Sept. 24, 2005
Final Stats | Quotes | Notes
SAN DIEGO (AP) - Kevin O'Connell threw a career-high four touchdown passes as San Diego State won its first game of the season with a 52-21 win over San Jose State Saturday night.
O'Connell, a sophomore, completed 23 of 29 passes for a career-best 271 yards as the Aztecs (1-3) rebounded from last week's 27-6 loss at No. 8 Ohio State.
Robert Ortiz caught first-half TD passes of 25 and 18 yards as San Diego State took a 28-14 halftime lead over the Spartans (1-2).
San Diego State, which avoided losing its first four games of the season for the second time in four years, had 301 yards of offense in the first half. O'Connell was 16-for-20 passing in the first half for 213 yards.
The Aztecs finished with 513 yards of total offense.
Patrick Perry scored for San Jose State on runs of 7 and 2 yards, both in the first quarter, and Chad Bozzo hit Rufus Skillern with a 27-yard touchdown pass midway through the fourth period.
The game was tied at 14 after one quarter as each team scored on its first two possessions. O'Connell connected with Ortiz on a 25-yard touchdown pass and Perry scored from seven yards out. O'Connell then hit Jeff Webb with a 33-yard scoring pass. Perry tied the score again, scoring from the 2.
Lynell Hamilton also scored in the first half for San Diego State on a 4-yard run.
O'Connell's last touchdown pass went 2 yards to Lance Louis. Darren Mougey threw a 23-yard touchdown to DeMarco Sampson and Brett Sturm added a 44-yard interception return for a touchdown.