Utah State Aggie Football’s Top Plays From 2023 Season
Dec 23, 2023, 5:42 PM
Utah State junior wide receiver Jalen Royals rises above the defense to make a catch against the Fresno State Bulldogs at Maverik Stadium on Friday, October 13. (Photo courtesy of Wade Denniston and Utah State Athletics)
(Photo courtesy of Wade Denniston and Utah State Athletics)
LOGAN, Utah – Utah State Football exceeded expectations in 2023 and posted some great highlights along the way.
Here are the Aggies’ top plays of the season.
we answered and won https://t.co/jCquvTNZmz pic.twitter.com/3FGRlpYtPm
— USU Football (@USUFootball) November 25, 2023
USU was picked to finish eighth in the Mountain West preseason poll.
RELATED: Utah State Aggies Fall In Mountain West Preseason Poll
The Aggies were able to finish seventh with a record of 6-6.
Non-Conference Play
Utah State opened the season with a 24-14 loss to the No. 25 Iowa Hawkeyes. Safety Ike Larsen got his hands on a punt in the second quarter to give the Aggies better starting field position.
😤 @IkeLarsen19 gets a hand on Iowa’s punt for @USUFootball to give the Hawkeyes a 37 yard punt 👏 pic.twitter.com/AjtAMuFxhs
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 2, 2023
Utah State followed the loss with a dominant 50-point win over the Idaho State Bengals.
Naturally, when you put up 78 points, you’re going to have a lot of highlights.
The first one came less than 30 seconds into the game when running back Robert Briggs took a handoff 58 yards to the house.
.@robertbriggs55 HAD 6 ON HIS MIND THE WHOLE WAY‼️#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/0uD6oQKL88
— USU Football (@USUFootball) September 10, 2023
In the second quarter, Utah State had another long touchdown run. This time, Davon Booth took it in for the Aggies.
Booth broke multiple tackles on his way to the end zone to give USU a 21-7 lead.
6 got that DAWG in him
⚡️ @Vonn_6k #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/w9b3MlyHwk
— USU Football (@USUFootball) September 10, 2023
Rahsul Faison got in on the fun with a long touchdown of his own.
Faison put the Bengals’ defense in a spin cycle on the way to six more first-half points for the Aggies.
ALL DAY! One thing about @__sul3, he WILL find the end zone😤#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/XykV6yulhJ
— USU Football (@USUFootball) September 10, 2023
The highlights started on the opening drive and didn’t stop until the final minute.
Jaiden Francois intercepted the Idaho State QB and took it 75 yards for a pick-six.
“I’ll take that!” –@Jfrancois2_ probably#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/qIoclwEIjk
— USU Football (@USUFootball) September 10, 2023
In game four, the Aggies lost a heartbreaker after going down big in the first half.
Utah State ran a trick play to get on the board and stop the bleeding in the second quarter.
Kicker for the touchdown you LOVE to see it‼️
⚡️ @elliottnimrod #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/yQSQ2iQCHc
— USU Football (@USUFootball) September 24, 2023
The highlights didn’t stop there.
USU continued to chip away at the lead with big scoring plays.
Colby Bowman caught a deep ball from McCae Hillstead to make the score 31-14.
AGGIE TOUCHDOWN‼️@mccaehillstead ✈️ @C_bowman9 #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/VKUUT9lW34
— USU Football (@USUFootball) September 24, 2023
After two more scores made it a one-possession game, Utah State tied it up with another long passing TD.
This time it was Micah Davis on the receiving end.
Hillstead is DEALING🤯 76 yards for the TOUCHDOWN
⚡️ @mccaehillstead ✈️ @MicahDavis22_1 #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/vftzXSia7c
— USU Football (@USUFootball) September 24, 2023
Hillstead finished with 399 yards and four passing touchdowns against the Dukes.
The Aggies were put in a similar situation against UConn the following week.
An early deficit forced USU to take deep shots in hopes of a comeback.
.@mccaehillstead ✈️ @C_bowman9 for 6️⃣‼️#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/EOzGJMSxuu
— USU Football (@USUFootball) September 30, 2023
It worked in Utah State’s favor against the Huskies.
After tying the game at 17, QB Cooper Legas found Jalen Royals for a 71-yard catch-and-run touchdown.
Catch ball ➡️ RUN FAST!@cooperlegas ✈️ @RoyalsJalen for 7️⃣1️⃣ yards!
📺 @CBSSportsNet pic.twitter.com/wrRiwqH6PN
— USU Football (@USUFootball) September 30, 2023
Royals was determined to help the Aggies pick up their second win.
UConn tied the game at 24 with a touchdown of their own but Utah State didn’t let that stand for long.
JALEN ROYALS CAN’T BE STOPPED!@cooperlegas ✈️ @RoyalsJalen
📺 @CBSSportsNet pic.twitter.com/IO72incz4o
— USU Football (@USUFootball) September 30, 2023
Royals finished with seven receptions for 185 yards and three touchdowns.
With less than a minute left, Ike Larsen blocked an extra-point attempt to seal the game.
IKE LARSEN! THAT IS ALL!!
⚡️@IkeLarsen19 pic.twitter.com/gwI1xuxJwc
— USU Football (@USUFootball) September 30, 2023
Conference Play
In a 39-21 loss to Air Force, all three scores were passing touchdowns thrown by McCae Hillstead.
Hat Trick! @mccaehillstead ✈️ @MicahDavis22_1 for his 3rd touchdown of the night!
📺 @CBSSportsNet pic.twitter.com/zdxukL8zJF
— USU Football (@USUFootball) September 16, 2023
Utah State carried momentum from their win over UConn into its next game against Colorado State.
After going down 17-0, USU fought back to tie the game in the second quarter.
got ROYALty inside his DNA‼️
⚡️ @RoyalsJalen #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/BnAlVPfMcE
— USU Football (@USUFootball) October 8, 2023
It was the year of long passing touchdowns for Utah State.
Terrell Vaughn and Jalen Royals both caught a 50+ yard touchdown in the third quarter to put USU up 31-17.
Utah State comes out swinging in the 2nd half.
76 yards ‼️ @USUFootball
📺 KJZZ or https://t.co/7dxjTdDBti pic.twitter.com/u5wcptjvTo
— Mountain West (@MountainWest) October 8, 2023
Utah State put the nail in the coffin in the fourth quarter with a 48-yard touchdown run from Davon Booth.
The touchdown capped off a 44-7 scoring run for the Aggies.
For Stephen!
⚡️ @Vonn_6k #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/CXqKcYcI9n
— USU Football (@USUFootball) October 8, 2023
Against Fresno State, Jalen Royals continued his impressive season with 125 yards and two touchdowns.
Royals showed that even if you play great defense, he can rise over the top and come down with six.
Mossed? no you just got ROYALED
⚡️ @RoyalsJalen #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/a9tP7MOjXT
— USU Football (@USUFootball) October 14, 2023
Not only that, you have to go in for a secure tackle against the Utah State WR or he will break away and find the end zone.
Royals tied the game at 14 in the second quarter after fighting through a couple of Bulldog defenders.
COLD BLOODED AGGIE
⚡️ @RoyalsJalen #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/hX1iLk8Lae
— USU Football (@USUFootball) October 14, 2023
USU continued to fight in the second half but ultimately fell short and lost, 37-32.
Against SDSU in week nine, Legas found Royals in the third quarter to give Utah State their first lead of the game.
It’s that man @RoyalsJalen AGAIN!
Coop ✈️ Royals from 50 yards out!
📺 @FS1 pic.twitter.com/D6TZEeaVSM
— USU Football (@USUFootball) November 5, 2023
The game against the Aztecs went into double overtime where USU pulled out a 32-24 win.
Against Nevada, defensive tackle Seni Tuiaki intercepted QB AJ Bianco and rumbled in for the touchdown.
BIG MAN TOUCHDOWN!
⚡️ @Seni_2uiaki #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/ztnyqFymUH
— USU Football (@USUFootball) November 11, 2023
Two fourth-quarter Nevada touchdowns weren’t enough to complete the comeback as USU picked up its fifth win over the Wolf Pack.
The next week wasn’t pretty for Utah State.
The Aggies got on the board first against Boise State but ultimately ended up losing, 45-10.
ROYALty in the end zone‼️@cooperlegas ✈️ @RoyalsJalen
📺 @CBSSportsNet pic.twitter.com/X5xaUq7D15
— USU Football (@USUFootball) November 19, 2023
Utah State closed out the regular season with a double-overtime win over the New Mexico Lobos.
Jalen Royals caught two touchdowns in the first quarter to put USU up 14-7.
The Royal Connection x 2!
Williams ✈️ @RoyalsJalen for 6️⃣‼️
📺 @CBSSportsNet pic.twitter.com/ujOBvMyJuV
— USU Football (@USUFootball) November 24, 2023
In overtime, QB Levi Williams ran in back-to-back touchdowns to pick up the 44-41 win.
LIKE WE SAID 1️⃣6️⃣ GOT US!
📺 @CBSSportsNet pic.twitter.com/SeHl2ap1ji
— USU Football (@USUFootball) November 25, 2023
After going 6-6, Utah State became bowl eligible.
They drew the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl where they met the Georgia State Panthers.
Although the Aggies fell to the Panthers in a blowout, there were some notable highlights in the game.
1 FOR THE RECORD BOOKS🔥‼️
⚡️ @RoyalsJalen #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/g8oFLtD1Es
— USU Football (@USUFootball) December 23, 2023
Jalen Royals set the Utah State single-season receiving touchdown record with a TD in the first quarter.
Utah State had another record broken against Georgia State when Davon Booth took a handoff 65 yards to the end zone.
.@Vonn_6k HAD A TD ON HIS MIND THE WHOLE WAY‼️#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/4Rh5xUWZDZ
— USU Football (@USUFootball) December 23, 2023
The score was the longest rushing score in a bowl game in program history.
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Chandler Holt is a co-host for the Jazz Notes podcast and a Digital Sports Producer for sports.ksl.com, specializing in all things basketball and football. Follow Chandler on Twitter @ChandlerHoltKSL or on Threads @chandlerho1t.
