Utah State's five players to watch vs. Tennessee
Tennessee fans shouldn’t take their team’s matchup against Utah State this Sunday lightly. The Aggies were 9-5 (7-1) during their first season in the Mountain West Conference and made an appearance in the MVC championship game, falling 24-17 to Fresno State.
Here are five players Tennessee fans should pay close attention to in Sunday’s matchup:
Chuckie Keeton, QB
Chuckie Keeton is a dark horse candidate for just about every award given to college football quarterbacks this season. Keeton was named to both the Davey O’Brien and Mawell Award Watch list, as well as the Heisman Trophy Watch List for Bleacher Report and CBSSports.com. Coming off a season-ending injury against BYU on Oct. 4, Keeton enters his senior campaign ranked first all-time in school history in career completion percentage (.665), second in touchdown passes (56) and completions (517), third in total offense (7,114 yards), sixth in passing yards (5,961), seventh in passing attempts (777) and 22nd in career rushing yards (1,153). When healthy, Keeton is one of the most dynamic dual-threat quarterback in the nation and could provide a serious threat to a young Tennessee defense.
Joe Hill, RB
Like Keeton, Joe Hill is a key offensive player returning from a season-ending injury. Hill started five games before suffering a knee injury against San Jose State on Sept. 27. Entering the 2014 season, Hill has 566 career yards and nine rushing touchdowns on 103 carries, averaging 5.5 yards per carry. He also provides a pass-catching threat out of the backfield with 303 career yards and three touchdowns on 25 receptions. Matching up against an inexperienced Tennessee defensive line could provide a strong advantage for Hill.
B.J. Larsen, DE
B.J. Larsen started in 13 games for Utah State last season, earning second-team all-Mountain West honors. Totaling 8.0 tackles for loss and 4.0 sacks, the senior is one of the biggest threats on Utah State’s defensive line. As described by Utah State’s official website: “Larsen is a physical, aggressive player with great size…Possesses speed and is the most athletic defensive lineman on the team…Also possesses great technique and footwork and is very knowledgeable about the game of football.” The last part should come as no surprise as Larsen represented the All-Academic WAC team twice before making the All-Academic Mountain West team last season.
Zach Vigil, LB
Along with Larsen, Zach Vigil will provide senior leadership to the Aggies’ defense. Vigil started in 27-of-31 career games for Utah State and has 233 career tackles, 23.0 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks. Vigil is just as capable pressuring the quarterback as he is dropping back into pass coverage and is said to have an equally impressive work ethic. Vigil enters 2014 with several preseason honors, including a nominations to the Rotary Lombardi Award Watch List, Athlon Sports First-Team All-Mountain West and Phil Steele‘s First-Team All-Mountain West.
Kyler Fackrell, LB
Playing alongside Vigil is junior Kyler Fackrell. Fackrell has enjoyed an equally impressive career with Utah State and enters 2014 with even greater expectations. The 6-5, 245 pound linebacker has been named to the Bedarik, Bronko Nagurski, Butkus and Rotary Lombari Award preseason watch lists. The combination of Vigil and Fackrell should be a serious force against a Tennessee offense with several questions.