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Tag: Utah State Aggies

  • Utah State QB leaving school early to pursue Navy SEAL dream

    Utah State QB leaving school early to pursue Navy SEAL dream

    From an outside perspective, Utah State’s dramatic, double-overtime, bowl-clinching 44-41 win over New Mexico on Friday may have looked like the beginning of quarterback Levi Williams’ comeback story.

    The third-string QB broke out with 351 all-purpose yards and five total touchdowns in his first start since 2021, and he still has one year of college eligibility left.

    But the dynamic performance that punched the Aggies’ ticket to bowl season is more like a fairytale ending to the closing chapter of his football book because Williams intends to forgo his final year of college eligibility to pursue a dream of becoming a Navy SEAL. Williams will complete his Master of Business Administration from USU’s business school in December.

    “It’s always been in my heart my entire life. My mom was Army. My grandparents were Army and Navy,” he said. “People in the military are always what I want to emulate because they’re some of the best people, best teams on the planet.”

    The 22-year-old came to the decision about two years ago when a Navy chaplain spoke at a Fellowship of Christian Athletes meeting Williams attended. Williams was deciding between the Navy and the Army Special Forces when the chaplain connected him with a former SEAL who he now trains alongside and looks to as a mentor.


    Depending on the bowl, Williams says he plans to play one more game for Utah State. (Photo: Sam Wasson / Getty Images)

    It’s an unconventional path for an athlete who was rated a three-star prospect coming out of high school and still has the skills to find success on the football field, but Utah State coach Blake Anderson says it’s a clear fit for Williams.

    “The guy is just unique in every sense. I think his true sense of selflessness and fight for the guy next to him is something that’s tangible and real. You can see it,” Anderson said. “His capacity for work and to do tough things and to fight through things that are hard, difficult and painful is just something that, in our society today, is hard to see. I think he’ll do an amazing job. I can’t imagine having anybody better suited for what he’s wanting to do. I’m super proud of the path he’s chosen.” 

    Before Friday, Williams was buried on the depth chart and almost exclusively playing on special teams. A transfer from Wyoming, Williams became the first QB to rush for 200 yards and four touchdowns in a bowl while leading the Cowboys to a win in the 2021 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. But with Utah State, he entered the season backing up Cooper Legas and McCae Hillstead.

    When both QBs went down due to injury, Williams stepped in, and the Aggies adjusted their offense to better suit his big arm strength and ability to make plays with his feet. Though Anderson said Williams previously struggled with consistency in practices this season, he approached the starting role with calm confidence. Even a car accident the Tuesday before the game couldn’t shake his nerves. Another driver pulled out in front of Williams on the highway and he totaled his car, he said, but he walked away without a scratch and took it as an omen.

    “I was telling my head coach, ‘You know what? I think this is a sign God really wants me to play in this game, because if not, it could’ve been a lot worse,’” he said. 

    Williams carried that swagger into the game and shared it with his teammates.

    “When New Mexico decided to kick a field goal in the second overtime, I looked at everybody on the sidelines and said, ‘All right, we’re gonna go win this game. That was a big mistake on their part.’”

    He went on to seal the victory with a 13-yard touchdown run on a play that began with a dropped snap.

    Depending on the bowl game the Aggies get, Williams says he plans to play. The Athletic predicts Utah State will face Georgia State in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl on Dec. 23, which may mean Williams could come full circle to the site of his previous record-breaking performance. Either way, he’ll be content with however his college career ends.

    “I feel like I’m playing with house money at this point,” he said. “So I’m just having as much fun as I can and being the best teammate that I can.”

    Required reading

    (Photo: Sam Wasson / Getty)

    The New York Times

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  • New Mexico State holds off Bowling Green in Quick Lane Bowl

    New Mexico State holds off Bowling Green in Quick Lane Bowl

    DETROIT — Diego Pavia threw for 167 yards and two touchdowns, and New Mexico State held off a late rally by Bowling Green to win the Quick Lane Bowl 24-19 on Monday.

    The Aggies (7-6) were up 24-7 late in the third quarter, but the Falcons closed the gap in the fourth quarter to make it 24-19 after a field goal, a safety off of a blocked punt and Camden Orth’s 19-yard touchdown pass to Tyrone Broden with 6:27 left.

    From there, New Mexico State kept control of the ball for the rest of the game.

    New Mexico State coach Jerry Kill, who earned his first victory in six bowl appearances, gave much of the credit for the win to Pavia, who completed 17 of 19 passes, rushed for 65 yards and made three key third-down conversions on the last drive.

    “Diego drives me crazy sometimes, but when it comes down to winning, he finds a way to win,” Kill said. “The last couple of runs he made toward the end were flat unbelievable. He just threw his body out there.”

    Pavia said the team didn’t panic after Bowling Green scored its final touchdown.

    “Really, it was just do your job,” he said. “Whenever anything broke down, it was make a play. So when it comes down to those things I want the ball in my hands. I feel we were successful tonight on it.”

    Pavia added that the team was excited to be able to get Kill his first bowl win as a head coach.

    “Coach Kill, he’s a winner,” Pavia said. “So for him to have his first one tonight is just crazy. Just because he’s born winning. He doesn’t like to lose.”

    Bowling Green (6-7) lost starting quarterback Matt McDonald early in the first quarter when he was hit late by Aggies safety Dylan Early while going out of bounds on a third-down run. He was replaced by Orth, who twice led the Falcons into field-goal range in the first half but Mason Lawler missed both tries.

    “I thought Cam went in there and that’s not easy,” Falcons coach Scott Loeffler said. “The whole game plan was built around Matt and I thought he did a great job and particularly in the second half adapting and adjusting.

    “No one knows how hard it is to be the backup quarterback. And when you get thrown into the mix like that, we had to adapt and adjust, and we did to give him a chance in the second half.”

    The Aggies scored first to make it 7-0 on Pavia’s 15-yard scoring pass to Star Thomas on their first possession of the game. The junior quarterback later added a 2-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter to Eric Marsh.

    THE TAKEAWAY

    New Mexico State: It’s only the second time in the last 20 seasons that New Mexico State has won at least seven games, the first being 2017 when the Aggies beat Utah State in the Arizona Bowl.

    Bowling Green: The Falcons’ defense struggled throughout the season and it carried over into the game. Bowling Green was unable to slow the Aggies’ offense, especially Pavia’s ability to extend plays with his passing and running.

    UP NEXT

    New Mexico State: After five seasons as an independent, the Aggies join Conference USA. New Mexico State will aim to go to a bowl in back-to-back years for the first time since 1959-60. Their first game next season is Aug. 26, hosting Massachusetts.

    Bowling Green: Will be at Liberty on Sept. 2 to start the season. The Falcons will have to replace two key starters in McDonald and defensive end Karl Brooks. McDonald started 29 of Bowling Green’s 30 games since he transferred from Boston College in 2019. Brooks was one of the nation’s leading defensive linemen with 10 sacks and 18 tackles for losses.

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