Aztecs travel to Utah State hoping to end four-game losing streak – San Diego Union-Tribune

San Diego State has enjoyed success in its series against Utah State, winning 13 of 17 all-time meetings between the teams.

Recent history isn’t so favorable, with the Aggies winning three of four meetings since 2019. That includes a 46-13 win over San Diego State in the 2021 Mountain West championship game played at Dignity Health Sports Park and a 32-24 double- overtime loss last year at Snapdragon Stadium.

The Aztecs are 5-0 on the road against Utah State, so they’ve got that going for them. Which is nice.

SDSU coach Sean Lewis said he expects the Aztecs to finish strong despite the season not unfolding as they would have preferred. SDSU is 3-7 overall and 2-3 in Mountain West play with two games remaining.

“If you commit to something…being the best that we can be day in and day out and improving and competing day in and day out,” Lewis said, “that’s who you’re going to be. You’re committed to doing that. … I believe that we’re going to continue to fight, and we’re going to do that at a high level. And again, we’re going to put our best foot forward.”

The Aztecs are five-point underdogs heading into Saturday afternoon’s game against the Aggies (3-7, 2-3) at Maverik Stadium. Kickoff is 12:30 pm PT in a game that will air on CBS Sports Network.

Here are five things to watch:

1. Slow their roll

Utah State is coming off its biggest win of the season, a 55-10 victory over a Hawaii team the Aztecs defeated 27-24 in midseason.

The Aggies offense produced 580 yards, with four passing touchdowns and three rushing TDs.

Utah State quarterback Spencer Petras (209-for-320, 2,288 yards, 17 TDs/10 INTs) has the Aggies ranked second in the Mountain West in passing yardage per game (287.4). Petras has rushed for only 44 yards, so he does not present the dual threat SDSU has seen most weeks this season.

The QB’s top target is Jalen Royals (55 catches, 834 yards, 6 TDs), though Kyrese White (36 catches, 450 yards, 3 TDs) and Otto Tia (36 catches, 342 yards, 4 TDs) are among others who will keep SDSU’s secondary busy.

While the Aztecs may be inclined to focus on rushing the passer, they also need to be mindful of Utah State running back Rahsul Faison. He rushed for a career-high 191 yards against Hawaii. That moved Faison within nine yards of 1,000 for the season.

SDSU’s defensive effort would be aided if edge rusher Trey White can get to the quarterback the way he did earlier in the year. White was leading the nation with 11 1/2 sacks, but has now gone three straight games without a sack.

The Aztecs’ defense will be missing starting linebacker Owen Chambliss, who is out for the season after suffering a lower left leg injury against UNLV that required surgery.

2. Value the football

Utah State has allowed at least 38 points in seven games this season. It gave up 62 points against Boise State and 50 against both UNLV and New Mexico.

That explains why the Aggies are allowing 39.1 points a game, which ranks 131st in the nation.

Utah State’s defense gave up a season-low 10 points last week against Hawaii. Picking off five passes had something to do with that. It was the most interceptions in a game for the Aggies in 53 years. Safety Jordan Vincent, who leads the team with 91 tackles, had two of the picks.

Utah State had only seven interceptions in the previous nine games combined. Whether this whet the Aggies’ appetite for more remains to be seen.

Lewis preaches valuing the football. SDSU quarterback Danny O’Neil did a good job of that during the first half of the season, throwing his first 127 passes without an interception. O’Neil (162-for-267, 1,752 yards, 11 TDs/6 INTs) has been intercepted at least eleven in four of the past five games. He was intercepted twice in each of SDSU’s past two road games at Boise State and UNLV.

The true freshman quarterback should be most mindful of 50/50 balls thrown deep downfield. SDSU wide receiver Jordan Napier has shown the ability to go up and get the ball, but it’s asking a lot in double-coverage situations.

3. SDSU’s run game

SDSU’s last two visits to Logan, Utah included two of the top 10 single-game rushing performances in program history.

SDSU ran for 400 yards — in a driving rain storm — there in 2016. It helped that the Aztecs had DJ Pumphrey (32 carries, 223 yards) and Rashaad Penny (5-16) in the backfield, though the only two rushing touchdowns in the game came from Juwan Washington (14-137).

The Aztecs rushed for 407 yards in 2020, with running backs Greg Bell (22-157), Chance Bell (10-98) and Jordan Byrd (1-73) accounting for most of the yardage.

SDSU is averaging only 123.9 rushing yards per game this season, but the Aztecs are going against a defense that ranks among the worst in the nation against the run. Utah State is allowing 230.2 yards a game on the ground, ranking 130th among 134 FBS teams.

SDSU running back Marquez Cooper (246 carries, 1,062 yards, 9 TDs) is averaging 106.2 yards a game. He needs to gain 82 yards against the Aggies to become the 23rd running back in college football history with 5,000 career rushing yards.

4. If it comes down to kicking…

SDSU kicker Gabe Plascencia has quietly moved atop the Mountain West in field goal-kicking percentage.

Plascencia is 11 for 12 for a .917 success rate. He has made 10 straight kicks, including three two weeks ago against New Mexico. His longest of the season was a 50-yarder against Texas A&M-Commerce.

John Baron II set SDSU’s single-season record of .913 in 2016 when he made 21 of 23 field goal attempts.

Utah State’s Tanner Cragun has made 6 of 7 field goals with a length of 40 yards. Cragun steadied the situation after Elliott Nimrod missed 4 of 7 kicks early in the season.

5. What a win means

The chance for a six-win season that would have qualified SDSU for bowl eligibility disappeared in last week’s loss at UNLV. It marks the second straight such season after 13 straight years of bowl eligibility.

Winning the last two games would mean five victories for the Aztecs, showing improvement over last year’s 4-8 finish. SDSU has lost four straight games and needs a victory to avoid the program’s first five-game losing streak since the 2008 team lost seven straight on the way to a 2-10 finish.

Utah State also won’t be bowl-eligible this season after going bowling six times in seven years and 11 of the past 13 seasons. The Aggies need a win over their last two games to avoid matching their worst full season (three wins in 2016) over the past 16 years.

Originally Published: November 22, 2024 at 1:40 PM PST