LOGAN, Utah (ABC4 Sports) – It was an historic day on offense for Utah State in the Aggies home opener.
Robert Briggs Jr. rushed for a career-high 101 yards and one touchdown to help lead Utah State to a dominating 78-28 home-opening victory over Idaho State in front of 20,034 fans Saturday night on Merlin Olsen Field at Maverik Stadium.
The Aggies (1-1) racked up 591 yards of total offense, including 380 on the ground – the 19th-most in school history. Rahsul Faison nearly eclipsed the century mark as he had 95 yards rushing and one touchdown, while fellow junior running back Davon Booth ran for 83 yards and two scores.
This was Utah State’s sixth-consecutive victory over Idaho State (0-2), which finished with 424 total yards – 323 through the air and just 101 on the ground.
The 78 points scored by the Aggies are the fourth-most in school history and the most since 1919, when they defeated these same Bengals by a whopping 136-0.
Utah State quarterback Cooper Legas was 14-of-16 for 125 yards and two touchdowns. Two other signal callers got into the game for the Aggies as junior Levi Williams was 5-of-7 passing for 68 yards and two TDs, while freshman McCae Hillstead made his Aggie debut, completing 3-of-5 passes for 18 yards.
Terrell Vaughn was the quarterbacks’ favorite target. The senior wide receiver caught 11 passes for 73 yards and a career-high-tying two touchdowns. He is the first Aggie since Kevin Curtis in 2001 to have double-digit receptions in back-to-back games.
In Utah State’s season opener at then-No. 25 Iowa on Sept. 2, Vaughn hauled in a career-best 12 receptions for 93 yards and one touchdown.
While the Aggie offense found the end zone nine times on the night, the defense also got into the scoring act on two occasions. Ike Larsen intercepted a pass by Idaho State’s Jordan Cooke and returned it 47 yards for a touchdown to give USU a 34-7 lead with 5:44 remaining in the second quarter. It was the fifth interception of the sophomore safety’s career.
Jaiden Francois capped the game’s scoring with a pick-six of his own, returning it 75 yards for a touchdown with 54 seconds remaining in the fourth. The pass by Idaho State’s Matthew Cavallero was broken up by sophomore safety Devin Dye and hauled in by Francois.
Both teams scored on their respective opening drives. Utah State needed just two plays to find the end zone as Briggs scored on a career-long 58-yard run just 27 seconds into the contest. The Bengals tied it at 7-all when Cooke found Christian Fredrickson from nine yards.
The score remained the same as the two teams headed to the second quarter, where the Aggies broke things open by scoring an eye-popping 44 points – the most in any quarter in school history – including 20 points in a 71-second span.
Utah State went into halftime leading 51-14. The 51 points scored by the Aggies during the first 30 minutes of play proved to be a school record.
Anthony Switzer recorded both a game- and career-high 10 tackles on the night, while senior punter Stephen Kotsanlee had a career-long 69-yard punt.
Other Aggies to find the end zone on the night included senior running back Cooper Jones (1-yd run), and junior wide receivers Micah Davis (47-yard catch) and Jalen Royals (20-yard catch). Elliott Nimrod added a 37-yard field goal for USU.
Utah State next hits the road for its Mountain West opener, traveling to the Centennial State for a showdown against Air Force on Friday, Sept. 15, at 6 p.m., at Falcon Stadium.
