LOGAN, Utah – Utah State football will face Oregon State in the inaugural Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl on Saturday, Dec. 18, at 5:30 p.m. (MT), at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, it was announced Sunday. The game will be televised live on ABC.
 
Utah State (10-3, 6-2 MW) and Oregon State (7-5, 5-4 Pac-12) will be meeting for the fourth time in series history, and for the first time since 1998, as the Beavers have won each of the previous three meetings. This will be the first time USU has played a Pac-12 opponent in a bowl game and just the second time it has faced a Power 5 opponent as USU lost to Baylor 24-9 in the 1961 Gotham Bowl, held at the Polo Grounds in Upper Manhattan, New York.
 
"On behalf of Utah State University, we are thrilled to represent the Mountain West as conference champions against an outstanding opponent in the 2021 Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl", said USU Vice President and Director of Athletics John Hartwell. "I'm excited for our student-athletes to experience another bowl game and we look forward to the hospitality of Southern California."
 
Utah State is playing in its ninth bowl game in the last 11 years after playing in six bowl games in its first 119 years. USU's last bowl appearance was in 2019, when it lost to Kent State 51-41 in the Tropical Smoothie Cafe Frisco Bowl in Frisco, Texas. USU played in five-straight bowl games from 2011-15 and won three-straight bowls from 2012-14, both of which are school records. All-time, the Aggies are 5-9 in its previous 14 bowl games and its last bowl win was a 52-13 victory against North Texas in the 2018 New Mexico Bowl.
 
"We are beyond excited for this team to get the opportunity to play one more game," said first-year USU head coach Blake Anderson. "I am so proud of what our players and staff have accomplished, and I can't think of a better way to celebrate this unbelievable season than by representing the Mountain West as its conference champion in the Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl."
 
All-time, this will be Utah State's 15th bowl appearance in program history as it played in the 1946 Raisin Bowl, the 1947 Grape Bowl, the 1960 Sun Bowl, the 1961 Gotham Bowl, the 1993 Las Vegas Bowl, the 1997 Humanitarian Bowl, the 2011 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, the 2012 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, the 2013 San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl, the 2014 Gildan New Mexico Bowl, the 2015 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, the 2017 NOVA Home Loans Arizona Bowl, the 2018 New Mexico Bowl and the 2019 Tropical Smoothie Cafe Frisco Bowl.
 
Oregon State is 7-5 on the season and finished third in the North Division of the Pac-12 Conference with a 5-4 record. The Beavers enter the bowl game after losing its season finale at home to No. 11 Oregon, 38-29.
 
There are two common opponents between Utah State and Oregon State this season in Hawai'i and Washington State. USU won both of those games as it posted a season-opening 26-23 road win against the Cougars and a 51-31 home win against the Rainbow Warriors. OSU went 1-1 against those two opponents as it defeated UH at home 45-27 and lost at WSU 31-24.
 
This will be Oregon State's 18th bowl game and first since posting a 38-23 win against Boise State in the 2013 Hawai'i Bowl.
 
Utah State is 10-3 on the season and won its first-ever Mountain West Championship in its ninth year in the league after posting a 46-13 win at No. 19 San Diego State in the title game. USU finished the regular season tied for first in the Mountain Division of the MW with a 6-2 league record. Overall, it is USU's 13th conference championship in school history and first since winning the 2012 Western Athletic Conference title.
 
Utah State, which has won seven of its last eight games, is receiving votes in both national polls as it garnered 109 votes in the Associated Press poll to rank 26th nationally and 85 votes in the Coaches poll to rank 27th in the nation. USU is led by graduate junior QB Logan Bonner, who is 257-of-419 (.613) passing for 3,560 yards (273.8 ypg) with 36 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Graduate junior RB Calvin Tyler Jr. has rushed for 764 yards on 170 carries (4.5 ypc/69.5 ypg) with six touchdowns. And, senior WR Deven Thompkins has caught 96 passes for 1,589 yards (16.5 ypr/122.2 ypg) and nine touchdowns. Defensively, graduate senior ILB Justin Rice has 115 tackles, which includes 13.5 tackles for loss, to go along with three interceptions and one forced fumble. USU is averaging 33.2 points and 451.5 yards of total offense (145.7 rushing, 305.8 passing) and allowing 25.3 points and 391.0 yards of total offense (162.5 rushing, 228.5 passing).
 
After posting a 1-5 record in a COVID-19-shortened 2020 season, Utah State had one of the best turnarounds in the nation in 2021 under Anderson as it is just the fourth-time in school history that USU has won 10-plus games, joining the 2012 (11-2), 2014 (10-4) and 2018 (11-2) teams.
 
Utah State's nine-game improvement this year is tied with Baylor (2-7 in '20 to 11-2 in '21) and Northern Illinois (0-6 in '20 to 9-4 in '21), and trailing Michigan (2-4 in '20 to 12-1 in '21) for the second-best turnaround in the nation.
 
Utah State is also the first Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) team to post a 7-0 road record since the 2013 season.
 
Furthermore, Anderson is the only first-year head coach – out of 19 at the FBS level – to win 10 games this season.
 
Utah State had nine football players earn various all-Mountain West accolades, including Thompkins, who garnered first-team honors. USU also had two players earn second-team all-MW accolades in Rice and senior KOR Savon Scarver, while six Aggies garnered honorable mention honors in graduate senior DE Nick Heninger, graduate senior PR Jordan Nathan, graduate senior S Shaq Bond, senior OL Alfred Edwards, senior WR Derek Wright and junior OL Quazzel White.
 
Tickets for the 2021 Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl are on sale now and available by contacting the USU Ticket Office at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum, or by phone by calling 1-888-USTATE-1 or (435) 797-0305. Tickets can also be purchased 24 hours a day at www.UtahStateAggies.com/tickets
 
Fans can follow the Aggie football program at twitter.com/USUFootball or on facebook at Utah State Football, as well as on instagram at instagram.com/USUFootball. Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program at twitter.com/USUAthletics, on facebook at Utah State University Athletics or on instagram at instagram.com/USUAthletics.
 
Utah State Football Bowl History (5-9)
1946 Raisin Bowl vs. San Jose State – L, 0-20 (Fresno, California)
1947 Grape Bowl vs. Pacific – L, 21-35 (Lodi, California)
1960 Sun Bowl vs. New Mexico State – L, 13-20 (El Paso, Texas)
1961 Gotham Bowl vs. Baylor – L, 9-24 (Upper Manhattan, New York)
1993 Las Vegas Bowl vs. Ball State – W, 42-33 (Las Vegas, Nevada)
1997 Humanitarian Bowl vs. Cincinnati – L, 19-35 (Boise, Idaho)
2011 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl vs. Ohio – L, 23-24 (Boise, Idaho)
2012 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl vs. Toledo – W, 41-15 (Boise, Idaho)
2013 SDCCU Poinsettia Bowl vs. No. 24 Northern Illinois – W, 21-14 (San Diego, California)
2014 Gildan New Mexico Bowl vs. UTEP – W, 21-6 (Albuquerque, New Mexico)
2015 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl vs. Akron – L, 21-23 (Boise, Idaho)
2017 NOVA Home Loans Arizona Bowl vs. New Mexico State – L, 20-26, OT (Tucson, Arizona)
2018 New Mexico Bowl vs. North Texas – W, 52-13 (Albuquerque, New Mexico)
2019 Tropical Smoothie Cafe Frisco Bowl – L, 41-51 (Frisco, Texas)
 
Utah State vs. Pac-12 Conference (41-125-5)
Arizona – 2-4 (Last Meeting, 1992)
Arizona State – 2-11 (Last Meeting, 2003)
Colorado – 6-11-1 (Last Meeting, 1998)
Oregon – 0-4 (Last Meeting, 2008)
Oregon State – 0-3 (Last Meeting, 1998)
Southern California – 0-6 (Last Meeting, 2016)
Stanford – 0-1 (Last Meeting, 1904)
UCLA– 0-1 (Last Meeting, 1935)
Utah – 29-79-4 (Last Meeting, 2015)
Washington – 0-3 (Last Meeting, 2015)
Washington State – 2-2 (Last Meeting, 2021)
(Have not played: California)