No Utah State Football: Mountain West Cancels Falls Sports
Aug 10, 2020, 3:53 PM | Updated: Apr 26, 2021, 2:28 pm
Utah State Aggies running back Gerold Bright (1) keeps the run alive, avoiding Brigham Young Cougars defensive back Chris Wilcox (32) and breaking defensive back Austin Kafentzis' (24) tackle during the second half of an NCAA football game at Maverik Stadium in Logan on Saturday, Nov. 2, 2019. The Brigham Young Cougars took back the wagon wheel in a dominant 42-14 victory over the Utah State Aggies. (Colter Peterson, Deseret News)
(Colter Peterson, Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – The Mountain West Conference canceled fall sports including football.
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The conference canceled the season due to COVID-19 player health and safety concerns.
College Football insider Brett McMurphy, who broke the story, reported that the Mountain West will consider playing football in the spring.
More news: Mountain West cancels fall football season because of COVID player health & safety concerns, sources told @Stadium. League will consider playing in spring. MW & MAC are 1st two FBS leagues opting not to play, bringing total to 26 FBS programs https://t.co/LPi7iX4tzA
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) August 10, 2020
This means that Utah State’s season has been canceled or at least postponed. The Aggies were scheduled to open the season on October 2 at BYU.
The Mountain West joins the MAC as the two FBS conferences to cancel their fall sports, potentially moving the season to the spring.
The MWC has 12 teams in their league, including Air Force, Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, Hawai’i, Nevada, New Mexico, San Diego State, San Jose State, UNLV, Utah State and Wyoming.
Utah State Aggies Response
Utah State Athletic Director John Hartwell released the following statement about the decision to cancel fall sports.
Mountain West Postpones 2020 Football & Fall Sports
Release ➡️ https://t.co/eTmCChP4vh pic.twitter.com/XvDxkLKndf
— Utah State Athletics (@USUAthletics) August 10, 2020
Last season, Utah State finished with a 7-6 overall record and a 6-2 mark in conference play, ending the season in third place in the Mountain Division. Boise State won the Mountain West Conference Championship with a win over Hawai’i.
During the 2020 preseason, Boise State was picked to win the conference. Utah State was picked to finish fourth in the division.
