Aug. 21, 2003
Eastern Washington Eagles (0-0/0-0 Big Sky)
at San Diego State Aztecs (0-0/0-0 MWC)
Complete Football Game Notes vs. Eastern Washington (Aug. 30) in PDF Format
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Saturday, August 30, 2003 - 6:05 p.m. PDT
Qualcomm Stadium (54,000/grass) - San Diego, Calif.
Promotion: Hall of Fame Trading Cards/Floppy Hat Night
Happy New Year
San Diego State University will launch its 81st season of Aztec football on Aug. 30th when the Aztecs host the Eastern Washington Eagles at Qualcomm Stadium. Kickoff is set for 6:05 p.m. There is no television of the contest. The two universities will be meeting on the football field for the first time.
Setting the Scene
The Aztecs are coming off a 4-9 season that included a 4-3 mark in the Mountain West Conference - good enough for a third-place finish. The Eagles are coming off a 6-5 season that included a 3-4 record in Big Sky Conference play.
Series Stuff
San Diego State and Eastern Washington will be meeting for the first time ever. However, San Diego State is 8-0 vs. Big Sky competition. The Aztecs have not faced a member of the Division I-AA conference since defeating Nevada in 1995 when the Wolf Pack were in their final year of membership in the conference. No current member of the Big Sky has been on the Aztec schedule since SDSU journeyed to Montana State in 1968.
Team Capsules
Eastern Washington returns 16 starters and 41 lettermen from the 2002 squad that finished fourth in the Big Sky Conference. The Eagles have posted four straight winning seasons, including all three under fourth-year head coach Paul Wulff. Eastern ended the 2002 season with a victory over the nation's top-ranked Division I-AA team, undefeated Montana, and the Eagles lost just eight seniors from that squad. The Aztecs return 14 starters from last year's 4-9 team. The Aztecs scored 78 points in the final two games of the season, a win at Air Force and a one-point loss at Hawaii.
Opening Night
San Diego State is 42-36-5 in openers, including a 7-4-1 record in the past 12 years. San Diego State has dropped three straight heartbreakers in its last three openers. San Diego State was a 10-7 loser to Arizona State in 2000, a 23-10 loser to Arizona in 2001 in a home game San Diego State led at the half. Last season it was a 16-14 setback at Fresno State when the Aztecs had a field goal blocked on the game's final play.
Home Field
The good news is that San Diego State is 57-20-4 in home openers. The bad news is that San Diego State has lost its last three home openers (two losses to Arizona State and one to Arizona). From 1970 to 1999, the Aztecs were 25-4-1 in home openers and some of the victims included Oregon State, Fresno State, Wisconsin, Iowa State, California, Utah, Air Force and Navy. The tie was a 31-31 draw with Southern California in 1992.
Did You Know?
Heading into the 2003 season, San Diego State's official all-time winning percentage of .572 ranks No. 45 in the country, according to the NCAA. Ten times in its history San Diego State has won at least nine games and seven Aztec squads have posted 10 wins in a single season. On four occasions the Aztecs have gone undefeated.
Streak Breakers?
When the Eagles fly into town to kickoff the 2003 season, San Diego State will be looking to break several negative streaks. Along with the three-game losing streak in season openers and the three-game losing streak in home openers, the Aztecs will be looking to end a seven-game losing streak against non-conference opponents. San Diego State's last win outside of Mountain West Conference competition was Oct. 6, 2001, against Eastern Illinois. In fact, San Diego State has lost 12 of its last 13 non-conference games. However, it should be noted the losses came against the likes of Arizona State (three times), Arizona (twice), Oregon State, Ohio State and Illinois (twice).
The Bad Streaks
Since scoring 41 points in a season-opening win over South Florida in 1999, the Aztecs have struggled on the scoreboard in opening games. The last three openers have included a 10-7 loss to Arizona State, a 23-10 loss to Arizona and last year's 16-14 loss at Fresno State. The Aztecs will also be looking to end a streak of four straight losing seasons since the 1998 Las Vegas Bowl appearance.
Team Trends
The offensive success of the 2002 Aztecs is well documented but here are some numbers: San Diego State's average of 403.8 yards of total offense was the best by an Aztec squad since the 1996 group averaged 476.5 yards per game. The '96 offense was coordinated by Tom Craft. The 330-yard passing average in 2002 was the best by a San Diego State team since the 1990 team passed for a school-record 526.8 yards per game. In fact, the 2002 average of 330 yards is the second best in school history. The Aztecs averaged 23.8 points per game, the best at the school since 1999.
More Trends
San Diego State scored at least 28 points in six games last season, the most by an SDSU team since the 1996 squad averaged 38.9 points per game. And if you are concerned about a no-huddle team's time of possession, keep in mind the Aztec offense ran a school-record 1,003 plays in 2002.
SDSU-EWU Connections
Eastern Washington head coach Paul Wulff, a native of Woodland, Calif., was a teammate of San Diego State offensive line coach Damon Baldwin when the two played for the New York/New Jersey Knights in the World League. Seven members of the Eastern Washington squad are Californians. San Diego State freshman wide receiver Corey Boudreaux and EWU's Jeff Diulio both attended Mater Dei High School.
Aztec Rewind
San Diego State could make the case that it is coming off its most successful losing season ever. The Aztecs finished 4-3 in Mountain West play for their best record in conference action since the league was formed in 1999. San Diego State was the nation's most improved passing team in 2002, jumping from 89th in 2001 to fifth nationally in 2002 with 330 passing yards per game. San Diego State was fourth nationally in total offense improvement in Tom Craft's first year, making the jump from 98th to 29th nationally.
The Q-Spot
The new high-octane offense at San Diego State in 2002 resulted in the University's first increase in football attendance since 1999 when the squad was coming off its appearance in the Las Vegas Bowl. San Diego State averaged 25,263 fans in its five home dates last season. That is up from 22,518 in 2001 and it marks just the second increase at San Diego State since 1992. The jump marks the first time since 1986 that San Diego State has seen an increase in football attendance despite a losing record. And in 1986, those fans seemed to have some insight as the Aztecs responded with an 8-4 record, a WAC title and an appearance in the Holiday Bowl.
The Aztec Family
San Diego State will continue a long tradition this season; it is the tradition of the Aztec Family and the immediate family. Once more SDSU will have a handful of roster members that are connected to former Aztec football players. Safety Josh Dean is the son of former Aztec and Washington Redskin Vernon Dean. Safety Shane Russell is the brother of former Aztec safety and current Minnesota Viking Brian Russell. Safety Marcus Demps is the younger brother of former Aztec safety and current Baltimore Raven Will Demps. Receiver Devin Pitts is the younger brother of former Aztec and current Houston Texan Chester Pitts. Freshman receiver Brian Spinks and frosh running back Lynell Hamilton are cousins. In 1999, SDSU had two brothers start in the same game when Kabeer and Akbar Gbaja Biamila lined up in the defensive front against Kansas.
Watch Lists
A pair of Aztecs have garnered some preseason notoriety. Junior linebacker Kirk Morrison is on the watch list for the Bronko Nagurski Award, the Lombardi Award and the Butkus Award. Senior quarterback Adam Hall, meanwhile, is on the Dave O'Brien National Quarterback Award Watch List.
Offensive People In '03
San Diego State returns proven starters at quarterback (Adam Hall) and at left tackle (Brendan Darby), who were both honorable mention all-conference last season. Another returning starter is center Jasper Harvey, who has moved from guard to the middle of the offensive front. Another lineman, Gerald Sykes, started during the second half of the season and Mike Kracalik was a part-time starter a year ago. Newcomers to the starting lineup will surface at running back (although Michael Franklin has a handful of starts under his belt), tight end and at all three receiver spots.
Defensive People In '03
The Aztec defense figures to be improved from a year ago. The entire two-deep returns at linebacker, including all-league selection and All-America candidate Kirk Morrison. A second-team all-league cornerback returns in the form of Jeff Shoate. Two safeties who could both push for all-league honors (Josh Dean and Marviel Underwood) are also back as returning starters. Defensive end Ryan Iata has been granted a sixth year and returns as a starter at one defensive end and athletic and active Brandon Rager is listed as a starter at the other defensive end slot. SDSU also retains a starter at tackle in Brook Miller. In essence, eight starters are returning with starting jobs open at one corner, one tackle and one defensive end spot entering camp.
The Specialists
San Diego State is replacing punter/kicker/holder Brian Simnjanvoski and his cousin, placekicker Tommy Kirovski, from last year's squad. The leading candidates appear to be Seth Santoro at punter and J.C. Mejia as placekicker. Both players are walkons.
Newcomers to Watch
Tom Craft's first two recruiting classes have received rave reviews and the first real impact of those recruiting-battle victories should be seen this season. Ramal Porter, a receiver/kick returner, is a redshirt freshman who has been running with the first team since early in camp. Receiver Devin Pitts and tight end Jeremy Justice could be in the starting lineup and at some point, true freshman running back Lynell Hamilton is likely to make an impact. He ran for 63 yards on eight carries during the Family Day scrimmage on Aug. 16. On the defensive side expect safety Reggie Grigsby and new defensive linemen Derrick Durbin, Jonathan Bailes and Vaati Maka to show up in the rotation.
Sixth Sense
For the second consecutive season, San Diego State will have a sixth-year player as a starter at defensive end. This season it is Ryan Iata, who was lost to a knee injury in the third game of the 2002 season against Arizona State. Iata takes the place of Akbar Gbaja Biamila, who was a sixth-year player (and starter at defensive end) last season.
New Heroes
An interesting storyline during the first few weeks of the season will be the development of the Aztec receiving corps. A year ago, SDSU receivers J.R. Tolver and Kassim Osgood combined to set new NCAA records for receptions by two teammates (236) and receiving yards in a season by two teammates (3,337). Throw in the departure of senior receiver Ronnie Davenport (56 catches for 431 yards) and the numbers get blurry. San Diego State returns just 40 of its 352 receptions from a year ago.
Pay Dirt-less
The leading returning Aztec receiver is walkon Robert Ortiz, who enters 2003 with 13 catches for 141 yards. In fact, Ortiz is the only returning Aztec who has caught a touchdown pass in his career (one vs. Idaho in 2002). However, it should be noted that entering last season Kassim Osgood and Ronnie Davenport had never played a down at San Diego State.
Ground Gaining
Expect the Aztecs to look much different in the running game in 2003. San Diego State is coming off of a season which saw the Aztecs rush for just 72.9 yards per game, their lowest average since 1971. The leading returning rusher is sophomore Michael Franklin, who ran for 346 yards last season. And like Robert Ortiz, Franklin found the end zone very lonely. His one rushing touchdown last season (vs. Colorado) is the only one returning to the team in 2002 (due in part to the decision to redshirt would-be sophomore Frederick Collins).
Spreading the Wealth
San Diego State defensive back Shane Johnson recovered a fumble in the end zone for a touchdown at Wyoming and linebacker Kirk Morrison returned an interception for a touchdown at Wyoming. As a result, SDSU's special teams and defense (with 12 points) return as many points as the Aztec offense returns from the 2002 season.
No Need to Panic
Despite the woeful number of points and receptions returning to San Diego State, some newcomers may things a little easier to digest. Transfer receiver Devin Pitts caught 18 passes in 2001 as a freshman at Southern California. Sophomore receiver Jeff Webb, who sat out last season, caught 16 passes as a freshman in 2002. Junior running back Jason Vann, who also sat out last year, has 153 rushing yards and a pair of rushing touchdowns to his credit. In the final game of his freshman season in 2000, he ran for 78 yards and two scores.
Turnover Talk
San Diego State's season, like many in the world of NCAA football, will in part be determined by the turnover. Last season, San Diego State's rise to third in the Mountain West was helped by the fact that the Aztecs were even on the season in turnovers with 27 turnovers and 27 takeaways. Included in SDSU's numbers were just 10 interceptions on 584 passing attempts. Overall and in Mountain West play, the Aztecs were even in turnover ratio. The improvement can be documented with a short look into history. In 2001, San Diego State (3-8) was dead last in the Mountain West and among the worst in the country at minus-nine in the turnover department for the year.
Sunday Aztecs
San Diego State continues to be one of America's top collegiate football programs when it comes to National Football League rosters. Two head coaches and 23 NFL players were Aztecs after NFL squads broke training camp (but prior to the completion of final rosters). Overall, San Diego State is represented on 19 pro rosters. The following is a quick look at the Aztecs in the NFL in 2003.
Amon Arnold Defensive Lineman Baltimore RavensWill Demps Safety Baltimore RavensHerman Edwards Head Coach New York JetsMarshall Faulk Running Back St. Louis CardinalsJohn Fox Head Coach Carolina PanthersAkbar Gbaja Biamila Defensive End Oakland RaidersKabeer Gbaja Biamila Defensive End Green Bay PackersLa Roi Glover Defensive Lineman Dallas CowboysRobert Griffith Safety Cleveland BrownsAz Hakim Receiver Detroit LionsMike Houghton Offensive Lineman Buffalo BillsJonathan Ingram Center Kansas City ChiefsDerrick Lewis Receiver New Orleans SaintsJonas Lewis Running Back Houston TexansLarry Ned Running Back Minnesota VikingsKassim Osgood Receiver San Diego ChargersChester Pitts Offensive Lineman Houston TexansBrian Russell Safety Minnesota VikingsEphraim Salaam Tackle Denver BroncosRicky Sharpe Safety Cleveland BrownsLon Sheriff Quarterback Miami DolphinsBrian Simnjanvoski Punter Arizona CardinalsJ.R. Tolver Receiver Miami DolphinsJoe Tuipala Linebacker Jacksonville JaguarsKyle Turley Tackle St. Louis Cardinals
Safety First
Former Aztec safety (and former quarterback) Brian Russell has recently been named as a starter at Minnesota. Russell's success in the NFL is just the most recent for Aztec safeties. Russell is the latest Aztec to have success in the pro ranks at the position. Former all-Mountain safety Will Demps is a starter at safety for the Baltimore Ravens and another former Aztec, Robert Griffith, has been in the NFL since 1994 as a safety. Russell began his career as a San Diego State quarterback and led SDSU to the 1998 Las Vegas Bowl. Demps and Griffith both came to San Diego State as walkons.
Not In Your Program
There are at least two Aztec walkons who figure to play prominent roles this fall. Kicker J.C. Mejia is a 5-9, 170-pound senior from Salinas by way of Hartnell Community College who is leading in the battle to replace Tommy Kirovski as SDSU's placekicker. He will wear No. 18. On the defensive line, Alohaii Leolofi wears No. 63, and is a product of Barstow High School before playing at College of the Desert. He figures to be in the Aztec defensive line rotation at end or tackle.
The "All" Guys
San Diego State enters the 2003 season with a healthy list of players who could contend for all-conference honors. Returning to the defense will be two players who have already been honored by the league: first-team all-conference linebacker Kirk Morrison and second-team all-Mountain West safety Jeff Shoate. The offense returns a pair of honorable mention all-Mountain West players in quarterback Adam Hall and tackle Brendan Darby. Also back is honorable mention all-league punt returner Kyle Conerly.
Hall Marks
Adam Hall, who last season had two of the top eight passing games in San Diego State history, has been named to the Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award watch list. The award is presented annually to the nation's top quarterback. Hall is the third leading passer among returning quarterbacks after throwing for 3,253 yards in less than 11 games last year. He is also fifth among returning players in total offense. In 2002, he set a San Diego State two-game record when he passed for 516 yards against Arizona State and then followed it up the next week with a 506-yard effort at Idaho. Hall and former quarterback Dan McGwire are the only Aztecs who have recorded two 500-yard passing games in an SDSU career.
Captain Kirk
Kirk Morrison enters his junior season as one of America's top linebackers. Morrison was one of just four sophomores nationally to be named a first-team all-conference linebacker a year ago and was one of six sophomores recognized as first-team all-Mountain West in 2002. In 2003, Morrison is on the preseason watch list for the Bronko Nagurski Award (nation's outstanding defensive player) and the Lombardi Award (the nation's outstanding lineman or linebacker).
Starting Blocks
Defensive tackle Brook Miller, offensive tackle Brendan Darby and linebacker Kirk Morrison are the only returning Aztecs who started every game last season. Darby leads the Aztecs with a string of 22 straight starts.
Two-Deep
San Diego State's two-deep entering the Eastern Washington game features 25 players who were on the depth chart entering the Dec. 7, 2002, season finale at Hawaii. The top 44 players include 25 players who were on the 2002 preseason two-deep. The depth chart also features six freshmen, 12 sophomores, 14 juniors and just 12 seniors in the first 44 players.