USU football: WAC slaps Aggies on last-place pick

Utah State University might have a robust — for the Aggies — two-game winning streak.

But they also still have only six total wins over the past three seasons. And that fact, coupled with the loss of several impact players on offense, means Utah State's football team is back where it's accustomed to being — last in the Western Athletic Conference preseason polls.

The Aggies were predicted by both the WAC coaches and the media covering the conference to finish ninth. The conference is holding its football preview meetings at the Salt Lake City Airport Hilton, and much as in recent years, Utah State is expected to struggle.

"It's just motivation for the football team and the coaching staff," USU coach Brent Guy said Wednesday morning after the polls were released. "I guess they see where we've been and see that we lost two NFL draft picks, and everybody thinks that we've got to be down."

Boise State, which got 25 first-place votes, was selected by the media as the favorite to win the conference crown, while Fresno State, with seven first-place votes, earned the top spot in the coaches poll. The Broncos were second in the coaches poll, and the Bulldogs were second in the media balloting.

A year ago, Utah State finished 2-10 but held leads in the final quarter of six games. Guy said he hopes those close losses, and the modest success of winning two games down the stretch, will translate into a few more wins.

Still, the last-place showing in the preseason polls carries a little bit of a punch to the ego.

"It's just an opinion," Guy said. "Everybody's entitled to an opinion. It's where we are in November that matters most."

Also announced at the meetings were the preseason selections for conference offensive and defensive players of the year.

Boise State running back Ian Johnson was tabbed as the top offensive player. The senior returns with 3,417 rushing yards and 46 touchdowns to his name but had an injury-plagued junior year when the Broncos finished 10-3. He is 12 rushing touchdowns shy of breaking the WAC record of 57 set by San Diego State's Marshall Faulk from 1991-93.

Hawaii linebacker Solomon Elimimian is the choice for defensive player of the year. The senior led the Warriors with 141 tackles last year.