Sean Lewis takes over as San Diego State University’s new head football coach. He has stated he wants the Aztecs to play fast.
They may just have to do that if they want to climb up the Mountain West standings this season.
SDSU has been picked to finish in eighth place in the 2024 Mountain West preseason poll. There are 12 teams in the conference.
The Aztecs finished 4-8 overall last season, but just 2-6 in conference play to tie with New Mexico and Nevada for last place in the standings.
At 2-10 overall, Nevada finished with the worst overall record among MW teams in 2023.
Early season media jockeys place SDSU somewhere in the middle of the pack this season.
Defending MW champion Boise State topped this season’s preseason poll with 543 points, garnering 38 of the 46 first-place votes, while UNLV (471 points) and Fresno State (460 points) followed. Air Force Academy placed fourth with 384 points, while Colorado State (337 points), Wyoming (296 points) and Utah State (285 points) placed all ahead of SDSU (251 points).
Bringing up the rear are Hawaii (214 points), San Jose State (185 points), New Mexico (85 points) and Nevada (77 points).
Players earning preseason MW all-conference honors included Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty as the offensive player of the year while Boise State’s Amed Hassanein and UNLV’s Jackson Woodard shared co-defensive player of the year honors. UNLV’s Jacob De Jesus was chosen as the MW Special Teams Player of the Year.
Jeanty rushed for 1,347 yards and scored 14 touchdowns last year while Hassanein registered 12.5 sacks.
SDSU’s first season under Lewis starts Aug. 31 when the Aztecs host Texas A&M-Commerce at Snapdragon Stadium (5 p.m. kickoff).
SDSU will play six of its 12 games in 2024 at Snapdragon Stadium. Seven of SDSU’s 11 FBS opponents qualified for a bowl game last season.
The upcoming season doesn’t rate as a pushover; anything the Aztecs carve out for themselves will have to be earned.
Fans will get a sneak preview of just what the 2024 SDSU football team might have to offer at Saturday’s annual FanFest scrimmage at Snapdragon Stadium (5 p.m.).
“We’re excited to get the guys back to campus … to get refreshed and recharged … to start training camp and get this team unified and connected so that we can get ready to rock and roll here with the season, obviously fast approaching,” Lewis said.
“It’s a fun time of year, excited about where we’re at, excited about the work that the guys have done during the summertime, and really eager to get going, see where we’re at, what we got, and how close knit we can get this team, and trained up.”
Lewis said the players have a better understanding of what the coaching staff is looking for. For Lewis, he’s approaching his first SDSU camp with about half of the roster virtually new.
So, it’s been a learning process for Lewis as well.
He said the focus of camp has been on establishing physicality and identity.
“Obviously, a ton of conversation about the quarterback play, but it doesn’t matter who’s back there if we can’t protect them,” Lewis said. “So, establishing our identity up front and still being a physical unit that can control the line of scrimmage and be able to run the football, be balanced and push the ball vertically down the field as well. So, that physicality and identity up front is a big piece of who we’re going to be.”
Lewis said he’s already discovered that one of the things the Aztecs excel at is working hard.
“That’s a great foundation to have,” the SDSU head coach said. “As we refine where all these new pieces fit in, and the growth and development of the guys that were here in the spring and the progress that they’ve made, we will get some stakes in the ground and know this guy’s going to be in this place and what complements what he does. Then we’ll be able to build out holistically what it looks like in all three phases from a schematic standpoint, so that we can consistently again be successful in all three phases with it.”
SDSU 2024 FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
August
31: Texas A&M-Commerce at SDSU, 5 p.m.
September
7: Oregon State at SDSU, 7:30 p.m.
14: SDSU at Cal-Berkeley, 7:30 p.m.
28: SDSU at Central Michigan, TBA
October
5: Hawaii at SDSU, 5 p.m.
12: SDSU at Wyoming, 1:30 p.m. MT
26: Washington State at SDSU, 7:30 p.m.
November
1: SDSU at Boise State, 6 p.m. MT
8: New Mexico at SDSU, 7:30 p.m.
16: SDSU at UNLV, 7 p.m.
23: SDSU at Utah State, 1:30 p.m. MT
30: Air Force at SDSU, TBA
SDSU AZTECS LOCALS
- Lucky Sutton, sophomore running back, Cathedral Catholic High School
- Bennett Walker, senior cornerback, Patrick Henry High School, San Diego Mesa College, Eastern Michigan
- Tano Letuli, sophomore linebacker, Cathedral Catholic High School, Army
- Buxton, freshman cornerback, Mater Dei Catholic High School
- Christon, senior running back, Madison High School
- Nick Gardinera, sophomore running back, Scripps Ranch High School
- Arnold Escano, senior cornerback, Olympian High School, Southwestern College
- Hamlet, senior cornerback, Grossmont College
- Trey White, sophomore edge, Eastlake High School
- Kendricks, sophomore linebacker, Eastlake High School
- Tyson Chavez, junior long snapper, Mission Hills High School
- Mekhi Shaw, senior wide receiver, Scripps Ranch High School
•Jerry McClure, freshman wide receiver, Mater Dei Catholic High School, UCLA
SDSU spring football welcomes 26 new players, 22 transfers
By Phillip Brents
Sports editor
San Diego State University head football coach Sean Lewis got his first look at his team in a full-blown intra-squad scrimmage at Saturday’s Aztec FAST Showcase event at Snapdragon Stadium. The estimated 3,000 fans in attendance got a chance to survey a decidedly new-look SDSU squad with 26 new players on the spring roster.
Whether the face-lift will add up to a better finish than last season’s 4-8 record and non-bowl game appearance remains to be seen. But Lewis was certainly enthusiastic to see his team perform on the field in front of hometown fans.
The Aztec offense produced five touchdowns on the afternoon – four passing and one rushing — while tacking on four field goals. SDSU scored on nine of its 14 offensive possessions in the contest.
Lewis called the Aztec FAST Showcase more of an open practice than a game.
“We’re going to just divide the team offensively and defensively, create some one-on-one situations early on to get the competitive juices flowing,” he said.
All four quarterbacks got a shot behind center.
A.J. Duffy, a sophomore transfer from Florida State by way of Rancho Verde High School in Riverside County, completed seven of 11 passes for 112 yards and two touchdowns while returner Kyle Crum, a sophomore from Norco High School, completed five of seven passes for 36 yards and one touchdown.
Javance Tupou’ata-Johnson, a redshirt freshman from Oakland, completed six of 11 passes for 69 yards with one touchdown while Danny O’Neil, a freshman signal-caller from Indianapolis, completed two of six attempts for 15 yards.
Lewis said it’s still open as to which player among the four will be named the team’s starting signal-caller, which will be done in the fall.
“It’s amazing how tight those guys are,” Lewis said. “They all have each other’s backs, and they go about the work the right way, which is pretty unique for that position. Because at the end of the day, one guy is going to get the ball but they’re all supporting one another. We’re all helping each other, and it’s been really cool to see.”
Returner Lucky Sutton, a sophomore from Cathedral Catholic High School, scored on a one-yard touchdown run to round out the TD parade for the Aztecs. He rushed 11 times for 36 yards with the one score.
Senior running back Kenan Christon (Madison High School) had seven carries for 21 yards while junior Martin Blake (Las Vegas) gained 20 yards on three carries. Returner Cam Davis, a junior from Dallas, Texas, rushed for 14 yards on six attempts while returner Jaylon Armstead, a senior from Los Angeles, had 11 yards on five carries.
Crum rushed three times for nine yards while O’Neil had five carries for eight yards. Duffy carried the ball three times for negative-five yards.
Pierre Brown, a redshirt freshman receiver from Irvine, and Mikey Welsh, a sophomore receiver from Servite, each had one carry for three yards.
Duffy opened scoring with a 36-yard pass to Louis Brown IV, a junior transfer from Colorado State by way of South Los Angeles, to cap a 70-yard drive in seven plays. Tight end Gabe Garrteson, a sophomore transfer from Butte College in Chico, then hauled in an eight-yard scoring pass from Tupou’ata Johnson to complete a 75-yard drive in nine plays.
Duffy later connected with Jude Wolfe, a senior transfer from USC by way of St. John Bosco High School, from 36 yards out on a fourth-and-13 play to cap a 54-yard field march while Jordan Napier, a redshirt freshman from Fontana, caught an eight-yard TD pass from Crum.
The Aztecs totaled 232 receiving yards on 20 catches. Brown led the group with five catches for 79 yards, Napier with five catches for 46 yards, sophomore Baylin Brooks(Pasadena) with three catches for 40 yards, Wolfe with one catch for 36 yards, Welsh with three catches for 13 yards, Garretson with one catch for eight yards, Davis with one catch for five yards and senior Mekhi Shaw (Scripps Ranch) with one catch for five yards.
Following the graduation of standout kicker/punter Jack Browning, SDSU will be looking for another go-to guy on special teams. Four Aztecs got the audition on Saturday: redshirt junior Gabriel Plascencia (Oakland), senior transfer Abraham Montano (Fresno State), senior transfer Tyler Pastula (University at Albany) and senior transfer Nick Lopez (Louisville).
Plascencia split the uprights from 26 and 42 yards while Montano nailed field goals of 26 and 43 yards. Lopez connected from 35 yards out.
Senior linebacker Cody Moon (Albuquerque) led the defensive effort with five tackles while five other SDSU defenders logged four stops apiece: junior linebacker Brady Anderson (Bakersfield), senior safety Devaughn Celestine (Placentia), freshman linebacker Owen Chambliss (Corona), freshman linebacker Chris Fewell (Lincoln) and junior defensive lineman Dominic Oliver (San Jose).
South County rostered players pitched in on defense. Eastlake High School alum Trey White, a sophomore linebacker, had two tackles for losses while freshman cornerback Isaiah Buxton (Mater Dei Catholic) had two pass break-ups.
Junior linebacker D.J. Herman (Las Vegas) had one pass break-up and one sack while sophomore transfer cornerback Jakson Berman (Washington) had one interception for 15 yards.
Overall, Aztec D-men recorded seven tackles for 27 yards in losses and five pass break-ups.
White’s two TFL totaled eight yards. Oliver had one TFL for five yards while Anderson and freshman redshirt defensive end Hudson Mitchell (Tucson) each had one TFL for four yards, sophomore defensive lineman Ryan Henderson (Las Vegas) and junior defensive lineman Keion Mitchell (Framingham, Mass.) each had one TFL for three yards.
Players with three tackles included Anderson, sophomore redshirt cornerback Tayvion Beasley (Inglewood), junior safety D.J. Bryant (Oakland), Henderson, Herman, junior transfer safety Dalesaon Staley (Northern Iowa) and White.
Players with two tackles included junior safety Eric Butler (Corona), sophomore safety Max Garrison (Pasadena), sophomore safety Josh Hunter (Temecula), senior defensive lineman Marlem Louis (Venice, Fla.), junior safety Jatavious Magee (Federal Way, Wash.), senior transfer cornerback Bryce Phillips (Tennessee State) and redshirt freshman linebacker Jake Sinz (Temecula).
Senior defensive lineman Tupu Alualu (Honolulu), senior defensive lineman Wyatt Draeger (Reno), junior safety Joshua Gaynes (Las Vegas), junior redshirt cornerback Xavier Hamlet (Grossmont College), Mitchell, sophomore defensive lineman Brady Nassar (Pleasanton), senior transfer William Nimmo Jr. (UCLA), redshirt freshman Caleb Otlewski (Melissa, Texas), redshirt defensive lineman Talib Salahuddin (Riverside City College) and senior transfer defensive back Bennett Walker (Eastern Michigan) each were credited with one tackle in the game.
SDSU kicks off its 2024 fall slate with another intra-squad scrimmage in mid-August before kicking off its regular season schedule with home games against Texas A&M Commerce (Aug. 31) and Oregon State (Sept. 7).
Commerce won the 2017 NCAA Division II national championship under the guidance of Southwestern College alum Luis Perez and has since been promoted to Division I status (since 2022).
Road games follow Sept. 14 at UC-Berkeley, Sept. 21 at Central Michigan, Oct. 12 at Wyoming, Nov. 2 at Boise State, Nov. 16 at UNLV and Nov. 23 at Utah State.
The Aztecs have six home games on slate. SDSU will host Hawaii on Oct. 5, Washington State on Oct. 26, New Mexico on Nov. 9 and Air Force on Nov. 30.
The Aztecs will play seven Mountain West Conference games. Not on the schedule this year are Fresno State, Colorado State, Nevada and San Jose State.
UNLV, San Jose State and Boise State each finished with 6-2 conference records last season while SDSU and Nevada both finished 2-6 in conference play.
