Nevada drops two in a row after 41-24 loss to Utah State

After an uncompetitive loss to Hawaii last week, Nevada was ready to flip the script quickly. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen against Utah State this week, leading to another uncompetitive loss.

As the Aggies continued their push for a bowl game, the Wolf Pack dropped to 2-8. They’re only two losses away from matching their 2022 record of 2-10. The confidence level in Ken Wilson continues to drop, and there isn’t much light on this Nevada program.

Scoring Summary

1st Quarter

11:03- Broc Lane 4-yard TD pass from Cooper Legas (Elliot Nimrod PAT)

Nevada 0 - Utah State 7

2:50- Cameron Zeidler 21-yard TD pass from AJ Bianco (Brandon Talton PAT)

Nevada 7 - Utah State 7

2nd Quarter

11:10- Elliot Nimrod 21-yard FG

Nevada 7 - Utah State 10

7:56- Seni Tuiaki interception return (Nimrod PAT)

Nevada 7 - Utah State 17

2:16- Brandon Talton 38-yard FG

Nevada 10 - Utah State 17

0:48- Micah Davis 47-yard TD pass from Cooper Legas (Nimrod PAT)

Nevada 10 - Utah State 24

3rd Quarter

10:25- Elliot Nimrod 37-yard FG

Nevada 10 - Utah State 27

1:42- Rashul Faison 2-yard TD run (Nimrod PAT)

Nevada 10 - Utah State 34

4th Quarter

7:21- Sean Dollars 5-yard TD run (Dollars 2pt pass from AJ Bianco)

Nevada 18 - Utah State 34

5:27- Terrell Vaughn 25-yard pass from Cooper Legas (Nimrod PAT)

Nevada 18 - Utah State 41

3:29- Dalevon Campbell 3-yard pass from AJ Bianco (failed 2pt rush)

Nevada 24 - Utah State 41

Final: Nevada 24, Utah State 41

Offense

The story for Nevada all season has been its weak offense. Wilson switched things against Utah State, starting QB AJ Bianco over Brendon Lewis.

Bianco finished the game going 13-25 with 235 yards, two touchdowns, and two turnovers. One of those included a pick-six in the second quarter. It was nice to see the passing game improve a bit, but the turnovers became costly for Nevada.

Lewis still made some appearances, providing runs on draws and read options. He went 1-3 with three passing yards and 17 rushing yards.

Running back Sean Dollars continued to carry, rushing for 82 yards and a touchdown. The offensive line did a great job in this one, allowing three players to rush over 20 yards.

Defense

The secondary for Nevada continued to show flashes of elite play. Defenders Emany Johnson and Bishop Turner both picked up interceptions in the game. Johnson had a pick-six before it was called back on a holding call.

Utah State QB Cooper Legas was held to 182 passing yards. The secondary was nowhere near perfect, but at least one portion of Nevada football has shown consistent promise.

The run game for the Aggies was dominant. Nevada allowed 292 total rushing yards in the game, led by Aggies’ running back Rahsul Faison, who rushed for 181 yards.

What’s Next

For the second-to-last game of the season, Nevada will travel to Fort Collins. Old friend Jay Norvell and the Colorado Rams will host Nevada this Saturday at noon.