|
Aggies Head To Hawai'i To Battle Warriors On Saturday
Nov. 2, 2009
LOGAN, Utah - Complete Utah State at Hawai'i Game Notes in PDF Format
UTAH STATE at HAWAI'I Saturday, Nov. 7 - 8 p.m. (MT) Aloha Stadium (50,000) Honolulu, Hawaii
QUICKLY -- Utah State (2-6, 1-3 WAC) wraps up its two-game road swing with its longest trip of the season, heading to Honolulu to play Hawai'i (2-6, 0-5 WAC) on Saturday, Nov. 7... The Aggies-Warriors battle, which is also UH's Homecoming, begins at 8 p.m. (MT) at UH's Warrior Stadium (50,000)... Saturday's game will be televised by Oceanic Pay-Per-View and available on CW30 (Comcast Ch. 15 in Cache Valley). SATURDAY'S STORYLINES -- Things to watch for in the game between the Aggies and Warriors on Saturday: -- Two of the top all-purpose players in the WAC and NCAA will be on the field in Utah State's junior RB Robert Turbin, who is second in the conference and 24th in the country at 144.4 all-purpose yards per game while junior WR Greg Salas of Hawai'i is third in the league and 42nd in the nation with 129.2 all-purpose ypg.
-- It will be a match-up of the top receiver in the conference in Salas who leads the conference with 122.1 ypg (second in NCAA) and 7.4 receptions per game (10th in NCAA /122.1 ypg) against the top pass defender in the league in USU's senior S James Brindley, who is tied for the WAC lead and tied for 18th in the nation in passes defended with nine (six INT, three pass break-ups).
-- USU is second in the WAC and 24th in the NCAA in rushing offense (191.0 ypg) while UH is eighth in the conference and 112th in the county in rushing defense (213.5 ypg).
-- UH leads the league and is third in the nation in pass offense (352.0 ypg) while USU is seventh in the conference and 65th in the country in pass defense (221.1 ypg).
-- USU is tied for second in the WAC and tied for 17th in the NCAA in turnover margin (+7/+0.8 pg) while UH is ninth in the league and 115th in the nation (-11/-1.4 pg).
-- USU has two players and two coaches from Hawaii on its roster in junior DT Kamaloni Vainikolo (pronounced Comma-lone-ee Vi-inny-kolo), who is from Kihei (Maui HS/El Camino JC) and redshirting freshman DE Mika Nickel (pronounced Mee-ka), who is from Kamuela (Hawaii Prep Academy) as well as defensive line coach Chad Kauha'aha'a (pronounced Cow-ha-a-ha-a), who was born in Wailuku, Maui and running backs coach Ilaisa Tuiaki (pronounced E-lye-sa Too-ee-ah-kee), who was born in Kahuku, Hawaii... Kauha'aha'a was head coach at Baldwin High School on the island of Maui, Hawai'i from 2002-04... Utah State offensive line coach Alex Gerke was the offensive line/running backs coach at Hawai'i last season. FOLLOWING THE GAME ON TV -- Saturday's conference clash between the Aggies and the Warriors will be televised by CW30 (Comcast Ch. 15 in Cache Valley). ON THE AIR -- All Utah State football games are carried live on KVNU 610 AM and KLZX 95.9 FM in Logan; 1230 AM in Salt Lake City; on KLZX 105.3 FM in Montpelier, Idaho, and on the Internet at www.UtahStateAggies.com by clicking on "Listen Live"... Al Lewis handles the play-by-play duties and Craig Hislop provides analysis... Saturday's is the 15th anniversary of the first internet radio broadcast, as on Nov. 7, 1994, WXYC, the student radio station of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, provided the world's first internet radio broadcast. ON THE INTERNET -- USU home football games are also streamed on the Internet through "Aggies All Access," by clicking on the "Live Aggies Video" link in the right hand column on the home page of www.UtahStateAggies.com. GAMETRACKER -- Fans can follow all USU Aggie home games through the USU web site at www.UtahStateAggies.com via GameTracker, a free service, which updates play-by-play and statistics throughout the game. COACHES SHOW ON THE ROAD -- The Gary Andersen radio show will rotate between the A&W Restaurant and Firehouse Pizza on Thursday nights (6:05-6:45 p.m. on 610 AM KVNU) when the Aggies play on Saturday, with the exception of the Hawai'i game week, when the show will be on Wednesday, Nov. 4... It will also be on Tuesday, Nov. 17 of the Boise State game week... The show gives USU fans an opportunity to ask questions and interact with Coach Andersen and players. Nov. 12 - A&W Restaurant (710 N Main, Logan, UT) /
UP NEXT -- The Aggies return to the friendly confines of Romney Stadium for a two-game homestand, hosting San Jose State on Saturday, Nov. 14 at 1 p.m. (MT) before the home finale on Friday, Nov. 20 vs. nationally-ranked Boise State in a nationally-televised game on ESPN2 at 6 p.m. (MT). UTAH STATE NOTE-ABLES CUE WILLIE NELSON -- Utah State is making Willie Nelson proud and is on the road again for the second of two road games, after playing at Fresno State last week... Saturday will be USU's sixth road game of the season while having only three home games. USU IN NOVEMBER / ON NOV. 7 -- Utah State has won four of its last six games in the November... During its four years in the WAC, USU is 5-11 in the American Thanksgiving month, also referred to as "Movember," as males in the United States and Australia grow moustaches and other facial hair in support of men's health issues... Saturday is the Aggies' first game on Nov. 7 since 1998 when USU lost to Nevada, 26-21... Overall, USU is 7-5-1 on the date, as the 1998 loss snapped a three-game winning streak on the date... Utah State is an even 4-4 on the road on Nov. 7, but are 3-2 outside of the state of Utah on the date... Here's a closer look at USU's history on Nov. 7: 1914 W 24-3 vs. Wyoming 1924 W 13-9 at Brigham Young 1931 L 0-6 at Brigham Young 1936 W 13-0 at Colorado State 1942 L 0-25 at Colorado State 1953 W 46-6 vs. Fresno State 1959 L 7-10 at Colorado State 1964 T 20-20 vs. Wyoming 1970 L 0-17 at Utah 1981 W 28-2 at Long Beach State 1987 W 25-6 at New Mexico State 1992 W 48-8 vs. UNLV 1998 L 21-26 vs. Nevada USU VS. HAWAI'I IN NOVEMBER -- Saturday marks the second year in a rowand third in the last four that USU and UH have hooked up on the first Saturday of November, but the first time in Honolulu... The teams are an even 1-1 in those two previous meetings as the Warriors won, 63-10, on Nov. 4, 2006 and the Aggies won, 30-14, on Nov. 1 of last year... Overall, this is the fifth November match-up between USU and UH, and the teams are 2-2 in the previous four meetings. UTAH STATE-HAWAI'I SERIES -- The Aggies hold a 5-4 lead, one of three WAC opponents USU leads... Last year's 30-14 Aggie victory snapped a three-game Warrior win streak in the series... USU is 2-3 at Honolulu, losing its last two visits there after winning the previous two meetings... If the past foresees the future, Saturday could be a shoot out as the Warriors have outscored the Aggies, 102-60, an average of 51-30 in those last two wins in Honolulu... The teams met in 1927, 1957, 59, 65, 66, 2005, '06, '07 and '08... USU lost its first visit to the islands in 1927 (21-20) before winning in its 1959 (48-6) and 1966 (48-0) visits there... After meeting in 1966, the teams didn't meet each other until 2005's match-up at Hawai'i, with the Warriors winning 50-23, their first meeting as fellow WAC foes, and have met every season since. Hawai'i Overall: 5-4-0 / Home: 3-1-0 / Away: 2-3-0AGGIE-WARRIOR NOTE-ABLE -- USU has two players and two coaches from Hawaii on its roster in junior DT Kamaloni Vainikolo (pronounced Comma-lone-ee Vi-inny-kolo), who is from Kihei (Maui HS/El Camino JC) and redshirting freshman DE Mika Nickel (pronounced Mee-ka), who is from Kamuela (Hawaii Prep Academy) as well as defensive line coach Chad Kauha'aha'a (pronounced Cow-ha-a-ha-a), who was born in Wailuku, Maui and running backs coach Ilaisa Tuiaki (pronounced E-lye-sa Too-ee-ah-kee), who was born in Kahuku, Hawaii... Kauha'aha'a was head coach at Baldwin High School on the island of Maui, Hawai'i from 2002-04, where he posted a 25-5-2 record in three seasons, winning two Maui Interscholastic League championships... His teams finished ranked among the top five in the state each of those three seasons... Kauha'aha'a became head coach at Baldwin after five seasons as an assistant coach there... Utah State offensive line coach Alex Gerke was the offensive line/running backs coach at Hawai'i last season... Hawai'i has two players from the state of Utah in redshirt freshman DB Lewis Walker, who is from Salt Lake City and went to Judge Memorial HS; freshman DB Mike Wadsworth is an Orem native, where he attended Silverado HS... Both USU and UH each have a Canadian on their roster in Aggie freshman LB Connor Williams, who is from Kanata, Ontario while Warrior junior LB Joseph Malabuyoc is from Vancouver, British Columbia... USU junior DT Sean Enesi is from the same hometown and was high school teammates with UH senior DL Antwan Mahaley and junior DB Jeramy Bryant, who are all from Carson, Calif., and were teammates at Carson HS... USU sophomore OL Christian Browne-Frazier and UH junior WR Dustin Blount were teammates at Compton CC... Enesi, Vainikolo, senior LB Chris Williams and sophomore LB Reuben Willis all played for El Camino CC, where UH K Brian Blumberg played... USU freshman RB Kerwynn Williams and UH senior LB Joshua Rice are both from Las Vegas, Nev., but Williams went to Valley HS while Rice went to Coronado HS... Aggie senior WR Nnamdi Gwacham is from Chino Hills, Calif., while Warrior junior WR Greg Salas and junior OL Joey Lipp are from next door Chino, Calif... USU offensive coordinator Dave Baldwin was a graduate assistant at Cal State Northridge in 1979, where he coached with UH offensive line coach Gordy Shaw, who was the defensive line coach at Cal State Northridge... Travis LaBoy, who redshirted the 1999 season at Utah State, transferred to Hawai'i where he earned WAC Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2003. USU BESTS VS. HAWAI'I -- Here is a look at some of the top USU statistical individual performances against the Warriors over the years: MacArthur Lane had an 84-yard rush against Hawai'i in 1966, the eighth-longest rush in school history... Merrill Johnson and Tom Larscheid connected for a 76-yard pass play against the Warriors in 1959 for what was then the second-longest pass play in USU history (now tied for 22nd)... Jim Swindle had a 90-yard interception return in 1959, USU's fourth-longest INT return... Altie Taylor had what was then the third-longest (now tied for sixth) punt return in 1966 with an 82-yarder... In 2005 against Hawai'i, Justin Hamblin kicked a 50-yard field goal, the last time an Aggie kicked a 50-yarder before current USU senior K Chris Ulinski's 56-yarder vs. NMSU last year...USU piled up 428 rushing yards on Hawai'i in 1966, the sixth-most in USU history... In 1965, the Aggie defense yielded only 115 yards of total offense to Hawai'i, the 13th-lowest total... The next season, the USU defense limited UH to 20 rushing yards, which was the fourth-lowest rushing total (currently 18th)... The 48-0 win in 1966 is the 19th largest winning margin, while the 2006 63-10 loss is the 12th-largest losing margin... The 100-yard kickoff return by Kevin Robinson in 2007 at Hawai'i was the third longest in school history and the longest in the modern era since the NCAA statistics counted all returns in the end zone as 100-yard returns. USU OFF THE MAINLAND -- Historically, Utah State has had success off the mainland, as the Aggies are a combined 5-3 in games on non-lower 48 state soil, including 2-3 at Hawai'i and 3-0 in Japan (W, 50-6 vs. All-Japan in the Silk Bowl in Tokyo, Japan on Dec. 19, 1971; W, 46-6 vs. Japanese All-Stars in Osaka, Japan on Dec. 26, 1971; W, 10-0 vs. Idaho State in Osaka, Japan on Sept. 3, 1978). UTAH STATE-HAWAI'I BY THE NUMB3R5 -- A closer look at note-ables about Saturday's clash of the Aggies and Warriors:
UTAH STATE-HAWAI'I LAST TIME
LOGAN, Utah - Behind sophomore QB Diondre Borel's 310 yards of total offense and some pivotal turnovers by the defense, Utah State knocked off defending Western Athletic Conference champion Hawai'i, 30-14, on Nov. 1 at Romney Stadium. Borel helped the Aggies celebrate National College Football Day and USU Military Appreciation Day by passing for 223 yards on a 14-of-19 effort with two TD's while rushing for 87 yards on 14 carries to give USU its first WAC win over Hawai'i in four tries. Utah State now leads its series with Hawai'i, 5-4, as the Aggies' last win over the Warriors was in 1966, as the two teams did not play from 1966 until 2005, USU's first season in the WAC. The USU defense and special teams played a huge role in the Aggies' success, blocking two field goals, recovering a fumble inside the five, as well as forcing and recovering a fumble on a kickoff return following USU's final score. USU amassed 368 yards of total offense, as Borel led USU in both rushing and passing for the fourth game in a row and the sixth time this season. The Aggies had 145 rushing yards to go with the 223 passing yards. UH had 374 total offense yards with 141 rushing and two different QB's combining for 233 yards. Sophomore PK/P Peter Caldwell made all three of his field goal attempts as well as all three of extra points. It was a total team effort on defense as four players: senior CB Roy Hurst, junior LB Paul Igboeli, junior S James Brindley and senior LB Jake Hutton, shared honors for leading tackles with six each. Igboeli had the first blocked field goal of the game and also recovered the Hawai'i fumble inside the five, thwarting the Warriors' third-quarter opening drive with USU holding its 13-7 lead. The Aggies scored first on a 34-yard field goal from Caldwell on USU's opening drive of the game, marking the second time in as many games to score on its initial possession after failing to do so in the previous 14 games. On the Warriors' ensuing possession, Igboeli ended the drive by blocking the field goal. Early in the second quarter, Hurst sped around the edge to block UH's next field goal attempt. USU went up 10-0 on the very next play on a 62-yard scoring strike from Borel to junior WR Nnamdi Gwacham. On its very next possession, UH scored on a 34-yard pass from starting QB Greg Alexander to Michael Washington to pull within, 10-7. That would be the closest the Warriors would get as Caldwell booted another 34-yard field goal on the first half's final play to send USU into intermission with a 13-7 lead, the Aggies' first halftime lead of the season and just the sixth in the last three seasons. Hawai'i closed to 20-14 with seven minutes remaining in the game on a 9-yard run by Alexander but USU tacked on a 21-yard Caldwell field goal to take a 23-14 advantage. Facing a fourth-and-10 from the USU 20, Hawai'i went for it, but senior S De'von Hall broke up his second-straight pass and third of the day. The Aggies punched it in from there, with a six-yard rumble by Turbin and Caldwell's PAT capped the scoring at 30-14. The scoring wasn't almost done though, as Malcolm Lane had a 91-yard kickoff return, but a gutsy effort by USU senior CB Joshua Taylor denied Lane, as Taylor forced the fumble. Redshirt freshman WR Austin Alder scooped the ball and ran it out to the USU 22 where the Aggies ran out the clock and sparked the celebration. Score By Quarters Hawai'i 0 7 0 7 - 14 Utah State 3 10 7 10 - 30AGGIES-WARRIORS LAST TIME AT HONOLULU #16 HAWAI'I 52, UTAH STATE 37 October 6, 2007 • Honolulu, Hawai'i • Aloha Stadium HONOLULU -- Despite a season-high points and total yards of offense, Utah State was on the short end of a 52-37 loss at 16th-ranked Hawai'i on Oct. 6 at Aloha Stadium. USU scored the most points since 41 in a 41-20 win against Middle Tennessee on Nov. 1, 2003 and compiled 370 yards of total offense, which is the most since 373 at Louisiana Tech on Oct. 21, 2006. Senior WR/KR Kevin Robinson had a 100-yard kick return for a TD and a 77-yard reception for a TD from fellow senior, QB/P Leon Jackson III, in the third quarter. The 77-yard pass play from Jackson to Robinson was USU's longest play from scrimmage this season and the longest since a 79-yard pass play from Travis Cox to Barry Tolli against New Mexico on Oct. 4, 2003. However, the Aggies also gave up 465 yards of passing by Hawai'i, the most yielded by the USU defense this season. Robinson's 100-yard kick return was the third longest in school history and the longest in the modern era since the NCAA statistics counted all returns in the end zone as 100-yard returns. The school record is 105 by Altie Taylor vs West Texas State (now West Texas A&M) in 1967 and No. 2 is Tom Larsheid's 102-yard return vs. BYU in 1960. Robinson also broke the school record for career kick returns with his third career kick return (second in three games - vs. San Jose State on Sept. 22). He also moved into No. 2 on USU's career all-purpose yards, passing Kendal Smith's 5,266 all-purpose yards (1985-88). The No. 1 spot is held by Emmett White (1998-2001) with 5,872 yards. Robinson's two TD's were his first mulit-TD game since at Louisiana Tech last year as well and give him 25 for his career, as he is No. 7 on USU's career TD list. Jackson moved to No. 8 on USU's career total offense list, as his 216 yards gave him 4,027 for his career, passing Abu Wilson (1992, 94-96) with 3,933 yards. The Aggies fall to 0-6 overall and 0-2 in Western Athletic Conference play, as USU suffered its 12th-straight loss overall and 17th in the last 18 games. Hawai'i improved to 6-0 overall and 3-0 in WAC action and the Warriors, already with the highest ranking in school history are expected to climb in the polls. Score By Quarters Utah State 10 3 14 10 - 37 Hawai`i 10 21 21 0 - 52 ABOUT USU -- Saturday's 31-27 loss at Fresno State dropped USU to 2-6 overall and 1-3 in WAC play... The Aggies amassed 503 yards of total offense, their third-highest offensive output this season, but failed to score in the second half after taking a 27-17 halftime lead... Junior QB Diondre Borel became the first Aggie signal-caller to rush for 100 yards since 2005 with a career-best 105 and a TD while throwing for 240 yards and another TD on 20-of-31 passing... Borel and sophomore RB Robert Turbin lead USU offensively, as Borel is 146-of-251 (58.2 pct) for 1,921 yards (240.1 ypg)... Turbin has 132 carries for 872 yards (109.0 ypg/6.6 ypc)... Borel and Turbin share the team lead with five rushing TD's each... A total of 13 different receivers have caught a pass, led by sophomore WR Stanley Morrison with 27, for 488 yards (61.0 ypg/18.1 ypc) and two TD's... Turbin and senior WR Xavier Bowman lead USU with three TD catches each... Turbin and senior WR Omar Sawyer have 20 catches each with Turbin totaling 283 yards (14.1 ypc) and Sawyer tallying 210 yards (10.5 ypc) and two TD's... Junior WR Eric Moats has snared 18 catches for 230 yards (12.8 ypc) while senior WR Nnamdi Gwacham and Bowman have 15 receptions each as Gwacham has 236 yards (15.7 ypc) and Bowman has 177 yards (11.8 ypc)... Defensively, sophomore LB Bobby Wagner leads USU with 74 tackles (9.2 pg), including four for loss... Senior S James Brindley is second on the team with 59 stops (8.4 pg), posting a team-best three interceptions and six pass break-ups... Junior S Rajric Coleman is second with 53 tackles (6.6 pg) and is second on the team with two INT's... Junior P Peter Caldwell has a 42.8 ypp average with 15 punts of 50+ yards and 24 inside the 20-yard line.... Senior K Chris Ulinski is 11-of-15 (73.3 pct) on field goals and has 17 touchbacks on kickoffs. IN THE STAT RANKINGS -- USU has several players amongst the WAC and NCAA statistical leaders, as well as in the team stats: -- Utah State is third in the WAC and 24th in the NCAA in rushing offense (191.0 ypg), while ranking fourth in the conference and 36th in the country in passing offense (245.6 ypg) to rank third in the league and 19th in the nation in total offense (436.6 ypg). -- Defensively, USU is sixth in the league and 106th in the nation in rushing defense (199.0 ypg) as well as seventh in the conference and 65th in the country in pass defense (221.1 ypg), to rank sixth in the WAC and 102nd in the NCAA in total defense (420.1 ypg). -- Junior QB Diondre Borel is second in the WAC and 14th in the NCAA in total offense (282.9 ypg), as well as ranking fifth in the league and 44th in the nation in passing efficiency (136.1)... He is also second in the WAC in passing avg/game (240.1 ypg). -- Sophomore RB Robert Turbin is second in the WAC and 17th in the NCAA in rushing (109.0 ypg)... Turbin also is second in the WAC and 24th in the country in all-purpose yards (144.4 ypg), as well as 10th in the league in total offense (109.0 ypg) and 10th in the conference in scoring (6.2 ppg). -- Sophomore LB Bobby Wagner is second in the WAC and ranks 36th in the NCAA in tackles (9.2 pg). -- Senior S James Brindley is tied for fifth in the conference and tied for 62nd in the country in tackles (8.4 pg) as well as tied for the second in the WAC and tied for 38th in the nation in interceptions with three (0.4 pg)... Brindley also is tied for the WAC-lead and tied for 18th in the NCAA in passes defended with nine off three interceptions and six pass break-ups. -- Junior P Peter Caldwell is second in the WAC and is 26th in the NCAA in punting (42.9 ypp). -- Senior K Chris Ulinski is second in the league and tied for 31st in the nation in field goals (1.4 pg) as well as fourth in the conference in field goal percentage (.733, 11-of-15)... Ulinski also leads the WAC with 17 touchbacks. ABOUT HAWAI'I -- The Warriors are 2-6 overall and 0-5 in WAC action, currently on a six-game losing skid, UH's longest losing streak since 1998... Sophomore QB Bryant Moniz has come on in reserve action after a season-ending injury to Greg Alexander and Moniz is fourth in the WAC with 200.3 ypg passing as well as fifth in the league and 64th in the nation in total offense (209.8 ypg)... His main target has been junior WR Greg Salas, who leads the WAC and is second in the NCAA with 122.1 receiving ypg and also leads the conference while ranking 10th in the country in receptions per game with 7.4 and is third in the league and 42nd in the nation in all purpose yards (129.2 ypg)... Defensively, senior LB Blaze Soares is tied for eighth in the conference with 7.4 tackles per game, while junior DB Spencer Smith is 11th with 7.1 pg... Smith and junior DB Mana Silva are tied for fourth in the league with seven passes defended. TURBIN 20th AGGIE TO 1,000 -- Sophomore RB Robert Turbin became the 20th player in Utah State history to reach the 1,000 career rushing yards milestone and the first since David Fiefia (2000-03), who finished with 1,193... Turbin is currently No. 14 on USU's all-time rushing list with 1,374 yards, needing 446 more to crack the top 10, as Jack Hill (1952, 55-56), currently holds the No. 10 spot with 1,820 yards... Junior QB Diondre Borel presently has 984 career rushing yards, needing 16 yards to reach the 1,000 career rushing yards plateau... Borel is the USU career record holder for rushing yards by a QB. Career Rushing Yardage Years Yds. 1. Demario Brown 1996-1999 4,053 2. Abu Wilson 1992, 94-96 3,933 3. Rick Parros 1976-79 3,537 4. Louie Giammona 1973-75 3,499 5. Emmett White 1998-01 2,791 6. Roger Grant 1990-91 2,387 7. Tom Larscheid 1959-61 2,206 8. Altie Taylor 1966-68 1,959 9. Jay Van Noy 1946-49 1,923 10. Jack Hill 1952,55-56 1,820 11. Maurice Turner 1979-82 1,549 12. Roy Shivers 1964-65 1,468 13. John Strycula 1969-71 1,412 14. Robert Turbin 2008-pres. 1,374 15. Demetrius Brown 1986-89 1,252 16. Archie Gibson 1972-73 1,235 17. David Fiefia 2000-03 1,193 18. Mac Lane 1966-67 1,182 19. Jerry Hughes 1971-72 1,144 20. Buddy Allen 1958-59 1,062 -- Diondre Borel 2007-pres. 984BOREL SETS SCHOOL RECORD -- Junior quarterback Diondre Borel now has 984 yards (295 att.) while at QB for his career, setting a new USU career record for rushing yards by a quarterback, topping the old mark of 814 yards held by Leon Jackson III (355 att., 2004-07)...
Rushing Yards by a Quarterback
Game: 121, Tony Adams (12 attempts) vs. Colorado State, 1972
93, Diondre Borel (12 attempts) vs. Idaho, 2008
Season: 632, Diondre Borel (179 att.), 2008
Career: 984, Diondre Borel (295 att.), 2008-pres.
LAST GAME NOTES -- Utah State at Fresno St. - Sat. Oct. 31
-- Saturday was Utah State's fourth game in a row of four points or less and the fifth game this season with a one-score difference. -- Saturday completed USU's stretch of three day games in a row. -- Junior QB Diondre Borel made his team-leading 17th-straight start Saturday... Junior OT Spencer Johnson started for the 27th time in his career. -- Sophomore S Walter McClenton made his first career start. -- USU's opening possession score snapped a streak of three games of not scoring on its first possession and was the fifth game this season in doing so. -- Utah State scored first for the sixth time this season and the Aggies are now 1-5 when hanging a point on the scoreboard first. -- Senior K Chris Ulinski has made at least one FG in all eight games this season... USU has made a field goal in the last 10 games in a row dating back to last season. -- Fresno State was just the third opponent to get a first down on its opening possession and the second in a row. -- The Bulldogs were the first USU opponent to score on their opening possession. -- Utah State scored double-digits in the first quarter for the fourth time this season after doing so in the first three games of the year. -- Junior QB Diondre Borel now has at least one TD pass in seven straight games. -- Borel completed passes to a season-high nine different receivers, including junior WR Eric Moats, who had a career-high 59 yards while matching his career-best with four catches. -- Senior WR Xavier Bowman caught his third TD pass of the season leading the receiving corps and tying sophomore RB Robert Turbin for the team lead... Bowman has six career TD catches, also tying Turbin for the most among active Aggies. -- Turbin briefly took the team lead in rushing TD's before Borel matched him and they each now have five rushing scores each. -- This is Turbin's fifth game with a rushing TD this season and the 11th career game... Saturday was Borel's fourth game this season with a rushing score and the eighth career game. -- Turbin now has 13 career rushing TD's, moving into a tie for ninth on USU's career rushing TD list, tying three other former Aggies, most recently by Jerry Cox (1973-74) and joining Jerry Hughes (1971-72) and Altie Taylor (1966-68). -- Borel has a rushing and passing TD in the same game for the fourth time this season and sixth time in his career. -- USU's 27 first half points are the second-most in the first half this season behind the 31 in the Southern Utah game... They are the most against an FCS and WAC opponent since scoring 28 in last year's season-finale against New Mexico State (Nov. 28). -- The Aggies led at the half for the second game in a row and the fourth time this season... USU is now 2-2 this season when leading at intermission and 6-5 since 2006 (2-0 in 2008, 1-2 in 2007, 1-1 in 2006). -- Turbin reached the 100-yard rushing milestone for the fifth time this season and sixth of his career. -- Borel's career-high 105 rushing yards make him the first USU QB with 100 yards rushing since Jerod Walker's 102 in 2005 vs. New Mexico State... The USU record for rushing yards by a QB is 121 yards by Tony Adams in 1972. -- Borel now has 984 career rushing yards, already USU's career record holder for rushing yards by a QB, and needing 16 more yards to become the 21st Aggie player to 1,000 career yards after Turbin became the 20th earlier this season. -- Turbin and Borel's 100-yard outings are the second time that USU has had two rushers reach the century mark this season (Turbin-104 and junior RB Michael Smith-100 vs. Southern Utah on Sept. 26). -- Utah State missed two field goals in a game for the first time since Nov. 10, 2007 (one miss, one block) vs. Boise State... It was the first time they missed two unblocked since Oct. 29, 2005 vs. Alabama. -- USU was shut out in the second half, the Aggies' second scoreless second half this season (Utah on Sept. 3). -- The Aggies' 503 yards of total offens is USU's third-highest output this season. -- USU is now 2-2 when out-gaining the opposition. TURBO TURBIN JOINING ELITE COMPANY -- With his career-high 148 yards vs. Utah, sophomore running back Robert Turbin logged his second-career 100-yard outing, joining the 123 total vs. Idaho last season as a freshman... Turbin became the seventh Aggie running back to post 100 yards as a freshman... However, he joined rare company with his 100-yard outing as a sophomore, becoming just the fourth Aggie to do so... The other three: Demario Brown (4,053 yards), Abu Wilson (3,933) and Rick Parros (3,537), are numbers 1-2-3 on USU's career rushing list, respectively. USU's FRESHMAN 100-YARD RUSHERS SINCE 1976: Rick Parros (1976), Travis Clark (1986), Abu Wilson (1992), Demario Brown (1996), John Roberts (1998), Jerod Walker (2005), Robert Turbin (2008). USU's FRESHMAN/SOPHOMORE 100-YARD RUSHERS SINCE 1976: Rick Parros (1976-77), Abu Wilson (1992-94*), Demario Brown (1996-97), Robert Turbin (2008-09). * - Wilson redshirted in 1993 with injury HEAD COACH COACHING POSITION -- In addition to his head coaching duties, USU head coach Gary Andersen is also the position coach for the defensive tackles... Andersen is one of six Division I (FBS) coaches doing so: Ball State Stan Parrish Quarterbacks Colorado Dan Hawkins Receivers Kent State Doug Martin Quarterbacks Nevada Chris Ault Quarterbacks San Diego State Brady Hoke Defensive Line UTAH STATE Gary Andersen Defensive TacklesOFFENSIVE EXPLOSION -- Upon extensive research by USU media relations' Duke of the Archives Tyler Hutchison, it was found that Utah State's last back-to-back 300-yard passing games was in 2002 and the last consecutive games with 500+ yards of total offense was in 2000 until the Aggies did so in both categories against Texas A&M and Southern Utah... USU had four 300-yard passing outings in a row in 2002... The Aggies haven't had three-straight games with 500 yards of total offense since at least 1957. OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN -- Utah State football head coach Gary Andersen announced the Aggies' 2009 captains, after a vote by the team... All three of the defensive captains are seniors, while the offensive captains consist of a senior, a junior and a sophomore... Representing the defense will be the senior trio of safety James Brindley, linebacker Paul Igboeli and cornerback Kejon Murphy... The offensive captains are senior center Brennan McFadden, junior quarterback Diondre Borel and sophomore running back Robert Turbin. TURBIN AMONG NATION'S LEADERS FOR 50+ YARD SCORING PLAYS -- Sophomore RB Robert Turbin has three scoring plays of 50 yards or more with a school-record 96-yard rush at Utah (Sept. 3), a 50-yard TD rush at Texas A&M (Sept. 19) and a 77-yard TD reception vs. Southern Utah (Sept. 26). BOOMSKI ULINSKI -- Chris Ulinksi's WAC-leading 21 touchbacks in 2008 were three more than USU's three previous years combined total of 18 consisting of nine in `07 (by Ulinski), one in `06 and eight in `05, especially impressive since kickoffs were moved back from the 35-yard line to the 30-yard line prior to the 2007 season... Ulinski has 46 career touchbacks, currently with a WAC-leading 16 in 2009. BAND OF BROTHERS -- Utah State has two sets of brothers on its roster: The Igboeli brothers - senior LB Paul and junior CB Washington (Grand Prairie, Texas / Grand Prairie HS), and the Erickson brothers - junior OL Preston and freshman OL Parker (Sandy, Utah / Alta HS). JUST KICKIN' IT -- A new streak started with USU's first successful PAT at Utah on Sept. 3 by senior PK Chris Ulinski, who made both of his attempts... After making his first 57 in a row, Peter Caldwell missed his final attempt of last season in the Aggies' 47-2 win over New Mexico State... Caldwell is tied for sixth on USU's career PAT made list with 57 and fourth on the career PAT percentage list (57-of-58, .970)... Caldwell is also 23-of-33, .700, for career field goals, ranking seventh on the career field goals made list, eighth on the attempts list and fifth on the FG percentage list. 111 / 117 -- USU is taking the field for the 111th season of football in 117 years. The Aggies beat Utah, 12-0, in 1892, but then did not field a team until 1896, when they again only played one game but then played every year since with the exceptions of 1918 when to World War I and influenza cancelled the season and 1943 due to World War II.
|
