The Utah State football program has made a significant move by hiring Bronco Mendenhall as their new head coach, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel. Mendenhall, who recently coached New Mexico to a 5-7 record, has signed a six-year contract to take over the Aggies. He will succeed Nate Dreiling, who served as interim head coach after Blake Anderson’s departure over the summer. Under Dreiling, Utah State finished the season with a 4-8 record, marking the worst full-season record since 2016. Notably, one of those losses came at the hands of Mendenhall’s New Mexico team, who overcame a 16-point second-half deficit to defeat Utah State 50-45 on the road.
Mendenhall, a native of Alpine, Utah, is returning to his home state as a head coach for the first time since 2015. His career in Utah includes his first position as a defensive coordinator at Snow College in Ephraim over 30 years ago. However, he is most renowned for his time as head coach at BYU. After replacing Gary Crowton in 2004, Mendenhall transformed the program, leading the Cougars to their first non-losing season since 2001 and achieving five consecutive 10-win seasons.
Following his tenure at BYU, where he won two conference titles and nearly 70% of his games, Mendenhall moved to Virginia. Though his success at Virginia wasn’t as pronounced, he still managed to lead the Cavaliers to their first winning season since 2011 in 2018 and took them to the ACC Championship Game in 2019.
Mendenhall resigned from Virginia after the 2021 season and spent two years away from coaching before returning to New Mexico in 2023. In his one season at the helm, Mendenhall guided the Lobos to five wins, the most for the program since 2016.
Utah State, currently a member of the Mountain West Conference, will transition to the Pac-12 in 2026. Mendenhall’s experience and familiarity with Utah make him a strong fit for the program as they prepare for this shift.