Sept. 18, 2006
SAN DIEGO - SAN DIEGO STATE GAME NOTES
Utah (2-1/0-0 MWC) at San Diego State (0-2/0-0 MWC)
Television
The mtn. Rich Cellini (play-by-play), Jon Berger (analysis), Toby Christensen (sidelines).
Radio
KOGO-AM 600 San Diego. Lee Hamilton (play-by-play), John Kentera (analysis), Jack Cronin (sidelines) and Dave Marcus (producer). Josh Rosen-berg serves as host for the pregame and halftime shows. Coverage begins one hour prior to kickoff.
SDSU Opens Mountain West Conference Play with Home Game Against Utah, Followed by KGB SkyShow
San Diego State (0-2) opens its 2006 Mountain West Conference campaign with a home game against Utah (2-1) on Saturday at Qualcomm Stadium.
Game time is set for 5 p.m. PDT and shortly after the game, fans will be treated to the KGB SkyShow. In the two previous seasons that SDSU has played host to the event, the Aztecs have enjoyed large crowds. In 2004, San Diego State set a single-game regular-season home attendance mark with 57,216, while last season the Aztecs drew 55,868 fans for the SkyShow event.
The game will be televised by the mtn. and can be heard in San Diego on KOGO-AM 600.
Last Saturday, San Diego State put up a defensive effort for the ages, before falling to Wisconsin, 14-0. The Aztecs played undefeated Wisconsin even for 38:11 and were within a touchdown of the Badgers until the final 7:06 of the game. San Diego State held Wisconsin scoreless for two-and-a-half quarters and limited the Badgers to 85 yards passing.
Senior linebacker Russell Allen recorded nine tackles and senior safety Brett Sturm and senior linebacker Joe Martin contributed eight stops apiece. Senior nose tackle Jonathan Bailes added six tackles and forced a fumble after the Badgers were inside the red zone.
Although the Aztecs struggled on offense, they did not commit a turnover in the first 59 minutes of the game and had three drives that ended inside the Wisconsin 40. Sophomore quarterback Darren Mougey did something that the previous nine first-time starters at QB could not do for SDSU. He completed 15-of-27 passes for 102 yards and no interceptions to become the first Aztec quarterback since 1991 to complete over 50 percent of his passes, pass for more than 100 yards and not throw an interception in his first career start.
San Diego State's opening three-game stretch doesn't get any easier this week as the Aztecs entertain the Utes. This marks the third consecutive game for San Diego State against a team that played in a bowl game last season and received votes in the preseason AP poll this year.
Utah is coming off a 48-0 victory over Utah State last Saturday. The Utes are 31-8 since the beginning of the 2003 season.
This marks the 26th meeting between the Aztecs and Utes, with the series tied, 12-12-1. Last season, the Aztecs claimed their first victory in Salt Lake City since 1991, with a 28-19 victory over the Utes. The Aztecs are looking for consecutive wins in the series for the first time since winning in 1995 and 1998.
San Diego State is looking to snap a three-game losing streak in MWC openers. The Aztecs have not won their league opener since defeating Utah, 36-17, at Qualcomm Stadium in 2002. That year also marks the last time SDSU owned an above .500 record in league play. That season, the Aztecs finished 4-3 in conference play, and although SDSU has owned a .500 league mark since that time, they have been unable to climb above the break-even mark.