Bronco Mendenhall Has High Expectations For His Players, Utah State Football Is No Exception
Aug 26, 2025, 11:38 AM | Updated: 12:21 pm
Utah State football head coach Bronco Mendenhall discusses the Aggies' season-opener on KSL Sports Zone. (Kristin Murphy, Deseret News)
(Kristin Murphy, Deseret News)
LOGAN, Utah – Utah State football head coach Bronco Mendenhall believes in the philosophy that doing hard things shapes character and instills discipline. Those are two traits his teams at BYU, Virginia, New Mexico, and now Utah State have always had.
The first-year Utah State head coach joined DJ & PK on KSL Sports Zone to discuss the Aggies’ upcoming season and how the group is coming together.
“I had no idea when I started at BYU,” Mendenhall chuckled while remembering his first head job in Provo. “I think the team kind of won in spite of me for a while.”
RELATED: How To Watch, Stream, Listen To Utah State Football Vs. UTEP Miners
After 11 seasons in Cougar blue, Mendenhall left BYU for Virginia before the 2016 season, taking on a similar rebuilding project to the one he started in Provo.
“The challenge to go to Virginia was just life-changing,” the Alpine, Utah, native said. “The program has struggled. Then to be captivated by the growth in, not only individuals, but the team.”
Mendenhall doesn’t shy away from acknowledging the long rebuild ahead of him at Utah State.
“I love, and I’m drawn to really hard things,” he began. “The transformational process, in terms of the secret or approach, I don’t claim to be the only one, or that I’m doing it perfectly. But the expectations really drive everything. There’s been really cool research that people crave and aspire to whatever labels and expectations the leader gives them.”
Mendenhall continued, “They really want to reach those, and so the worst thing any of us can do with our families or organizations… is to not ask enough. To not think we’re capable enough. To stop short. It’s uncomfortable because it requires stretching and growing, reaching. The cultural part of self-belief and organizational belief really transcends and is foundational before you even start executing whatever your plan is.”
Bronco Mendenhall holds Aggies accountable with Larsen suspension
15 days before the season-opener against UTEP, Mendenhall made news after it was announced that Utah State defensive leader and Cache Valley native Ike Larsen had been suspended.
Originally announced as a six-week suspension, the length of Larsen’s suspension is to be determined. Mendenhall stresses that the length and reason behind it pale in comparison to the accountability that his program requires.
“Accountability is necessary for growth,” the former BYU head coach said. “There’s been plenty of players through my time at both BYU and Virginia, that the accountability part ended up being the reason they ended up accelerating not only their career, but their lives.”
RELATED: Utah State DB Ike Larsen Suspended For Violation Of Team Rules
Mendenhall continued, “It’s a principle that I believe in, and it’s painful sometimes for everyone, but necessary.”
If the initially reported six-week time frame holds, Larsen will miss Utah State’s first five games. He would be eligible to return when USU travels to face Hawai’i on Saturday, October 11.
Following Utah State Football With KSL Sports Zone
Utah State kicks off the 2025 season on Merlin Olsen Field at Maverik Stadium on Saturday, August 30. Kickoff against the UTEP Miners is at 5:30 p.m. MT.
Listen to USU football games on KSL Sports Zone with Scott Garrard 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.
