BYU Football: Scouting the Schedule – Utah State
By Shaun Gordon
Special Teams
Special Teams may be the strongest unit for the Aggies, and that’s not a knock on either the offense or defense. Dominik Eberle (Jr.) was a Lou Groza award finalist who hit 18 out of 24 field goals in 2017. Four of his six misses came in their bowl game.
Aaron Dalton (Sr.) averaged 42 yards per punt last season, including 26 of his punts pinned inside the 20-yard line.
Jordan Nathan was a reliable punt returner last year, and it’ll be his spot to lose in 2018.
Outlook
Matt Wells isn’t completely off the hot seat, but he may have his most talented and experienced team yet. If he can’t translate that into wins his job will be back on the line.
Fortunately, the Aggies benefit from a good schedule. They open up with Michigan State, but Boise State is the only other team on the schedule who is markedly better than Utah State. The Aggies avoid playing both San Diego State and Fresno State, the two best teams in the Mountain West’s West Division.
The Aggies tend to lose at least a couple of games they shouldn’t, but if they can avoid doing that this year, a 10-win season isn’t out of the question.
BYU could be the team that stands in the way of that double-digit mark, just as Utah State could stand in the way of the Cougars’ bowl eligibility.
BYU vs. Utah State Series History
- BYU leads the all-time series against Utah State 48-36-3.
- Utah State won the last matchup against BYU 40-24 in Logan last season.
- The two teams are currently scheduled to meet yearly until 2022. BYU will return to Utah State in 2019.
Previous Scouting the Schedule Articles:
Scouting the Schedule – Arizona
Scouting the Schedule – California
Scouting the Schedule – Wisconsin