By Max Bechtoldt — Graduate Assistant
As San Jose State is a relatively new member to the Mountain West Conference, its football program does not necessarily have a long and storied history against many opponents. One of the biggest exceptions is Utah State.
The Utah State Aggies, like the Spartans, are a newer member of the MW, joining at the same time as SJSU in 2013, coming from the Western Athletic Conference. The Spartans and Aggies have played 39 times throughout their history, third most for the Spartans against a MW opponent only behind Fresno State and San Diego State.
The Spartans lead the series overall 20-18-1, including winning the first meeting back in 1940, a 19-0 road victory. The Spartans actually won the first five meetings between the schools.
The series recently has been dominated by runs, most recently by the Aggies. USU has won eight straight dating back to 2009. The last five games have been decided by 20 or more points, including the last meeting between the schools, which saw Utah State win 62-24 in 2018.
Prior to the eight-game run for Utah State, the Spartans won 12 out of 13 matchups from 1986-2008. That run included seven one score games, including in 2006 when Spartans’ Ring of Honor member James Jones tallied eight catches for 134 yards in a tight 21-14 victory.
The 2021 matchup sees a red-hot Utah State enter CEFCU Stadium with an 8-2 record (5-1 MW) to take on the 5-5 (3-3 MW) Spartans team. In San Jose the Spartans lead the series 11-7-1. They have only beaten the Aggies at home twice in the 21st Century.
The next chapter in this series will be written Saturday, Nov. 13 at 7:30 p.m. PST.
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