Tag: Utah State Aggies

Pair of Hawkeyes stood out despite Iowa basketball loss vs Utah State

A pair of Hawkeyes were bright spots despite Iowa basketball’s first loss of the season, a 77-69 setback against Utah State in KC.

Iowa men’s basketball (5-1) suffered its first loss of the season Friday night by a 77-69 score against Utah State (5-0) in the NABC Hall of Fame Classic at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Mo.

The Hawkeyes played their sloppiest offensive game this season as the team had 16 total turnovers and shot 28-for-64 (43.75%) from the field, including a dreadful 5-for-26 (19.23%) from 3-point distance.

Iowa held its own defensively by forcing 18 turnovers, including 13 steals and six blocks while limiting Utah State to 7-for-21 from deep.

Despite the disappointing loss against an equally scrappy Utah State bunch, here are three Hawkeyes who performed admirably in Friday night’s game.

Brock Harding

Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Despite the loss, Friday night’s game against Utah State was arguably the best Harding has played all season.

The sophomore guard finished with 19 points, five assists, four steals, and one rebound in 33:45 of game action. Harding shot 8-for-15 (53.3%) from the field, including a team-leading 3-for-6 from beyond the arc.

Harding’s breakout performance is a welcome sight for Iowa as the guard had primarily been a ball facilitator and a factor on the defensive end through the season’s first five games. Iowa will hope Harding’s showing is the start of a trend as opposed to a one-off burst of offense.

Owen Freeman

Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Along with Harding, Freeman was one of the few Hawkeyes that thrived offensively Friday night as he finished with 18 points, 11 rebounds, three blocks, and two assists through 33:59 of playing time.

Freeman shot an efficient 9-for-12 (75%) from the field, which fueled the Hawkeyes’ offense, especially in the paint.

With Freeman expected to have solid performances in almost every game, it is still appreciated, especially when the Hawkeyes struggle to convert on their shots.

Iowa will look to rebound on Tuesday, Nov. 26 versus USC Upstate from inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena with tip set for 7 p.m. CT and the game broadcast on the Big Ten Network.

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Weighing the pros and cons of Utah State as Pac-12 expansion target

The Pac-12 has Utah State on its radar as a geographic fit for conference expansion.

The Pac-12’s first wave of expansion involved bringing in four Mountain West programs – Boise State, San Diego State, Colorado State, and Fresno State – to join Washington State and Oregon State starting in 2026.

The league is looking to get to at least eight programs in order to be FBS eligible for the 2026 season, with sights set on marquee brands in the American conference like Memphis and Tulane.

However, a recent report from Brett McMurphy of Action Network indicated the conference could pivot and add two more Mountain West programs to stay in the same geographical footprint, citing UNLV and Utah State as the top targets.

UNLV is perhaps the most obvious remaining Mountain West program to join the Pac-12, but Utah State is a bit less known as a brand. However, there are plenty of reasons the Aggies make sense as a future Pac-12 squad:

The Pros

Utah State’s recent performance in the two revenue generating sports – football and men’s basketball – has been on a consistent upward trend the past half decade plus.

The football program has appeared in a bowl game every season since 2011 except 2016 (3-9) and 2020 (1-5). The program was ranked in the AP Poll in 2021 and 2018, and while they are off to an ugly 1-3 start this year the sudden firing of head coach Blake Anderson just before the year began didn’t exactly set the team up for success.

Meanwhile, the men’s basketball team has appeared in four of the past five NCAA Tournaments, advancing to the second round last year after getting ranked as high as No. 16 overall in the AP Poll. The upcoming 2024-25 season will be a third straight with a new coach, losing Ryan Odom to VCU after 2023 and only getting Danny Sprinkle for one season before he departed for Washington.

The football and men’s basketball success has spread to the rest of the programs as well, with the Aggies winning four Mountain West championships across all sports last year.

Utah State is also a large institution with roughly 27,000 students and nearly 200,000 alumni, putting it in line with other recent additions to the Pac-12.

The Cons

Utah State is located in Logan, Utah, a suburb of Salt Lake City with a population of roughly 54,000. The media market for Utah State will include the Salt Lake metro area, which makes it look quite large, but that market is largely made up of Utah fans who aren’t as interested in the Aggies.

Overall, Utah State’s media footprint is not on the level of the other programs in the Pac-12 or being pursued by the Pac-12, and while getting back into the state of Utah is no doubt an appeal – Utah State is third in the state behind Utah and BYU in the pecking order.

Verdict

Utah State is pretty clearly behind the four already added Mountain West schools and UNLV on the Pac-12’s wish list. The Aggies are deservedly ahead of programs like Nevada, New Mexico, and Wyoming, but being located in a small market that borders a big city that supports another team is not ideal whatsoever.

The recent success in basketball and football is a promising sign the Aggies could sustain success with a move to the Pac-12, but there’s little doubt the conference would rather make things work with teams like Memphis, Tulane, or South Florida before continuing to poach from the Mountain West.

USC could have a reunion with a pig farmer vs Utah State

It’s likely that former Utah Ute Bryson Barnes, the pig farmer, will play against USC with Utah State on Saturday night. It’s revenge time, folks.

When Utah State’s offense takes the field at LA Memorial Coliseum late Saturday night against the USC Trojans, will it be Spencer Petras or Bryson Barnes at quarterback?

Bryson Barnes, the self-admitted pig farmer, is a familiar face to USC. He spent his the previous four years as a Utah Ute in the Pac-12. The former walk-on had the best game of his career in an upset over USC last season.

Barnes earned Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week and Davey O’Brien Great 8 honors for his performance in Utah’s win over No. 18 USC in 2023, throwing for 235 yards and three touchdowns (14-of-23, 1 INT) with 10 rushes for a season-best 57 yards and a touchdown.

Barnes has played in 24 career games with 10 starts, going 6-4 in those starts.

Former Iowa starter and sixth-year senior Spencer Petras lost his job to Iowa quarterback Cade McNamara. He was named Utah State’s starter last month, but he suffered an injury in his first start with Utah State in the Aggies’ Week 1 victory against Robert Morris.

At Iowa during a tumultuous four years under center, Petras went 23-11 as a three-year starter. Petras threw for over 5,000 yards with 19 interceptions and 24 touchdowns.

With Barnes under center, the Aggies’ offense looked way more explosive with a huge second half Saturday, outscoring Robert Morris 26-0. Utah State finished with 646 yards of total offense (343 through the air and 303 on the ground), which was tied for the ninth-most yards in school history.

Interim head coach Nate Dreiling had this to say on the quarterback battle: 

“Spencer Petras is a very good quarterback,” he explained to reporters, “and I have 1,000% confidence in him and in Bryson Barnes. With either quarterback, we will be just fine.”

If I’m Utah State I’m going with Bryson Barnes because of his playmaking ability with this arm and legs. USC’s defense is not last year’s defense; it’s revamped and explosive as we saw versus LSU. Utah State will need any leg up it can get against the Trojans Saturday night.

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Robert Morris’ Rob Carter Jr. make incredible interception

Rob Carter Jr. of Robert Morris with a highlight-reel pick

This one will go down on the list of best picks of the year and we are still in August.

Rob Carter Jr. made the incredible interception in Robert Morris’ 36-14 loss to Utah State.

Carter is a sophomore DB out of Dan River HS in Danville (VA).

Oklahoma adds Utah State to 2027 schedule

Brent Venables and the Oklahoma Sooners will host Utah State in 2027.

The Oklahoma Sooners have officially added to their 2027 football schedule.

OU will host the Utah State Aggies at [autotag]Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium[/autotag] in Norman on Saturday, September 4th, 2027. FBSchedules.com took to social media to announce the scheduling of the game.

Oklahoma and Utah State have met five times previously, with the first matchup taking place in 1972. The Sooners are undefeated against the Aggies, including a 31-24 win in their most recent matchup in 2010.

Utah State joins SMU (away) and San Diego State (home) on Oklahoma’s current non-conference schedule for the 2027 season.

If the [autotag]SEC[/autotag] stays at eight conference games, the Sooners will still need to find one more non-conference game to fill out the schedule. However, if the SEC moves to nine conference games by then, OU’s non-conference slate for 2027 would be complete.

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All-Mountain West receiver enters NCAA transfer portal

Utah State wide receiver Micah Davis has entered the NCAA transfer portal following the firing of coach Blake Anderson last week.

Utah State wide receiver and kick returner Micah Davis has entered his name into the NCAA transfer portal, with less than one month remaining until the 2024 college football season gets underway.

Davis is able to enter outside of the transfer portal window because his coach, Blake Anderson, was fired last week. The rising senior becomes a very high profile player available on the market, and could be one of multiple former Aggies looking for a new home over the next few weeks.

Davis began his career at Air Force, totaling 360 rushing and 221 receiving yards along with six touchdowns before coming to Utah State. Last year as a junior, the 5’11 wideout racked up 36 receptions for 628 yards and six touchdowns. He was also exceptional on the special teams, totaling 28 punt returns for 250 yards and six kick returns for 83 yards for the Aggies.

His 28 punt returns was the highest mark not only in the Mountain West but across all of college football, while his 250 total yards ranked 10th.

That alone should get him plenty of interest across the country as it is a translatable skill that allows him to make an impact at a new school right away – an important factor for a coach looking to bring a kid in in August.

USC’s Week 2 football opponent encounters head coaching turmoil

Utah State plays USC on September 7. The Aggies are going through internal administrative crises and will need to hire a new coach.

USC is scheduled to play the Utah State Aggies on September 7, the second week of the season. The Aggies will travel to Los Angeles without their head coach. The Utah State Athletic Department issued a statement on head coach Blake Anderson:

“Utah State University officials informed Head Football Coach Blake Anderson on Tuesday of their intent to terminate his employment agreement for actions taken in spring 2023. These actions violated both his employment agreement and university policy. Under his employment agreement Coach Anderson will have 14 days to respond.”

“This decision comes after a thorough external review of alleged noncompliance with university policies that implement Title IX, which require full and timely reporting of disclosures of sexual misconduct — including domestic violence — and prohibit employees from investigating disclosures of sexual misconduct themselves.”

“Associate Vice President & Deputy Athletic Director of External Affairs Jerry Bovee (Interim Athletic Director, 2023) and Utah State Football Director of Player Development & Community Austin Albrecht have also been dismissed for violations of university policies related to the reporting of sexual and domestic violence and failures of professional responsibilities.”

“Consistent with Utah’s public records laws and USU policies, the university is not able to release any additional information until all opportunities to respond and/or appeal have expired, which is a minimum of 14 days. “

The Utah State game is sandwiched between two of USC’s biggest contests, in Las Vegas against LSU in Week 1 and in Ann Arbor in Week 3 against Michigan.

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March Madness: Friday’s best first-round underdog picks and predictions

Beat the Sportsbook: Here’s Friday’s 3 best underdog bets for the first round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament.

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Being a proud alum of George Mason University, I know a thing or two about a Cinderella story. “By George, the dream is alive” are words that echo through my mind every year during this tournament.

Did you forget about 2022 when 15-seed Saint Peter’s went on an amazing run to the Elite 8. They took down 2-seed Kentucky, 7-seed Murray State and 3-seed Purdue before finally falling to the 8th-seeded North Carolina Tar Heels.

There will be upsets during this tournament, but when will they happen? That’s the question on everyone’s mind and what I aim to uncover here.

Below, we break down BetMGM Sportsbook’s (OR FanDuel Sportsbook’s) NCAA Tournament odds and lines and list Friday’s best 1st-round upset bets to cash in on among SportbookWire’s expert college basketball picks and predictions.

Rankings: USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll

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NCAA Tournament best Friday first-round underdog picks

Odds provided by FanDuel Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Thursday at 4:03 p.m. ET. All game times ET; ML = moneyline.

JAMES MADISON (+176) vs. Wisconsin – 9:40 p.m.

The Dukes are one of only 4 teams in the country to win 30 games this season. Their 31st victory came in the Sun Belt Tournament title game, 91-71 over Arkansas State. They are led by Sun Belt player of the year Terrence Edwards Jr., who averaged 17.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game. James Madison won 16 of their last 17 games, which includes a current 13 game win streak.

Wisconsin limped to the finish of the regular season, losing 3 of their last 4 games before making a run to the Big Ten Tournament title game. The Badgers were 3-9 away from Madison this season.

In the past 40 years, there have been 53 No. 12 over No. 5 seed upsets. This is crazy to think about, we’ve had as many years without a 12-over-5 upset as we’ve had 3 12-over-5 upsets in the tournament.

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UAB (+240) vs. San Diego State – 1:45 p.m.

The Blazers won their final 5 games including 3 in the American Athletic Conference Tournament to earn their ticket to the Big Dance. UAB beat  Wichita State, South Florida and then Temple in the title game 85-69. They are led by 1st-team All AAC player Yaxel Lendeborg, who averaged 13.9 points, 10.7 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 2.1 blocks per game. UAB is one of the nation’s best at drawing fouls and making free throws. They were 2-1 against Top 25 teams this season.

San Diego State was inconsistent down the stretch, going 4-4 over their final 8 games of the regular season. This team is known for playing tough defensively which could get them into foul trouble in this matchup. They are one of the best teams in the country at guarding the 3, but UAB is not known for their outside shooting. The Aztecs offense can be inconsistent which can be a problem in this tournament.

I already gave you all the stats on why we love a 12-over-5 seed in this tournament.

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UTAH STATE (+146) vs. TCU – 9:55 p.m.

Utah State had won 7 straight games before falling in the semifinals of the Mountain West Tournament 86-70 to San Diego State. First-team All Mountain West player Great Osobor averaged 18 points, 9.2 rebounds, 2.9 assists and shot nearly 60% from the field. He should have his way on the interior against a TCU defense which struggles in the paint. The Aggies were 2-0 against teams in the Top 25 this season.

The Horned Frogs lost 3 of their last 4 games of the regular season before falling in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Tournament 60-45 to Houston.

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Utah State’s Kaya Ard bluntly revealed she was fired mid-press conference ahead of official school statement

Well, this is REALLY awkward.

Utah State women’s basketball head coach Kayla Ard will no longer be with the team going forward. For fans of the team, that may not be a surprise, but how that news was revealed was a bit unconventional. Ard was asked to share how she was going to rebuild next season. That’s when she dropped that she had been fired despite seemingly no known announcement at the time from the team.

The Utah State women’s basketball team has had a tough time. Under head coach Kayla Ard, they’ve only won nine games in the past two seasons and just two in the Mountain West Conference. Ard’s overall record isn’t much better, finishing 24-90 in four years. So, it’s very likely that Ard getting walking papers was always an option. However, dropping this news mid-press conference stunned everyone.

Here’s what she told a reporter who asked about rebuilding next season (See the 20:36 mark of the video link):

“I’m not going to be rebuilding. I just coached my last game at Utah State. I spoke with Diana [Sabau], and they’re going in a different direction, and I respect her decision and I hope they get a really good coach in.”

Utah State University Vice President and Director of Athletics Diana Sabau later released a statement wishing Ard well in her future endeavors, saying the team needed to make a change.

Feature image courtesy of The Mountain West Conference.

Utah State QB Levi Williams forgoing football for Navy SEAL training

Utah State QB Levi Williams will pass up football in hopes of training to be a Navy SEAL

Utah State’s Levi Williams has more football eligibility ahead of him after this season. However, the Aggies QB has decided to give up the sport in favor of training to become a Navy SEAL.

Per KSLSports.com:

“I love football and it’s so great,” Williams said. “But I knew that, eventually, it was going to come to an end.

“I just want to be in a spot where I can protect this great country where we get to play football with the freedom to do that. I think this is the best country in the world. So I’d like to keep it that way and protect it as long as I can.”

The selection process will take place in February. Williams plans to get married in March.

“This is where God’s calling me,” Williams told his wife (to be) of the decision to join the military. “Obviously, we can’t prepare for everything. There’s going to be some unexpected turns along the way. As long you trust God and trust me, I think we’re gonna be alright.”

The 6-foot-5, 230-pound Williams attended Wyoming for three years before transferring to Utah State.

He threw a pair of touchdown passes and rushed for another in a 44-41 victory over New Mexico in double overtime on Nov. 24. He accounted for 351 yards in the game.

The double-overtime victory made the Aggies bowl-eligible