The 19th ranked BYU Cougars take on the Utah State Aggies on Thursday night at LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo, Utah. The Cougars, who are an independent, are 3-1 while the Aggies of the Mountain West Conference are 1-3. These state rivals play each other every year, with BYU winning 7 of the last 10, including 1 34-20 win last season at Utah State, where they covered as an 8.5 point favorite. The Cougars are favored by a massive 24 points in this one. can they cover the large spread?
It has been a tough year so far for the Aggies. They beat Connecticut in the opener 3-20, but UConn football is not anywhere near UConn basketball — in fact they are among the worst teams in the FBS. Then the Aggies proceeded to lose the next three, getting crushed by Alabama 55-0, trounced by Weber State 35-7 as a 7.5 point favorite, and losing t0 UNLV 34 -24 as a 3 point underdog. Utah State really wasn't even that close, as a late touchdown nd 2 point conversion made the final score respectable. Now if you look at the stats, the game seemed pretty close. Utah State outgained UNLV 421 to 320, they threw for 325 yards and had more first downs — holding a 22-21 edge.
https://t.co/K6PE3dJ8Pv If this continues the Pokes could very well get a shot at teeing off on Williams on October 22.
— MatthewQuigley (@MatthrewQuigley) September 23, 2 022
But here's the gaudy stat that jumps out at you — turnover. The Aggies had 6 turnovers — yes 6 — compared to 0 for UNLV. Quarterback Logan Bonner was the major culprit, throwing 4 interceptions. That stat line jumps out at you as he was 20-31 for 246 yards, 3 touchdowns and 4 picks. Levi Williams came on in the fourth quarter, and he also threw a pick, going 7 for 10 for 67 yards and 1 interception. The Aggies also had a gaudy 11 penalties for 93 yards. It is hard to win games when you are shooting yourself in the foot. Bonner also threw 3 picks against Weber State the previous game. It is not clear if he will start or if they will go with Williams. But either one will have their hands full with BYU.