Ten Aggies Earn All-Mountain West Football Honors
Dec 3, 2025, 11:07 AM | Updated: Dec 5, 2025, 2:12 pm
LOGAN, Utah – The Utah State Aggies football program had a strong showing on All-Mountain West teams after finishing the regular season 6-6.
Linebacker John Miller, cornerback Noah Avinger, and wide receiver Braden Pegan were named to the All-Mountain West First Team. QB Bryson Barnes and RB Miles Davis earned spots on the All-MW Second Team.
𝙁𝙤𝙤𝙩𝙗𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝘼𝙡𝙡-𝙈𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙒𝙚𝙨𝙩 🔥#MWFB pic.twitter.com/b37Zi5Xfpm
— Mountain West (@MountainWest) December 2, 2025
WR Brady Boyd, DT Gabriel Iniquez Jr., SAF Ike Larsen, SAF Brevin Hamblin, and LB Bronson Olevao Jr. received honorable mention recognition.
🏅All-Mountain West Honorable Mention honors! 🤘@Tokomico @IkeLarsen19 @bradyboyd_ @Brevin_Hamblin @BronsonOlevao #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/z8rRv5lAoz
— USU Football (@USUFootball) December 2, 2025
All-Mountain West First Team
ILB John Miller – Graduate Senior
Miller’s second season at Utah State ended with a team-high 109 tackles, 7.5 sacks, and 9.5 tackles for a loss in 12 starts.
The former Oregon State Beaver led Utah State and was third in the conference with six double-digit tackle games. Miller had a career-high 16 tackles against Air Force and contributed 11 tackles and two sacks in an overtime loss to UNLV.
🥇 All-Mountain West First Team LB honors for @jcm_42!#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/J1LtzCp3xm
— USU Football (@USUFootball) December 2, 2025
His 847 snaps were the most for any linebacker in the conference, and he finished with the fourth-highest Pro Football Focus grade in the conference for linebackers (81.4).
Miller is the first USU linebacker named to the All-MW first-team since MJ Tafisi Jr. in 2023. Seven total Aggies have earned the honor.
CB Noah Avinger – Senior
One of the players that followed Bronco Mendenhall from Albuquerque to Logan, Avinger’s 897 snaps were the most for any defensive back in the league. Pro Football Focus had him as the second-highest graded player in Mountain West secondaries.
🥇 All-Mountain West First Team DB honors for @NAvinger1!#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/hIJ0m6bxv9
— USU Football (@USUFootball) December 2, 2025
Avinger started all 12 games this season, making six starts each at safety and cornerback. He finished the regular season third on the team with 84 tackles, with his three double-digit stop games ranking second on the Aggie defense.
His three interceptions are a team-high, as are his ten pass breakups.
Avinger is the fourth Aggie DB to earn first-team all-conference honors and the first since teammate Ike Larsen in 2023.
WR Braden Pegan – Junior
The UCLA transfer proved he was ready for a significant offensive role, exploding onto the Mountain West playmakers scene in his first USU season.
Pegan started 11 of 12 games, finishing with 60 catches for 926 yards and five touchdowns, second most on the team. He had a career day against Air Force, tallying seven catches for a career-high 147 yards and career-best two touchdowns.
🥇 All-Mountain West First Team WR honors for @bradenpegan! #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/F6Vp9RQhIU
— USU Football (@USUFootball) December 2, 2025
His three 100-yard receiving games tied for the fourth-most in the Mountain West.
Pegan continues the recent odd-year tradition of one Utah State wideout earning All-MW first-team recognition. Jalen Royals (2023) and Deven Thompkins (2021) are the others.
All-Mountain West Second Team
QB Bryson Barnes – Graduate Senior
Barnes was the heart and soul of this year’s team, taking a beating and never backing down, instilling toughness across the roster. He is the second USU QB to earn MW second-team recognition (Jordan Love, 2018).
The Milford, Utah product put together one of the best individual seasons for a QB in program history, setting career-highs in every significant offensive category.
His 3,420 yards of total offense are the fifth-most for a single season in school history. He also became one of two players in program history to run for three touchdowns and throw for two more in the same game while earning MW Offensive Player of the Week after beating Air Force.
🥈 All-Mountain West Second Team QB honors for @bryson_barnes10!#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/CclrgzCYwY
— USU Football (@USUFootball) December 2, 2025
Barnes completed 202 of 335 passes (59 percent) for 2,687 yards, 18 touchdowns, and four interceptions. His four INTs are the fewest for an Aggie signal-caller since 2011.
The hard-nosed runner added 733 rushing yards and led the squad with nine TDs on the ground.
RB Miles Davis – Graduate Senior
Davis became the fourth Utah State RB to earn second-team All-MW honors, following in the footsteps of Rahsul Faison (2024), Calvin Tyler Jr. (2022), and Darwin Thompson (2018).
The BYU transfer started 10 of 12 games while leading the Aggies with 958 all-purpose yards and 11 touchdowns. Davis’ 724 rushing yards were second on the team behind Barnes.
🥈 All-Mountain West Second Team RB honors for Miles Davis!#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/2kWi6w04OW
— USU Football (@USUFootball) December 2, 2025
Davis showed good hands out of the backfield, catching 25 passes for 166 yards and three touchdowns.
He surpassed the 100-yard plateau three times, including a season-high 118 yards and one TD against McNeese.
Mountain West awards
- UNLV QB Anthony Colandrea – Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year
- SDSU CB Chris Johnson – Co-Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year
- New Mexico LB Jaxton Eck – Co-Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year
- Hawai’i K Kansei Matsuzawa – Mountain West Special Team Player of the Year
- Hawai’i QB Micah Alejandro – Mountain West Freshman of the Year
- Nex Mexico HC Jason Eck – Mountain West Coach of the Year
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Brian Preece is a sports.ksl.com insider covering Locals in MLB and the Salt Lake Bees. Follow Brian’s Bees and Beehive baseball here. Find Brian on X, Instagram, and BlueSky at @bpreece24.
