Utah State Football Takeaways In Win Over Air Force
Sep 17, 2025, 1:03 AM | Updated: 1:18 pm
Utah State Power Four transfer wide receivers Braden PEgan and Brady Boyd celebrate a big play against Air Force on Saturday, September 13. (Photo courtesy Utah State football)
(Photo courtesy Utah State football)
LOGAN, Utah – Some folks laughed when Utah State QB Bryson Barnes described the Aggie offense as ‘explosive’ early in fall camp.
Who could blame them?
After two years of massive personnel change, including the third head coach in as many seasons, it was nearly impossible to expect anything more than marginal improvement on a 4-8 finish in 2024.
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These three guys BALLED OUT last night! 💪#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/ZDUBUlBFsY
— USU Football (@USUFootball) September 14, 2025
Three weeks into the season, and Barnes is appearing more prophetic each game.
The Aggies have averaged 33 points per game after posting a 49-30 win over Air Force to open Mountain West Conference play.
“There are a lot of things that go into touchdowns to begin with,” Barnes said after running for a career-high three touchdowns and five total scores. “There are so many moving parts, everybody has to be executing, and everyone has to be on the same page. I feel like it all came to fruition on my run plays down in the low red zone.”
He continued, “On two of them, I was untouched, so I really feel like that’s a lot of dudes working together, executing, and doing their job. I’m lucky to be carrying the ball there– it just happened to be me in that moment. When 11 guys are executing at the right moment, good things happen.”
Barnes is not a one-man band in offensive coordinator Kevin McGiven’s scheme.
HOUSE CALL 📞 @_JavenJacobs pic.twitter.com/ZSPuM2EGww
— USU Football (@USUFootball) September 14, 2025
BYU transfer Miles Davis is averaging 6.2 yards per carry on 31 attempts and has nine catches for 70 yards. His three touchdowns are tied with WR Braden Pegan for the team lead.
New Mexico transfer Javen Jacobs has 123 rushing yards and a touchdown on 21 carries. He broke a 52-yard run for his first TD as an Aggie on Saturday night against Air Force and has proven to be an asset in the passing game. He has hauled in seven balls for 55 yards.
Add QB-turned-wide receiver and running back Anthony Garcia’s gadget ability, and USU has the makings of appointment television scoring potential.
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Pegan, Boyd give Utah State potent wideout duo
Pegan, a UCLA transfer, and Brady Boyd, a first-year Aggie after transferring from Texas Tech, are quickly becoming a formidable wide receiver duo with Bryson Barnes calling the shots.
Boyd is a 6’1, 195-pound Texas native who spent three seasons (2022-24) with the Red Raiders. He made three starts and played in 26 games, seeing inconsistent playing time for a middling program.
Pegan (6’3″, 210 lbs) had even less opportunity in his three years with UCLA, appearing in 13 games and making one start. He finished his Bruin career with one catch for seven yards.
“Going all the way back to the offseason… I’m talking the winter,” Bronco Mendenhall said when asked about the wide receiver production. “We were impressed with the work ethic and ability. Spring practice verified that—summer training for sure, fall camp, also. Two of the transfers at that position are currently hurt, which is Demich Starling and Corey Thompson (Jr.). I don’t think it’s a surprise to us, even though most people didn’t know much about it.”
RELATED: UCLA Transfer Becoming Focal Point Of Utah State Football Passing Game
Have a day BP! Braden Pegan with ANOTHA ONE for 6⃣!
📺 @FS1 pic.twitter.com/gZX8n696K7
— USU Football (@USUFootball) September 14, 2025
After opening the year with three catches for 31 yards in a win over UTEP, Boyd returned to his home state with a career outing. He set new career-highs with six catches for 87 yards in a loss to No. 19 Texas A&M.
Pegan exploded for career-highs in catches, yards, and touchdowns against Air Force. It marked the only time in his collegiate career that Pegan scored in back-to-back games.
He is tied for the tenth-most touchdowns in the nation.
Peep the Braden x Brady celly at the end 👀
📺 @FS1 pic.twitter.com/Lf3hkZmxbX
— USU Football (@USUFootball) September 14, 2025
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The tandem sits on top of a wide receiver room that is entirely new to Logan.
“It’s not an easy thing,” Pegan said of building the WR room from scratch. “We’re all different guys from different colleges. We’ve just got a lot of great guys surrounding us.”
Aggie defense showing big play ability
A week after giving up 44 points to Texas A&M, the Aggies’ defense posted a far better showing against Air Force.
“We prepared so hard this week for this game,” sophomore linebacker William Holmes said after the win. “Probably the most that we’ve prepared in the first three games. It was just fun to be out there with my guys and be able to make plays out there.”
The preparation was evident, as Holmes recorded 13 tackles, trailing only John Miller’s 16 stops. Miller added his fourth sack of the season.
The duo has combined for 52 tackles, five QB hurries, and a fumble recovery. Miller enters week four second in the Mountain West with 33 tackles and leads the league in sacks.
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GIMME DAT 🏈!
Another look at that fumble recovery from Will Holmes to start the game!
📺 @FS1 pic.twitter.com/UJDHz74fzh
— USU Football (@USUFootball) September 14, 2025
USU forced three turnovers, including a back-breaking D’Angelo Mays fourth-quarter INT that zapped the Falcons’ hopes of a comeback.
“Last week’s game was tough,” Holmes said. “We were all kind of down after it, but we turned it around. Coach Mendenhall is great with switching the narrative and switching the mindset for the team. Like I said, we practiced hard this week, and we were very prepared out there today.”
Following Utah State football with KSL Sports Zone
Utah State welcomes the non-conference McNeese Cowboys onto Merlin Olsen Field at Maverik Stadium on Saturday, September 20. Kickoff is at 6 p.m. MT.
Listen to USU football games on KSL Sports Zone with Scott Garrard and former Aggie QB Kevin White on the call.
Find KSL Sports coverage of Utah State University Athletics here.
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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.
