Lauren Hansen voted WAC Offensive player of the week

Lauren Hansen was voted the WAC Soccer Offensive player of the week. She totally deserves it. This girl scored three goals of the six that were scored by USU over the weekend against two quality opponents.

I would be afraid to play against her, that's for sure.

You can learn more about this selection here.

USU Soccer is going to face Oklahoma State, the 21st ranked team in the nation on Friday. You will be considered super cool in my book if you come.

By the way, I bought my tickets to the USU-Utah showdown this Thursday. You can expect me to provide an in-depth analysis of this game by Sunday. I'm so excited to get this covered.

Gary Andersen Teleconference

The first teleconference of the football season took place today over the phone. Several journalists called in and spoke with all the WAC coaches. The link below is exclusively for Gary Andersen's interview. This is a WMA file format, so you will need windows media.

Coach Andersen's Interview

Here's the link for the page with all of the wac coaches and WAC commissioner Carl Benson.

WACsports.com

It's a good interview. Check it out.

AGGIES WIN against Texas Tech and SF Austin

The USU Women’s Soccer team won a landmark game on the road when they downed the Texas Tech Red Raiders 3-2 Friday night and continued their undefeated streak Sunday when the Aggies defeated Stephen F. Austin by the same score.

The wins came as four teams combined for a three day tournament in El Paso, Texas. Utah State (3-0-0) came out as the undisputed winner.

The two games contrasted greatly in the style of play and the way Utah State won each game. Utah State head coach Heather Cairns said she came out of the Stephen F. Austin very concerned about the team's current defensive ability to communicate and adjust to a dynamic offensive attack. She said she was pleased with the wins, as coaches always are, but also said that allowing such a high number of goals in two matches was humbling.

"We played well enough to win," Cairns said, "and we were extremely efficient in converting our chances on the offensive end, but we can't get used to giving up four goals in two games."

Despite the relative disorganization on defense, Utah State still managed to rally to defeat both of this weekend's quality opponents.

Even more remarkable than the fact that USU beat the first Big XII soccer opponent they had ever faced, Texas Tech, was the way they did it. Tech took an early lead, and shortly thereafter, USU railed off three goals in eight minutes to put the Aggies up for good. The Aggie defense held for over 60 minutes, and USU pulled off the win.

That match didn't start well though as Tech came out fighting. In the second minute of the match, USU trailed 1-0 after the Red Raiders capitalized on a very fast counterattack. Taylor

Lytle of Texas Tech was on the receiving end of a ball sent across by the Red Raiders Brittney Harrison, stuck a boot on it, and put it past USU keeper Molli Merrill.

“We didn’t expect them to put us under such pressure,” Cairns said of the first Tech goal. “Welcome to the Big XII. It was a great lesson for our team to come out and play from the start of the match.”

Lauren Hansen, who scored twice in the Tech match, said the first Red Raider goal woke the Aggies up.

“It was a shocker,” Hansen said. “It’s the first minute, and we’re already on our heels. It really woke us up and made us more angry than anything.”

Hansen said USU became that much more motivated to come back against the Red Raiders because of that goal. The equalizer came before long. In the 19th minute, Heather Pond threw the ball in after Tech had put it off the pitch. She sent it to an open Hansen who maneuvered around to the edge of the box and put a rocket above the goalie's head and into the back of the net.

“It was a perfect throw-in,” Hansen said. “I just took a couple of touches and took the shot. It was such a great relief, it really cleaned the slate and got us back into the match.”

Hansen wasn’t finished. In the 22nd minute, Allie Maduell brought the ball up the side and played it low to Hansen, who beat the offside trap. Hansen gathered the ball along the base line and snuck in a sweet shot past the Tech keeper to put the Aggies ahead 2-1 with 68 minutes to play against a the larger more physical Texas Tech squad.

Hansen said the team stayed determined to bring their "A game," and USU scoring continued. In the 27th minute, Shantel Flanary applied the pressure on a Tech defender. The defender couldn't stand the pressure and Flanary broke for the goal with the ball. Shortly thereafter, Utah State led 3-1. It was Flanary's second goal in as many matches.

Cairns said although USU managed to get up by two goals, she did not alter the style of play to be more defensive. She said the team was confident in its game plan, and wasn't looking to lock up the back line after taking the two-goal lead. Only one substitution was made in the back, and it was simply made to replenish the team and to put some fresh legs on defense.

In particular, Cairns said she was pleased with Natalie Norris, a freshman who has taken on a starting role replacing a four-year starter that graduated last year.

"She was marked with their best forward for the majority of the match," Cairns said of Norris. "She shut her down."

Cairns also said this year's starting keeper, Merrill, a sophomore who managed to get her first collegiate shutout last week against Northern Arizona, did well, despite Tech's final goal which came in the 73rd minute. Merrill bobbled a save and Red Raider Dawn Ward slipped right in to take advantage and punch in the rebound.

"It's the worst lead you can have, to be up by two goals," Hansen said. "It's easy to find yourself thinking, 'Oh, We've got this,' and then before you know it, they can be right back in it. It's only two goals to tie it."

"For those last twenty minutes, all of us had heartburn," Cairns said. "It was intense, they put us under a lot of pressure."

Cairns said the Red Raiders really fought against Utah State for the last twenty minutes of the match, trying to work their way back into it. On one play in particular, only Candice Salmon's alert mind and fast foot staved off the equalizer and kept the Aggies ahead. Tech sent a ball to the far post where two running Raiders were awaiting a cross that could have been easily poked into the back of a wide open goal. Salmon threw herself at the ball and managed to divert it enough with the end of her foot to break the play up and allow Merrill time to recover.

That, along with several other defensive plays, proved to be enough to put Utah State over the top. And then, USU faced the Stephen F Austin Ladyjacks.

In Sunday's match, USU turned the tables and scored on Stephen F. Austin in the first minute. Erin Salmon collected a ball about 25 yards from the goal and sent in a rocket that shot past the Ladyjack keeper, Courtney Baulder. It was the only goal scored in the first half by either team.

You would think by just looking at the score at the half, Utah State was more or less in control of the ball. Not so. Utah State was outshot 9-3 in the first period.

"No. Not at all," Cairns said when asked if Utah State was able to control the midfield. "They threw eight players up the field, and that really limited what we were able to do at all. We passed the ball to the purple team just as much as the white team."

Inefficiency on defense reared its head when Stephen F Austin scored again. Cairns said the second goal came in the 67th minute when Merrill and another defender miscommunicated and misplayed a ball that fell to Austin's Megan Cash, who put the ball into an empty net. Despite the miscue, Utah State never trailed, and led again in the 75th minute when Natalie Norris, the freshman fullback, scored for the first time in her collegiate career. Norris successfully redirected midfielder Stefani Shiozaki's corner kick off her head and into the goal.

The offensive spurt held. In the 81st minute, Utah State put in what Cairns called a "brilliant and fun to watch" goal. Lauren Hansen sent a long ball up the side of the field and into the corner. Chantel Flanary ran the ball down and controlled it near the flagstick. She then sent the ball across the box to Hansen, who made a 40-yard run to the far post. Hansen and Flanary connected perfectly, and Hansen put the ball into the back of the net.

With less than 10 minutes remaining, Austin didn't stand much of a chance to be able to catch up being down two goals, despite USU's relative inexperience on defense, but they did do some damage in the 87th minute when they scored again. It wasn't enough to take down the Aggies, and when the final whistle blew again, USU was still ahead.

Utah State comes home from this road trip with their best record to begin a season in Utah State Soccer History (3-0-0). Utah State will continue its very difficult non-conference schedule when it faces No. 21 Oklahoma State in Logan. Oklahoma State, in addition to the national ranking, boasts the 13th best RPI in the nation. The game will start at 7 p.m. at the USU soccer field behind the indoor football practice facility on campus.

Cameron Rafati - Album Review

Cameron Rafati, a local musician and newcomer to the musical scene, released a self-titled album over the summer.

Rafati is a native of Salt Lake. According to his website, Rafati started pursuing his passion after giving up a lucrative career of coaching older women on their relationships with younger men. I can understand why such a change would be so appealing.

My first experience with Rafati was at a free show at The State Room in downtown Salt Lake City. He started off his show with the sweetest cover of Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" that I've ever heard. I was extremely impressed with his demeanor and his showmanship. The man is skilled – that much cannot be disputed. After his show, I was totally convinced that the man was destined for greatness. I wanted to hear his album to see if the recording would match the awesome show that he put on for the few fans and followers he had garnered in his relatively short musical career. Unfortunately, I cannot say that it did. But it came close. There are a couple of really sweet tracks on this album, but along with Rafati's highs come lows. One track in particular sparks my ire and drags down the overall quality of the album.

Rafati has compared his music to old-school Coldplay. I don't think so. The only song that I can honestly compare to a Coldplay single is "53rd Story," the album's fifth track, and it is not going to take Rafati's album anywhere soon. I really think Rafati's album lacks an element of awesome power that Coldplay has possessed for nearly a decade. However, if I were reviewing "Parachutes" in 2000, I would have said that the only track worth anything on that album was "Yellow." That's a big statement; these days, I practically worship Coldplay. Does Rafati's debut album have the single that can take him from the coffee shops to the big time, and get him to a place where he can explore his musical talents without financial restrictions? I would say he has a reasonable shot. The best songs are good, but it's no "Yellow."

The best three tracks on this album are the second, fourth and sixth tracks, "1 in 10," "Speck Out in the Blue" and "Dirty Conversation," respectively. All these songs feature a strong melody and even stronger hooks – in other words, these songs stick in your head after you're done listening to it. I really enjoy these songs. These are the reasons behind my overall strong review of the album.

Had I been Rafati, I would have kept almost all of these songs on the album, but reorganized them so that "1 in 10" and the others were closer to the top of the album instead of spread throughout. Starting the album off with its first track, "Kite for a Comeback," totally disillusioned me. I wanted the album to open the same way Rafati opened his show - with pure awesomeness. The album got better, though.

Rafati explained the story behind "1 in 10" at his show in Salt Lake, and I think it bears repeating: Often the inspiration behind a song influences our perception of it, and in this case, it does.

Often, men will see women who look remarkably similar to other girls they have crushed on, and in turn, will become infatuated with them. Rafati said such girls inspired the single. I can't help but think it's a very creative source for a single of this caliber, and that it tells the listener a lot about the artist behind the music. "1 in 10" really allows the album to recover from a lackluster first track, and gets it set on the right path again.

The album meanders through "Battles," "Speck in the Blue," and "53rd Story." "Speck" is the best of these three tracks, and though I feel it ends poorly, the most redeeming fact about this song is that it is played with a ukulele, which gives it just enough to edge out "53rd story" and give it the best of these three middle songs that give the album the most substance. Rafati's live performance of the song was absolutely phenomenal.

After "53rd Story," the album takes a turn for the worse, and I mean it REALLY takes a turn for the worse.

When I see that an artist has named a song after his home city, I naturally think that it's a positive reflection of the city, its citizens, and the quality of life. Not so here. The seventh song of the album, "Salt Lake City" is a depressing, critical ballad that rails against the culture and people of Utah.

The first line in the song is "I'm sick of this town/I'm sick of this city/The fools got me down/and these girls are too pretty." I guess Rafati doesn't like Salt Lake City, which is evidenced by the fact that's he's left it behind. Rafati lives in Southern California.

Mr. Rafati, trust me – having been all over the country and even in several foreign countries – you're not going to find better looking girls anywhere else. Just sayin...

From a more musical standpoint, I think this song would fit better as a funeral march. It lasts forever, it's depressing, it's melancholic, Rafati screams in it, and it's just plain bad. It's like Rafati takes five minutes to throw a temper-tantrum about the fact that he doesn't like Utah. I can't understand why anyone would want to listen to it.

The melancholy of "Salt Lake City" continues through the last song of the album, "Mausoleum." The biggest difference, however, is that I find the mood to be appropriate for the last song. I can easily picture an old Addams Family-type mausoleum and Mr. Rafati with a rose in hand, leading a sultry mistress in his own version of the tango to the tune of this song. It's quite the contrast from the meat of the album, but has its attractive qualities in its own right. It's a quality ending to the album.

Overall, I give this album a B-. If it didn't have "Salt Lake City" in it, I would have given it a B+. I find it to be a quality, and certainly a well-rounded album with a flair for the dramatic and the critical. Rafati has potential, but I think we'll have to see something more out of him before Madison Square Garden sells out to him.

productions.fusionhd3@usu.edu or comment below.

USU basketball brings in Anthony DiLoreto

Here's the question - have you seen him around on campus yet?

USU basketball signed a high school prep star last week, and he is now in classes at Utah State. His name is Anthony DiLoreto. He's a 7-foot center and defensive specialist with two Minnesota State Prep Championships under his belt. Coach Morrill has said he's come from a high quality program with a high quality coach and that this team is a great fit for him. It seems like this kid is coming with all the talent in the world behind him as he starts his collegiate career this week as an Aggie.

But he's got a downside too. The boy has a criminal record.

The man is facing felony charges on the robbery of a bank in Wisconsin. Apparently, he decided to bail in the middle of the operation, leaving his partner stranded to run from the law.

You can read all the details of this incident here

While bringing in someone with a sketchy past is not the worst thing that could happen, it does raise eyebrows.

The way I see it, this kid can either be David Pak, a kid with a troubled past that turned his life around, paid his debt to society, and is now a contributor to the world rather than a detractor, or he can be a wash.

My money is more easily put on the fact that this kid will contribute to the team and build his life the right way. I don't believe that Stew Morrill would look to taint this first 30-win season in USU history and the first outright conference title by bringing in someone who will only hurt this team.

I can't expect this kid to be perfect, but I will expect him to work hard since he's going to be the tallest player on the roster along with Modou Niang. This school needs a dominant center, and a 7-footer never is a detraction.

The USU press release on DiLoreto is here

You can expect me to ask Stew some questions about him (if I can get an interview with him before the basketball season starts.)

In Stew we trust!

BYU injuries continue...

Much can be said about the Aggie Football team. They're undersized on both lines, they're not athletic enough to run the style of defense that Coach Andersen wants them to run. They've revamped their entire schema and expected everyone to learn a whole new, much more difficult system in a matter of just a few months. On top of all that, SI.com has selected them to go to the New Mexico Bowl, and with that could come the pressure to excel. With all of this, Logan hopes the team will win at least three games, and have a winning record at home. A stinker season, while not entirely unexpected in Logan, would be viewed as a step backwards by many.

Mainly, it's very easy to look at the Aggies and see a lot of negatives.

But at least we're not in BYU's position.

BYU's injuries continue to plague them, not in the Oklahoma game, not over six weeks of tough, physical contests involving the best defenses in the country, not even in the form of a car wreck or other tragedy, but in TRAINING CAMP. BYU seems utterly determined to kill themselves off before the season even starts. I think, if this continues, BYU will stand a serious threat of not only losing to Oklahoma, but also to Florida State.

The latest of the Cougars' woes comes in the form of Safety Scott Johnson, who decided to try and clobber a man 50 pounds heavier than him, Manase Tonga. Most Ute and Cougar fans alike are quite familiar with the heavy BYU tailback - he spent last year out of the program because he couldn't make the grades necessary to be a part of BYU's team - something that limited the strength that BYU could produce coming out of the backfield since Fui Vakapuna had to handle that heavy load of blocking for Harvey Unga all by himself.

Speaking of Harvey Unga, he's also injured! The all-star running back for the Y pulled his hamstring in practice. Rejoice, Aggie Nation! Oh, wait. He should be ready for the Oklahoma game, but with any luck, he'll be back off the field by the time that USU rolls into town.

You can see the article Jay Drew wrote about the BYU injuries here.

I guess if you do things right, the Lord steps in and plays a part. Right, Austin Collie? (God doesn't car who wins and loses in sports.)

Perhaps we should be speculating less about the brutality which the coaches in Provo are driving their team to inflict upon themselves and speculate more about the "personal worthiness" of the BYU athlete, because according to Collie's logic, they must not be doing a whole lot of good in the world. Else, why would they be suffering so many setbacks before the season even starts?

All of this news about BYU's injuries only makes me wish that instead of the U for the first game, we got the Y. A weakened, slow BYU team that got slaughtered by Andersen's schemes last year would have a hard time facing USU's defense this year, despite the fact that the stud linebacker position still hasn't been solidified and that Chris Matthews, a freshman, may have to give up his redshirt in order to fill the position for the Aggies.

The Herald Journal wrote a pretty good article about the Matthews situation. You can find it here.

All things considered, it looks like Andersen is superior to Bronco in at least one way - keeping his players healthy and having them ready to play at the beginning of the season.

A Light Moment from a Couple of Jazzmen

This is hilarious. Check it out

THE OUTSIDERS HAVE SPOKEN! THEY HAVE FORECASTED SALVATION!

SI.com has officially made bowl predictions, and look who has made the list...

USU has been picked by SI.com to go to the New Mexico Bowl against UNLV!

Check out the page here

Even more surprising to me in this prediction was TCU's selection to go play in the Armed Forces Bowl. This may be the one indication that I have that this chart may be full of crap. Anybody that believes that TCU is going to finish 3rd in their conference this year really needs to double check the MWC - TCU is by far the best team on the field, and I have a hard time believing that BYU is going to be better than they are.

But USU has garnered one prediction to go to a bowl game! Let the praises shout from the mountains!!!

Check out the facebook page or the twitter feed

Part 4 of 4 - The Stretch - USU football

And so it comes to this...

USU football's fourth quarter of action in the 2009 season. To this point we stand with 3 wins and 6 losses. Close losses, but still... losses. If USU wants to get to a bowl game, they must win the final three games of the season. Likely? No... You'll see why in a moment.

But anything is possible - even miracles.

Opponent #10: San Jose State University Spartans

Prediction: USU 14-10 SJSU

This game, more than anything, will be a defensive battle. SJSU's defense is pretty efficient against the pass. Last season, they were a top-10 defense against the pass and 21st overall in total defense. USU will bring a new, revamped defense coached by the defensive wizard, Gary Andersen, to bear against a mediocre passing game with an offensive line that allowed 2 sacks a game on average last year and had a hard time coming back.

If USU manages to get a two touchdown lead in this game at anytime in the second half, put it in your book as a win for the Aggies.

That, however, I don't believe will happen. USU by this point could be overlooking SJSU and have their eyes on a somewhat bigger prize, Boise State. They will play Boise the week after in the first nationally televised game in Romney Stadium in years (if at all). But I digress...

SJSU is a team that did very very well in 2006. They had a bowl game win and won nine games in the second year of their head coach's tenure. Since then, they've wallowed in mediocrity. If USU is able to come in to this game with four wins on their sheet, they have a very good chance of winning this one, especially since it's in Logan.

Watch the lines in this game. If USU can penetrate and run the ball well on offense, they'll do well. USU's defense needs to focus on the run as SJSU doesn't have a solid quarterback and finds itself embroiled in the middle of a in-house competition for QB. We all know what that means - both suck.

Opponent #11: The Boise State Broncos.... uggghhh...

Prediction: USU 10-49 BSU

Given my deep-seeded hatred for Bull **** University (BSU, people, come on. I think Idaho houses more cows than people, anyway. I've been there before.) it is awfully painful to have to say that the enemy from up north is going to come in to our house and humiliate us once again, but I have to.

Even Gary Andersen knows that we're way, way behind the broncos - this quote pretty much sums it all up.

"We're probably not even nipping at their heels. We're a puppy running 10 yards behind them."

Coach Andersen said the preceding at the WAC media day in SLC about the Broncos.

The question here is this: How do you stop a team which has only two conference losses in the last seven years, one of them to a BCS team, in your own house on national television?

When we find the answer to that question, I drive to Boise and burn a big block A into the smurf-turf! Who's with me?!

Shoot. I hate Boise State almost as much as I hate the University of Utah.

Opponent #12: The Vandals of the University of Idaho

Prediction: USU 49-10 Idaho

After getting beat up by one Idaho team, it will be a fresh relief to pound on the red-headed step child of the Idaho System of Higher Education. I mean, they play their basketball games at the same place they play their football games, and the stadium is indoors! Hilarious, much? Yes. Yes, it is.

This game should be a cake walk for the Aggies. They beat Idaho in each of the last two seasons, last year by about 30 points. They can't pass, they can't run, their lines stink, their defense is worse, and their return teams are much less than worthy. USU should be able to run their socks off with the dual-threat quarterback Borel, unless (Heaven Forbid) Borel and Turin get injured... But let's not worry about such things until they happen.

Epilogue

So, what have we learned here?

USU is going to have a record year this year! 5 wins! Something to celebrate?! Absolutely! Especially after having the abysmal years of 1- and 2-win seasons behind us.

I have spoken with several sources around the football team. There's a new energy here that hasn't been seen in the program for a long time and a new sense of optimism that will stay. This team understands that the winning process takes time, and the team's goals are clearly outlined in stone. This team wants to hunt down Boise State and eventually win a WAC title. I believe that Gary Andersen has the stuff to do it in five years. He can be the man to bring this team out from the doldrums and back into the national spotlight that it was in 50 years ago. It is very difficult, but it is possible.

I think, when all is said and done, we must try to retain, always retain, a positive vibe about the possibilities of this season. Remember, only a fool would hope for more than six wins, but six is possible, even if it is unlikely.

By the way, if we do get six wins this year, I vote we rename 1000 North in Logan, Andersen Avenue. That's just me, though.

Post your feedback below.

USU basketball schedule released

Utah State's basketball schedule has just been released! You can find it here.

Expect an in depth analysis of all of these games down the road. I look forward to taking a closer look at the basketball season in October! For now, mark your calendars! There will be great things ahead for our Aggies!

Koa Misi goes down

UPDATE on Utah Football - Koa Misi, a Utah defensive lineman, is out with injury! This greatly weakens Utah's defense and forces Utah to rely on it's depth.

You can check out Koa Misi's profile and some statistics here and can also check out the article detailing what went down at practice here and here. Personally, I prefer the first of the two - the Salt Lake Tribune pays a lot more attention to Utah Football than the Deseret News does... I think it has to do with the fact that the Deseret News loves BYU and the SL Tribune loves Utah.

Regardless, 1320 KFAN in SLC has some good sound bytes from Kyle Whittingham on Koa Misi. You can hear them here.

So, the question: How does this affect USU and game one of the season.

This is one more in a long line of injuries that is coming out of Salt Lake City and Provo during training camp. I, for one, am somewhat stunned to hear that all this is going down. All it does is help USU and give our boys a better chance of winning.

Taking a closer look at Koa Misi, it's obvious to see that he is a pretty valuable player on that Ute Defensive line. He's a 6'3", 263 pound senior on the end of that line. Over the last two years at Utah after transferring from a California Junior College, Misi has amassed 135 tackles, 60 of which have been unassisted, and 65 of which have been tackles for a loss. In other words, almost half of every time this guy gets to your ball carrier, he's going to get to him behind your line of scrimmage. Over the course of the last two years, he's got 28 sacks. That's an average of more than one per game.

You can see where I'm getting at.

Sure, Utah has a formidable line, but it is extremely difficult to replace that kind of talent. Utah is now forced to play with untested underclassmen who, according to Whittingham, will be rotating in and out of that position every few plays. It is plainly obvious that this loss is really a loss, despite Utah's depth.

Look for USU's offense to shine that much more, especially if the O-line has a good game. The likelihood of USU winning just went up.

BYU injuries - Does this affect the Aggies?

Click here for a cougar injury report for the year

BYU is suffering and taking hard, hard hits...in fall camp.

You would normally expect the amount of injuries that have occured in Cougar-land to happen halfway through the season. But preseason? Really?

The latest, although it doesn't appear on the above list, is one that had cougar central shaking in its booties. BYU QB Max Hall, entering his senior season, dislocated a finger today in camp. Despite the injury, Hall continued to play and did well. He threw a touchdown pass after he got hurt, and continued to play hard, just like any cougar fan would expect him to.

Enough accolades for Max Hall's toughness. The real question is, "How is this going to affect the BYU-USU game in week 4?"

It could.

I only say that because I don't know how this will affect the first few games of the season, but I will say that if the Offensive Line is seriously affected by all of these injuries, it most definitely will affect the BYU-USU game in Provo.

The injuries in Provo are now getting to be such an issue that BYU head coach Bronco Mendenhall has slowed the practices down, as you can tell by reading this article. 1320 KFAN in SLC reported earlier today that there are a total of 24 injuries in BYU's fall camp, and it is clear that in all of the WAC and MWC teams, BYU is suffering the most at the hands of...itself.

Matt Reynolds, the only senior on the line, is out for the showdown with Oklahoma because of his hand. Another starter on the Offensive line, Jason Speredon, is now out for the entire season after tearing a rotator cuff in his shoulder. Clearly, Depth and Strength are now becoming a factor for the BYU O-line.

With Gary Andersen's defensive prowess, if the Aggie D-line can outrun and outfox the Cougars, this game is going to take on a whole new dimension. Without an offensive line to stop any sort of pass rush, Max Hall is going to have to play on an NFL level to progress offensively on the field. We all know what happened last time Max Hall suffered under real pressure... Five interceptions and one lost fumble later, the Utes had stamped their ticket to the BCS. Who was the coach of the defense that provided the unreal pressure that clearly affected Hall? USU's head coach, Gary Anderson.

Anyway, will USU beat BYU? I still am thinking that they won't. They are still a much deeper team than USU. But if the trend continues like it has, the likelihood that BYU meets up with USU with a 1-2 record increases and also increases the likelihood that USU can win.

You can post feedback and comments to this below, or check out my facebook page. I want to hear your opinion.

USU football part 3 - The Gauntlet - The Part of the Season When We Find Out Where USU Stands in the WAC

In the third quarter of the season, when USU faces Louisiana Tech, Fresno State and Hawaii, we will finally be able to realistically gauge where USU is in comparison to other WAC schools. These are three middle of the pack WAC teams. I'm coming into these games optimistically, but realistically as well. These are difficult games to predict.

By the way, it feels really weird saying that Hawaii is a middle of the road college team, but realistically they are. Their coach McMackin, aka the Moron from Oahu who doesn't know how to keep his mouth shut (reference - WAC media day - see the video below) is no June Jones, and whoever their quarterback is certainly is not Colt Brennan. So, I guess it's not too bad saying Hawaii is a middle of the road college team.

UPDATE!!!! - Pardon this interruption to the blog post, and let's rewind for a moment.

The University of Utah has just named the no. 1 quarterback in their depth chart to be Jordan Wynn, an untested true freshman straight out of high school.

Kyle Whittingham did emphasize during the announcement that Wynn is simply the No. 1 QB at Utah, and not necessarily the starter.

View the Article Here.

Make no mistake, this quarterback is talented at a high school level. There are a lot of unknowns, however, with a true freshman quarterback starting for a very successful program. There are a lot of expectations, lots of pressure, and lots of opportunities for him to fold.

That having been said, there are two other quarterbacks on the depth chart that Whittingham could play if Wynn doesn't do well. I think that the Ute mindset is to test the waters against USU with the freshy, thinking that their defense will be strong enough to do whatever it wants against the Aggies.

I think that this selection will hurt the Utes. If the Aggie defense is strong, look for this game to be a defensive, low scoring battle. I still think Utah will win, I just think that it will be a lot closer than I did before.

OK - continuing on...

Opponent #7: The Louisiana Tech Bulldogs

Prediction: USU 45 - 35 LT

Last year's game in Ruston, Louis. was a scoring spree. Utah State held very steady to LaTech through the half, but in the second half, Tech started pulling away, and it looked like it was going to be a two-touchdown win for the bulldogs. Not so.

Robert Turbin and Diondre Borel provided the offensive spunk necessary to get the ball into the endzone for two quick TDs, and even took a lead early in the fourth quarter. The defense couldn't hold, however, and LaTech finished strong. Two unanswered offensive series put the Louisiana Dogs up by ten, and that's how it ended.

Barring any significant injury on defense, that will not happen again this year. LaTech has not gathered any significant improvement from last year from what I know. Tech has to compete with LSU and every other major SEC program to get recruits from the home state and its neighbors, which plays into the hands of USU. Also, Gary Anderson's defensive schemes, which should be pretty solid by this point, will provide the defensive pressure that USU didn't have last year.

Both teams stand on par offensively - the x factor in this game is going to be the Aggie defense. If the Aggie defense shines, USU will win.

And the game is in Logan. The Ags will want to post a win for the hometown crowd.

Opponent #8: The Fresno State Bulldogs

Prediction: USU 27-30 Fresno

This game will be one of the most intense of the season. Who could forget last year's almost win against the highly publicized and supposedly superior squad from California? That (insert your swear word of choice here) kicker who knocked in the miracle kick from 62 yards away did the impossible last year, and USU will be out for revenge in this game.

Unfortunately, the Bulldogs will be too much for USU to handle, but not by much. A field goal will once again be the difference in this game. Fresno's kicker, Kevin Goessling, has been named to the watch list for the Groza award, which goes to the nation's best kicker.

I want to say that USU's defense will be absolutely dominating against the Bulldogs, but they have a very prolific offensive scheme, and any WAC team that goes to Fresno without a bye week to gather itself will have a hard time against Fresno.

Yuck. I really want to call this one a win for USU, but I just can't.

Opponent #9: The Hawaii (formerly Rainbow) Warriors

Prediction: USU 14-28 Hawaii

Last year, the high point of the season was the Hawaii win in Logan. To beat the team that had ran the WAC table and gone to the Sugar Bowl the year previous at home was just about as good as it got last year.

This year, a much more daunting task will be presented ahead of the Aggies. They must head for the Islands without a bye week to prepare.

For those of you who may not know, Hawaii is one of the most difficult venues to play in the country. Nobody likes to go to Hawaii to play football, unless it's for a bowl game. That combined with the travel and time zone change without a bye week to prepare all adds up to a USU loss.

And yet, I find myself wanting, wanting, wanting to believe that USU will be able to pull out a win in the Aloha State, especially after we beat Hawaii last year.

To be honest, this is a game that I put down as a split - I just don't know who will win. Everything logical leads me to believe that USU will not be able to pull it off, but if they do, I'm calling a 6-win season and a bowl berth in the New Mexico bowl. If not, then I'm calling a 4- or 5-win season for the Aggies during this rebuilding year.

That's why I'm calling this section of the season "the gauntlet." It will give Aggie fans a real indicator of where the USU football program stands when matched up against the respectable sports programs in the conference.

More to come soon! Peace out everyone!

RIP Les Paul

A real guitar legend passed away today. A moment of silence to anyone who enjoys playing the electric guitar.

For anyone who doesn't know, Les Paul is largely responsible for the Gibson electric guitar, a quality guitar made extremely popular by rock artists such as Slash.

Check out this article for a good obituary.

USA v Mexico - The Great North American Duel

There are any number of excuses the Americans could use to explain today's defeat. The sun was too hot, the crowd was too hostile, the officials were jaded towards Mexico, the list continues. What we do know today however was that a USA soccer team cannot play well in Mexico - ever.

The USA team has never won in Mexico City. The closest they have even come is a tie, and that happened before any of the players who now play for the American Selection were on the team. Mexico City has been a difficult place to play, and now American soccer fans are learning to chalk a trip to the south as a loss.

What irritates me personally about this game is that although the US had a lead after ten minutes of the game, they surrendered that lead only twenty minutes later. This following the pattern of the last major international loss to be taken by the US - USA v Brazil. As any American soccer fan can remember, the Brazilians were not down 1-0, they were down 2-0, but the ball rolled their way and right through the semi-outstretched legs of the American defense only 1.5 minutes into the second half.

Going into the second half of the latest chapter of the Duel, the USA seemed more than content to allow for a draw, but didn't play like it. They were unable to match a more desperate Mexican squad, man for man and will for will. Wouldn't you know it, Mexico scored in the last ten minutes to put themselves ahead for good and were more than content to take their sweet time and irritate the Americans to death.

That second Mexican goal was quite cheap. The Mexican forward blew by Landon Donovan like he wasn't even standing there, drawing attention to Donovan's big comments before the game. Because of the slow defensive recovery, the fullback who normally wouldn't have had to drop back to play help defense had to drop back to play help defense to seal off the scoring opportunity. That he did, but was unable to control the deflection, which dropped to the Mexican trailing player who quickly put it past a diving Tim Howard. One hundred thousand Mexican fans cheered their brains out, and it was easy to see who was emotionally in control of the match at that point.

When USA soccer defeated the number 1 team in the world, it was with solid, impenetrable defense highlighted occasionally by a dynamic and speedy offensive burst that paid off. In the first half of that Spanish game, the USA had two shots on goal, and two goals, while Spain missed on more than 10 shots at the hardwood...

The good news for USA soccer is that this match was not absolutely crucial in order for the US to qualify for the world cup next year, but the race did just get a whole lot tighter.

The other good news is that the next qualifying match for the US to qualify for the trip to South Africa will take place in Sandy at Rio Tinto Stadium. I must say that I am impressed with the respect that Rio Tinto and the entire state of Utah have gathered in the soccer world. It's great for Utah.

Here is a good article that I think adequately assessed the real winners and losers of this match.

Coming soon - the continuation of my analysis of the 2009 season for USU football. Keep it right here.

Rob Myers signs with Philadelphia Eagles

(I saw this kid play. He was a good talent surrounded by mediocrity. USU was lucky to have him.)

Courtesy: USU Athletic Dept. Media Relations

Former Utah State football standout Rob Myers has signed a free agent contract with the Philadelphia Eagles and is expected to be in action during the Eagles’ preseason game on Thursday night against the New England Patriots.

Myers, a tight end, originally signed a free agent deal with the New York Jets in April, but was released prior to their training camp.

As a junior in 2007, Myers had 21 receptions for 320 yards with three touchdowns, and led the nation’s tight ends with 15.2 yards per catch. His season was highlighted by being named the John Mackey National Tight End of the Week on Nov. 21, 2007 for his career-best outing of 117 yards on four catches with two TD’s in USU’s win at New Mexico State. However, Myers missed his senior season of 2008 with a preseason injury. Myers attended the NFL Combine in February, but his action was limited due to his injury rehab.

Myers will be uniting with former Aggie wide receiver Kevin Curtis, who is entering his third season with the Eagles and his seventh in the NFL.

USU predictions continued

Part 2 of 4

Opponent #4: The Cougars of Brigham Young University

Prediction: USU 24-35 BYU

Ah, BYU. I am conflicted as to what to write about them. Given the choice between the two Mountain West teams in the state, I'm definitely a BYU homer and NEVER will be a Utah fan, EVER. That mainly is because I remember going to BYU games in the 80's as a 3-year-old when my grandfather was working for the LDS church education system and got complementary season tickets to BYU games. I was raised on Cougar Football. That having been said, it's very difficult for me to completely turn my back on the football team from Provo.

I have no connection to their basketball team at all though, and think that it should perish under the destructive dunks of our Aggie men. Death to Cougar Basketball.

That having been said, let's take an honest look at this game and contrast what has changed since last year.

The biggest factors that will play into the result of this game are the development of the two defenses. BYU is coming off a 10-3 season, and the games they lost were the games where their defense could not compensate for their normally prolific offense's mistakes. Anyone who saw the BYU-TCU and BYU-Utah games last year, one of which highlighted a dominating Gary Andersen defense, knows that the Cougar defense had a hard time locking down when it had to be on the field for more than 35 minutes of the game. If the offense could not produce, and the defense got tired, BYU got worked, and that's all there was too it. Given the fact that team only lost three games last year, I do not presume to say that this is an easy task to complete, and although I think it is possible, it is very unlikely. That's one of the reasons why I call this game a loss.

There is a reason why this year's BYU team is getting preseason looks to bust the BCS, as evidenced by this article from si.com and this article from espn.com. BYU is returning a senior quarterback in Max Hall, a senior tight-end in Dennis Pitta, and a junior running-back in Harvey Unga that would be difficult for many teams to handle. For the first half of the season, their defense was dominating, and this year, the expectations on the Cougars is not half of what it was during last year's "Quest for Perfection."

I believe BYU stands a legitimate chance of busting through this year, and their preseason ranking certainly puts them in a wonderful position to do so if they can win the last 11 games of the season, defeating a TCU team and a Utah team that must also do well this year. If they beat Oklahoma, winning the rest of their schedule will be a marathon, but is doable.

So what can USU hope to accomplish against BYU? Look for Diondre Borel to have a great game in Provo. The Cougar defense hates him, mainly because after halftime last year in Logan, Borel ran their socks off with an option attack. Injuries will also play a big part. If USU can keep the field very spread and drag the defensive backs behind their receivers, USU will stand the best chance because BYU is not athletic enough defensively to keep up with extreme speed.

A huge unknown in this game as well is the BYU offensive line. Four of the five linemen from last year's BYU squad are graduated. USU's defensive line is undersized, but if they can outmatch the cougar O-line with their quickness and speed a la Utah, BYU will have a hard time going anywhere.

Bottom line, speed is the way to beat BYU. The quicker and smarter team will prevail, and I think that USU will not yet have the athleticism to defeat a program that has a larger following, a larger recruitment base, a larger talent pool, and a real shot at busting the BCS.

Opponent #5: The New Mexico State Aggies

Prediction: USU 49 - 14 NMSU

Of all the football games at home that I could not see last year, the ones that I wanted to see the most were the Hawaii game and the New Mexico State game.
Simply put, USU slaughtered NMSU last year, and managed to defeat them in Las Cruces two years ago when there was no hope for the Utah State program at all. Now that USU has a decent coach and a better recruitment class, Utah State should roll all over a New Mexico State squad that now finds itself where Utah State was two years ago, despite the fact that NMSU has a new coach.

By week five, the Aggie defense should be strong and practiced enough to stifle any sort of attack the NewMags can muster, and Borel, along with Turbin, should run their defense to death. I am only regretful of the fact that this game will be in New Mexico, because it would be fun to watch the NewMags get blown out.

Opponent #6: The Nevada Wolf Pack

Prediction: USU 20-23 Nevada

I'm calling for the almost upset in this game. Utah State will lose, but it will be close, mainly because of two reasons.

Utah State should by this time have a pretty developed defensive front and defensive scheme. Since Andersen is a defensive coach, he'll make the adjustments necessary to put a lot of pressure on Nevada's monstrous QB Colin Kaepernick early on in this game. An active aggie defense that is able to react with quickness, which is Andersen's focus, should be able to somewhat contain Kaepernick.

Secondly, Nevada is not reknowned for its defensive presence on the field. They are a strong school, and have been picked to finish second in the conference, but this game will be in Logan and the Aggie offense shone its brightest in Logan last season, and I believe it will do so again this year.

I would say look for a loss a la Last Year's Fresno St. game. Stupid kicker...

more to come soon.

USU coaching, schedule and predictions

A Movement II Moment

Part 1 of 4

USU Football is Upon Us

Utah State is about to start again this year looking to exceed expectations both in Logan and around the WAC.

They were picked to start seventh in the conference in the preseason media polls, one ahead of New Mexico State and two ahead of cupcake Idaho. Everything coming out of the aggie training camp is saying the team is thirsty for more.

For example, take this article by the Deseret News. Is it reasonable to assume that not in the last ten years has there been so much expected from the UtAgs?

Every year for the past 15 years, more or less, the question behind the Utah State football program has been, "How many games will the Ags lose this year?" or "Is it possible that USU could win a few for the home crowd, even if they fold on every away game?" or "Is it worth paying the $50+ to take my family to one of these games?" It certainly can be said that Aggie football has been about seeing the best programs come into Logan (if we could get them here) to roll all over the Aggies. My question here is the following - are these questions that belong to the past?

It certainly is normal for hype surrounding a program to increase after a coaching change. We saw similar things with Guy and his predecessors. Those coaches all gave reason to hope for a turnaround in the red-headed stepchild team in the state of Utah. (It's what USU football has been people - get over it.) HOWEVER, none of those coaches had strong Utah roots, had the recruiting credentials that Mr. Andersen has, nor the strong showing of a coaching presence on a national stage like Mr. Andersen has.

I don't care who you are - you cannot deny that the Ute Defense was everything including unstoppable last season. That defense was practically impenatrable. The mastermind behind that defense is now up north in Aggie blue.

Read carefully - ONLY AN IDIOT WOULD HOPE FOR MORE THAN SIX WINS FOR USU FOOTBALL THIS SEASON

So what can we in blue hope for? Let's break this year's schedule down game by game, starting with Utah this time and continuing through homecoming.

Opponent #1: The University of Utah Utes

Prediction: USU 9-28 Utah

Utah is coming off a Sugar Bowl win and a long and confusing off season. Utah lost only a couple offensive players, but those losses were really costly. Case in point, one Brian Johnson. Since then, Utah has been in limbo at the quarterback position. During spring ball, it was last year's backup, Corbin Louks who appears to have lost the confidence of the coaches. It was his job to lose - that much is clear. Now moving towards the start of the season, Louks has been battling Terrance Cain, a JuCo transfer for the job ever since. The battle has appeared so fierce that the Ute Coaching staff has not named a starter heading into training camp. Offensively, if Utah can't solidify a starter for this team before they face USU, the Aggies stand that much more of a chance of winning this football game. Keeping the Utes from scoring will be crucial, and if Anderson is able to whip a defensive unit trying to learn an entirely new scheme into shape, USU stands a reasonable chance of keeping the Ute offense in check.

That having been said, this game is a longshot - even with the defensive experience and brilliance of Anderson at the helm. I have to call the Aggies losing this game.

Let's be honest. Utah's defense may not have the same mind behind it, but it does have vastly superior talent to Utah State's offense. Last year, the only score that USU managed to get against the Utes was a 10-yard pass play Borel threw into the end zone after a fumbled punt return. It happened early, it happened fast, and then the Ute defense locked down and didn't let up for another grueling 56 minutes. That was that.

Look for more of the same from Utah this year. Especially since this game will be in Salt Lake City, the Ute Defense will not allow USU to score much, if at all. Everything in this game will depend on Borel's aptitude at reading and executing his offense, and how well the Aggie defense has been able to mold to Anderson's schemes. A good Aggie defense is the key to this one. The lower the score, the better.

Opponent #2: Aggies of Texas A&M

Prediction: USU 28-24 A&M

What? Dost I hear scoffing? Ok, so I am really going out on a limb here with this pick, and yes, my pick may be more influenced by hope than reality... BUT no one can deny that this win is possible. Why? Read on.

A&M is in the Big XII, yes. Yes, their schedule is much more difficult than Utah State. They play Oklahoma and Texas every year. Yes, the aspirations of A&M are much higher than USU's every year because of the mere possibility of a BCS game if they can win over 10 games. But, I do not believe that one will earn a victory this early in the season simply because of conference. By this game, A&M will probably have lost their first game against New Mexico and will be looking for an easy win in College Station. A fired up Utah State team will not allow it.

A&M went 4-8 last year, with their wins coming against illustrious teams like Colorado, who went 2-6 in conference, and Iowa State, who didn't win a single conference game last year. Their other wins came in a very close one against New Mexico and Army. This is not Oklahoma. This is not Texas. This is A&M. This is a team that has been going the way of the northern aggie for the last few seasons. They have had no direction.

Also, let it be said that I am no fan at all of the belief that conference entitles a team to a victory. May I cite the following games as examples: Wyoming-Tennessee 08; Hawaii-Washington 06; Utah-Pitt 05 (Fiesta Bowl); Utah-Alabama 09 (Sugar Bowl); BYU-Kansas State 96 (Cotton Bowl); BYU-Miami 90; and finally my best case in point, Boise St-Oklahoma 06 (Fiesta Bowl). There are just as many cases that a quality mid-major team can beat one of the BCS conference teams on the right day with the right matchup. Sure, USU is just going to be fighting for a winning season and a bowl berth, certainly not a BCS bowl berth, but this A&M team is beatable.

For USU, it will be a tall order, but a fillable one. I'm putting out the upset watch sign on this game.

Victim #1: errr...... Opponent #3: The Southern Utah Thunderbirds

Prediction: USU 42-6 SUU

Where to start with this game? This is the home opener for Utah State and the Aggie Homecoming game. Utah State will have every reason to win this game and should let loose on the small Division II opponent from Cedar City.

Not only is SUU a DII team, but they are a bottom dwelling DII team. Last year they went 4-7 in the Great West conference. The only D-1 FBS team that SUU faced last year was Air Force, and they were trounced 41-7. These guys are cupcakes, even more than Idaho and New Mexico State.

Much more than what I've just said is just statistic stacking. One sidenote that I think should be mentioned is the fact that Coach Andersen is a former head coach of SUU. In the first three games of the season, Gary will face the two teams he used to coach.

More to come... check in later.

Gary Andersen on USU Football

Here's Gary - Listen to your Aggie Football King

Coach McMackin's Comments

Oh, how the warriors have fallen. It was only two years ago that the Hawaii Warriors found themselves in the Sugar Bowl as the second team from the WAC to bust the BCS and the 3rd team in 4 years to accomplish that feat. And now, the program finds itself in a mire of media hell.

The coach was suspended for 30 days and fined more than a million dollars for using a derrogatory homosexual slur in a tasteless joke during the WAC media day. Below, you can see a dejected McMackin apologizing for the slur, followed by ESPN's Brian Kenny commenting on it.

You can also check out the written story here