Utah State Aggies

Aug. 1, 2012

LOGAN, Utah -

2012 Fall Camp Notes

Utah State's football team will officially began fall camp on Friday, Aug. 3 with its first practice from 2:15 to 4:15 p.m., on the USU practice field located between the football stadium and the indoor practice facility. All practices during fall camp, which concludes on Saturday, Aug. 25, are open to the public.

Fourth-year head coach Gary Andersen welcomes back 45 lettermen (19-offense; 20-defense; 6-special teams) and 19 starters (8-offense; 6-defense; 5-special teams) from last year's team that finished with a 7-6 record and tied for second-place in the Western Athletic Conference with a 5-2 mark as it participated in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (L, 23-24 vs. Ohio), its first bowl game since 1997. In all, 104 players are expected to begin camp Friday.

"It's always great to get everyone back into town and get the season started," Andersen said. "We challenged our players to put in the extra time during their summer workouts and I'm excited to see those results on the field. We are placing a lot of expectations on the team as we enter fall camp, and as a coaching staff we expect a highly competitive and high-energy first practice."

Practices on Friday and Saturday, Aug. 3-4, will have players in helmets, practice jerseys and shorts as part of the five-day acclimation period before adding shoulder pads for practices next Monday and Tuesday, Aug. 6-7. USU will then be in full pads on Wednesday, Aug. 8 leading up to its first two-a-day on Thursday, Aug. 9. All practices will be held on the USU practice field leading up to its first scrimmage, which will be held on Merlin Olsen Field at Romney Stadium on Saturday, Aug. 11 at 10 a.m.

Along with playing in its first bowl game in over a decade during the 2011 season, Utah State's seven overall wins and five league victories were its most since 1993, while its second-place conference finish was its best since the 2000 team ended the year second in the Big West. Furthermore, those five league wins in 2011 were tied with five other teams (1953, 1960, 1990, 1991, 1993) for the most in school history, while its seven overall wins are tied for the 10th most all-time at USU. Utah State also won its final five games of the regular season in 2011, which is tied for the eighth-longest winning streak in school history and the longest since the 1993 squad won its final six games of the year. USU's three-win turnaround from four wins in 2010 to seven wins in 2011 was among the top 15 in the Football Bowl Subdivision for the year.

Highlighting Utah State's returners is junior center Tyler Larsen who earned first-team all-WAC honors a year ago. Along with Larsen, USU returns seven other starters on offense (WR - Matt Austin; WR - Chuck Jacobs; QB - Chuckie Keeton; QB - Adam Kennedy; LT - Oscar Molina-Sanchez; RT - Eric Schultz; RB/KR - Kerwynn Williams), six starters on defense (FS - McKade Brady; LB - Bojay Filimoeatu; DT - Al Lapuaho; CB - Nevin Lawson; LB - Tavaris McMillian; CB - Jumanne Robertson) and five special teams starters (P - Tyler Bennett; PK/H - Jaron Bentrude; KO - Jacob Haueter; LS - Nate Needham; PK - Josh Thompson).

Utah State lost five players who earned all-WAC honors in 2011 highlighted by senior running back Robert Turbin who was named the WAC's Offensive Player of the Year. Senior offensive lineman Philip Gapelu and senior linebacker Bobby Wagner both earned first-team all-WAC honors, while senior tight end Tarren Lloyd and senior defensive end Levi Koskan were both named to the second-team. Other offensive starters lost include guards Robert Hill and Funaki Asisi, wide receivers Stanley Morrison and Eric Moats, and running back Michael Smith. Other defensive starters lost include end Quinn Garner, linebacker Kyle Gallagher and safety Alfred Bowden.

For the first time since 1996, the Aggies will open a season with back-to-back home games, hosting a pair of in-state foes in Southern Utah on Thursday, Aug. 30 and Utah on Friday, Sept. 7. Both games are slated for 6 p.m. (MT) starts from Merlin Olsen Field at Romney Stadium. The Aggies' game against Utah will be on ESPN2.

Season tickets and two-game packages can be purchased in person at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum weekdays between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Fans can also buy tickets over the phone by calling 1-888-USTATE-1, or online at www.utahstateaggies.com/tickets.

Fans can follow the Aggie football program at twitter.com/USUFootball or on the USU football blog at usufootball.wordpress.com. Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program at twitter.com/USUAthletics or on facebook at Utah State University Athletics.

Utah State Football Practice Dates, Times and Location
Fri., Aug. 3 --- 2:15 - 4:15 pm (Practice Field)
Sat., Aug. 4 --- 2:15 - 4:15 pm (Practice Field)
Mon., Aug. 6 --- 2:15 - 4:15 pm (Practice Field)
Tues., Aug. 7 --- 2:15 - 4:15 pm (Practice Field)
Wed., Aug. 8 --- 9:15 - 11:15 am (Practice Field)
Thur., Aug. 9 --- 9:15 - 11:15 am / 4:55 - 6:25 pm (Practice Field) --- First Two-A-Day
Fri., Aug. 10 --- 9:15 - 11:15 am (Practice Field)
Sat., Aug. 11 --- 10:00 - 11:30 am (Merlin Olsen Field at Romney Stadium) --- Scrimmage #1
Mon., Aug. 13 --- 9:15 - 11:15 am / 4:55 - 6:25 pm (Practice Field)
Tues., Aug. 14 --- 9:15 - 11:15 am (Practice Field)
Wed., Aug. 15 --- 9:15 - 11:15 am / 4:55 - 6:25 pm (Practice Field)
Thur., Aug. 16 --- 9:15 - 11:15 am (Practice Field)
Fri., Aug. 17 --- 9:15 - 11:15 am / 4:55 - 6:25 pm (Practice Field)
Sat., Aug. 18 --- 2:00 pm FOOTBALL FAMILY FUN DAY, sponsored by Macy's
                  (Merlin Olsen Field at Romney Stadium) --- Scrimmage #2
Mon., Aug. 20 --- 9:15 - 11:15 am / 3:55 - 5:25 pm (Practice Field)
Tues., Aug. 21 --- 2:40 - 4:40 pm (Practice Field)
Wed., Aug. 22 --- 9:15 - 11:15 am / 3:55 - 5:25 pm (Practice Field)
Thur., Aug. 23 --- 2:40 - 4:40 pm (Practice Field)
Fri., Aug. 24 --- 2:40 - 4:40 pm (Practice Field)
Sat., Aug. 25 --- 12:00 - 2:00 pm (Merlin Olsen Field at Romney Stadium)
End of Camp
NOTE: All dates, times and locations subject to change.