Aggies find success in run-heavy scheme against Huskies

LOGAN — If you ask any Utah State offensive coach, they will tell you the team prides itself on being a balanced team — both running and throwing the football.

Thanks to quarterback Logan Bonner and last year's dynamic receiving corps, that message may have gotten lost in translation. So in the first game of the 2022 season, the Aggies made sure to remind everyone what they meant by balance.

And then some.

During Utah State's 31-21 win over Connecticut at Maverik Stadium on Saturday afternoon, the Aggies ran the ball, passed it a few times, and then ran the ball some more. In total, the offense ran the ball 54 times, as opposed to its 31 passing plays.

Fortunately for Utah State, it worked. Or, at least it worked enough to get the win over the lowly Huskies.

The Aggies totaled 261 rushing yards (just short of Bonner's 281 passing yards) and controlled 65% of the team's possession. That control of the game drained the clock rapidly and made what should have been a panic-inducing fourth quarter situation — when UConn trailed by 4 points — just more of an uncomfortable one.

"We want to establish the run well; we want to be able to run the ball — it opens up everything else," Utah State head coach Blake Anderson said. "It opens up the RPO game, opens up the throw game, but we also want to take what we were given. And the way they were playing, it encouraged us to commit to the run game."

The run game contributed 36 yards to the Aggies' insurance touchdown drive to extend the lead to 31-20 with six minutes left to play. It was utilized again by Calvin Tyler Jr. after Ike Larson's interception with just under five minutes left to play to run out the game clock.

"It opened things up as we moved on to be able to run the ball when you have to," Anderson said. "That's huge, so that is a step in the right direction. That's only going to get more difficult, obviously, with some of the fronts we're gonna play. But there's a lot that we can build off of."

On his 33 carries, which was more than Bonner's 29 passing attempts, Tyler Jr. averaged 4.9 yards and compiled a career-high 161 rushing yards. He set the tone early when the passing game wasn't working initially and had runs for 12 yards and 22 yards in the first quarter. Tyler hardly went down on first contact, and — along with the Aggies' O-line — helped wear out UConn's defensive front as the game progressed.

"Never thought that (would happen), honestly," Tyler said about surpassing Bonner total attempts. "It felt good knowing coach trusted me. So being able to tote the rock today felt great. Logan's amazing man, he doesn't need that many passes to throw touchdowns."

True freshman Robert Briggs, who played in his first game before he even attended his first college class, added to Tyler's record day with 85 yards on 10 carries. Briggs made his way into the end zone on a 23-yard touchdown to even the score 14-14 in the second quarter.

Standing at 5-foot-6, Briggs was patient behind the offensive line and waited for the play to develop before he burst into open seams where he could boast his speed. With more experienced running backs John Gentry and Jordan Wilmore not dressing Saturday, Briggs' performance lifted the group and likely keeps him ahead of the two on the depth chart.

"​​We needed him desperately; he showed up big today," Anderson said. "I think he takes a load off (Tyler). And at our tempo, you can't play every snap — it's gonna take two or three (backs). So that's another little piece that we honestly didn't have, that little burst, that change of pace that is going to be very, very helpful."

"It is exciting to see Briggs," cornerback Ajani Carter said. "You see him coming out into the backfield, getting up the field and getting a touchdown in his first game as a freshman? That's awesome."

The one concern with the group on Saturday, however, was ball security. Pailate Makakona, who rushed for 11 yards on three carries, fumbled a ball near the red zone in the first quarter, which killed a promising drive. In the third quarter, Tyler caught a ball out of the flat and lost it while getting hit.

But beyond the turnovers, it was a productive day for the backs, even if it was against an inferior opponent. Tyler was as advertised, Briggs surprised, and as the Huskies' front line wore out, so did the clock.

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