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LAS VEGAS — Just two years after hoisting the Mountain West Conference championship trophy, Utah State was picked to finish eighth in the 2023 media preseason poll.
The Aggies went 5-3 in conference play last season and return nine of 22 starters in 2023. Senior quarterback Cooper Legas, who finished as the team's starter for the Aggies in 2022, wasn't bothered by the ranking, though.
"Personally, it doesn't bother me one bit; it's a preseason poll," Legas said. "I think that we'll be a lot better than eighth place, and everyone else can just wait and see. But I think that we'll surprise people if that's what they're expecting."
Aggies sixth-year senior defensive tackle Hale Motu'apuaka said he is confident that with this year's roster and the offseason work they have put in together, the Aggies will finish ranked higher than eighth in the conference. He confidently stated, "We've always been the underdog."
"However the media feels they think we will do, they don't know the work that we've been putting in," Motu'apuaka said. "So I'm not too worried about that. You know, if anything, it just lights a fire under our shoulders."
Boise State opens as the heavy favorite heading into the season and was predicted to finish first in the Mountain West with 28 first-place votes. Air Force follows at No. 2 with just two first-place votes, and Fresno State rounded out the top three with five first-place votes. UNLV, which was picked to finish ninth, also received one first-place vote — a strange outlier in the poll.
The 2023 season is the first that the conference has gone away from its two divisions and switched to a single division format since 2012 (not including 2020).
In addition to the Aggies' eighth place preseason rank, defensive back Ike Larsen was selected to the preseason All-Mountain West first team on defense. The redshirt sophomore and Cache Valley native was one of only two sophomores selected to the first team, solidifying himself as one of the most promising young players in the conference.
Larsen had a breakout year in 2022, which ultimately culminated in his being named to the second team of the All-Mountain West team. He led the team with four interceptions and set the single season record for blocked punts in a season with three.
Wyoming, which was picked to finish sixth in the media poll, led the conference in first-team selections with five. Larsen was the only player from Utah State that was selected to the preseason team.
Utah State opens conference play on Sept. 15 against Air Force in Colorado Springs.
2023 Mountain West Preseason Poll
- Boise State (28) 433 points
- Air Force (2) 364 points
- Fresno State (5) 351 points
- San Diego State (1) 338 points
- San Jose State 293 points
- Wyoming 281 points
- Colorado State 201 points
- Utah State 194 points
- UNLV (1) 177 points
- Hawaii 102 points
- Nevada 92 points
- New Mexico 60 points
