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PULLMAN, Wash. — Any good feelings the Utah State Aggies managed after beating Wyoming may have subsided after Saturday night.
The Aggies lost 49-28 to the Washington State Cougars on the road. Utah State has now lost seven of its last eight, with three games remaining in a difficult regular season.
And, it officially puts Utah State (2-7, 1-3 MWC) out of contention for a bowl game.
"We're not looking for results, we're looking to get better," Aggies interim coach Nate Dreiling said. "We're looking for the process. It is what it is. Would it be awesome to go a bowl game? Heck yeah. Do these kids deserve to go to one? Yeah. But that's not going to change our approach tomorrow."
Utah State quarterback Spencer Petras threw for 208 yards, with two touchdowns and an interception. Grant Page caught seven passes for 54 yards, while Kyrese White tallied 50 receiving yards on six catches.
The Aggies had seven players with at least one reception after their leading receiver, Jaylen Royals, was recently ruled out for the season with a foot injury.
Herschel Turner led the way in rushing yards for Utah State with 85 yards on 16 carries. Rahsul Faison, the team's best rusher, only had two carries for 3 yards.
Dreiling said Faison has been dealing with a knee injury since the Wyoming game; and although the team hoped its star running back would be able to play more, "he just couldn't push off." Turner said Faison helped from the sidelines.
"He was a great leader while he was out there on the bench," Turner said. "It was a blessing to have him out there for sure."
It didn't take long for the Cougars to score, as John Mateer threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Kyle Williams, who broke a tackle on fourth-and-1 and easily ran into the end zone.
Utah State answered later in the quarter with a long drive that ended with Petras throwing a 3-yard pass to Jack Hestera.
Wayshawn Parker scored on a 1-yard rushing touchdown to start the second quarter, giving Washington a 14-7 lead. The Cougars increased their lead midway through the second quarter on Mateer's 14-yard touchdown pass to Willams for a 21-7 advantage.
Utah State was on a good drive with a chance to score late in the first half, but White intercepted a pass from Petras.
On the first play of the second half, Parker ran 75 yards to give the Cougars a 28-7 lead, and the Mateer's 1-yard rushing touchdown extended Washington State's lead to 35-7.
Backup quarterback Bryson Barnes entered the game for the Aggies to complete a 2-yard run for a touchdown, which brought their deficit to 35-14. But Mateer later threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Williams, which gave the Cougars a 42-14.
Utah State senior safety Jordan Vincent, who had 11 tackles, on the night, thinks the "process" Dreiling mentioned is working, despite the team not getting many results.
"The part of the process I think that's working the most for us is we have a resilient group," Vincent said. "Although wins aren't coming, there's no point in time in the game where I can look to the side and I feel like guys are quitting or letting up."
