LAS VEGAS – Savon Scarver hit the jackpot in his own hometown. And in the process, so did the Aggies. 

Utah State's senior wide receiver returned a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown the very first time he touched the ball to help the Aggies record a come-from-behind 28-24 victory over UNLV on Saturday night at Allegiant Stadium. The Las Vegas native tied the NCAA record with the return, the seventh of his career. 

Utah State had to fight tooth and nail for this win. 

UNLV running back Charles Williams, who racked up 221 yards rushing and all three of the Rebels' touchdowns, gave the hosts a 24-21 lead on a 5-yard run with 8:18 to go in the third quarter. 

But the Aggies (4-2, 2-1 Mountain West), who overcame a double-digit deficit for the fourth time this season, found the end zone on an 11-yard touchdown run by sophomore running back Elelyon Noa with just 35 seconds remaining in the game. 

Utah State's defense then sealed the game when grad senior safety Shaq Bond intercepted his second pass of the night on a fourth-down play with just 10 seconds left. Bond led the Aggies with nine tackles. 

Utah State has overcome fourth-quarter deficits to win all three of its games away from the friendly confines of Merlin Olsen Field at Maverik Stadium. The Aggies have won their first three road games of the season for the first time since the 1978 campaign, and the first time they have won three straight away from home since 2018. 

Utah State, which has trailed at the half in all six games, has now won 13 straight football games following a bye week dating back to the 2011 season and 11 of those 13 wins have been against league opponents. 

With their victory over the Rebels on Saturday, the Aggies have now won 15 of the last 18 games played in the series, including six straight. 

Senior wide receiver Deven Thompkins led all receivers in the game with a career-high 12 catches for 180 yards and a career-best two touchdowns, one from 37 yards and another from 6. 

Fellow senior wide receiver Derek Wright hauled in five catches for a career-high 83 yards, helping the Aggies with 440 yards – 110 more than UNLV (0-6, 0-2 MW). 

Utah State grad junior quarterback Logan Bonner was 21-of-32 for 298 yards and the two TDs to Thompkins. He also threw one interception. 

The Rebels took a 3-0 lead on their opening drive of the game, then elected to kick off to Scarver, who caught it at the goal line and was off to the races. The speedster returned three kickoffs for 156 yards in the game 

UP NEXT  

Utah State welcomes MW Mountain Division-foe Colorado State to Merlin Olsen Field at Maverik Stadium on Friday, Oct. 22, at 7:30 p.m. The Aggies' annual Homecoming game will be televised live on CBS Sports Network. 

GET YOUR TICKETS  

For Aggie football ticket information, fans can contact the USU Athletics Ticket Office over the phone by calling 1-888-USTATE-1 or 435-797-0305 during regular hours of operation. Fans can also buy their tickets in person at the USU Ticket Office inside the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum or online by clicking on the "Buy Tickets" tab at www.UtahStateAggies.com.  

For more information on the Utah State football program, follow the Aggies on Twitter at @USUFootball, on Facebook at USUFootball and on Instagram at USUFootball.  

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