Arizona Bowl 2017: New Mexico State vs. Utah State TV Schedule, Time and Odds
The last time the New Mexico State Aggies played in a bowl game was 1960.
Coincidentally, their opponent 57 years ago is also their foe in the Arizona Bowl on Friday night in Tuscon, Arizona.
Utah State has participated in eight bowl games since its 1960 Sun Bowl defeat to New Mexico State, and it has made the postseason in six of the last seven seasons.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Head coach Matt Wells is looking to guide Utah State to its third season over .500 in his five-year tenure, and a win in the Arizona Bowl would be a welcome sight after struggling with a 3-9 record in 2016.
New Mexico State is trying to finish off a wildly successful campaign by its standards. A victory on Friday would hand the Aggies their first winning season since 2002.
Date: Friday, December 29
Time: 5:30 p.m. ET
TV: CBS Sports Network
Live Stream: CBS Sports App
Odds: Utah State (-4); Over/Under: 62.5
How New Mexico State Will Win
You wouldn't expect it of a 6-6 team, but New Mexico State has one of the top passers in the nation in Tyler Rogers. The senior racked up 3,825 passing yards and 26 touchdowns, and he's coming off a 451-yard performance on December 2 against South Alabama.
However, Rogers has thrown 16 interceptions, which could be a hindrance on the Aggies' offensive game plan at the Arizona Bowl. The quarterback has been intercepted in eight of his 11 games, but the good news for New Mexico State is he hasn't thrown a pick in two of his last three outings.
The nation's fifth-best passer will look for leading receiver Jaleel Scott early and often on Friday night. He has had a quartet of monster performances, with his 134-yard game against South Alabama being the most recent.
If Rogers and Scott are able to find success in the first half, it could be bad news for Utah State. However, if Scott is limited by the Utah State secondary, New Mexico State might have a hard time producing.
Dalton Herrington is the star of the team's defense, as he enters with 125 tackles, 15 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks. He is one of four New Mexico State defenders who have over 10 tackles for loss; Terrill Hanks, Cedric Wilcots II and Malik Demby are the other three.
Look for the Herrington-led defense to put Utah State freshman quarterback Jordan Love under duress from the first drive. If that is successful, New Mexico State could be celebrating an historic night.
How Utah State Will Win
The play of Love in the pocket will be critical for Utah State against a New Mexico State defense hungry to earn a rare bowl victory.
The freshman burst on to the scene with a 316-yard passing performance against UNLV on October 21, and he ended the regular season with 284 yards through the air in a defeat to Air Force.
Running back LaJuan Hunt is Love's best weapon, and the senior will be tasked with breaking through the front seven and taking the pressure off his freshman signal-caller.
Outside of Hunt, the Aggies don't have a ton to boast on offense, but one player worth keeping an eye on is wide receiver Ron'quavion Tarver, who hauled in seven touchdown passes to go along with his 40 catches and 472 receiving yards.
Much like New Mexico State has in Herrington, Utah State possesses an impressive defender in Suliasi Tamaivena, who recorded 109 tackles, including a string of five straight games in which he earned 10 or more tackles.
Unlike Herrington and his teammates, Tamaivena does most of his damage after opponents cross the line of scrimmage, as the Utah State junior only has 6.5 tackles for loss and three sacks.
Even though the stats don't show Tamaivena can get into the backfield, he can still be a disturbance as Rogers looks to get New Mexico State on the board early.
Prediction
New Mexico State has the more explosive offense and also carries experience into the Arizona Bowl.
It's hard to see a situation in which New Mexico State doesn't give us one of the best moments of bowl season with a historic victory for the program.
New Mexico State 34, Utah State 17
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.
All statistics obtained from ESPN.com and Sports Reference.
Odds obtained from OddsShark.com.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
