Box Score USAFA, Colo. – Just call 'em the comeback kids.
 
Junior running back Calvin Tyler Jr. scored what proved to be the game-winning touchdown on a 61-yard run with 3:54 to go in the game, lifting Utah State to a wild 49-45 come-from-behind victory over Air Force in the Mountain West opener for both teams Saturday night at Falcon Stadium.
 
Tyler finished with 132 yards and two touchdowns for the Aggies (3-0, 1-0 MW), who rallied from four separate double-digit deficits to beat the Falcons (2-1, 0-1 MW).
 
Utah State, which trailed 10-0 in the first quarter, 24-13 at halftime, 31-20 early in the third quarter and 45-34 with 10:37 to go in the game, racked up 628 yards of total offense – just nine more than Air Force.
 
The Aggies have now won all three of their games this season after trailing by double digits. According to available records, it is the first time in school history Utah State has ever accomplished that feat.
 
Grad junior quarterback Logan Bonner started under center for the Aggies and completed 21-of-34 passes for 253 yards and two touchdowns, to go along with one interception. He was injured after throwing a 24-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Justin McGriff that cut Air Force's lead to 24-20 early in the third.
 
Bonner did come back in for one series in the fourth quarter, but fellow junior quarterback Andrew Peasley played most of the second half. Peasley was 10-of-15 for 195 yards and three touchdowns, including a 72-yarder to senior wide receiver Deven Thompkins that pulled Utah State to within 45-40 with 9:51 remaining in the game.
 
The Aggies elected to go for the two-point conversion and got it thanks to a wild scramble from the pocket for Peasley, who ran it into the end zone himself.
 
Peasley also threw a 37-yard touchdown pass to grad senior wide receiver Brandon Bowling and a 5-yarder to senior tight end Carson Terrell, who was making his season debut for the Aggies.
 
After the 72-yard bomb to Thompkins that came on a third-and-seven play, Utah State's defensive forced Air Force to punt, giving the ball back to the Aggies with 5:56 left. Two minutes later, USU was in the end zone on Tyler's long run.
 
The Falcons got the ball back with 3:54 to go and were driving when grad senior inside linebacker Justin Rice stripped the ball from Air Force quarterback Haaziq Daniels. Junior safety Monte McGary recovered the fumble at USU's 25-yard line and the Aggie offense proceeded to run out the clock.
 
Rice, for the second straight week, had a monster game for the Aggies as he racked up a game-high 14 tackles, including 2.0 tackles for loss, to go along with an interception in the end zone that led to a Utah State touchdown, and the forced fumble at the end.
 
Grad senior defensive end Nick Heninger and junior safety Dominic Tatum added eight stops apiece for Utah State, which outscored Air Force 36-21 after halftime.
 
Thompkins and Bowling each eclipsed the century mark in receiving yards with 188 and 136, respectively.
 
Air Force scored the first 10 points of the game courtesy of a 5-yard touchdown run by Micah Davis and a 15-yard field goal by Mathew Dapore.
 
The Aggies cracked the scoreboard for the first time on a 1-yard touchdown run by Tyler with 1:17 left in the opening quarter, cutting the deficit to 10-7.
 
Following Rice's interception in the end zone – his third pick in the last two games – Utah State cashed in on the other end. Bonner marched the Aggies 92 yards in 11 plays, capping the drive with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Bowling. The extra point was blocked, but the Aggies had their first lead of the night at 13-10 with 10:16 to go in the opening half.
 
Air Force closed the first 30 minutes of play with a pair of touchdowns to take a 24-13 lead into the locker room with it.
 
UP NEXT 
 
Utah State returns home to face Boise State on Saturday, Sept. 25, at 10 a.m., in a game that will be televised nationally on CBS.
 
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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