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Logan • Utah State coach Matt Wells isn't sure whether two of his best players — running back Devante Mays and safety Dallin Leavitt — will be available Saturday night against 24th-ranked Boise State.
At his weekly news conference Monday, Wells was waiting for more information before commenting on the status of Mays or Leavitt. They were injured in the Aggies' 27-20 loss to Air Force.
Mays was hurt late in the first quarter. After missing Utah State's 34-20 win over Arkansas State with an undisclosed leg injury, he did not start against the Falcons. When Mays entered the game, he carried once for 2 yards before being reinjured.
Leavitt, who has emerged as a leader of Utah State's defense, hurt his ankle early in the third quarter while pursing Air Force quarterback Nate Romine on an 8-yard run.
"We'll see about Leavitt and Mays," Wells said. "… If they are out an extended time, I'll let you know. And if they're not, it will be day-to-day and we won't talk about it much anymore."
Beyond what could be a difficult injury situation for the Aggies, it sounded like Wells expected a public reaction from the Mountain West Conference over the performance of its on-field and replay officials during the Air Force game.
But that didn't happen.
The league failed to issue any statements about three critical calls and/or reviews that went against the Aggies.
In the first quarter, officials ruled receiver Ron'Quavion Tarver was out of bounds after grabbing an apparent 34-yard touchdown pass from Kent Myers. The replay official upheld the call, preventing Utah State from taking a 14-3 lead.
"I had it," Tarver said after the game.
Two plays later, the Aggies' attempt for a first down on fourth-and-2 from the Air Force 28-yard line failed when a Myers-to-Andrew Rodriguez pass was called complete but then reversed.
"I still think I caught it," Rodriguez said. "[But] it's over with now and what I think doesn't matter."
Finally, Myers was sacked with 7:41 left in the game and Air Force leading, 17-13. The ball came loose on the play and the officials ruled it was a fumble, which the Falcons recovered. The call was upheld upon review and, after taking over at the Utah State 21, Air Force scored the clinching touchdown six plays later.
According to Wells, he watched all three replays before leaving the stadium after the game.
What did he think?
"See if anything comes out today from the Mountain West office," he said. "We'll leave it at that."
Every week, Wells noted, he's allowed to submit plays for review by the league, even if the result of the game doesn't change.
"They always give me a response," he said. "They are very professional and very thorough. But you just don't get to go back and hit replay. You don't get to go back and re-do them."
The controversial plays were important against Air Force, considering they cost Utah State seven points and set up a touchdown that gave the Falcons a two-possession lead with 5:06 remaining.
"Critical, critical, critical to the flow of a game," Wells said. "They should always be right [after a] replay."
The loss to Air Force dropped USU to 2-2 overall and 0-1 in the Mountain West heading into the game against the unbeaten Broncos.
Regarding the trip to Boise, Wells said, "Huge test for us, going on the road playing these guys. But our job is to get off the mat … and try to find a way to win on the road."
Twitter: @sluhm —
Storylines
• Utah State coach Matt Wells isn't sure whether running back Devante Mays or safety Dallin Leavitt will play Saturday night at Boise State.
• Mays and Leavitt were injured during Air Force's 27-20 Mountain West Conference victory over the Aggies at Maverik Stadium.
• Mays is Utah State's leading rusher, despite missing one game and playing sparingly in two others. Leavitt is the Aggies' No. 2 tackler.