Utah State took down Air Force on Saturday evening in a contest that the Aggies mostly had control of the game throughout in a 49-30 win. Utah State held Air Force quarterback Josh Johnson to five completions on nine attempts and did not allow Johnson to throw a touchdown pass. Johnson passed for 112 yards, and receiver Cade Harris led the Falcons in both rushing and receiving as he rushed for 72 yards on eight carries and caught two passes for 63 yards. Overall, the Falcons had 266 rushing yards and 445
total yards, but Utah State made a difference where it mattered. The Aggies forced three critical turnovers, intercepting two passes and recovering a fumble. Utah State also held Air Force to 8 third-down conversions on 18 attempts (44%). Air Force had 61 rushing attempts and averaged 4.4 yards per carry, but again, the Aggies made crucial plays where needed.
On the offensive side of the ball for Utah State, Bryson Barnes had 287 yards passing on 17 completions and threw two touchdown passes. Javen Jacobs rushed for 71 yards on nine carries and scored a touchdown. Braden Pegan led Utah State in receiving with seven catches for 147 yards and two touchdowns. Pegan continues to impress and be a reliable target for the Aggies and a difference maker. Defensively, John Miller led the team in sacks with one and led the team with 16 total tackles, making plays throughout the night. Utah State continued to build on explosive plays as they had long touchdowns of 54 yards, 38 yards, and 52 yards. The Aggies were able to limit the penalties in this game, and while not perfect, it was an improvement. The big quarter for Utah State was the 3rd quarter, where the Aggies held Air Force to six points and scored 21 points. Utah State had 473 total yards of offense as they had 287 passing yards and 186 rushing yards.
Statistics Comparison
1st Downs: Air Force: 23; USU: 22
3rd Down Efficiency: USU: 4-9 (44%); Air Force: 8-18 (44%)
Total Yards: USU: 473; Air Force: 445
Passing Yards: USU: 287; Air Force: 179
Rushing: Air Force: 266 yards rushing; USU: 186 yards rushing
Penalties: Air Force: 4-35; USU: 5-28
Turnovers: USU: 0; Air Force: 3
Time of Possession: Air Force: 38:11; USU: 21:49
Analysis
This was the first time since November 16th, 2024, that Utah State forced three or more turnovers. This was also the first time this season that the Aggies have broken 40 points. The overall game plan for the Aggies was to stay balanced on offense and stop the run on defense. The Aggies managed to stay balanced on offense with 287 passing yards and 186 rushing yards to keep the offense productive, but Utah State was not able to stop the Air Force run game as effectively as they wanted to, allowing 266 rushing yards. Even though the Falcons were able to produce a good number of rushing yards, the passing game was not balanced enough, as the Falcons only passed for 179 yards. The run game for Air Force did not do as much damage as it should have because Utah State was able to make impact plays on defense with turnovers. One of the other issues for the Falcons is that they just were not able to stay on the field, as they only converted 44% of their third downs.
Utah State had at least five explosive plays throughout the game that were all game changers, minus maybe the last touchdown run from Javen Jacobs, as the game was already in control by then. When you can get turnovers on defense and create explosive plays on offense, it leads to 21-point quarters that define the game.
Utah State was not perfect in this game. The Aggies were still 4-9 on third down and had five penalties during the game, but even those numbers were improved upon. Just a fun statistic: The last time that Utah State had fewer than four penalties in a game was in the 2020 opener against Boise State during the COVID-19 season. Over the course of the 2022-2023 seasons, Utah State averaged 7.35 penalties per game. Regarding third-down conversion rates, the last time Utah State had over a 50% conversion rate in a game was against Washington State on November 9th, 2024, when the Aggies converted 9 of their 13 attempts (69%). Before that game? The last time Utah State converted over 50% of third downs in a game before Washington State was against Wyoming in 2022, when Utah State converted 8 of their 14 attempts on 3rd Down (61.5%). While Utah State did look better this week against Air Force, there is still a long season and many challenges ahead.
Up next for Utah State is another home game with McNeese State on Saturday, September 20th, before the Aggies head to Vanderbilt on September 27th.
