Gary Andersen's connections with Utah high school coaches and his reputation as a winning coach are paying off for Utah State.

The new Aggie head coach received a pair of verbal commitments over the weekend when Alta's Parker Hausknecht and Spanish Fork's Jordan Mattinson pledged to sign with Utah State next spring.

Mattinson caught six touchdowns as a junior tight end last season with the Dons and was also a part of Spanish Fork's 5A state baseball title team.

Utah State's agriculture program, in addition to its recently upgraded facilities and an enthusiastic new coaching staff won him over when he made a visit to Logan for the school's Junior Day a couple of weeks ago.

"Coach Andersen offered me when I went up for Junior Day," Mattinson said. "I've been talking to their coaches it seems since last February."

The aspiring veterinarian said USU's academic situation and fresh start under Andersen were enough to convince him to accept the offer.

"I know they haven't had that great of a past, but I have a real good feeling that he is going to turn that program around," he said. "Everything that has to do with football is a lot different than it used to be."

Hausknecht, a 6-1, 205-pounder, was second team all Region 2 as a junior playing for the Hawks.

Like Mattinson, the Alta linebacker was impressed during his visit to USU for Junior Day.

"I wanted to play in state and I went there and got a tour, and it's just the nicest school I've seen," Hausknecht said. "I think they're going to turn it around."

Hausknecht had 76 tackles last season for the Hawks and was a big part of their run to a 13-1 record and state title. In the championship game against Bingham, Hausknecht had nine tackles.

He said he's received interest from BYU, Utah and Colorado but is excited to be a part of Andersen's rebuilding project at Utah State.

"They were really the first school to show a lot of interest in me," he said. "Their facilities are all brand new. All the coaches are nice, and I just felt good up there."

The two commitments from local high schools come on the heels of several offers to other Utah athletes including Mountain Crest quarterback Alex Kuresa.

E-mail: jeborn@desnews.com