College Football 25 simulation: Can Utah State heat up when Hawaii visits cold Logan?

Note: With EA Sports’ College Football 25 bringing college football back to the video game world, the Deseret News is simulating every Utah State game against an FBS opponent this season.
With a guarantee that Utah State won’t play in a bowl game this season, how will the Aggies respond in their final three games of the year?
One week after a Utah State loss to Washington State ensured that the Aggies wouldn’t have a winning season, the Aggies host a Hawaii team that itself is trying to become bowl eligible.
The Rainbow Warriors come into Logan with a 4-6 record and need a win to stay in contention for bowl eligibility.
What will happen Saturday?
The Deseret News ran a simulation of Saturday’s game on the EA Sports College Football 25 video game, and given the expected weather conditions, it was a slugfest.
There were a couple of ground rules in place: The simulation used 10-minute quarters and I let the computer simulate the game with no user interference.
Injuries and depth chart changes were also implemented. Outside of the absence of star receiver Jalen Royals, who’s been out for a few weeks, nothing really changed for Utah State on this week’s depth chart.
I also matched up the uniform combos the best I could with the information I had.
Utah State is doing a black-out for the game, though its black jersey isn’t available in the video game, so I went with a white helmet, along with the Aggies’ navy jerseys and pants.
There were no details on Hawaii’s uniform combo for the game, so I went with a white jersey and pants for the Rainbow Warriors, along with their black helmets.
The weather forecast is also calling for early morning snow showers in Logan, so I’ve made it a snow game for the 1 p.m. kickoff.
The actual score: Washington State 49, Utah State 28
College Football 25 simulation final score: Utah State 43, Washington State 39
My analysis: The simulation called for Utah State pulling an upset in a thrilling back-and-forth contest, but in reality, the game went nothing like that.
In the real game, then-No. 21 Washington State built a 28-point lead midway through the third quarter on its way to rolling past the Aggies.
Final score: Hawaii 16, Utah State 8
Key sequence: Despite trailing all game, the Aggies had a chance to tie the game in the final minute, but the Rainbow Warriors came up with a defensive stop in the red zone.
On Utah State’s final offensive drive, a 40-yard Broc Lane catch — where the tight end spun out of a tackle attempt to gain 15 more yards — put the Aggies at the Hawaii 23 with 1:30 to play.
Rahsul Faison then caught an 11-yard pass to move the ball to the Hawaii 12.
After three straight incompletions, though, Utah State faced a fourth down. On that play, Spencer Petras found Lane in the flat, but he was stopped a yard short of the line to gain.
That gave Hawaii the ball at the 3, and the Rainbow Warriors ran out the clock.
How the simulation transpired: Both teams struggled to move the ball in the first quarter, though in the final couple minutes of the quarter, Hawaii strung together a drive that started at the Utah State 49 and cashed in on a 20-yard field goal with one minute left in the first.
On the ensuing possession, Petras threw his first of two interceptions, as Hawaii linebacker Jamih Otis picked him off at the Utah State 27, then returned it five yards to the 22.
Utah State’s defense held, forcing another short field goal, giving Hawaii a 6-0 lead early in the second quarter.
The Aggies finally responded later in the quarter, as Tanner Cragun capped a 54-yard drive with a 47-yard field goal.
Utah State appeared it would have a chance to at least tie the game in the half’s final minute, but Petras threw his second interception at the Hawaii 27 with 20 seconds until the break, keeping it a 6-3 game.
Hawaii used a time-consuming drive to eat up nearly half of the third quarter before kicking a 45-yard field goal to go up 9-3.
The Aggies, though, flipped field position on their next possession, even though it ended up with a punt. Hawaii then started its ensuing drive at its 4, and that led to Cian Slone sacking Brayden Schager for a safety.
Following a free kick, Utah State had its best chance to take the lead and converted two third downs on its next possession, but Petras was stopped short of a first down on a third-down scramble.
Cragun added a 44-yard field goal on the first play of the fourth quarter to make it 9-8.
Hawaii eventually became the only team to reach the end zone, pushing its lead out to 16-8 with a 58-yard drive that ended with a 17-yard touchdown pass to Pofele Ashlock with 3:24 to play.
Shager hit Dekel Crowdus for a 32-yard gain on third and 6 to move the ball to the Utah State 22, setting up the touchdown three plays later.
That led to Utah State’s final drive, which ended with no points despite the Aggies reaching the red zone.
Star players: Petras completed 61% of his passes for 183 yards but also threw two interceptions. His favorite target was Otto Tia, who had eight catches for 69 yards.
Faison finished with 54 rushing yards for Utah State.
Schager, meanwhile, completed 63% of his passes for 210 yards and the game’s lone touchdown.
Ashlock had a team-high six receptions for 72 yards and a touchdown, while Landon Sims rushed for a game-high 70 yards for Hawaii.
Key stats: There wasn’t a lot of offense in the weather-impacted game, as Utah State had 229 yards of total offense, while Hawaii had 237.
The Aggies also lost the turnover battle, two to nothing, in a one-score game.
My analysis: Hawaii never trailed against the Aggies, which could happen in Saturday’s game.
I’d expect more points in the actual game, though if there are stormy, cold weather, it could keep the score down, like what happened in the simulation.