Cooper Legas Leads Utah State To LA Bowl Win Over Oregon State
Dec 18, 2021, 9:06 PM
Cooper Legas #5 of the Utah State Aggies throws the ball as Jaydon Grant #3 of the Oregon State Beavers defends in the third quarter of the Jimmy Kimmel LA BOWL Presented by Stifel at SoFi Stadium on December 18, 2021 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
(Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY – Quarterback Cooper Legas led the Utah State Aggies to a 24-13 win over Oregon State in the inaugural Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl at SoFi Stadium.
It’s the fourth bowl win for Utah State in the last seven appearances since joining the Mountain West Conference in 2013.
Cooper Legas entered the game in the second quarter, completing 11 of his 20 pass attempts for 171 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Calvin Tyler Jr. finished with 120 yards rushing and one TD, along with six receptions for 115 yards and a touchdown from star wide receiver Deven Thompkins.
The Utah State Aggies are 2021 @LABowlGame Champions! 🏆
FINAL@USUFootball 24@BeaverFootball 13
The Aggies finish the season with an 11-3 record.#AggiesAllTheWay #JimmyKimmelLABowl #USUvsOSU pic.twitter.com/fYBn0L0TeO
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) December 19, 2021
Legas Comes In And Helps Utah State To Halftime Lead
It only took Oregon State three plays to go 71 yards for a touchdown that only took 52 seconds off the clock. Jesiah Irish’s 20-yard TD run gave the Beavers a 7-0 lead with 14:02 remaining in the first quarter.
Utah State was forced to punt on their first possession of the game. Oregon State did the same on their second drive. When the Aggies got the ball back, Bonner tried to find Deven Thompkins in the end zone but Akili Arnold made a great play by getting an interception.
Oregon State couldn’t capitalize as they turned the ball over on downs. Late in the first quarter, Bonner went out with an injury. Cooper Legas started the second quarter drive for Utah State and found Deven Thompkins for a 62-yard touchdown. That was the first career pass in college for Legas. The game was tied at seven with 14:42 until halftime.
Four minutes later, Oregon State went up by three after they made a 37-yard field goal with 8:40 remaining in the first half. Late in the second quarter, Calvin Tyler Jr. ran in a 15-yard touchdown against his former team to give the Aggies their first lead of the game, 14-10 with 4:24 left until the break.
Utah State Holds On In Second Half To Win LA Bowl
The Aggies started the second half with the ball. USU nailed a 25-yard field goal on their first drive to give them a 17-10 lead. They were able to get the ball back and get down field with some trick plays but the drive resulted in a 5-yard touchdown pass from Legas to Brandon Bowling. That put USU up 24-10 with 3:49 left in the third quarter.
Oregon State was able to get a field goal early in the fourth. Utah State held on to the win after their defense got some big stops. Nick Heninger had three of their four sacks, along with five tackles for loss.
Utah State finished their season with an 11-3 record, along with a Mountain West Championship and an LA Bowl title.
