GAME WEEK: Aggies kick off season at UNLV

UTAH STATE at UNLV
Saturday, Aug. 30, 8 p.m. (MT)
Sam Boyd Stadium (36,800) - Las Vegas, Nev.

QUICKLY -- Utah State (0-0, 0-0 WAC) kicks off the 2008 season in the Sin City of Las Vegas, Nev., against UNLV (0-0, 0-0 MWC) on Saturday, Aug. 30... Kickoff is slated for 8 p.m. (MT) at UNLV's Sam Boyd Stadium (36,800)... Saturday's game will not be broadcast on television, but fans can follow the game on the radio or with live stats on the Internet.

HOT, HOT, HOT -- According to weatherchannel.com, Saturday's forecast for Las Vegas calls for temperatures at a balmy 103... Temperature at kickoff of last year's USU-UNLV opener was 91, the hottest Aggie football game since it was 100 degrees when USU played at Arizona State on Sept. 13, 2003.

THAT'S CALLED A WINNING STREAK -- Utah State won its last two games of 2007 and enters the 2008 campaign in pursuit of its first overall three-game win streak since 2001... The Aggies are also going for their first three-game road win streak since a three-game span overlapping the 1996-97 seasons when USU won its last two road games of 1996, at New Mexico State and Boise State, and opened the 1997 season with a win on the road at Utah.

FAMILIAR FOE -- This is the second year in a row that the Aggies and Rebels have met in the season-opener for both squads, as UNLV outscored USU 20-6 in the second half last year to rally for a 23-16 win on Aug. 30... This is the third time in the last four years that USU and UNLV have met and the 19th time overall... USU head coach Brent Guy and UNLV head coach Mike Sanford are both in the fourth seasons at the helms of their respective teams and both have a 6-29 record.

SERIES HISTORY -- USU leads the all-time series 12-6 including 6-3 in Las Vegas... Prior to last year's loss, USU had won the previous three meetings and nine of the last 12, including the last five match-ups at UNLV... In their last visit to Las Vegas, the Aggies won 31-21 on Oct. 25, 2004... The Aggies and Rebels first met in 1971 and were Big West Conference foes from 1983-1995 and then did not play again until 2004.

SEASON-OPENERS -- Saturday matches last year's earliest season-opener since 2003...USU is 3-18 in its last 21 season-openers, winning in 1993, 1996 and 1997... In those three years of the Aggies winning their season-opener, USU has had a winning season, been to a bowl game or in some cases shared or won the conference title (USU was 7-5 in 1993, winning the Las Vegas Bowl and tying for the Big West Conference championship; 6-5 in 1996; 6-6 in 1997 after losing in the Humanitarian Bowl and again tying for the Big West championship).

SEASON-OPENERS UNDER BRENT GUY -- Under head coach Brent Guy, USU is 0-3 in season-openers.

USU IN AUGUSTUS' MONTH -- The Aggies have played in August only six times since 1957 and they are all in the last 16 years, as 1991 was the first August season-opener... USU has a 2-4 record in August, including 1-1 on Aug. 30 winning at Utah, 20-17, on Aug. 30, 1997 and losing to UNLV, 23-16, on Aug. 30, 2007.

ON THE AIR -- All Utah State football games are carried on KVNU 610 AM and KLZX 95.9 FM in Logan; either 1230 AM or 1320 AM in Salt Lake City; on KLZX 105.3 FM in Montpelier, Idaho, and at www.UtahStateAggies.com with Al Lewis calling the play-by-play and Craig Hislop providing analysis this week.

GAMETRACKER - Fans can follow Saturday's game plus all Aggie home games through the USU web site at www.UtahStateAggies.com via GameTracker, a free service, which updates play-by-play and statistics throughout the game.

COACHES SHOW ON THE ROAD -- For the fourth straight year the Brent Guy radio show on Thursday nights (6:05-6:45 p.m. on 610 AM KVNU), will be held at different locations on campus. The show gives USU students an opportunity to ask questions and interact with Coach Guy and players. Food will be available at each show at a reduced rate from University Food Services. The final show was last week as there will not be a show this week due to Thanksgiving.

Coaches Show Schedule: Aug. 28 (HPER Quad) / Sept. 4 (Quad)

UP NEXT -- Utah State travels to Eugene, Ore., to tangle with 21st-ranked Oregon on Saturday, Sept. 6 at 1:30 p.m. (MT).

OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN -- Each week Utah State will select game captains. Those selected for the UNLV game will be announced later this week.

ROAD WOE-IORS -- Life on the road has been tough for the Aggies, who are 3-18 under head coach Brent Guy... The win at New Mexico State on Nov. 17, 2007 snapped a 13-game road losing skid, as two of USU's three road wins are at NMSU, with the 35-17 victory last year plus winning on the road in the 2005 season finale at New Mexico State, 24-21, along with the 24-19 win at Idaho on Nov. 24 of last year.

SWEET HOME? -- Utah State has just one home win in its last 12 home games, currently on a seven-game home losing skein... The Aggies are 3-12 at home under head coach Brent Guy.

USU-UNLV NOTE-ABLE

AGGIE-REBEL TIES -- USU C Ryan Tonnemacher and UNLV QB/DB Travis Dixon were high school teammates in Chandler, Ariz. at Hamilton HS, where they led the Huskies to the Arizona State 5A championship in 2004... USU DE coach Danilo Robinson played against UNLV three times as a defensive end for the Aggies, recording three tackles in both 1993 and 1994, as well as 10 tackles as a junior in 1995... UNLV wide receivers coach Kris Cinkovich is a 1984 graduate of Carroll College (Mont.), where he would have played with former USU assistant coach Bob Petrino and from 1987-89 as offensive coordinator for the Fighting Saints, coached former USU assistant coach and current University of Arkansas offensive coordinator/WR coach Paul Petrino at quarterback, as well as former USU assistant coach and current Atlanta Falcons assistant special teams coach Tom McMahon... UNLV running backs coach Kenith Pope played for Oklahoma from 1971-73 and helped the Sooners to a 49-0 win over Utah State in 1972.

CURRENT AGGIES VS UNLV -- LB Jake Hutton led USU with eight tackles including 2.5 tackles for loss in the 2005 game... LB De'von Hall had three tackles in 2005... RB Chris Forbes had 13 yards on five carries... Last season, RB Curtis Marsh had 13 carries for 50 yards in his Aggie debut, which is the most for an Aggie freshman in their debut in school history... Marsh also had two catches for 23 yards... RB Jacob Actkinson had two rushes for three yards and two catches for 10 yards... LB Paul Igboeli had eight tackles, while Hutton had six stops including one sack... DE Ben Calderwood had five tackles while S Caleb Taylor had four tackles as well as a fumble recovery... K Peter Caldwell had a 38-yard field goal and K Chris Ulinski was one-of-two on PAT's.

USU BESTS VS. UNLV -- Here's a look at some of the top USU statistical individual performances against the Rebels over the years: Robert Watts had a 100-yard interception return for a TD, the second-longest INT return in school history in 2004... Abu Wilson rushed for 251 yards against UNLV in 1995 for what was then the third-best rushing total (now sixth)... Profail Grier is 17th on USU's single-game rushing list with 209 yards in 1993... In 1984, Gym Kimball had 356 passing yards vs. the Rebels, a mark that ties for 25th on the single-game passing list... QB Matt Wells and WR Kevin Alexander hooked up for an 85-yard pass play in 1994, good for tied for eighth-best on the longest play list... In 1992, Sean Jones had a 52-yard field goal vs. UNLV, tied for the eighth-longest FG in USU history... TEAM: In 1995, USU accumulated 548 yards of total offense against the Rebels, good for 15th on the Team Game Bests list.

USU VS. THE MWC -- Utah State is playing the first of three games against a member of the Mountain West Conference this season as the Aggies host Utah on Sept. 13 and BYU on Oct. 3... This is the third year in a row that USU has played three games vs. MWC teams... All-time USU is 146-203-14 vs. current members of the league... USU has lost six straight against the MWC, as the win over UNLV in 2005 was the Aggies' last win vs. a MWC team... In its last 15 games against MWC teams, USU is 3-12... Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico State and San Jose State are the other teams in the WAC to play any Mountain West teams, and each only plays one with three of the four facing in-state rivals an in-state rivals as Nevada takes on UNLV, New Mexico State tangles with New Mexico and San Jose State squares off with San Diego State, who also plays Idaho.

USU IN THE SILVER STATE -- The Aggies are a combined 9-7 in the state of Nevada, with a 6-3 mark at UNLV, 2-4 at Nevada and 1-0 in the Las Vegas Bowl, winning there in 1993.

ABOUT UTAH STATE -- The Aggies were picked ninth in the Western Athletic Conference preseason poll despite finishing seventh in last season's standings with a 2-10 overall record and 2-6 in WAC action... USU has 17 starters returning among 39 lettermen... Of those lettermen, 12 are seniors, which matches last season for the most in Guy's four-year tenure... Of the 17 starters, nine are on the defensive side of the ball, the most in the WAC... Among the returners is senior LB Jake Hutton, who earned second-team all-WAC honors last year after he led USU and ranked eighth in the WAC as well as tied for 71st in the NCAA with 102 tackles, including 58 solo stops. The 58 solo tackles ranked tied for fifth in the league... Also returning is junior LB Paul Igboeli, who was second on the team last year and 13th in the WAC with 95 tackles, including 51 solo stops, which ranked among the top 15 in league. He was tied for second on the team with eight tackles for loss and also tallied three pass break-ups and one fumble recovery... Offensively, the Aggie offensive line will be anchored by senior C Ryan Tonnemacher, senior LT Derek Hoke and sophomore RT Spencer Johnson, who all started each of the 12 games last season.

ABOUT UNLV -- The Rebels return 14 starters from last season's 2-10 squad that went 1-7 in the Mountain West... UNLV also returns 53 lettermen from last year's team that was 2-2 after four games before suffering an eight-game losing skein to end the season... Leading UNLV's returners is senior TE Casey Flair, who averaged 11.5 yards per catch last season on 54 receptions for 622 yards with three TD's... Another offensive returner is senior RB Frank Summers, who averaged 4.6 yards per carry last year with 928 yards on 202 carries with six TD's... While those two are returning at their respective positions, Travis Dixon, last year's starting QB, has been switched to defense and is a safety... Sophomore QB Omar Clayton has been tabbed as the Rebels' starter, marking the fifth different signal-caller for UNLV in the last five years... Defensively, the Rebels are led by junior DB Daryl Forte, who had 94 tackles last season, including one sack and one interception as well as three pass break-ups.

RODNEY DANGERFIELD WOULD BE PROUD -- USU and UNLV are both feeling that they get "no respect" as both the Aggies and the Rebels were picked last in their respective WAC and Mountain West preseason polls.

TONNEMACHER ON RIMINGTON TROPHY WATCH LIST -- For the second year in a row, offensive center Ryan Tonnemacher has been named to the Rimington Trophy Watch List, given annually to the nation's most outstanding center in college football..

Tonnemacher (pronounced Tawn-uh-mawker), a 6-3, 292-pound senior from Chandler, Ariz. (Hamilton HS), is one of 43 players named to the Watch List. Tonnemacher is one of four centers from the Western Athletic Conference to be recognized, as he's joined by John Estes from Hawai'i, Adam Korby of Idaho and Nevada's Dominic Green.

Tonnemacher is the only center from the state of Utah on this season's list.

As a junior last season, Tonnemacher started all 12 games at center, one of eight Aggies to start every contest. His 759 offensive plays tied him with offensive guard Shawn Murphy and offensive tackle Derek Hoke for most on the offense and were the fourth-most on the team.

Tonnemacher enters his senior season with a team-leading 24 consecutive starts after starting all 12 games in both 2006 and 2007. He is a three-year letterwinner after starting three games as a freshman in 2005.

A total of 17 centers were repeat selections from last year's preseason Watch List, including Tonnemacher, Korby and Green, as well as last year's winner, Jonathan Luigs from Arkansas. The Rimington Trophy has not had a repeat winner in its history.

HUTTON AND IGBOELI IN BUTKUS TROPHY WATCH LIST -- Utah State linebackers Jake Hutton and Paul Igboeli were both named to the 2008 Butkus Award watch list, given annually to the top linebacker in college football, announced by the Butkus Foundation.

Hutton, a senior, and Igboeli, a junior, were one of 10 sets of teammates on the 66 player list. The Aggie duo were two of four Western Athletic Conference players on the watch list, joining Adam Leonard of Hawai'i and Josh Mauga of Nevada. Hutton and Igboeli are also two of the three players from Utah schools, joining Utah's Stevenson Sylvester.

Hutton, a native of Pocatello, Idaho (Pocatello HS), earned second-team all-WAC honors last year after he led USU and ranked eighth in the WAC as well as tied for 71st in the NCAA with 102 tackles, including 58 solo stops. The 58 solo tackles ranked tied for fifth in the league. His 58 solo tackles were also the most for an Aggie since Jesse Busta had 64 in 2002. Hutton registered a USU single-game season-best 16 stops at New Mexico State.

Igboeli (pronounced Ig-bo-lee), a Grand Prairie, Texas (South Grand Prairie HS) native was second on the team and 13th in the WAC with 95 tackles, including 51 solo stops, which ranked among the top 15 in league. He was tied for second on the team with eight tackles for loss and also tallied three pass break-ups and one fumble recovery. Igboeli posted two of USU's top five tackle outings on the year with 15 at New Mexico State and 12 at Fresno State. In 2006, Igboeli was the WAC Freshman of the Year.

The Butkus Award, instituted in 1985, has been given annually to the top linebacker in college football. The Award, named in honor of Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker Dick Butkus, is regarded as one of the elite individual honors in college football. This year, the Butkus family has taken stewardship of the Butkus Award to fully realize it's original purpose of honoring athletic achievement and service to the community. It will be presented by the Butkus Foundation. The Butkus Award will be presented January 13, 2009, at the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame in Chicago.

USU-UNLV LAST TIME -- In what began as a hot bed of excitement turned into cold disappointment as Utah State was defeated by visiting UNLV, 23-16, in the Aggies' home and season opener on Thursday, Aug. 30. Frank Summers' 11-yard run with 1:02 to play and Sergio Aguayo's PAT gave UNLV its first road win dating back to 2004. With kickoff at 91 degrees, the Aggies jumped out to a 10-3 lead in their first home season-opener since 2002. Senior running back Aaron Lesue scored his first career TD as an Aggie on a two-yard plunge with 13:08 left in the second quarter and freshman kicker Chris Ulinski drilled the PAT for his first USU point. After a 45-yard punt return by senior Kevin Robinson gave the Aggies the ball at the UNLV 21 with one second left, freshman kicker Peter Caldwell split the uprights from 38-yards out as time expired to send the Aggies into the locker room with a 10-3 lead. After a scoreless third quarter, UNLV quarterback Travis Dixon, a redshirt freshman making his Rebel debut, opened the fourth-quarter scoring with a 15-yard scamper to put UNLV ahead, 16-10. The Aggies countered with a one-yard TD dive by senior signal-caller Leon Jackson III, his first in two seasons, but Ulinski's PAT was wide right, leaving the score tied at 16-all, setting up UNLV's game-winner. USU had 234 yards (137 passing, 97 rushing) of total offense, while UNLV had 314 yards (173 rushing, 141 passing). Jackson started the game six-of-seven passing and ended 13-of-19 for 137 yards. Dixon led UNLV with 129 rushing yards and 141 passing yards on 12-of-20 passing. Defensively, senior safety Antonio Taylor, who led USU in tackles last season picked up right where he left off, leading the team in tackles with 10, as well as a pass break up. Sophomore linebacker Paul Igboeli, last season's WAC Freshman of the Year added eight stops, while junior linebacker Jake Hutton made a successful return to the Aggie lineup with six tackles, including a sack.

AGGIES-REBELS LAST TIME AT LAS VEGAS -- Travis Cox completed 12 of 26 passes for 177 yards, while Tony Pennyman caught four of those passes for 119 yards and one touchdown and Robert Watts and Antonio Taylor both recorded two interceptions to help Utah State stop a nine-game road losing streak with a 31-21 triumph. Ben Chaet kicked field goals of 30 and 27 yards on USU's first two possessions of the game to keep the game close at 7-6 at the end of the first quarter. USU's first score just 1:48 into the game (clock read 13:12) was its quickest score since scoring at the 14:42 mark against Idaho State on Sept. 14, 2002. The Aggie offense got in the end zone on a five-yard run by Travis Cox at 14:38 in the second quarter, to give USU the 13-7 lead. Cox's touchdown marked USU's first rushing touchdown in 20 quarters. UNLV's Dominique Dorsey helped the Rebels answer on the ensuing possession as he capped the drive with a 53-yard touchdown run. With USU down 14-13 in the third quarter, the Aggies' Robert Watts intercepted a pass from UNLV's Kurt Nantkes and returned it 90 yards for a touchdown. USU's Chris Forbes rushed for the point after to give USU the 21-14 lead. After UNLV tied the game at 21, USU's offense tallied a 25-yard field goal, Chaet's third of the game and a 79-yard touchdown pass from Cox to Tony Pennyman with 4:16 left to seal the victory.

Note-ableUSU stopped a nine-game road losing streak that dated back to its last win at Troy on Nov. 16, 2003... USU's 10-point victory was its biggest on the road since beating North Texas 34-7 (27 points) at Denton on No. 27, 1999... LB Robert Watts tied the second longest interception return in school history with his 90-yard return in the third quarter... Watts and Antonio Taylor became the first Aggies to record two interceptions in a game since Johndale Carty had two vs. Idaho in 1997.

HEAD COACH BRENT GUY -- Brent Guy (Oklahoma State, 1983) is in his fourth year as head coach after coming to Utah State from Arizona State where he was the defensive coordinator for four years. Guy was an assistant coach (linebackers) at Utah State from 1992-94 under then head coach Charlie Weatherbie. During that time, USU posted its only bowl victory in school history, claiming the 1993 Las Vegas Bowl. Guy was involved in eight bowl games in 19 years as a collegiate assistant coach. Previous stops include Oklahoma State (1986-91 - graduate assistant 1986-87, recruiting coordinator 1988, linebackers 1989-91), Utah State (1992-94 - linebackers), Oklahoma State (1995-97 - linebackers), Boise State (1998-2000 - defensive coordinator) and Arizona State (2001-04 - defensive coordinator) before being named the Aggies' 25th head coach in December of 2004. In his first year at USU, the Aggies were 3-8 overall and 2-6 in the Western Athletic Conference.

GUY VS. UNLV -- Aggie head coach Brent Guy has coached against UNLV five times in his career, going 3-2 overall, with two meetings coming as a head coach at USU, going 1-1, while going 2-1 as an assistant coach for the Aggies.

DID YOU KNOW? -- Utah State offensive coordinator Darrell Dickey was 4-3 vs. Idaho while head coach at North Texas, losing in 1998, 1999 and 2000 before winning four straight from 2001-04.

AGGIE ASSISTANT COACHES -- Utah State had one changes on its coaching staff from last year, as Thomas Dunson joined the staff.

Offensive Coordinator - Darrell Dickey (Kansas State, 1984, 2nd Year)... Former head coach at North Texas... Guided Mean Green to four consecutive conference championships from 2001-04.

Wide Receivers - Greg Stevens (Eastern Oregon, 1992, 4th Year)... Former offensive coordinator at S.F. Austin... USU interim off. coord. for eight games.

Running Backs - Shaun Johnson (Utah State, 1995, 3rd Year)... Former Aggie wide receiver, coached Division I-AA rushing leader at Brown in 2005.

Tight Ends - Tracy Smith (LSU, 2003, 3rd Year)... Worked with LSU quarterbacks in 2005... Is son of former Jacksonville Jaguars offensive coordinator Carl Smith.

Offensive Line - Vance Vice (Oklahoma State, 1990, 4th Year)... As an Oklahoma State tight end was a key to Barry Sanders winning the Heisman in 1988.

Def. Coord./LB - Mark Johnson (UC Davis, 1990, 4th Year)... Has coached at four different WAC schools (San Jose State, Boise State, Nevada and USU).

Def. Line - Danilo Robinson (Utah State, 1997, 4th Year)... Holds USU single-game sacks record with five vs. San Jose State in 1995.

Safeties - Jeff Copp (Boise State, 2001, 4th Year)... Was an all-conference defensive end while playing at Boise State.

Cornerbacks - John Rushing (Washington State, 1995, 6th Year)... Was a freshman All-America corner at Washington State... Older brother of former USU WR Kevin Robinson. GA-Offense - Thomas Dunson (LSU, 2003, 1st Year)... Comes to USU after one season at Rice... Was on Darrell Dickey's staff at North Texas for three seasons (2004- 06).

GA-Defense/Special Teams - Tony Flores (Utah State, 3rd Year)... Moved up from serving as a work study in the football office in 2005.

DID YOU KNOW? -- USU head coach Brent Guy and offensive coordinator Darrell Dickey played against each other when Guy was a linebacker at Oklahoma State and Dickey was a quarterback at Kansas State... Oklahoma State won all four meetings during Guy and Dickey's tenures, winning 42-15 in 1979, 10-0 in 1980, 31-10 in '81 and 24-16 in '82... Oct. 20 marked the 25th anniversary of Guy and Dickey's last meeting of 1982 when Oklahoma State hosts Kansas State... In the 1982 Cowboy-Wildcat clash, Guy had 18 tackles, including one TFL and two pass break-ups while Dickey was 17-of-35 passing for 185 yards with two TD's and one INT.

DID YOU KNOW? - TAKE 2 -- USU offensive coordinator Darrell Dickey was 0-2 vs. UNLV while head coach at North Texas, losing to the Rebels, 26-3, in 1999 in Denton, Texas and 38-0 at Las Vegas in 2000.

OFFENSIVE NOTES -- The USU offense accumulated 1,499 rushing yards, the most for a USU offense since 1999 when the Aggies had 1,941 rushing yards... The 124.9 rushing yards per game was the highest average since 1999 as well, when USU had a 176.5 ypg average... With 14 rushing TD's, that is the most for the USU offense since 2003 when the Aggies also had 14 TD's... The 272 passing attempts were the fewest attempts since 1975 when USU had 174... The Aggies' 247 points scored was the most since 264 in 2003, while the 20.6 ppg were also the most since 2003 when USU averaged 22.0 ppg... USU produced 300 or more yards in just four games, one fewer than last year, with a season-high 370 at Hawai'i... USU threw for 200 or more yards in three games, led by a season-high 247 at Hawai'i... The Aggies did not have a 200-yard rushing outing, with a season-high 175 against San Jose State... USU had 20 or more first downs twice, with a season-high 21 at Hawai'i... The Aggies scored three or more TD's in six games including seven of the last eight games, highlighted by a season-high four at New Mexico State... After being shutout four times in 2006, the Aggies were only blanked once in '07, by Boise State... The USU opponent's defense only scored once in 2007 after tallying eight scores in '06, as the Oklahoma defense had a 45-yard INT return for a TD.

DEFENSIVE NOTES -- USU yielded more than 400 yards of total offense in eight games including the last three and six of the last seven, with a season-high 617 by Oklahoma in week three... The Aggies' opposition hung at least 40 points on the board in three games, giving up six offensive TD's in all three games... USU held the opposing offense to less that 100 yards rushing twice on the year, including 88 at New Mexico State and a season-low 47 at Hawai'i... The Aggie defense limited the other teams' offense to less than 200 yards passing in six games, including a season-low 131 at Fresno State... USU scored one defensive TD on the year, a 38-yard INT return for a TD by LB De'von Hall at Wyoming.

SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES -- The 13 FG's is the most since 2002 when USU had 14, while the 21 FG attempts is the most since 27 in 1999... USU had a school-record four special teams TD's, with three kick returns and one punt return for TD.

A CHANGE IN ALTITUDE -- There are nine Division I schools that are located in cities with an elevation of at least 4,000 feet about sea level... Utah State's home of Logan ranks seventh on the list with an elevation of 4,534 feet... This season the Aggies will play at only one of those other locations giving USU seven games this season at 4,000 feet above sea level after playing eight in 2006 and seven last year. USU will play at Reno, Nev. (#8 at 4,505 feet) against Nevada on Oct. 18... The Aggies will face two of the other teams on the list in #6 BYU (Oct. 3) and #9 Utah (Sept. 13).

School City, State Elevation 1. Wyoming Laramie, Wyo. 7,220 2. Air Force Colorado Springs, Colo. 6,010 3. Colorado Boulder, Colo. 5,328 4. Colorado State Fort Collins, Colo. 5,003 5. New Mexico Albuquerque, N.M. 4,957 6. Brigham Young Provo, Utah 4,550 7. UTAH STATE LOGAN, UTAH 4,534 8. Nevada Reno, Nev. 4,505 9. Utah Salt Lake City, Utah 4,262

RECORD BOOK WATCH -- Senior linebacker Jake Hutton enters his final season in Aggie blue and white with 218 career tackles... He needs 95 more to reach USU's top 10 list, as Blake Eagal currently holds the No. 10 spot with 313 career stops from 1997-2000.

NUMBER CHANGES -- Utah State had several jersey number changes prior to this season and/or from the media guide:

Doug Barbour from 80 to 87
Brian Mason from 91 to 49
James Brindley from 26 to 3
Kejon Murphy from 9 to 1
Marquise Butler from 19 to 13
Emmanual Ojeriakhi from 88 to 19
Peter Caldwell from 38 to 8
Jake Poulson from 20 to 30
Marquise Charles from 3 to 26
Chris Randle from 24 to 7
Greg Clark from 93 to 91
Robert Turbin from 30 to 6
Levi Koskan from 91 to 93
Chris Williams from 10 to 9
Junior Keiaho from 92 to 59
Zac Zimmerman from 70 to 48

VETERAN EXPERIENCE -- USU has 17 seniors on its roster which matches last season as the biggest senior class in head coach Brent Guy's three seasons at USU and the largest Aggie senior class since 1999's 21 seniors.

THREE "A" AGGIES -- Out of the 17 seniors on the roster, 12 of them are three-year letterwinners.

TIME TRAVELERS -- Utah State will play in three different time zones this season: Central (at Louisiana Tech on Nov. 15), Mountain (all home games, at Boise State on Nov. 8) and Pacific (at UNLV on Aug. 30, at Oregon on Sept. 6, at San Jose State on Oct. 11 and at Nevada on Oct. 18).

While Utah State only plays in three different time zones this season (Mountain for all home games and at Boise State, Pacific at UNLV, at Oregon, at San Jose State and at Nevada, Central at Louisiana Tech), the Aggies have at least one player from five different time zones, Eastern, Central, Mountain, Pacific and Hawaiian-Aleutian.

BEEHIVE BUNCH -- Utah State has 23 players from the state of Utah on its roster.

TALL HOKE -- Senior offensive tackle Derek Hoke is the tallest player on USU's roster at 6'9" - Hoke is one of seven players on the Aggie roster listed at 6'5" or taller... He is also unofficially, the second-tallest player in NCAA Division I this season, behind 6'10" Alejandro Villanueva of Army.

BIG BOOKENDS -- Utah State's bookends at offensive tackle, senior Derek Hoke on the left and sophomore Spencer Johnson on the right, are two of the combined tallest tackles in the country, with Hoke towering at 6'9" and Johnson at 6'5"... The Aggie duo's combined height of 13'2" unofficially trails the 13'5" Colorado tandem of Nate Solder (6'8") and Ryan Miller (6'7") and the 13'3" Wisconsin duo of Gabe Carimi (6'8") and Eric Vanden Heuvel (6'7").

BIRTHDAY BOYS -- In all 20 Aggie players have birthdays from the time camp opened on Aug. 1 to the end of the season... Two Aggies have a birthday on a football game day: senior RB Chris Forbes (Sept. 13 vs Utah) and senior DE Gregg Clark (Oct. 11 at San Jose State).

USU NOTE-ABLE --

SEVEN 2008 OPPONENTS WENT BOWLING -- USU will face seven teams that went to a bowl game last year, including a stretch a four weeks in a row.

Oregon (Sept. 6) - Sun Bowl vs. South Florida - W, 56-21 Utah (Sept. 13) - San Diego Co. Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl vs. Navy - W, 35-32 BYU (Oct. 3) - Las Vegas Bowl vs. UCLA - W, 17-16 Nevada (Oct. 18) - New Mexico Bowl vs. New Mexico - L, 22-0 Fresno State (Oct. 25) - Roady's Truckstop Humanitarian Bowl vs. Georgia Tech - W, 40-28 Hawai'i (Nov. 1) - Allstate Sugar Bowl vs. Georgia - L, 41-10 Boise State (Nov. 8) - Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl vs. East Carolina - L, 41-38

USU is one of four WAC teams to play three non-conference games against a team that was in bowl game last year, joining Boise State, Fresno State and Hawai'i.

2008 OPPONENTS IN THE POLLS -- Utah State will face three teams ranked in the top 25, though the four different polls have different teams, with the two constants in all four major polls, USA Today, Sports Illustrated, ESPN and AP, with BYU and Oregon the constants, while Fresno State is ranked in both the USA Today and ESPN polls but not by Sports Illustrated and is among others receiving votes in the AP poll, while Hawai'i is only in the Sports Illustrated poll and is also among others receiving votes in the AP poll... Other USU opponents in the others receiving votes list include Utah and Boise State.

Utah State and Nevada are the only two WAC teams to play more than one Top 25 team in the AP poll, the "official" poll of college football... The Aggies tangle with No. 16 BYU (Oct. 3) and 21st-ranked Oregon (Sept. 6), while the Wolf Pack of Nevada plays sixth-ranked Missouri and No. 12 Texas Tech... Four other conference teams play one AP Top 25 team: Boise State (No. 21 Oregon), Fresno State (No. 13 Wisconsin), Hawai'i (No. 5 Florida) and Louisiana Tech (No. 14 Kansas).

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