Utah State back Gerold Bright (1) rushes for a first-half touchdown against Wake Forest in an NCAA college football game in Winston-Salem, N.C., Friday, Aug. 30, 2019. (AP Photo/Nell Redmond)

While the Utah State Aggies are preparing for their eighth bowl game in nine seasons, the Kent State Golden Flashes are preparing for their first bowl appearance since 2012. Both teams appear to be excited for one last opportunity to play this season. Both teams had close finishes this season to become bowl eligible. Kent State had seven one-score games (games decided by 8 points or less) and went 4-3 in those contests, including 3-0 in their final three.

“When we came in, we knew that we had to instill a culture of a workman’s like attitude — being tough yet having fun and trusting in one another and being smart,” Kent State head coach Sean Lewis said Thursday at a joint press conference. “The kids have embodied that for the past two years. You get through some adversity there and we’re sitting there 3-6. The kids pulled tight and we believed in one another and we found a way.”

USU Head Coach Gary Andersen said, in a lot of ways, his Aggies faced a similar situation this year themselves.

“Kent State is obviously a team that battled like crazy to get to the point that they are right now. We did the same,” Andersen said. “So many close football games on both sides of these teams. We look at the year and the schedule and both of these football teams won games. You see tough football teams. They both play the game the right way.”

Besides the similarities in season record, these two teams are similar in yards per play. Utah State ranks 73rd nationally in yards per play (5.76) while Kent State ranks 75th (5.75). But the team defenses are widely different. Utah State has allowed 5.55 yards per play (ranking 60th nationally) while Kent State has allowed 6.31 yards per play (ranking 109th nationally). The Golden Flashes have particularly struggled stopping the run, allowing 249.3 rushing yards per game this season, which ranks 127th out of 130 schools.

But Coach Andersen was quick to point out that the numbers don’t tell the whole story.

“When you play the schedules that we play and the opponents that we play – these guys had Wisconsin, Auburn, Arizona State – things can get really skewed,” he explained. “I think what you need to do when you talk about those things is break down our conference and see how we did. That’s what I do. I dive into the convergence and when the playing field is leveled out a little bit, it gives you those opportunities to see how they’re playing about common opponents in their conference.

“So, I don’t see the holes that many people think they may see when they get into that situation. I don’t see it on either side in some of the stats that are out there on defense. So I think you have two defenses that play hard. It’s just a perfect example of when you look at the numbers and see who they’re playing, when they’re playing – when they played good rush defense and they had to put themselves in the position to be able to win the game.”

Friday will be Jordan Love’s last game in an Aggie uniform as the underclassman has declared his intentions to pursue a career in the NFL. The junior quarterback threw for 3,085 yards and 17 touchdowns, but also threw 16 interceptions on the year. Attention this week has been brought on Love and his teammates Gerold Bright and Sean Carter for an alleged incident in an apartment just days before the team left for Texas. The three football players were cited for possession of a controlled substance by Logan City Police, but Coach Andersen wasn’t happy with how the story came out.

“The first thing is, I think it’s important to know that everything you read and every article is absolutely, 100% accurate, ha ha. As we go through there, the school was forced, the attorneys were forced to make a statement on an article that had a bunch of holes in it and was not all the way truthful. Where it all sits and what it all comes down to in the end is that we’ll see. I’m excited to see how it comes out in the end because I know where I believe it will end. I just hope the people that make statements, whoever makes the statements – I’m not saying that about the guy who wrote the article, he got the information somehow. But obviously there was some inaccurate pieces to that article.”

The players were cited for class B misdemeanors, but were not formally arrested and taken to jail, as the original report appeared to indicate.

Love, Bright and Carter have been cleared to play and Andersen said there was never any doubt they wouldn’t play.

Besides being the last game for Jordan Love, it will be the last for the Aggie seniors. And Andersen said that should be a big enough reason to get the rest of his team motivated to win the game.

“The whole football team is playing for the seniors because it is their last opportunity. Whether it is their last day of fall camp or it’s their last rep of the first game they played in in the season, it’s their last time. I want as many as those opportunities to be valuable experiences and fun memories for those seniors as much as possible. The kids are playing for that and playing for Aggie Nation. That’s really where it stops and starts in my opinion.”

Friday’s game begins at 5:30 on ESPN 2. Full play-by-play will also be aired on KVNU 610 AM / 102.1 FM.

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