From Deseret News archives:
USU football: Andersen is the Aggies' new guy
Gary Andersen, the longtime assistant coach and defensive coordinator at Utah, will be introduced as Utah State's next head football coach today at 1 p.m. after coming to an agreement on contract details Wednesday afternoon in Logan.
The announcement comes less than three weeks after USU fired Brent Guy as a result of winning only nine games in four seasons.
Andersen will inherit an Aggie program mired in decades of failure with only brief glimpses at success. But a new athletic director and an increased commitment to do the little things — such as actually funding the football team like a Division I program — convinced Andersen he could be successful in Logan.
After meeting with USU athletic director Scott Barnes for several hours in Logan on Tuesday, Andersen made a second trip to Cache Valley on Wednesday — this time with his wife accompanying him — to iron out details of the contract.
Andersen, a source close to the negotiations said, will sign a "letter of agreement" today. The agreement, the source said, will be a five-year contract worth more than $330,000 per year. Guy's base salary was $230,005 per year.
The source said Andersen will receive a compensation package that will exceed Guy's by more than $100,000. The assistant coaches, likewise, will also have a boost in pay from previous USU coaching staffs.On Tuesday, Barnes said in order to improve the football program, it needed a significantly increased budget for recruiting and to attract and pay quality assistant coaches. With those concerns addressed, Andersen felt comfortable agreeing to coach the Aggies.
Despite finishing with a 3-9 record this season — matching the best season of the Guy era — the Aggies might appear to be "mission impossible" for a football coach. But many observers and WAC coaches believe the foundation has been laid for a much brighter future at Utah State.
With a new training and locker room facility in place, and more money to fund the program, that may very well be the case.
Andersen is seen as a recruiting whiz, helping the Utes land many of the top players in the state and region. Aggie fans, undoubtedly, will be hopeful he can bring some of that talent to Logan and help take USU to a bowl game in the next season or two.
In addition to his recruiting prowess — Andersen has been named the top non-BCS recruiter in the country by rivals.com — the defensive coordinator at Utah is a finalist for the Broyles Award given to the nation's top assistant coach.
