July 8, 2011
First pitch by DJ Gay from the May 12 Padres game
SAN DIEGO - SDSU football head coach Rocky Long is set to throw out the ceremonial first pitch at the San Diego Padres game on Thursday, July 14, at PETCO Park.
The contest will mark the Padres' first after the All-Star break as they play host to division-rival San Francisco at 7:05 p.m. PT.
Long will be the second Aztec to throw out the first pitch this season as D.J. Gay of the SDSU men's basketball team held the honor back in May. That night the Padres honored the Aztecs' banner 2010-11 effort.
While the upcoming season will be Long's first as San Diego State's head coach, it will not be his first campaign on Montezuma Mesa. Long was the Aztecs' defensive coordinator the last two seasons and played a key part in the team's improvement on defense.
Prior to his arrival at San Diego State, the Aztecs ranked 112th in pass efficiency defense, 113th in total defense and scoring defense, and 118th in rushing defense. In two short seasons, Long lifted SDSU into the top 60 in all four defensive categories, highlighted by a No. 20 ranking in pass efficiency defense in 2010.
Long helped San Diego State finish with a 9-4 record last year, the school's most wins in a campaign since the 1977 squad went 10-1. The Aztecs also posted their first winning season in 12 years and won their first bowl game since 1969 after they defeated Navy in the Poinsettia Bowl.