Regardless, he's committed to following a plan he hoped would work when he took the USU job three years ago.

In his first spring practice, he had only 56 players, including walk-ons.

The Aggies were forced to play true freshman far more than any coach would like, and it's not until this year, Guy said, that USU is a complete team.

"I'm finally at 85," he said.

That means players actually have competition for playing time. That, he said, has made the difference between being a team that gets beaten up on a weekly basis to a team that held fourth-quarter leads in six games a year ago.

It's also given him a new measuring stick he says is every bit as important as the win totals.

"Not give up a fourth-quarter lead. Just don't do it," he said. "We have to get those games. You've got to get the lead and hold on to it."

If the Aggies can do that, Guy might also be able to hold on to his job.

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E-mail: jeborn@desnews.com