In recent years, the Thanksgiving weekend brought an end to Kent State football. Thanks to a late season three-game winning streak, however, such is not the case this year. It's nearly Christmas, and the Flashes are still playing.
Kent State meets Utah State Friday as the two teams battle for . . .
KSU GOLDEN FLASHES (6-6, 5-3 MAC) vs. UTAH STATE AGGIES (7-5, 4-2 MWC)
Friday December 20, 2019
Toyota Stadium – Frisco, Texas
Here's more on the two teams, meeting for the first time since 1974
UTAH STATE AGGIES (7-5, 5-2 MWC)
>> Utah State finished the 2019 season with a 7-5 record, good for third place in the Mountain Division (behind Boise State and Air Force)
>> USU opened the season with a loss at Wake Forest before winning its next three games. The Aggies also suffered non-conference losses at intra state rival BYU, as well as against SEC Champion and College Football Playoff participant LSU. Their only conference losses were to the Broncos and Falcons.
>> Gary Andersen is in his second stint as head coach of the Aggies. He spent four seasons there from 2009-12. He then led Wisconsin and Oregon State, winning division titles at both schools. In 2018, he was assistant head coach a Utah before returning to Logan. In his career, Andersen is 32-9 at USU and 59-57 overall.
>> Utah State has averaged 28.2 points and 425.1 yards of total offense this season.
>> Senior QB Jordan Lane has completed 60.6 percent of his passes (263-of-434) for 3,085 yards with 17 touchdowns and 16 interceptions.
>> The running game is led by senior Gerald Bright, who rushed for 827 yards
>> The receivers are paced by graduate student Suerosi Mariner, who had 56 receptions for 874 yards and eight touchdowns
>> Utah State has allowed 22.9 points and 431 yards per game. The "D" was led by LB David Woodward with 93 total tackles.
>> This will be the 14th career bowl game for the Aggies. They have a 5-8 lifetime record, including a victory last year over North Texas in the New Mexico Bowl
>> In their history, the Aggies are 9-3 against current teams of the MAC (3-2 in bowl games)
>> Utah State is one of seven MWC teams heading to postseason play (Boise State, Air Force, San Diego State, Hawaii, Wyoming, Nevada the others)
KENT STATE GOLDEN FLASHES (6-6, 5-3) MAC
>> The Flashes finished the 2019 regular season with three consecutive victories, the last coming at Eastern Michigan on November 29. .KSU built a 24-14 halftime lead and then held on for the 34-26 victory.
>> The win was KSU’s sixth of the season and most since 2012 when it won the Eastern Division. The Flashes finished 5-1 at home, with the only loss coming to East Division champ Miami.
>> PK Matthew Trickett was named MAC Special Teams player of the year -- the first Flash player since Dri Archer in 2012 to win that award
>> Trickett was named to the All MAC-First team offense, with DB Jamal Parker making the second team. WR Isiah McKoy, P Derek Adams, and DL Theo Majette were selected to the third team
>> The Frisco Bowl is the fourth Bowl game in KSU football history (It's last was the 2012 Go Daddy Bowl in Mobile, Alabama, losing to Arkansas State). The Flashes also played in the 1961 Refrigerator Bowl in New York City and the 1972 Tangerine Bowl in Orlando, Florida -- an 0-3 lifetime bowl record
>> KSU is 2-2 lifetime against the current teams of the Mountain West Conference (1-1 v. Utah State and 1-1 against Air Force)
>> RB Xavier Williams scored on an eight-yard touchdown run against EMU his fifth touchdown in the last six games
>> QB Dustin Crum finished the season completing 68.3 percent of his passes (196-of-287) for 2,336 yards with18 touchdowns and only two interceptions (one each against Buffalo and Miami -- both at home)
FRISCO BOWL HISTORY: This is the third year of the Frisco Bowl., It is played at Toyota Stadium the home of FC Dallas of Major League Soccer…The game will be played on natural grass.
This is the second year the MAC has placed a team in the game last season Ohio shut out San Diego State 27-0 (the MAC’s only bowl win in 2018). The inaugural game in 2017 saw Louisiana Tech defeat SMU 51-10.