Bonita Vista High School alumnus Greg Bell appears to have firmly established himself as San Diego State University’s dominant running back through four games with 532 net rushing yards, an average of 134.2 yards per game, and five rushing touchdowns.
He led the Aztecs (3-1) on the ground in last Saturday’s key 34-10 Mountain West Conference victory against the University of Hawaii (2-2) at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson with 160 net rushing yards and two touchdowns, scoring on runs of three and 62 yards.
Of particular note, Bell extended his own program record with his fourth consecutive 100-yard rushing game to start his Aztec career.
The bell continues to ring loudly for the Aztecs.
SDSU employed a punishing running attack to subdue the Rainbow Warriors with a 326-66 edge in net rushing yards. The Aztecs ran 64 offensive plays — 51 of them via the run game.
“We had really great energy and I liked how we came out — we went about our business,” SDSU head coach Brady Hoke said. “When our offense has the juice, they do a nice job at the point of attack.”
“Greg made some great plays,” Hoke added in complimentary fashion.
Helix Charter High School alum Carson Baker completed four of 13 passing attempts for 30 yards while being sacked once and intercepted twice.
But the passing game proved not to be a factor braced by the team’s ferocious rushing attack and one timely defense.
Jordan Byrd, a junior from Albuquerque, N.M., ripped off a 51-yard scoring run with 3:26 remaining in the first quarter to get the hosts rolling. Bell, a senior transfer, followed with his longest run of the season to date with 1:08 left in the quarter to double the SDSU lead to 14-0.
Bell scored his second touchdown in the game in the early stages of the second quarter and the Aztecs had quickly built a commanding 21-0 lead through the ground game.
Segun Olubi (Corona) tacked on a 71-yard interception return for a touchdown with 1:20 to play in the first half and the Aztecs suddenly led 28-0.
Rancho Bernardo High School alum Matt Araiza kicked field goals of 27 and 36 yards to round out the scoring for SDSU, which built an insurmountable 31-3 lead early in the fourth quarter.
Bell finished the game with 169 all-purpose yards after making one catch for nine yards. Byrd ranked next up on the team with 81 all-purpose yards, including 61 rushing yards and 21 yards on a kickoff return.
Bell leads the team in scoring with six touchdowns, including one receiving touchdown.
SDSU is averaging 280.2 rushing yards per game.
Chance Bell follows Greg Bell on the tally sheet with 212 net rushing yards and three rushing scores while Byrd ranks third with 177 net rushing yards and two touchdowns.
Greg Bell leads the team with 609 all-purpose yards, an average of 152.2 yards per game.
“It feels good,” Bell said. “I have to give all the credit to my O-line (offensive line) and the coaching staff for calling good plays. The O-line was blocking well, our receivers were blocking well and the tight ends were, too. Without those guys, I would not be able to do that (succeed in the running game).”
The former Baron standout said all the running backs on the team support each other.
“There’s no ego in the running back room,” Bell said. “We all love each other. We all want to see everybody do good. If one of us breaks a long run, we try to be the next one to break a long run. There’s no ego in there. We’re all happy for each other.
“We are chasing each other. When Jordan (Byrd) breaks a long one, I come to the sideline and tell him ‘I am going to get mine.’ If I break a long one, they (Jordan Byrd, Chance Bell) come to the sideline and tell me they are going to get theirs. We try to match each other’s intensity. It worked out well (against Hawaii).”
The Aztec defense, ranked second in the nation in point-scoring, limited the Rainbow Warriors to six rushing first downs while sacking Hawaii quarterback Chevan Cordeiro seven times and picking him off once.
Tariq Thompson (St. Augustine), Seyddrick Lakalaka and Caden McDonald led the SDSU defense with seven tackles apiece while McDonald and Jonah Tuvai (Manhattan Beach) both recorded two sacks. McDonald had three tackles for a loss in the game while Keshawn Banks had one fumble recovery.
Helix Charter alum Michael Shawcoft was credited with two tackles and a half-sack. In four games, including one start, Shawcroft has recorded 16 tackles and two fumble recoveries.
Christian High School alum Jesse Matthews returned five punts for 60 yards, including one for 29 yards. On the season he has a team leading 10 catches for 173 yards.
Mater Dei Catholic High School alum Quentin Frazier recorded two tackles and a six-yard interception return for Hawaii.
Extra points
The Aztecs have three conference games remaining on their abbreviated 2020 schedule: Saturday at conference co-leader Nevada-Reno (4-0), then Nov. 27 at Fresno State (3-1) and Dec. 5 against Colorado State (1-2).
SDSU is averaging 30.8 points through four games — up from 21.2 points last season.
Mountain West standings: Nevada-Reno 4-0, San Jose State 4-0, Boise State 3-0, Fresno State 3-1, San Diego State 3-1, Hawaii 2-2, Colorado State 1-2, Wyoming 1-2, Air Force 0-2, New Mexico 0-3, UNLV 0-4, Utah State 0-4
AP Top 25: 1. Alabama (6-0), 2. Notre Dame (8-0), 3. Ohio State (3-0), 4. Clemson (7-1), 5. Texas A&M (5-1), 6. Florida (5-1), 7. Cincinnati (7-0), 8. BYU (8-0), 9. Indiana (4-0), 10. Wisconsin (2-0), 11. Oregon (2-0), 12. Miami, Fla. (7-1), 13. Georgia (4-2), 14. Oklahoma State (5-1), 15. (tie) Coastal (7-0), Marshall (7-0), 17. Iowa State (5-2), 18. Oklahoma (5-2), 19. Northwestern (4-0), 20. USC (2-0), 21. Liberty (8-0), 22. Texas (5-2), 23. Auburn (4-2), 24. Louisiana-Lafayette (7-1), 25. Tulsa (4-1)
CIF COMPETITION ON HOLD:
The State CIF Office issued a memo on Monday noting that Gov. Gavin Newsom and Dr. Mark Ghaly from the California Department of Public Health had disclosed in their COVID-19 press briefing that the release of updated youth sports guidance has been postponed. Therefore, the current guidance remains in effect, and CIF competitions are not allowed until new guidance is provided.
