After another come-from-behind, although not that impressive win over UNLV last week, the Aggies improved to 4-2 overall on the season, 2-1 in Mountain West play. They need just two more wins to secure bowl eligibility, but a win against Colorado State will be tough to come by.
A USU rewind
Three straight wins over Washington State, North Dakota, and Air Force meant the Aggies started the season 3-0 for the first time since 1978. The win over Washington State was also the first road win over a Power 5 conference program in 50 years (Kansas State in 1971).
Since then though, losses to Boise State and BYU and a come-from-behind win over UNLV put the Aggies record at 4-2.
What does Colorado State look like?
Beginning the season with losses to FCS South Dakota State and SEC bottom-feeder Vanderbilt, it seemed like the Rams could be in for a long season.
Since then, however, they’ve won three out of four, losing only to then No. 5 Iowa by 10 points. Even more important is their 2-0 Mountain West record, which puts them in the driver’s seat for the Mountain Division title.
At 3-3 overall, CSU could be heading for a bowl game as well if they win half of their remaining games.
What the Aggies need to do to win
Improved special teams play
This was mentioned already for last week’s game preview, and they still won the game even after a poor special teams performance.
The lone highlight was Savon Scarver tying the NCAA record for kickoff return touchdowns (7) in the first quarter.
SAVON SCARVER!
The Vegas kid just tied the NCAA record for kickoff return touchdowns in a career with 7️⃣‼️#AggiesAllTheWay | @SavonScarver pic.twitter.com/OfwklsaXaa
— USU Football (@USUFootball) October 16, 2021
Other than that, three missed field goals – including a blocked attempt – meant the Aggies couldn’t capitalize on scoring chances and couldn’t take UNLV out of the game.
Utah State needs to capitalize on its chances to score, even if it’s three points instead of six. Senior kicker Connor Coles has converted just 8-of-13 on field goals this season, with two being blocked.
Points are important, and the Aggies can’t keep missing chances for them on special teams.
Improved red zone offense
Simply put, the Aggies are awful in the red zone.
They rank 122nd in the nation in red-zone efficiency. Through six games, Utah State has 22 red zone attempts, converting on just 15 of them (10 touchdowns, 5 field goals). That’s a 68.2 percent conversion rate. It’s not good enough to beat Colorado State, which ranks tied for 34th in the nation in red-zone efficiency, converting at an 88.9 percent clip.
So, not only do the Aggies need to improve the scoring offense, they need to stop the Rams in the red zone on defense.
Prediction
After how USU played last week following a bye and while CSU is seemingly hitting its stride, I predict the Rams to come out on top and stay undefeated in conference play.
Colorado State 34, Utah State 24
The Aggies and Rams kick off at 7:30 p.m. MT on Friday night. The game can be seen on CBS Sports Network.
