T
ICON SPORTS MEDIA
he first time that Gary Andersen
showed up on Barry Alvarez���s radar
was during Utah State���s near-upset of
Auburn in the 2011 opener. Despite
being a three-touchdown favorite, the
Tigers, defending national champions, had to rally
from a 10-point deficit in the final 3:38 to escape
with a 42-38 win.
���I was really impressed with the way Utah State
played,������ recalled Alvarez, the Wisconsin athletic
director. ���They were physical and they weren���t intimidated even though they were on the road. They
outplayed Auburn and should have won the game.
So I started following them.������
The next time that Alvarez took notice of Andersen and his Utah State team was in the 2011 Fa-
24 �� VARSITY
D EC E M B E R 20, 2012
mous Idaho Potato Bowl. Ohio, coached by Frank
Solich, a former Alvarez teammate at Nebraska,
erased a 13-point third-quarter deficit and scored
with 13 seconds left to upend the Aggies, 24-23.
Alvarez later spoke with Solich and ���Frankie
raved about Utah State. So I kept an eye on them,������
especially since the Aggies were on Wisconsin���s
2012 schedule. ���I then saw first-hand how good
they were,������ Alvarez said. ���They outplayed us here
with guys that weren���t as talented.������
On Sept. 15, Utah State���s tenacious defense held
the UW offense to only one touchdown and 234 total yards, 156 rushing. But the Aggies gave up an
82-yard punt return for a touchdown by Kenzel
Doe and missed a 37-yard field goal with six seconds left to fall short of the upset, 16-14.
