RENO - The last thing the Nevada Wolf Pack wanted to do after losing to the Hawaii Warriors is sit around and think about it for two weeks.
But that is exactly what they had to do.
"You never want to sit on a loss like that," Pack quarterback Colin Kaepernick said of the 27-21 loss in Honolulu that ruined the Pack's dreams of a perfect season. "We just want to go back out and redeem ourselves."
If the Pack had its way, it would have found a game somewhere between Honolulu and Reno on the trip back home two weeks ago just to get the bad taste out of their mouth.
"We came back from that loss a little upset," Pack safety Marlon Johnson said.
The Pack, 6-1 overall and 1-1 in the Western Athletic Conference, will get their chance for redemption tonight (7:30 p.m., ESPNU) against the struggling Utah State Aggies (2-5, 0-3). Both teams, oddly enough, are coming off a loss to Hawaii. The Warriors whipped the Aggies 45-7 last Saturday in Logan, Utah.
The Pack, though, isn't focusing on Utah State's winless record in WAC play.
"We don't take anybody lightly," Johnson said.
After losing to Hawaii, the Pack can't afford to take any opponent lightly the rest of this season. On the line Saturday night will be the Pack's nine-game home winning streak, any realistic chance at a share of the WAC regular season title as well as keeping their Top 25 status (currently No. 24) in the Bowl Championship Series standings.
"Things like this have a way of reestablishing your sense of urgency," Ault said.
Ault put his troops through a mid-season mini-camp the past two weeks.
"It gave us a chance to work on things, to correct some things that needed attention and to refocus everyone," Ault said. "We are not a great football team. We have a lot of things to improve on. This was good for us."
The two weeks without a game also gave the Pack's injured players a chance to heal. Offensive tackle Steve Haley will return to the lineup on Saturday after missing the last four-plus games with a broken arm. Running back Vai Taua was allowed to mend a sprained ankle that he twisted against Hawaii.
"We needed that week off," Taua said. "Everybody is back and ready and feeling good. After six games of hard work that bye week was much needed."
Make no mistake, the Pack is not likely going to forget what happened in Honolulu anytime soon.
"We got beat by a team that shouldn't have beaten us," Ault said.
Utah State, which has lost to the Pack 16 times out of 20 meetings in a series that began in 1904, would also fall into that category. Ault has never lost to the Aggies in eight games as the Pack head coach.
"That team is better than their record would indicate," said Ault, repeating a statement he seemingly makes about every Pack opponent not named Boise State.
The Aggies, though, rank in the bottom half of the nine-team WAC in just about every statistical category. They are seventh in scoring (19.6 points a game), seventh in defensive scoring (30.7 points), seventh in total offense (332.7 yards), sixth in defense (421 yards), sixth in rush defense (168.1 yards) and eighth in pass defense (176 yards).
The Pack, on the other hand, is near the top of the WAC in most categories. They are second in scoring (39.9 points), second in points allowed (20 per game), first in rushing (288.6 yards), second in rush defense (124.7 yards), fourth in total defense (362.6 yards) and second in total offense (509.3 yards).
And, oh yeah, they are at home Saturday night where they have won 31 of 40 games since Ault took over the program for the third time in 2004.
"They play with a lot of confidence at home," said Utah State head coach Gary Andersen, who is 6-13 in two seasons as Aggies' head coach. "They have a little bit of an edge to them at home."
Andersen, a former defensive coordinator at Utah, knows his Aggies will have to be able to stand toe to toe with the Pack, absorb some blows and dish some out to have a chance on Saturday.
"You have to score some points to have a chance to beat them," said Andersen, whose Aggies lost a heartbreaker, 35-32, to the Pack last year in Logan after leading 24-14 in the second half. "If that doesn't happen, then you will have no chance to beat Nevada-Reno."
Andersen is especially impressed with the Pack's running attack. The Pack ran for 313 yards against the Aggies a year ago (Taua had 147). The Aggies have been weak against the run. Hawaii's Alex Green ran for 172 yards and four touchdowns against them a week ago and Fresno's A.J. Ellis ran for 165 against them in September.
"They have a pound you, physical, knock you off the ball run game," said Andersen of the Pack's running attack. "And as the game goes on they want to run you down."
The Pack turned the ball over four times against Hawaii and scored its fewest points since a 45-10 loss on the very same field to SMU in last December's Hawaii Bowl. The 21 points by the Pack was also its fewest in a WAC game since losing to Boise State 38-7 in the final regular season game of 2006.
"We just need to get back to playing like we know we can," Kaepernick said. "These two weeks were about focusing on ourselves and getting us right."
"We just have to do what we do," Johnson smiled.
The Aggies are led by senior quarterback Diondre Borel. The 6-foot, 190-pound Borel has thrown for 615 yards and five touchdowns combined in his last two games against the Pack. He can also be dangerous on the ground, running for 98 yards combined in the two games.
"He's quicker than Kap but Kap is faster," Ault said. "He's very dangerous. We have to be able to contain him or he'll hurt us."
Borel has had a disappointing senior year, completing just under 54% of his passes for five touchdowns and six interceptions. His 113.7 pass efficiency rating is eighth in the WAC. The Aggies' offense has struggled all year without a single 100-yard rusher or 100-yard receiver in any game.
"Diondre has given everything he can to this program," Andersen said. "Is his senior year going the way he wanted or the way I wanted? Absolutely not. But he's a good quarterback and anyone who doesn't think he's a good quarterback is sadly mistaken."
The Pack definitely believes Borel is a good quarterback.
"He's definitely a threat when he's on the field," Kaepernick said.
"He can turn a game around on you," Ault said. "He's somebody you have to pay attention to at all times."