goal and one touchdown). DEFENSIVE NOTES -- USU allowed South Florida just 132 passing yards last Saturday, the fewest thrown against the Aggies since North Texas had just 72 yards in the sixth game of last year... South Florida's 270 yards of total offense was the best statistical effort by the Aggie defense this season... USU's defense has had two of its best total defense games in the last three games (allowed Connecticut just 279 yards)... USF had the ball just 19:46 and produced just two offensive touchdowns (USF's other three touchdowns came on a blocked punt return, a fumble recovery by their defense and a punt return)... USF had only two possessions with more than five plays... Seven of USF's 13 possessions gained less than 10 yards... Three of USF's five touchdowns came off USU turnovers while the other two scores were on special teams play... After allowing an average of 204.6 yards per game rushing in the first five games, USU has limited the opposition to just 100.4 in the last five games... In the last five games, the opponent has averaged just 3.2 yards per rush... The Aggie defense did not come up with an interception in the first four games of the year, but has 10 in the last six games... USU is holding the opponents to just 4.7 points in the first quarter this year (47 points overall). DEFENSIVE DID YOU KNOW? -- USU has allowed the opponent just two offensive touchdowns three times this year (Utah, UCF and USF). DID YOU KNOW? -- 20 different USU players have tackles for loss and 10 have sacks. The Opponent Offenses Nationally Rushing Offense -- #8 BYU, #21 Oregon, #22 Utah Passing Offense -- #6 Fresno State, #7 LSU, #9 C. Florida, #10 BYU, #14 Wyoming, #21 S. Florida Total Offense -- #2 BYU, #5 Fresno State, #6 LSU, #10 Oregon Scoring Offense -- #1 BYU, #5 Fresno State, #11 Oregon, #14 S. Florida, #29 LSU SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES -- USU which had excelled on special teams play for most of the year, has seen a dropoff in its play lately... Against USF, the Aggies had a punt blocked and returned for a touchdown, allowed a 91-yard punt return for a score and missed a 33-yard field goal attempt. USU PLAYER NOTE-ABLE -- P Steve Mullins recorded a 62-yard punt against USF for his second longest punt this season (67 vs. Utah) and his third 60-plus yard punt this year... Mullins enters the week ranked fifth nationally with a 44.8 average, which is also currently tied for the school season record with Jerry Arguello (44.8 in 1997)... Mullins completed a 17-yard pass on a fake punt for a first down (he is now three of six passing in his career)... Roger Fernandez' 24.7 kickoff return yard average is 30th nationally and fifth among freshmen as well as the second best at USU in the last 10 years (Tony Walker averaged 25.4 in 1998)... WR Kevin Curtis is fifth among wide receivers in all-purpose yardage and 18th nationally... RB Emmett White's 4.7 receptions per game are fourth among the nation's running backs. USU NOTE-ABLE -- USU is 1-4 on the road this year (won at Connecticut) and 3-8 away from Logan in the Mick Dennehy era... USU has won at least two road games in nine of the last 10 years... USU has started 36 different players this season, including 13 seniors, 10 juniors, eight sophomores and four freshmen... A win will give USU at least five wins for the fourth time in the last six seasons... USU has scored first in eight of 10 games and has led in every contest this year... Utah State is 4-0 in day games this year as opposed to 0-6 in night contests. DID YOU KNOW? -- Utah is outscoring the opposition in the first (81-47) and third quarters (88-71), but is being outscored in the second (122-62) and fourth quarters (111-64) this year. UTAH STATE SEASON NOTE-ABLE Preseason * In its first year as an independent after 23 years as a member of the Big West Conference, USU will travel 15,412 round-trip miles and play in four time zones in 2001. Here is a look: Date Opponent One-Way Round Trip Time Zone Sept. 1 at Utah 83 166 Mountain Sept. 8 at Louisiana State 1,886 3,772 Central Oct. 5 at Brigham Young 128 256 Mountain Nov. 10 at Connecticut 2,341 4,682 Eastern Nov. 24 at South Florida 2,370 4,740 Eastern Dec. 1 at Fresno State 898 1,796 Pacific Totals Six Games 7,706 15,412 4 Time Zones* 2000 All-American RB Emmett White was a Doak Walker Award candidate. * P Steve Mullins is a Ray Guy Award candidate. * WR Kevin Curtis is a Biletnikoff Award candidate. * All 11 USU games will be played on natural grass this year. * Seven of USU's 11 games are at night. Utah * WR Kevin Curtis had the best receiving debut in USU history with 11 receptions for 171 yards and one touchdown... USU's five turnovers were its most since committing six in the 1999 season opener at Georgia... USU scored on its first possession of the game against Utah, driving 57 yards on seven plays for a 27-yard Dane Kidman field goal... Only five Aggies touched the ball offensively... USU scored on two of its first four possessions... After making its second field goal, USU had five turnovers and four punts the next nine times it touched the ball against Utah... DE Ryan Duncan recorded the first fumble recovery of his career... The USU defense forced Utah to punt four times in its last five possessions... While USU turned it over five times, the USU defense allowed just a field goal off of those miscues... Roger Fernandez recorded the first punt return for a touchdown (64 yards) by an Aggie since Steve Smith went 71 yards at Nevada in 1997... That was the first time Fernandez touched a ball in his collegiate career... DT Jorge Tapia recorded his first blocked field goal attempt... USU fumbled two kickoff returns to Utah... USU had only three penalties. Louisiana State * USU entered the game with a 1-31 all-time record against ranked teams. RB Emmett White had 108 yards on 22 carries and WR Kevin Curtis recorded 100 yards on 12 receptions. Wyoming * RB Emmett White had the third-best rushing game in school history with 274 yards... White had 334 all-purpose yards in the game, which is his second-best performance of his career... USU's offense produced 571 total yards which was the 10th best performance in school history... WR Jason Deml recorded his first career touchdown reception. Oregon * The Ducks were the first ranked opponent to play at Logan since Colorado State was ranked 25th in 1997... WR Kevin Curtis recorded his fourth straight 100-yard receiving game... WR Gay Coleman recorded his first career touchdown reception... USU committed four turnovers in the game, including three interceptions in the red zone. Brigham Young * The game was played at Provo for the second straight year and the 13th time in the last 18 meetings... USU scored 21 points in the second quarter after scoring a combined 20 points in the second period in the first four games... PK Dane Kidman has his streak of four straight field goals to open his career stopped when he had an attempt blocked... S Nathan Barber recorded the first interception of his career and USU's first interception of the season... QB Jose Fuentes extended his streak of throwing for at least 200 yards to 10 straight games and also threw a touchdown pass for the 15th straight game... S Jerome Dennis, S Nathan Barber and DT Ronald Tupea made their first career starts. Idaho State * USU met Bengals for the third time in the last five years... Utah State rallied from a 27-point deficit to beat Idaho State 28-27 (all 28 points came in the final 21 minutes of the game), which is believed to be the largest deficit overcome in school history. The biggest deficits overcome in NCAA history were 31 points by Maryland vs. Miami (Fla.) in 1984 and Ohio State vs. Minnesota in 1989. California overcame a 30-point deficit against Oregon in 1993. In addition USU scored 21 points in the fourth quarter to win while three teams hold the NCAA record in that category with 28... S Bryan Jackson and OT Brenen Burningham made their first collegiate starts... USU allowed the opponent to score first for just the second time this year... USU came back from a third quarter deficit for the first time since rallying from a 20-18 deficit to win 28-27 at North Texas (USU trailed 27-7 after three quarters against ISU)... Jose Fuentes' 58-yard touchdown pass to Kevin Curtis was the longest play of the year for USU... USU's third quarter touchdown at the 6:00 mark were USU's first points since the opening possession of the third quarter against BYU (66:41 between scores). Central Florida * USU's two first quarter touchdowns in 2:14 were the quickest back-to-back USU scores since scoring two touchdowns in 1:09 against Stephen F. Austin in 1999... TE/FB J.R. Suguturaga became the first non-quarterback to throw an interception for USU since 1984 when RB Marc White was intercepted on his only passing attempt that year... S Derrek Shank recorded his first interception of the year and the third of his two-year career. Connecticut * USU stopped a four-game road losing streak with its victory... USU's 38-10 lead (18 points) was its biggest of the season topping the 17-point first quarter margin USU held against Central Florida... CB Tony Walker recorded his seventh career interception and returned the pick 31 yards for his first career touchdown. Weber State * The two schools had not played since 1982... USU won its home finale for the first time in three years... Utah State sent a single-season attendance average record finishing the home season with a mark of 21,784 (old record was 21,534 set in 1996)... USU produced a school-record tying 684 yards of total offense (also had 684 vs. Nevada in 1992)... USU's 56 points were its most since beating Idaho 63-17 in 1997... USU's 441 passing yards were the fourth most in school history... WR Gary Coleman's 70-yard touchdown reception was the longest play from scrimmage for USU this year... USU had two players with 100 yards receiving in the same game for the first time since 1996... Weber State's 43 points were the most USU has allowed in a win since beating Brigham Young 58-56 in 1993. South Florida * USU made its third trip to the state of Florida all-time as the Aggies lost at Florida State 17-8 in 1975 and lost 17-16 at Miami in 1978. Fresno State * USU's game against Fresno State was postponed from its original Sept. 15 date and it marked the first time a USU game was postponed or canceled since the Aggies' 1970 game against Wichita State was canceled due to Wichita State's plane crash on the way to Logan for that game. * USU's Dec. 1 final regular season game marks just the third time USU has ended a non-bowl season in the month of December (1959 and 1971). * USU's only win against a ranked team came when Utah State defeated 25th-listed Fresno State 20-19 in 1991 (USU is 1-34 vs. ranked teams all-time). * USU has not played in the state of California since 1995 (San Jose State) and will be its first non-conference game in the state since 1989 (So. California). Utah State Depth Chart Offense LT 79 JIM NEWTON (6-10, 278, Jr. 2L) 65 Brenen Burningham (6-6, 275, Fr., RS)2000 Starters in ALL CAPS 1L = one varsity letter, HS= High School experience, JC=Junior College, RS= Redshirt, SQ=Squad (did not letter), TR=Transfer
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