Utah State’s Fall camp is in full swing as the Aggies prepare for the 2025 season with their season opener against UTEP less than a month out. There are still some questions about the depth chart, especially at receiver and at offensive line, but there are other position groups where the starters are clearer. So, who are the predicted starters and who are the backups that could make a difference and potentially see the field? Let’s get into it!
This article in the series will cover the special teams
unit.
Kicker
Starter: Carter Brown (Junior): Carter Brown played for two different schools before coming to Utah State in Cincinnati (2023-2024) and Arizona State (2022). Coming out of Dawson High School in Texas, Dawson made 15 of his 18 field goals as a senior and made 15 of 16 as a sophomore. In his high school career, Carter Brown made 37 of his 43 kick attempts (86%). At Arizona State, Carter Brown scored 66 points, going 11-14 on field goals and making all 33 of his point-after attempts. In two seasons at Cincinnati, Brown appeared in 14 games and made 18 of his 24 attempted field goals (75%) and was perfect on 38 of 38 point-after attempts, scoring 92 overall points. Last season, Brown only appeared in two games, making 3 of his 5 field goals (60%), so he will be looking to make a much larger impact at Utah State.
Backup Kicker: Tanner Rinker (Sophomore): Tanner Rinker also played for two schools before coming to Utah State, as he played for Garden City Community College (2024) and Grambling State (2023). Tanner Rinkler prepped at Douglas County High School in Colorado and scored 53 points as a senior, making 7 of his 11 attempted kicks (63.6%). During his freshman season at Grambling State, Rinkler played in 11 games and scored 50 points, making 7 field goals out of 13 attempted (53.8%) while also performing kickoff duties. At Garden City Community College, Rinkler made 10 of his 13 kicks (76.9%) and made 46 extra points. The big thing for Tanner Rinkler to seemingly build on right now is consistency.
Punter
Starter: Landon Rehkow (Sophomore): Landon Rehkow is in his first season with Utah State after spending the 2023-2024 seasons with BYU. During his time with the Cougars, Rehkow appeared in two games in 2023 and three games in 2024. Overall, Rehkow punted five times for an average of 36 yards for the Cougars. Landon Rehkow earned All-Greater Spokane League honors as a punter in high school and served a two-year LDS mission.
Backup Punter: Dylan Sprague (Sophomore): Dylan Sprague spent three seasons at Saddleback College from 2022-2024 and was 1 of 2 on extra points during the 2024 season. Sprague did not play in the 2023 season and redshirted the 2022 season. Dylan Sprague played high school football for Laguna Beach High School and earned Defensive Player of the Year honors at the end of his senior season in soccer.
Punt Returner
Starter: Kahanu Davis: At Southwestern College in California, Kahanu Davis returned five kickoffs for 100 yards. Kahanu Davis also returned 22 punts for an average of 6.8 yards per return. At Utah State last season, Davis had success returning punts as he returned 12 punts for an average of eight yards per return. This season, Davis is the leading punt returner and should have an even bigger impact on special teams this year.
Other names to consider for punt returner: Javen Jacobs, Titan Saxton
Javen Jacobs, while at New Mexico last season, returned three punts for an average of 0 yards per return. During both his time at New Mexico and Arizona State, Jacobs returned 12 punts for an average of 2.7 yards per return. As a dynamic player who has a lot of speed, Javen Jacobs can be a major contributor on special teams.
Titan Saxton: At Snow College (Utah), Titan Saxton returned 6 punts for an average of eight yards per punt and had 48 total yards on punt returns. Saxton also returned one kickoff for 22 yards.
Kickoff Returner
Starter: DJ Mayes: At New Mexico last season, DJ Mayes returned 5 kicks for 83 yards and averaged 16.6 yards per return. DJ Mayes has speed and shiftiness, and he also has the size that will make him hard to bring down in the return game.
Other names to consider for kickoff returner: Javen Jacobs, Demick Starling, D’Andre Barnes
Javen Jacobs returned three kickoffs for 139 yards and had an average of 46.3 yards per return. Between New Mexico and Arizona State, Javen Jacobs returned 10 kicks for 270 yards and averaged 27 yards per return.
Demick Starling played for Western Kentucky and Virginia before arriving at Utah State, and returned 15 kickoffs for 327 yards, averaging 21.8 yards per return. Starling does a great job of getting separation and does a good job of making plays in space, which could make a difference for the Aggies on kickoff returns.
D’Andre Barnes has not returned a kick at the collegiate level, but one of the reasons that he does make this list of names to consider is because of his speed. Barnes might be one of the fastest players that the Aggies have, and it would not be surprising to see D’Andre Barnes use his speed to make a difference, especially on special teams.
Long Snapper
Starter: Hyrum Hatch: Playing last season at New Mexico, Hyrum Hatch was named a College Football Network Honorable Mention Freshman All-American as a long snapper. Hatch was rated as the 80th-best long snapping prospect in the nation by Rubio Long Snapping as he served as the long snapper for the Lobos in all 12 games. Hatch played for Snow College in Utah.
Backup long snapper: Owen Edwards: Owen Edwards comes in from Hampton University, and during the 2024 season, Edwards served as the long snapper in nine games. Edwards also played long snapper in high school, prepping at Washougal High School (Washington), and was ranked as the 60th-best long snapper in the nation by Rubio Long Snapping. As a senior in high school, Owen Edwards was perfect on every snap and received a 4.5-star snapper rating.
