LOGAN, Utah – Utah State football held its 13th practice of fall camp Friday morning and the cornerbacks are excited about the potential they have heading into the 2023 campaign.
 
"I think with the combination of guys that have been here and the new guys, we're a pretty talented group," said first-year defensive passing game coordinator and cornerbacks coach Mitchell White. "In terms of speed, I feel very comfortable with them. It's probably as good of a group that I've ever coached, so I'm excited about those guys. They're young and there's a lot that comes with getting live reps and being thrown in the fire, so I'm excited for those guys to get those opportunities."
 
Utah State has the potential for a deep and talented secondary this fall as it returns one starter from last season, to go along with one more letterwinner and a redshirt. In addition, USU added six newcomers, which includes a trio of four-year transfers, to go along with one junior college recruit and two more high school players.
 
"Obviously, we added a lot of people," added Mitchell. "We have some carryover from the spring, but there's a lot of new, fresh talent, as well. It's been promising how fast they've adapted to a new scheme and have been able to play at a high level. That's the biggest thing, being able to play fast. All those guys are fast and that's what you like to see."
 
Utah State's one returning starter here is graduate senior cornerback Michael Anyanwu. Anyanwu started 10 of the 11 games he played in last season and finished the year with 47 tackles, which included 2.0 tackles for loss, to go along with a team-best 11 pass breakups and one interception. In all, Anyanwu has played in 36 career games with 21 starts over four seasons at USU and has 95 tackles and 13 pass breakups.
 
"Fall camp's been going great," said Anyanwu. "It's been a lot of learning with a lot of new guys in the room. We've been getting better every day, so I'm excited for the season.
 
"This is one of the most talented groups I've been a part of in my years here. We have a lot of guys that know what they're doing and it's showing up every day in camp. Guys are making plays left and right. The guys that we have right now, we can all play, so it will be fun to go into the season with a big toolbox."
 
Utah State returns another experienced letterwinner here in graduate senior cornerback Xavion Steele. Steele has played in 23 games for USU with one start and has 12 career tackles with two pass breakups.
 
Utah State also has one redshirt returning in freshman JD Drew, who appeared in five games for the Aggies last season and posted four tackles.
 
Along with the three players mentioned above, Utah State added six newcomers here, including a trio of four-year transfers in junior Jaiden Francois (Florida City, Florida/South Dade HS/UCF), redshirt sophomore Avante Dickerson (Omaha, Nebraska/Westside HS/Oregon) and sophomore Al Ashford III (Denver, Colorado/Cherry Creek HS/Wisconsin).
 
Francois spent three seasons at UCF (2020-22) as he appeared in 13 career games and made two tackles. Dickerson spent two seasons at Oregon (2021-22) as he played in 12 games as a true freshman in 2021 and appeared in one game in 2022 as he utilized his redshirt season. Ashford spent two seasons (2021-22) at Wisconsin as he redshirted in 2021 and appeared in four games in 2022, before missing the rest of the year due to injury.
 
Utah State also added one junior college player here in junior Gabriel Bryan (Windsor, Connecticut/Windsor HS/Navarro CC). In eight games at Navarro CC last season, Bryan recorded eight tackles, two interceptions and two pass breakups. Prior to that, he spent three seasons (2019-21) at Wagner College, as he posted 39 career tackles.
 
Two high school newcomers round out this group in Noah Flores (Sandy, Utah/Alta HS) and Ja'kheo Mitchell (St. George, Utah/Dixie HS).
 
"The biggest thing we talk about is being competitors," said White. "If you want to look at a good corner, it's competitiveness and confidence. You've got to have the confidence to play on an island every week, every game, every play. Then you've got to compete at a high level every time. There's going to be times when you get beat. That's the life of a corner, but do you come back and run the same technique and say, 'do it again?' We want those guys. Those are the types of guys we try to recruit and those are the guys that we want to play here on Saturdays."
 
All fall camp practices are closed to the public. Fans are invited to watch Utah State's final scrimmage on Saturday, Aug. 19, at noon, as part of its annual Family Football Fun Day, which will be held on Merlin Olsen Field at Maverik Stadium.
 
Utah State opens the 2023 season at Iowa on Saturday, Sept. 2, while its home opener is the fol-lowing weekend against Idaho State on Saturday, Sept. 9. USU begins Mountain West play at Air Force on Friday, Sept. 15.
 
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.
 
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 or on Facebook at Utah State University Athletics.