Utah State football head coach Matt Wells, along with junior defensive end Jordan Nielsen and senior sophomore center Austin Stephens, held a press conference Monday to recap the Colorado State game and preview its upcoming Mountain West home game against UNLV. A complete transcript of Wells', Nielsen's and Stephens' remarks can be found below.

Head Coach Matt Wells
Recapping the Colorado State game:
"Obviously it's an extremely tough, emotional loss that we're coming off of. Credit to Colorado State, absolutely. They did a nice job when they had plays to make at the very end. It was a tough, hard-fought game that came down to the wire. I said last week that I thought it would and it did. What a kick that kid made. He drilled it. It would have been good from 60 yards. If I'd had another timeout I would have called it. We did everything we could, backed him up five yards and everything. It was great execution by that kid."

"Right now we're 1-1 in the league. We don't control our own destiny anymore. I can tell you our kids are in a good spot. We had a team meeting this morning and then I met with the captains. I asked them what I needed to know that I didn't know and they just looked at me and said they're going to be fine. They're disappointed, but are going to rally together. That's the key that we talked about this morning; we have no other choice. We're going to rally around each other and band together. We're going to have to play elite defense. We're going to have to rally around a new quarterback as Craig Harrison will start this week."

"What does that mean? That means play a little better, whether it's special teams, defense, wide outs, running game, all of the above. We control how we view things, nobody else does. Not the media, not other teams, no one else. We understand that there are two things we can control, and that is our attitude and our effort. Our kids wholeheartedly believe in and understand that. They believe in each other. We trust in them and they trust in us, it's not a cliché, we've changed the culture here. These guys are tough-minded and we'll do it all together."

"We know what adversity is. We've had a lot of season-ending injuries and we had a lot last year. We don't know why it has to be this way, but it is. If we sit around and wallow in self-pity, we'll never understand why. It's just like I told myself and our staff and players, there are a lot of things that I can take, but one thing that we won't stand for is self-pity. We're going to get off the mat and fight. We know how to do it. We've done it before and we can do it again. I like the mindset of these guys and we'll give our very best for Aggie Nation. We're going to go out and find different ways to win."

Previewing UNLV:
"We're facing a really good UNLV team that's coming off a bye. They're rested. They had a really good win, I would assume one of the best in program history, against Fresno State. They played really well on both sides of the ball. I've got a lot of respect for Bobby Hauck and that staff. If anybody really knows and studies football, they know that their offensive staff did a nice job against our defense last year. Timm Rosenbach and that offensive staff have been sitting there watching us for a week, having an extra week to prepare. They put out one of the best game plans I've seen against our defense in the time I've been at Utah State. When I say I have a lot of respect for them, I really mean that."

"It was a tough game last year, right down to the wire. We pulled out every stop that we could to win that game on the road. It was a test of our kids' resiliency in a little bit of a similar time that we're in right now. This time we get to stay home and play an afternoon game, so our kids will all be excited about that. We'll come out with energy and emotion, ready to play with tremendous effort."

On UNLV's defense in last year's game:
"Darell (Garretson) was running for his life a little bit there. We missed some guys, missed some opportunities with some wide-open receivers. We hit some explosives and took points off the board by some self-discipline penalties on offense. But I'll tell you what, we had our backs against the wall there in the very end of the game. They had four different shots into the end zone and we knocked them away. Our kids played tough down the stretch, it was a big-time battle. We scratched and clawed and fought to do what we could."

On Darell Garretson's injury:
"I'll know more today. We're going to give him an MRI and I'll know more then. He's out this week, just like I said in post-game Saturday night. He's out, Craig (Harrison) will start and Kent Myers will be the backup. We'll go from there. If there's more to announce or clarify, I'll absolutely do that."

On Kent Myers preparation thus far this season:
"Coming out of fall camp, he was on scout team. Guys got hurt. I can't make Darell (Garretson) healthy and I can't make Chuckie (Keeton) healthy. You can go from fourth to second string just like that and you have to be ready. He had a good look in his eye this morning. He'll be ready if called upon."

On the mentality of being a backup quarterback:
"When I say it's the hardest job, I mean it. I've been there. It's really hard. You come out of training camp thinking `Oh, I'm just fourth string.' If you're the fourth straight defensive end, you're not playing. It's hard to tell yourself that you have to prepare like you're the starter. It doesn't really hit home. You encourage those guys to prepare and be ready. Two years ago we went through the whole year with Chuckie and the second guy hardly ever played."

On all the season-ending injuries again this year:
"It's hard for me. We've had it here two-straight years. We're at five season-ending injuries this year, and now Darell (Garretson). We had Tavaris McMillian go out this summer, Alex Huerta in the third day of training camp, Kyler Fackrell in game one, Brandon Swindall game two, then Chuckie (Keeton) game three. Every one of them are starters. It's hard. You can't change it, but we're not going to sit around and mope and cry about it. We won't accept self-pity, so don't give me any. We'll move on."

On the running game and its benefits to the backup quarterbacks:
"No question. It's been very inconsistent and is something we've addressed as a team. We certainly addressed it again yesterday as a staff. We're looking at everything, whether it's schematics or how we're practicing. I can promise you we're not sitting back and thinking it's perfect, because it's not. We're going to continue to try and make it better. Hopefully we'll have a better plan this week and run the ball a little bit better. It doesn't matter who's playing quarterback. It doesn't matter who's handing the ball off. We have to block better and run better to move the ball more efficiently. Some of that is on the running backs, some of it is on the O-Line and some of it is on the coaches. We've all got to do a little bit better and it needs to be an area of improvement."

On LaJuan Hunt's play:
"LaJuan has played well. He's going to get more playing time. He's playing really well without the ball in his hands is what he's doing. He's blocking really well. He's running the ball hard and efficiently. He catches the ball well in the backfield. He's playing well whether he's faking or protecting and he will get more reps."

On Craig Harrison's experience:
"He's had game time, he just hasn't had a lot of game time. He's been in here and there in bits and pieces. He's cerebral and thinks about it. He does a nice job from that standpoint. It's just getting more game time. It's hard to replicate that when you're sitting being Chuckie (Keeton) and Darell (Garretson)."

On UNLV Receiver Devante Davis:
"We've seen him the last couple years. He's as good of a receiver as you'll see in this league. (Defensive coordinator) Todd Orlando thinks he's really, really good. He presents physical mismatches, has enough speed to go over the top, he highpoints the ball and has really strong hands. He's a really good player, but has been a little banged up. He's coming off the bye week, so we'll see if he plays."

On UNLV's offense as a whole:
"They've got some talent. Really, I've only watched the Fresno State game. Just off that small body of work, I think they did a good job. They scored 30 points, moved the ball up and down the field and capitalized on some turnovers."

On UNLV QB Blake Decker:
"He played well against Fresno State. He's a guy that they have some trust in to put the ball on the perimeter. I think he's mobile enough to hurt you. I would assume, coming off that game, that he has a lot of confidence. The bye week always helps an offense with what they do and how they do it. They'll focus on what he does best."

On how long it takes a backup QB to get comfortable:
"I hope it's only a few reps. I don't have time. (Craig Harrison) has to win for us now. He doesn't have to win it by himself, but he has to play efficiently, play within himself, distribute the ball to our receivers and help run our offense. He needs to do his part, but we have to rally around him and surround him. We need to play elite defense. We need to run the ball and protect the kid. We need to not turn the ball over and flip the field on special teams. There's no magic potion, there aren't any magic words. We'll narrow our focus even narrower. It's not an individual deal; it's a team thing. Any team can win any Saturday when they get hot and get confident. That's what we did last year and I hope that's what we can do this year. We've got a bunch of tough-minded individuals. These guys have done it. They've got confidence from last year and the new kids will figure it out quick. The vets will lead them by production. That's the recipe to win. The quarterback doesn't have to win it for us."

On the improvement of the special teams:
"The field goal team is the best team we have. We've got six units on special teams and that has been a very bright spot for three weeks in a row. I hope and pray that continues. It starts with the snap, then the hold, and then the kick. Nick (Diaz) is kicking with confidence right now, as he should be. He's doing a good job. The protection has been better and I'm proud of our effort. That's been the most improvement that we had."

"We were just so-so on the other special teams this week. On kickoff we had three touchbacks, which was good. The one time we didn't kick it out of the end zone, we covered down very poorly. We've been in the top 10 in the country in kickoff defense. The one they got for 32 yards was very poor in our estimation. In kickoff return, they kicked three or four out and we only got one chance, which isn't good enough. Jaron Bentrude punted really well. He had three 50-yarders, two inside the 20-yard line. When it mattered most, he came through."

Junior Defensive End Jordan Nielsen
Recapping the Colorado State game:
"At the beginning of the game, our defense started off slow with that first play. We shouldn't have ever let that happen, but we should have bowed up at the end and kept it to a field goal, and that would have helped us out a lot in the game. The rest of the time in the game, we were holding the run. We were stopping it pretty well. They would get a few passes or a couple runs. Other than that, we were playing strong in the run game and the pass game. Throughout the rest of the game, we were playing hard and solid. Those last two drives of the game, they got some yards on us and got those two field goals that hurt us pretty bad."

On the mentality of the team right now:
"Right now, I feel pretty good. Sometimes you learn more from a loss, so this loss we better learn more. We just have to work harder. On special teams, maybe get a touchdown or two. On defense, usually we're getting turnovers and helping our offense out. This game we didn't get any turnovers, which really could have helped us out in the end. They threw one right to Frankie (Sutera), and it hit him in the chest and he dropped it. We have to make turnovers like that. There was a fumble that we didn't jump on. That can flip a whole game, just getting turnovers, which we've been doing the past four or five weeks."

On if the feeling right now is similar to last year when Darell Garretson stepped in as quarterback:
"It's really similar. Last year, we trusted Darell, and we had to play harder as a defense. This year, we trust Craig (Harrison) just as much. We expect him to come out and play at a high level. We just need to step it up and help him out, too."

On what he remembers from the UNLV game last year:
"I remember that game. That was a hard game because it was almost like there wasn't as much energy among the defense when we started that game. But we kept fighting and doing whatever we could to win that game. They did get some running yards on us, for sure. I feel like they'll be just as good this year. They have a lot of the same linemen. Their quarterback's really good. He can get out of the pocket, so we have to contain him, but still move him out of the pocket, if that makes sense. We need to get his mind focusing on us, the defensive line and the rush, rather than his receivers."

On UNLV's offensive line:
"They're a really good group, and they're solid up front, but we've played big guys. We need to come out with that mentality. We need to come out hard and know that we're coming off a loss and we need this win."

On whether playing for Utah State was his goal growing up:
"I've always been an Aggie fan since I was little. I remember going to some of the games. It's crazy to see the team turn around and be doing well now. I remember going to games and if it was snowing, there was maybe 5,000 people there. So you're sitting there freezing and there's nobody there. Now, if it's snowing, the stadium is packed."

Sophomore Center Austin Stephens
Recapping the Colorado State game:
"Offensively, I think we did some good things. I think overall as an offense, we have to improve this week, and keep improving on things. We got down in the red zone a few times, and we didn't come away with touchdowns. We have to do that for our defense, because we know our defense plays really well. If we come out of the red zone with touchdowns instead of field goals, who knows what happens? Overall I think the offensive line keeps improving each week, and that's really exciting to see. A lot of people know we're a young offensive line with a lot of new starters. We have four new starters in there this year. To see us grow is an exciting time for us. We just have to keep improving. We watched the film this morning, and we got to see what we have to do this week. We'll get the game plan and we'll be ready to go. When we come out against UNLV, we have to be ready."

On the offense only putting up 100 yards rushing:
"It's a team effort, but as an offensive line, we don't accept that. We have to do better. Like I said, we watched film this morning, and we saw some things we didn't do, and we saw some good things that we did do throughout the game. We have to keep improving each week. As an offensive line, we're never going to be perfect. We have to keep making improvements and strides throughout the year to become a better and more experienced offensive line. We keep growing. Like I said, it's a week-by-week thing. We have to just keep growing. We take a lot of responsibility for that, and we'll improve this week and we'll get our run game on track."

On whether Colorado State changed its game plan to try to stop the run when Craig Harrison came in:
"I don't think they did anything different. They had a good game plan, and so I don't think they really packed the box. They stuck to what they believe in, and that's a four down front. They did a good job defending us. Hats off to them. They did a good job stopping our run game, and we have to do a better job up front of playing together and keep improving."

On how much he's worked with Craig Harrison this year and what he brings to the offense:
"To be honest, I really haven't worked with Craig a whole lot. For the offensive line, we don't care who's back there. We believe in everyone that gets back there, and we believe they can do great things for us. It's the same every week. We just have to rally behind him and get behind him and we have to do the same thing we've been doing. We have to protect him and run the ball efficiently. If we do that, it'll make Craig's job a lot easier. If we give him the time, he's going to make the throws, and I believe that. As a unit, we believe in whoever the quarterback is back there. We're going to get behind him, and do the same things we've been doing all year. We'll protect him and get the run game going."

On his memories of the UNLV game last year while redshirting:
"I watched the game on T.V. As a redshirt, I stayed home. I think they're a good front. They're going to have good players. We have to be ready. I think they're going to do a lot of same things a lot of four down front teams do, and that's run some twist schemes on us. We have to be ready. Up front, we just have to sit and do our jobs. We'll see what happens this week. As the week goes on, we'll watch film and we'll be ready for them."