LOGAN, Utah, Dec. 24, 2021 (Gephardt Daily) — Utah State University announced Friday that head football coach Blake Anderson has verbally agreed to a two-year contract extension that will keep him at USU through the 2027 season.
Terms of the agreement were not disclosed, said a news release from USU Athletics.
“In just one year at the helm, Blake Anderson has transformed a one-win team into a Mountain West Championship team,” said Vice President and Director of Athletics John Hartwell. “The positive and team-centered culture he and his staff have created and fostered permeates throughout Aggie Nation. As remarkable as the on-the field success has been, the academic achievements and personal development of our football student-athletes under his leadership are even more impressive. Blake’s character, integrity and passion for the academic, personal, and athletic growth of our student-athletes have fueled the success of this team. Under coach Anderson’s leadership, the future of Aggie football is very bright.”‘
Utah State (11-3, 6-2 Mountain West) just completed its best season in school history under Anderson, which culminated in a 24-13 win against Oregon State from the Pac-12 Conference in the inaugural Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl. USU also won its first-ever MW Championship with a 46-13 road win at No. 19 San Diego State, for its first victory against a ranked opponent in six seasons, and tied the school record for wins with 11.
“Under head coach Blake Anderson, this year’s football team captured the hearts of all of Aggie nation and we are fortunate to have him at the helm of our program,” said USU President Noelle E. Cockett.”
Utah State began the year with a 26-23 road win at Washington State for its first Power 5 road win since 1971 as it is also the first-time ever that USU notched a pair of Power 5 wins in the same season.
Utah State went 8-0 away from home during the 2021 season, which is a school record, as it became the first Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) program to go 7-0 in true road games since 2013, the news release said.
Coming off a 2020 campaign that saw Utah State post a 1-5 record, the Anderson-led Aggies became the first FBS team ever to go from zero or one win the previous season to 11 or more wins, a conference championship and a bowl win the following season.
That 10-game improvement from 2020 to 2021 is currently tied with Michigan for the best turnaround in the nation.
For his efforts, Anderson was named the American Football Coaches Association Region 5 Coach of the Year, and was a finalist for the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year and a semifinalist for the George Munger Coach of the Year Awards.
Anderson, who was one of 19 first-year FBS head coaches in 2021, was the only one of those hires to win nine or more games in their first season.
