Aggie fans, this is why USU was not able to attempt a final comeback possession on Saturday against the Wolf Pack. The official decided that somebody was offsides on the onside kick recovery. The official was so sure that a USU player was past the 30 yard line when the ball was kicked that he was willing to change the outcome of the game on the call. Decide for yourself, the above picture shows the exact moment the kicker's foot contacts the ball.

Arguably the best quarterback in the WAC, Colin Kaepernick, came to Logan and was outplayed by Diondre Borel. Kaepernick completed 42 percent of his passes (10/25) compared to 60 percent for Borel 25/42). Borel had 353 yards of passing while Kaepernick only managed 189. Both QBs had 3 touchdowns and a single turnover.

A Pack fan in Reno told me that they did not watch the game, but they heard that USU managed to keep it close until the last few minutes. Let me assure you, this is not the case. The Aggies led, and dominated, most of the game. The Pack managed to mount a comeback late in the game, which the Aggies almost recovered from. The crucial play of the game might not have been the onside kick call even. On a 4th and 1, Kaepernick let the play clock run to Zero seconds. The clock stared Kaepernick down with the giant ZERO for a full two seconds before the ball was snapped. Miraculously, not one official managed to notice the clock had expired, despite the entire stadium and Aggie coaching staff yelling at them that there should be a delay of game penalty. The Pack converted and eventually scored a touchdown. I am not blaming either of these two officiating mistakes. For the sake of honesty, let's just call them what they are. Fiascos. I am not blaming either of these two officiating Fiascos for the outcome of the game. I am, however, wondering why so many football games are decided by refs, not players. The players and coaches spend all week preparing. Why don't they get the chance to win or lose the game? Why isn't offsides on an onside kick reviewed? Why isn't the expiration of a play clock before a snap reviewed? If we are going to have the technology to take care of these problems and the coaches are obviously upset by what they notice, why can't the officials take the time to check? This would be a much better solution than having the refs nod their heads, smile, and wave at the coaches. Yes, this is how the officials at the game decided to handle the situation when Gary Andersen was yelling DELAY OF GAME across 40 yards of turf.

The Aggies played really well. In fact, I think they played above their skill level. The Wolf Pack played below their potential, but about even with where they have played all year. The Aggies won the game, but the refs and the Wolf Pack will be boarding the planes with the victory.

Last week predicted a ton of penalty yards for USU, but not enough to match the reality. Still, NCAA 10 came closer to predicting the real score than the point spread did.

EA SPORTS- 1 POINTSPREAD- 1

Nevada Wolf Pack @ Utah State Aggies

NCAA 10 game ratings

USU offense C- UNR defense D+

USU defense D UNR offense B-

USU overall D+ UNR overall C-

Last Week:
The Aggies lost in an ugly, ugly excuse for a game. This may have been the norm two years ago but is now unacceptable. Despite outgaining NMSU by 199 yards, USU managed to lose by a last second field goal against the worst team in the WAC.

Nevada: The Good, The Bad, and The

Ugly

The Good:
Welcome home, Aggies. After two straight road games, Utah State has two straight home games. The offense continues to click, and by the offense I of course mean Robert Turbin. Turbin pumped out 184 rushing yards against NMSU last week. The Nevada defense is average against the run, coming in at 51st out of 120 teams.

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Some things never change. Utah State has found a way to hit a new type of low. Instead of being dominated in every aspect of the game, instead of turning the ball over, instead of failing to complete passes, instead of failing to run the ball effectively, the Aggies have a new approach to losing.

The USU Aggies outgained New Mexico State by 199 yards. Yes, almost twice as many as NMSU had total. Robert Turbin ran for 184 by himself. Borel completed 60 percent of his passes. NMSU quarterbacks completed just over 30 percent. Utah State had 28 more rushing yards than NMSU had rushing AND passing COMBINED. Yet, they still found a way to blow the game.

How does USU lose when dominating the entire game so completely? Penalties. 12 penalties for 128 yards vs. 4 for 35 yards for NMSU. At least 4 USU penalties negated plays of 40 yards or more. I am not blaming reffing, although some calls were questionable or seemed like the rulebook had been rewritten on the spot. I am blaming the coaching. Yes. The coaching. USU had a lack of discipline that had not been seen for years. Personal foul flags flew like suicidal canaries dive bombing the field.

And the play calling? USU had 3 3rd downs in a row where Borel ran a quarterback draw. For those who don't know, Borel weighs about 105 pounds and is 5 foot 2. He does not have the weight to push through the middle of the defensive line. No, not even for a yard. Play action? Speed option? Turbin in the wildcat? No.

How could USU lose this game? Gary Andersen called it the worst loss he had ever had to deal with in his ENTIRE LIFE. USU outplayed NMSU. They 100 percent dominated and controlled the game. Why did they lose?

Because they are the same Aggies with the same results...

but they can change our minds next Saturday, when the Nevada Wolfpack comes to Logan.

Today is the day we find out where the Utah version of the Aggies stand in relation to the bottom of the WAC. If USU wants to establish itself as a competitor in the middle or upper WAC, they need to win and win convincingly.

For students, the HURD is hosting a viewing party for free in the fieldhouse at 6 PM. The game is on a 40 foot screen. Yes, 40 feet. Not inches. Feet. It is big. Really big.

USU hockey at home vs. Metro State tonight at 7. If you don't watch the football game, you better be at that.

When I used NCAA 10 on Xbox 360 to predict a real-life football game, I was more curious than anything. The stats suggest readers were curious too- the article had more views than any other on the website up to that point. Here is installment number 2 of EA Sports Vs the point spread.

Last week's prediction was a little excessive on Turbin's total yards, though his yards per rushing attempt were pretty close to accurate. The prediction of a 7 point win by BYU seemed a little too close to be realistic, and the game Friday night agreed.

EA SPORTS- 0 POINTSPREAD- 1

Utah State Aggies @ NMSU Aggies

NCAA 10 game ratings

USU offense C- NMSU defense D+

USU defense D NMSU offense C

USU overall D+ NMSU overall D+

Last Week:

Yes, I did predict the exact score of the game within 1 point last week. Thanks for noticing.

Utah State recovered a fumble on BYU's first possession and took the lead 7-0, the only lead they would have the rest of the game. After failing to run the ball effectively, Borel was forced to pass, which never ends well when your quarterback is under six feet tall. BYU went on to win the 1,945th straight game against USU despite a valid, if not statistically inept, attempt by the Aggies.

Utah State's offense is now ranked 17th in the country, making the Aggies one of 5 WAC teams in the top 20 (Fresno St. 7th, Nevada 12th, Hawaii 15th, USU 17th, Boise St. 20th).

The Aggies won the turnover battle.
They converted 42% of their third down tries.
They allowed BYU to have the ball only 2 minutes and 30 seconds longer than they had it.

Yet, they still lost.

After opening up about as well as could be expected and turning a BYU fumble into a touchdown, USU's offense stalled. Turbin was held under 100 yards for the first time this season. Borel could not escape BYU's D-line. While USU was able to keep it close enough to win until the 4th quarter, they just could not find the firepower to catch up.

Two plays can be pinpointed as turning points. The first was a fumble on a bad pitch with under a minute to go in the first half. BYU recovered, threw a deep pass to Pitta, then eventually ran it in. This resulted in BYU taking a 21-7 lead into the locker room. If the Aggies held onto the ball, they would have trailed only by 7 and had the ball after the half, at worst.