Inglewood, Calif. • All month long, Utah State has talked about being disrespected and treated as underdogs — even after winning the Mountain West championship and earning a trip to the inaugural Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl.
Perhaps after a 24-13 win over Oregon State in the first-ever college football game at SoFi Stadium on Saturday, the Aggies capped off a surprising turnaround season by earning some respect.
Led by backup quarterback Cooper Legas — who entered the game in the second quarter after an apparent injury to starter Logan Bonner — Utah State finished the season tied for a school record with 11 wins and two wins over Power 5 opponents.
Legas, a sophomore who entered the day without a pass attempt in his career, came into the game and immediately changed that. Legas was knocked down, but not before releasing a 62-yard strike to Deven Thompkins for a touchdown. Thompkins streaked past Oregon State’s Jaydon Grant down the left sideline and then coasted into the end zone to tie the game at 7-7.
Legas completed 11-of-20 passes for 171 yards, making a strong case to potentially compete for the starting job next season. Thompkins finished with six catches for 115 yards and set the single-season school record with 101 receptions.
Legas’ second touchdown pass went to Brandon Bowling late in the third quarter, finding the open wide receiver on a 5-yard strike to expand the Utah State lead to 24-10.
Oregon State scored less than a minute into the game on a 20-yard run by Jesiah Irish, capping off a quick three-play, 71-yard opening drive.
But the Aggies soon took control of the game, clamping down on a potent Oregon State offense. In the fourth quarter, the Utah State defense — led by Nick Heninger, who had a career-high three sacks and five tackles for loss — forced a fumble, an interception and a turnover on downs to maintain a double-digit lead.
Utah State took a 14-7 lead into halftime on a 15-yard rushing touchdown by Calvin Tyler Jr.
This was the first college football game played at SoFi Stadium and the first bowl to be named after a living figure.
Kimmel, who welcomed both teams to a taping of his show during the week, made several cameos on the field. He attempted to play the clarinet with the Oregon State band, then was joined by his sidekick, Guillermo, and the game’s mascot, “Jimmy Kammel” on the field.
The urinals in the men’s bathrooms at SoFi Stadium had Matt Damon’s face on them, a nod to Kimmel’s long-running feud with the movie star.
The Mountain West ends the season 6-5 against the Pac-12 and improves to 13-13 all-time against the Pac-12 in bowl games. Utah State also beat Washington State 26-23 in September in Pullman.
from The Salt Lake Tribune https://ift.tt/3miib50
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