The Challenge of Staying Sharp

One team that has been decimated by injuries this season is the Utah State Aggies.  Chuckie Keeton and several members of the Big Blue are watching the remainder of the season on the sidelines.  In the spring, I thought that the challenge for Matt Wells in the final four regular season games would be to stay sharp and not go into the bowl game flat.  And who could blame me for saying so at the time with Hawaii, UNLV, Colorado State and Wyoming as the final 4 games.

The last three games of the season may prove to be more of a challenge than I thought at first.  UNLV is 5-4 just like the Aggies.  And USU has to play them in Las Vegas.  What I am saying is that USU may only be a touchdown favorite instead of a heavy favorite.  And the Rebels, who like the Aggies, are just a win from being bowl eligible, could win.  This game will be a good test of how Matt Wells has matured as a head coach over the season. 

USU also has the challenge of taking on Colorado State and Wyoming who are also, for a change, actually flirting with bowl eligibility.  However, USU has the luck of facing them in Logan and should have big crowds for both games.  The Aggies are finished with the weakest part of their schedule and now have a little bit of a challenge to finish the season.

Darell Garretson and Joey DeMartino are growing in their respective roles, and I expect that they are going to continue to improve.  The future looks good in Logan.  I have USU projected to the Armed Forces Bowl, mainly to avoid rematches with Utah and USC.  It will be the same money no matter where USU goes and if Fresno makes it to the Fiesta Bowl, it will be good money.  Going to Texas means lots of potential recruits in attendance, that will be a big plus for the Aggies.  Potentially, much better for the long-term USU future than Hawaii or Las Vegas.

I have one more suggestion for Scott Barnes and Utah State University.  After accepting a bid to whatever bowl game they are going to, announce that you are adding 10,000 seats to Romney Stadium, including putting in a new press box and luxury suites.  It will be the best thing that can be done for the program today, if USU has any hope of remaining in the top tier of college football,  considering the push to take the two Division I subdivisions and make them three.

Players of the Week

Utah State 47 Hawaii 10

USU POW: QB Darell Garretson
370 Yards Passing and 3 TDs

Portland State 45 Weber State 24

WSU POW: QB Austin Chipoletti
331 Yards Passing 2 TDs

Conference POWs

PAC-12

USC RB Javorius Allen
133 Yards Rushing and 3 TDs

FBS Independents

Notre Dame RB Tarean Folston
140 Yards Rushing and 1 TD

MWC

San Jose State RB Jarrod Lawson
187 Yards Rushing and 1TD

Big Sky

Sacramento State QB Garrett Safron
412 Yards Passing 4 Passing TDs, 93 Yards Rushing and 2 Rushing TDs

Games of the Week

PAC-12

Arizona 33 California 28

FBS Independent

Notre Dame 38 Navy 34

MWC

San Diego State 35 New Mexico 30

Big Sky

Montana 51 Sacramento State 48 (Only 1 OT)

Power Rankings (Post Season Projection)

PAC-12

1.  Oregon (BSC Championship)
2.  Stanford (Rose Bowl)
3.  Arizona State (Alamo Bowl)
4.  UCLA (Holiday Bowl)
5.  Oregon State (Sun Bowl)
6.  USC (Las Vegas Bowl)
7.  Washington (Fight Hunger Bowl)
8.  Arizona (New Mexico Bowl)
9.  Utah (Poinsettia Bowl)
10. Washington State
11. Colorado
12. California

FBS Independents (Post Season Projection)

1.  BYU (Fight Hunger Bowl)
2.  Notre Dame (Heart of Dallas Bowl)
3.  Navy (Armed Forces Bowl)
4.  Old Dominion (Not bowl eligible due to 1st season in FBS)
5.  New Mexico State
6.  Idaho

MWC (Post Season Projection)

1. Fresno State (Fiesta Bowl)
2. Utah State (Armed Forces Bowl--To avoid potential rematches)
3. Boise State (Las Vegas Bowl)
4. San Diego State (Hawaii Bowl)
5. San Jose State (Poinsettia Bowl)
6. UNLV (New Mexico Bowl)
7. Colorado State (Famous Potato Bowl)
8. Wyoming
9. Nevada
10. Air Force
11. New Mexico
12. Hawaii

Big Sky Conference (Post Season Projection)

1.  Eastern Washington (1st Round Bye)
2.  Montana State (1st Round Bye)
3.  Montana (1st Round Home Game)
4.  Cal Poly (On the bubble)
5.  Sacramento State
6.  Southern Utah
7.  Northern Arizona
8.  Portland State
9.  UC Davis
10. North Dakota
11. Northern Colorado
12. Idaho State
13. Weber State

Record Projections

Utah
Current Record: 4-4
Projected Wins: Washington State, Colorado, San Jose State (Poinsettia Bowl)
Projected Loss: Arizona State
Projected Pounding: Oregon
Projected Finish: 7-6

BYU
Current Record: 6-2
Projected Wins: Idaho State, Notre Dame, Nevada, Washington (Fight Hunger Bowl)
Projected Loss: Wisconsin
Projected Finish: 10-3

Utah State
Current Record: 5-4
Projected Wins: UNLV, Colorado State, Wyoming, Navy (Armed Forces Bowl)
Projected Finish: 9-4

Southern Utah
Current Record: 6-3
Projected Win: Weber State
Projected Loss: Montana State
Too Close to Call: Northern Arizona
Projected Finish: 7-5 or 8-4
Note: If SUU wins out, they should make the FCS playoff.

Weber State
Current Record: 1-8
Projected Losses: Southern Utah, Montana, Idaho State
Projected Finish: 1-11