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LOGAN — Utah State safety Ike Larsen is quickly gaining respect for his talent, both locally and across the country.
He was one of just four players from the Mountain West (and one of 35 total players in the country) named to the Jim Thorpe Award preseason watchlist ahead of the 2023 season, and was included in the preseason All-Mountain West defensive team.
"It's awesome. Like, it's a blessing," Larsen said. "But, I mean, at the end of the day, I haven't done anything this upcoming season. I've still got to go out there and prove it."
Last year, in Larsen's second year at Utah State, he started in four of the 11 games he got on the field, and recorded 33 tackles and four interceptions. Larsen also set a single-season school record with three blocked punts and was named to the All-Mountain West second team for his performance that season.
"The guy just has a nose for the ball," Utah State head coach Blake Anderson said. "He's one of those guys that's rare, in my opinion, that doesn't understand the gravity of the situation. He is just oblivious to it. He just loves ball and is calm in those situations, and that's what allowed him to play at such a high level early in his career."
The redshirt sophomore, who graduated from Sky View High and was born in Smithfield, Utah, has become something of a Cache Valley hero. Near the end of his junior season at Sky View, Larsen committed to Utah State, his favorite team growing up. He felt like he needed to stay near his family and play for his hometown team.
He redshirted his first season at Utah State amid family health concerns. And though his situation looked bleak amid immense adversity, Larsen told himself that "faith is key."
His faith means a lot to him.
"I'm LDS, I'm Mormon, I go to church, I believe in God, you know, Jesus Christ, so really, faith is key," Larsen said. "That's my main mentality."
His family has been an added strength when the tough days strike, and he often asks himself: "Who do I do this for?" His motivation lies primarily in helping his family, specifically his parents, brother and sister in-law. He hopes one day to be able to provide financial support to his parents.
With a few years of collegiate experience under his belt, Larsen is ready to make an impact this fall for the Aggies.
He entered fall camp as one of the leaders of the team amid only a few returning starters for the Aggies, and hopes to foster a team brotherhood that's strong enough to ensure the memories the team makes off the field will be more important than the memories they make on the field.
Larsen's increased platform with his team and has given him the opportunity to give back to his community and shine as a hometown star. Even the local Taco Time in Logan has his picture on their menu, advertising the "Ike Larsen combo."
"It feels awesome," Larsen said. "Just knowing I have all the support in the community. … I love giving back, I love meeting people, I love talking to people."
Outside of his time on the football field, Larsen visits local schools and talks to the kids there as one of his favorite hobbies. He said he wants to tell his stories and hopes others can learn from them. In addition to giving back to the community, Larsen loves to create music and can be found on all platforms under the name "IKELARSEN."
Though Larsen has been able to be the hometown hero for Utah State, he hopes there's more he can accomplish on the field to live up to the preseason expectations that others have placed upon him.
