Utah State football coach Blake Anderson elevating program even through lows
LOGAN, Utah — Utah State fans have always sported their Aggie football through highs and lows, and this last season was nothing but highs. Head Coach Blake Anderson led the football team in a school history-making season last year with 11 wins and the team’s first-ever Mountain West Championship win. This being Coach Anderson’s first year with the USU program makes the feat even more impressive.
Blake Anderson grew up playing many sports in his native state of Texas, but football became his favorite during his sophomore year in high school. He then continued playing in college, starting at Baylor University and finishing at Sam Houston State University. He hadn’t considered coaching until injuries derailed his football playing career, so his coaches told him he should think about coaching. “They told me that I had a good work ethic and just understood the game and the recruiting process,” explained Anderson.
After that realization, Anderson realized that coaching was meant to be because he grew up around it. While his mom was a school teacher and had to stay late to grade, young Blake would go pester any coaches left in the building. “It was probably incredibly annoying for them,” he laughed, “But it gave me skills I didn’t realize I would use one day.”
So after his last season playing wide receiver, he started coaching in the fall of 1992. Coach Anderson has since coached at every level in collegiate football in his 30 years. The last seven were spent as head coach of Arkansas State University.
Though excelling with every team, life has not been without its challenges. “While at ASU, I lost my wife to cancer and soon after my father,” remembered Anderson, “But my faith in Christ and the consistency football brought got me through that time.”
While Coach Anderson was very grateful for a strong community that lifted him up during this challenging time, he felt it was time for a change of scenery with fewer difficult memories. When the Utah State position opened, he remembered what a good program they had built. Anderson was even friends with former coach Matt Wells. All of this made it an easy yes when the offer came in.
So Anderson moved to Logan with three new beautiful women in his life, his new wife Brittany and her two daughters, who Anderson adopted. Yet once again, the Anderson family was surrounded by rallying forces when his youngest son lost his life to mental illness. “I felt the love and support of so many people during these different periods of loss, especially through the football community that banded around us during those times,” Anderson expressed.
But through all the ups and downs, Blake Anderson still trains an incredible team. The team primarily focuses on conditioning, not worrying about size in the recruiting process. “We pride ourselves on being in the best shape. They may be bigger, but we are always in the best condition,” said Anderson.
But athletics isn’t the only motivating factor in Anderson’s coaching philosophy. “I want these boys to become better men than they arrived. I want them to learn how to be the best husbands, fathers, and men,” said Anderson, “Championships fade. Rings tarnish. But learning to be incredible men will last them the rest of their lives.”
Utah State and football fans alike will take note as Coach Blake Anderson leads our team. “That was just year one,” laughed Anderson, “We’re going to build on it to create the best team in the nation.”
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