Utah State vs. Tennessee Tech: Live Stream, Schedule, Radio, More The Aggies are looking for win No. 2 Contact/Follow @JeremyMauss & @MWCwire Utah State is coming off of a big win topping New Mexico State while putting up 60 points which included six field goals. The Aggies are facing Tennessee Tech, a bad FCS team to boot, and this is a game where Utah State can fine-tune a few things. The running game has been an issue for years and while the team ran well last week against New Mexico State as Gerold Bright who had 134 yards and Darwin Thompson contributed with 96 yards. Even though this matchup should be a breeze for Utah State it would be nice for that group to have another great day running the ball. Not kicking as many field goals is another good start. Now, converting 40-plus yard attempts is one thing but the Aggies need to convert anything closer with touchdowns. Utah State should be able to get its backups in this game after the half and build up the depth which will be very much needed once conference play begins. The one big concern that head coach Matt Wells has is that this game is played on a short week. Kickoff: Thursday, 6 p.m. MT, Maverik Stadium Stream: Facebook Radio: 1280 AM, 97.5 FM Records: Utah State 1-1, Tennessee Tech 0-2 Series: First meeting between the schools<doc-sep>Surging Utah State will try to keep its early-season momentum rolling on Thursday at 8 p.m. ET against FCS opponent Tennessee Tech. The Aggies are 44.5-point sportsbook favorites, with the over-under for total points scored set at 63.5. Before you make any Utah State vs. Tennessee Tech picks, listen to what SportsLine expert Kenny White has to say. The pioneering Las Vegas oddsmaker is widely considered one of the most influential figures in the Nevada sports wagering industry over the past several decades. He is the former head of Las Vegas Sports Consultants, which supplied odds to countless sportsbooks that made millions off his expertise. White is a two-time winner of the prestigious Stardust Football Invitational and the originator of Player Power Ratings. He arrived at SportsLine armed with new algorithms, ready to exploit mistakes in betting lines. He has been leading SportsLine members to consistent profits in every sport since. Last year, White was all over Utah State as a two-point home underdog vs. BYU. The result: the Aggies coasted to a 40-24 victory, and those who followed White's advice landed an easy winner. Now, he has scoured all the key details of Tennessee State vs. Utah State and released a confident point-spread selection, which he is sharing over at SportsLine. White knows the Aggies (1-1) have gained attention for their strong early performances. They impressed a national audience in their season opener at Michigan State. They played well from the outset and held a fourth-quarter lead before falling 38-31 as a 24-point underdog. Last week, Utah State dominated New Mexico State in a 60-13 win to cover a 21.5-point spread easily. The Aggies took a resounding measure of revenge for a 26-20 loss to New Mexico State in last season's Arizona Bowl. Utah State has looked explosive and varied on offense, led by rising sophomore quarterback Jordan Love and a balanced ground attack. Gerold Bright ran for 132 yards and a touchdown to lead a rushing attack that piled up 274 yards against New Mexico State. Love threw for 159 yards with one touchdown and an interception. This doesn't mean Utah State can cover a spread that's over six touchdowns on short rest against a hungry FCS opponent. The Golden Eagles (0-2) have dropped their first two games by a combined score of 83-20. They are coming off a 49-10 home loss to FCS stalwart Kennesaw State, but they have some positives to build on. They took an early 3-0 lead with a field goal on their first drive of the game and the offense had success moving the ball. Tennessee Tech finished on a high note when freshman quarterback Bailey Fisher threw a five-yard touchdown pass to Alex Carling in the fourth quarter. Fisher went 19-of-30 for 179 yards, while adding 38 rushing yards on eight carries. We can tell you White leans toward the Over, but he has unearthed the critical factor that will determine which side of the spread hits hard. He's only sharing it at SportsLine. Who covers Tennessee Tech-Utah State? And what critical factor decides the spread? Visit SportsLine now to see which side you need to jump on Thursday, all from a renown Las Vegas oddsmaker who has been a consistent winner in every sport.<doc-sep>College football's Week 1 almost didn't make it to Saturday without an upset. After falling behind early, No. 11 Michigan State battled back and forth with Utah State until it finally secured a 38-31 win. It definitely wasn't pretty, and Michigan State comes out of the game looking much worse than its preseason ranking would have otherwise suggested. Remember, too, that this was more than a three-touchdown spread coming into the night. Week 1 games don't always have grand meaning. In this case, Michigan State hoped to get out of Week 1 as anonymously as possible. Instead, there are major lessons learned -- not all of them good. 1. Michigan State's blocking is troublesome: Something that looks like it will be a season-long concern for the Spartans is blocking. All of it. Running the ball was a chore but the protection that quarterback Brian Lewerke received -- or lack thereof -- should be something to worry about. Granted, not every missed assignment is always an offensive lineman's fault. Running backs have assignments and quarterbacks can stand in the pocket for too long without feeling pressure. But in this case, Utah State, hat on hat, got a lot of wins in the pressure department. Credit to them, and it showed up in a few ways. The running game couldn't punch it in from outside the goal line on two key drives that resulted in field goals. Lewerke was throwing high on multiple passes and threw a pick-six in the third quarter. This is Utah State -- not Penn State, not Ohio State, not Michigan, all of whom Sparty has yet to face. 2. So is its pass defense: Utah State scored on its first offensive drive, marching 75 yards in two minutes. That's not a huge deal for Michigan State, as opening drives can sometimes be a wake-up call. But then the Aggies drove the length of the field again in the first half to go up 14-13. They did so again in the second half. And it's not like Utah State had a balanced offense; it had a whopping 1 yard per carry on 25 attempts. Quarterback Jordan Love is going to be a ton of fun to watch this season, but Michigan State needs to figure out some answers for its pass defense. 3. Wide receiver Felton Davis III is a dude: If there's one bright spot from Friday's game for Michigan State, it's Davis. The big senior had a nice evening with three grabs for 69 yards and a score. When the Spartans needed a play, he delivered on more than one occasion. He's a big-bodied guy who can box out and fight through defenders to win those tough-to-catch balls. 4. The officiating was ___: You can fill in with your favorite, probably NSFW response, but it was definitely frustrating to say the least. An odd shovel pass-looking play by Lewerke was ruled a fumble and not reviewed. While certainly an ill-advised play by Lewerke, it was a bad look for the refs. There was also a Michigan State catch that was called back with not a ton of evidence and a Utah State touchdown that could have been ruled down. This isn't to say anyone was robbed -- there are a ton of judgement calls that go into a football game, all of which influence the outcome in some way -- but if nothing else, the officiating on Friday was choppy and inconsistent. For everyone's sake, it deserves to be better. 5. This is, sadly, a familiar tale for the Aggies: Utah State has made a career out of coming up just short against heavy favorites. Most famously, the Aggies gave Auburn, the defending national champs, everything it could handle in 2011. One year later, they blew a second-half lead against Wisconsin and missed a go-ahead field goal in the final seconds. The year after that, the Aggies lost to Utah and USC by four and three points, respectively. And now this. In all, Utah State is 5-56 against ranked opponents and 2-45 on the road. There's just something about the Aggies that pulls at the collective heartstrings of anyone not facing them in these big games. They've come so close, so often, and have routinely come up short. The silver lining is they'll still walk away with a $1.4 million check for playing the game. But laughing all the way to the bank is so much easier when a "W" accompanies you.<doc-sep>Utah State’s potential coming into focus after slamming NMSU Aggie Bowl pt. II really not much of a contest Contact/Follow @Logantj & @MWCwire What a refreshing sight. You can argue whether Utah State actually played a sharper game against ranked Michigan State last week, but there’s no sense in casting anything but a positive light on the Aggies’ throttling of New Mexico State Saturday night. The expectation was for this game to be out of reach by halftime, and despite a brief 7-6 NMSU lead early there was little doubt this would go down as a Utah State win. A dominant effort from both the defense and special teams gave the USU offense time to roll out of bed and still arrive to Maverik Stadium in time to punt the Red Aggies into the sun. Dominik Eberle, who might actually be the best kicker in the country, nailed two early field goals to begin his historic night. New Mexico State responded with a methodical touchdown drive with QB Matt Romero looking mobile in the pocket and accurate downfield as receivers took advantage of chunks of open yardage along both sidelines. Romero’s lone TD pass of the night was a well-placed ball, earning NMSU a lead for exactly as many seconds as it took Savon Scarver to run back the ensuing kickoff for a 100-yard return touchdown. Utah State never looked back — Eberle booted another pair of field goals, Eltoro Allen and Jalen Greene each scored touchdowns, and the score sat at 33-10 by halftime. That’s about when USU began flexing for the home crowd, scoring five times in the second half from 51+ yards out. Wait, what? No, that’s seriously what it says right here in the box score. Eberle was money two more times from 51 yards out, Deante Fortenberry housed a 75-yard pick-six, Gerold Bright took a handoff 51 yards for a score and Darwin Thompson did the same five minutes later for a 68-yard run straight up the middle. It ended in a predictable 60-13 beatdown over an inferior opponent. It wasn’t without its flaws. It was still pretty awesome. Even just two weeks into the season, the outlook for this Aggie squad is starting to clear up. Here are five things we know: Dominik Eberle is next-level Ever wonder what a kicker revenge game looked like? Me neither, but here we are talking NCAA all-time records after Eberle’s monster Saturday. Eberle tallied six total field goals of 44, 32, 51, 21, 51 and 51 yards, adding a perfect 6/6 mark on point after tries and 12 kickoffs for 754 yards (62.8 yards per kick) and nine touchbacks. His 24 points scored ties an NCAA record for points in a game by a kicker. Outside of one bad game that happened to be high-profile enough to draw attention, Eberle has been as sharp a kicker as USU could ever ask for. The Aggie secondary is deep Senior safety Aaron Wade stepped into a starting role and recorded his first career pass breakup. Then he snagged two interceptions, recorded ten tackles and delivered the best post-game presser since Jalen Davis — “I thought the defense played great today — well, amazing in my perspective. That’s it.” Indeed it did, Mr. Wade. Utah State has now forced seven turnovers (four interceptions, three fumbles) through two weeks of football to rank second in the nation behind only Fresno State (8). The Aggies also lead the Mountain West with four sacks per game, which ranks eighth in the nation. Also, Tipa Galeai hates quarterbacks Galeai’s 1.75 sacks per game ranks second in the country. That’s all. Jordan Love has room to grow Love completed 14-of-27 passes for 159 yards and a touchdown. The sophomore also tossed an interception and took two sacks. None of these statistics are particularly concerning since the Aggie ground game/special teams/defense all mashed NMSU to bits anyway. However, Love appeared less methodical than his outing at Michigan State — and conference play as fast approaching. The offense’s 3rd down conversion rate dipped to 6-16 against a NMSU defense missing guys to injuries and one ejection. While Love didn’t miss hardly any wide open targets, he also floated some key passes long and missed a few early opportunities to punch in touchdowns. Now is the time to be having these problems, and even Thursday against Tennessee Tech probably won’t be impacted by a relatively quiet night from the QB. Next week is a different story, and as the season ramps up to MW play, Love will need to be a premier player in the Aggie offense if USU wants to contend for a conference title. I haven’t quite nailed a final score yet Weekly accountability is important, and last week’s preview marked some decent predictions mixed with a final score that wasn’t quite right. “Jordan Love will throw for two touchdowns (one each to Raymond and Tarver) and run in a third. Darwin Thompson will rush for 110 yards and a TD. Dominik Eberle will do his thing. Tipa will record another sack. Aggies all the way. USU 100, NMSU 0” Jordan Love threw just one TD pass (to Jalen Greene). Darwin Thompson rushed for 96 yards and a touchdown. Dominik Eberle did in fact do his thing (a lot), Tipa did get his sack and Utah State did dominate. On to Tennessee Tech. Air Force Football, Boise State Football, Colorado State Football, Fresno State Football, Hawaii Football, Nevada Football, New Mexico Football, Nevada Football, San Diego State Football, San Jose State Football, UNLV Football, Utah State Football, Wyoming Football<doc-sep>
How to watch: Utah State vs. TN Tech TENNESSEE TECH (0-2) vs. UTAH STATE (1-1) Thursday, Sept. 13, 2018 • 6:00 p.m. (MT) • Logan, Utah • Maverik Stadium (25,100) GAME 3 INFORMATION STREAMING: Facebook (Stadium) • Internet: Facebook.com/StadiumCollegeFootball RADIO: AGGIE SPORTS NETWORK • Play-by-Play: Scott Garrard • Analyst: Kevin White • Online: 1280thezone.com / Tunein.com SOCIAL MEDIA: #AGGIESALLTHEWAY • Live Stats: UtahState.Statbroadcast.com AGGIE RADIO NETWORK • Every Utah State football game can be heard live on the Aggie Radio Network. Scott Garrard serves as the play-by-play announcer, while former USU quarterback Kevin White (1988-89) will provide color analysis. Games can also be heard on the Internet (www.UtahStateAggies.com) by clicking on the ‘Listen Live’ link, as well as on the TuneIn App. Utah State’s FCS opponent probably needs a miracle Contact/Follow @Logantj & @MWCwire A look at Tennessee Tech What, you don’t know about the Golden Eagles? I can’t imagine why. The Eagles are an FCS team averaging 10 pts per game against teams like Kennesaw State and Chattanooga. That doesn’t mean they can’t play football — ask Michigan State fans how they felt after a plucky mid-major program almost spoiled their entire season before it really began. Yeah, Utah State should pants Tennessee Tech Thursday night, but the game still needs to be played — and USU isn’t without its flaws. That said, everything will have to go right for the Eagles to even be in this game by halftime. Freshman QB Bailey Fisher threw for 179 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT against Kennesaw State last week, failing to so much as sniff the red zone until garbage time. Top running back Andrew Goldsmith took 12 carries for a respectable 86 yards, and the defense is in the process of retooling under new head coach Dewayne Allen, but this is still a squad that hasn’t improved much since going 1-10 last year. Tennessee Tech players are people too, but it will likely take an act of divine providence for the Eagles to avoid a Thursday night beatdown of the highest degree. A look at Utah State It’s time USU’s Ron’quavion Tarver took a break from getting punched in the facemask to hook up with QB Jordan Love for some explosive plays over the top. Through two games, the Aggie defense and special teams have shown out. The ground game keeps defenses off-balance with Darwin Thompson’s thunder and Gerold Bright’s lightning. Eberle and DJ Nelson have been straight money as a kicker-holder duo. The only thing that’s missing? An aerial attack that takes advantage of Utah State’s hungry receiving corps. Love currently ranks fifth in the conference with 478 total passing yards, and just eighth in passing yards per attempt (6.7). Game script and basic human decency had the Aggies running out most of the second half against New Mexico State, but the Eagles’ secondary marks another opportunity for Love to find a rhythm before conference play begins next week against Air Force. That said, there’s certainly nothing wrong with continuing to feed Bright and Thompson, who rank no. 9 and no. 11 in conference rushing totals and nos. 2 and 3 in yards per carry (8.3 and 7.8, respectively). Utah State’s OL deserves major credit for opening holes for the Aggie backfield last week, as well as providing decent pass pro for Love. At this moment, C Quin Ficklin might be the most underappreciated player on the roster (though that’s hard to say, since it’s impossible to fully appreciate the DJ Nelson experience). Defensively, look out. Tipa Galeai and the rest of the Aggie pass rush is strong. There are weaknesses in the run defense and inconsistencies in the secondary that may not be fully exposed until conference play, but the experience on the 2-deep roster shows. Utah State’s defense has more forced turnovers (7) than touchdowns allowed (5) all year. Prediction More of the same from the Aggies, as the ground game continually finds the endzone and the defense scores its third touchdown of the year. Let’s give Dominik Eberle three field goals while we’re at it. USU 51, TN Tech 10