{
  "id": 1554950,
  "title": "‘Chips on their shoulders’: Utah State defenders confident heading into new season",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/17/chips-on-their-shoulders-utah-state-defenders-confident-heading-into",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-17T20:15:20.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/chips-shoulders-utah-state-defenders-201520536.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Utah State's defensive unit is confident heading into the new football season, despite finishing ninth in the Mountain West last year in points allowed per game. The team acknowledges that there were weaknesses on the defense, particularly against Hawaii and New Mexico. However, the Aggies showed improvement as the season progressed, with key victories against Fresno State and UNLV. Defensive coordinator Nick Howell is pleased with the return of key defenders like Bronson Olevao Jr., Carson Tujague, and Chris Joe, as well as the addition of new talent such as Harrison Taggart and Brycen Edwards. Olevao Jr. expressed excitement about building upon the solid foundation established last season, while Tujague believes the team could be the best in the conference.",
  "summary": "After a sluggish defensive start to the 2025 season, the Aggies eventually found their mojo. Can it carry over into the new season?",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}