Utah State Becomes Bowl Eligible With Win Over Hawaii
Oct 30, 2021, 4:48 PM | Updated: 5:01 pm
(Courtesy of Utah State Athletics)
(Courtesy of Utah State Athletics)
SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah State Aggies beat the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors to capture their sixth win of the 2021 season and become bowl eligible.
The Aggies hosted the Rainbow Warriors at Maverik Stadium on Saturday, October 30.
USU defeated Hawaii, 51-31.
The victory gave Utah State its sixth victory of the Blake Anderson era and made the Aggies bowl eligible for the first time since 2019.
KEEP ON ROLLIN'
3️⃣-in-a-roWWW#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/Ta9pcMwS1q
— USU Football (@USUFootball) October 30, 2021
Utah State has reached bowl eligibility in nine of the last 11 seasons.
The Aggies took control of the contest early in the first quarter when Elelyon Noa scored the game’s first points on a three-yard run.
If there's one thing about @ElelyonNoa, he will find the end zone😤#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/Fou7dW9rbl
— USU Football (@USUFootball) October 30, 2021
USU extends its lead to 14-0 when Logan Bonner found Justin McGriff for 45 yards and six points with 3:11 remaining in the opening quarter.
A dime from @LoganBaneBonner 👊, AGGIE TOUCHDOWN🔵🤘#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/A4B0ntGY8f
— USU Football (@USUFootball) October 30, 2021
Early in the second quarter, Aggie kicker Connor Coles made it 17-0 USU with a 40-yard field goal.
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The Rainbow Warriors got on the scoreboard with a field goal with under nine minutes left in the first half.
Six minutes later, a Hawaii touchdown cut USU’s lead to one possession, 17-10.
Coles drilled his second field goal late in the second quarter and the Aggies took a 20-10 lead into the locker room at the halftime break.
Utah State broke the game open with three unanswered touchdown passes from Bonner during the first 11 minutes of the second half.
Go off then, @bowling_brandon for 6! ⚡️#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/LE6C8bYzCw
— USU Football (@USUFootball) October 30, 2021
After the Aggies went up 41-10, the Rainbow Warriors responded with a pair of touchdowns during the final two and half minutes of the third quarter.
USU extended its lead to 44-25 with another Coles field goal early in the fourth quarter.
Eugene Ford scored Hawaii’s final points of the game on a fumble return for a touchdown with 8:20 left to play.
USU’s Brandon Bowling recovered the ensuing onside kick by Hawaii and returned the ball for an Aggie touchdown.
Utah State receiver Brandon Bowling returns an onside kick for a touchdown against Hawaii.
The Aggies lead 51-31 in the 4th quarter. #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/ZaC9RGNiaB
— Jeremiah Jensen (@JJSportsBeat) October 30, 2021
The play put Utah State up for a final score of 51-31.
It was USU’s third consecutive victory in conference action.
With the win, the Aggies improved to a 6-2 record this season, including 4-1 in Mountain West Conference games.
Utah State’s next game is on the road against New Mexico State on Saturday, October 6. The game will be broadcast on The Zone Sports Network.
