Despite losing three of their last four games, Utah State had high hopes to end the season on a good note, especially for senior quarterback Chuckie Keeton. However, that would not be the case in this game. The offensive struggles continued to plague the team, and it showed: the offense gave the ball away three times, and Akron scored 10 points off those turnovers en route to a 23-21 victory.
One of the few strong points points for the offense in this game was the rushing attack. Devante Mays had a solid game on the ground, rushing for 124 yards on 12 carries, but was unable to find the end zone. All of the touchdowns scored in this game were scored via the pass. Kent Myers accounted for two of those touchdowns while throwing for 123 yards on 14-of-20 passing.
One of the storylines in this game was this being Chuckie Keeton's final game at Utah State. After being plagued by injuries during his five-year career, today was the day to hopefully go out on a high note. Even though it wasn't the finish many were hoping for, he did manage to break some school records during the season, including today. He set the record of all-time yardage at USU to 8,792 yards. Earlier this season against BYU, he set the all time passing touchdown record with 61.
On the defensive side of the ball, it was somewhat of a mixed bag today. They did give up some big plays but also manged to keep the Akron offense under 300 yards of total offense, with exactly 100 of those yards on the ground. Utah State did manage to force a turnover in this game, but it would not be enough.
For Akron, this was just the second time in school history they have made a bowl game, and this was their first ever bowl win in history, ending their season at 8-5. For Utah State, this was their fifth straight trip to a bowl game, extending their streak. A win would have extended their bowl win streak to four in a row. For the Aggies, they end the season at 6-7, their first losing season since 2011.