Dec. 2, 2015
2014
Kaehler: A Thinking Man's Game (Aug. 5)
Whittaker: Long Time Gone, Never Forgotten (Aug. 6)
Life in the Weight Room: Hall's Strong Suit (Aug. 15)
Roberts: A Career Comes Full Circle (Aug. 21)
The Season's in Session, Take Your Seats (Aug. 29)
How Quickly we Forget (Sept. 7)
Looks can be Deceiving (Sept. 19)
O-Line has Aztecs' Running Game in High Gear (Oct. 23)
Falling Short is no Longer an Option for Aztec Football (Nov. 29)
Winds of Change: "Rise To 25" Fuels New Direction for Football (Dec. 23)
Pumphrey in Need of a Playing Partner (Dec. 24)
2015
Football no Longer Needs Sun to Sell Itself (Feb. 4)
Aztec Football is Flush with Experience in 2015 (Feb. 20)
Regardless of Road, Whittaker's Future is Flush with Success (July 23)
Gordon no Longer Wrestling with Football Future (July 30)
Kazee has the Corner Covered in Aztec D (Aug. 5)
Hageman has Given Boot to Aztec Kicking Woes (Aug. 14)
Life is a Snap for Aztecs' Overbaugh (Aug. 21)
Munson Shines upon Emerging From Shadows (Aug. 28)
Pumphrey Prioritizes Winning in Rush to Stardom (Sept. 2)
Aztecs Positioned to Take Next Step in '15 (Sept. 4)
Aztecs Look to Get Offense in Gear (Sept. 6)
Penny's Stock Rising on Rate of Returns (Sept. 7)
Sorry, No Apologies Forthcoming (Sept. 11)
Seeking a Solution at Quarterback (Sept. 18)
Aztecs, Hauck Have Something Special (Oct. 2)
Aztecs Positioned to Make Statement (Oct. 22)
Aztecs Deliver Message to MW (Oct. 24)
Aztecs' O-Line Removing All Doubt (Oct. 30)
Aztecs' Offense in High Gear (Nov. 15)
Long has Razed, Resurrected Aztecs (Nov. 20)
Aztecs Have Taken the Long Way Home (Nov. 27)
Aztecs Roll with Punches --- and Pumphrey (Nov. 29)
McGrane: A Future Flush with Fortune
By Mick McGrane, @GoAztecs Senior Writer (@MickOnTheMesa)
The votes are in and the word is out: San Diego State's football program is edging ever closer to high-stepping into the high-rent district.
The same team that finished 8-0 in league play for the first time in school history captured four of the five major Mountain West postseason awards Tuesday, illustrating not only the program's steady rise to prominence but one that may prove meteoric.
Running back Donnel Pumphrey (Offensive Player of the Year), cornerback Damonte Kazee (Defensive Player of the Year) and running back Rashaad Penny (Special Teams Player of the Year) joined coach Rocky Long (Coach of the Year) in a postseason landslide that saw the Aztecs place seven players on the all-MW first team.
And now the disconcerting news for the remainder of the league: Six of the seven, a group that also includes guard Nico Siragusa, offensive tackle Pearce Slater, defensive end Alex Barrett and linebacker Calvin Munson, are non-seniors. Slater is the lone senior.
SDSU swept the offensive, defensive and special teams players of the year awards for first time in the history of the Mountain West. Long, meanwhile, who has already matched the win total (41) achieved by the program's three previous head coaches combined, earned his league-leading third Coach of Year award.
In short, while the now is nice, the future appears flush with fortune.
"It's a nice honor for the players because it shows they played really well and really hard, but I see all of those as team awards," said Long, whose Aztecs will meet Air Force in the MW championship game at Qualcomm Stadium on Saturday. "It says a lot about the program. It says that we recruited good players with the right attitude and that we've trained them well enough that they're having success.
"Of course, when you get all of those awards the expectation rises."
It's difficult to imagine expectations rising higher than they have to date. The Aztecs' eight straight wins represent the fifth-longest active streak in the FBS behind only No. 1 Clemson (19), No. 4 Iowa (12), No. 8 North Carolina (11) and No. 2 Alabama (9).
The same program that never experienced a single winning season in its first 11 years in the MW also has a 10-game winning streak against league opponents and is the only team in the nation to have won eight straight by a margin of 10 or more points.
Perhaps this was what Long envisioned when he told Athletic Director Jim Sterk upon being hired that he saw SDSU with the potential of becoming the next TCU.
Perhaps this is why potential recruits positioned on the sideline during games now number 100, a figure Long estimates was somewhere around 15 during his first two years as defensive coordinator under former Aztecs' coach Brady Hoke.
Perhaps this is why nary a single player seems remotely concerned with the aforementioned accomplishments, focusing rather on the task at hand, one that could culminate in the program's first 11-win season in 46 years.
And make no mistake: It's clearly why Sterk said last week that Long, the winningest coach in MW history, will likely decide when it's time to leave long before his boss does.
"We are so proud of what Rocky, his assistants and staff, and student-athletes have accomplished this season and the recognition they received from the Mountain West," Sterk said. "The successes they have experienced on the field and the way they conduct themselves off the field make all Aztecs proud. We are excited that so many of the award recipients will be returning next season. The Aztec football program has reached historic heights and the future has never been brighter."
Said Long: "The world has changed. People want to see results immediately. It takes awhile to build a program."
Particularly the caliber of one whose seven first-team all-league selections matched the program's all-time high set 41 years ago. Senior linebacker Jake Fely and senior cornerback J.J. Whittaker were named to the second team, while junior tight end Daniel Brunskill, senior defensive tackle Christian Heyward, senior defensive end Jon Sanchez, junior safety Malik Smith and senior kicker Donny Hageman earned honorable mention.
Yet even with a team that flatly refuses to differentiate between star and supporting cast, it's impossible to ignore the talents of Pumphrey, who became the first SDSU player to win an offensive player of the year award since running back George Jones in 1995.
Pumphrey, who ranks No. 12 in the nation in all-purpose yards (149.8 per game) and No. 13 in rushing (122.0), is the only Aztec other than NFL Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk to surpass the 4,000-yard mark. In addition to rushing for 1,464 yards this season, he also has a team-high 25 catches for 333 yards.
Pumphrey also has said he intends to return for his senior season, which should continue to induce night sweats on the part of Long's fellow MW coaches from now until roughly this time next year. And much like the season at hand, the running back stable will be fully stocked in 2016, with returners Penny and Marcus Stamps vying with current true freshman Juwan Washington to become the team's No. 2 back.
"It's going to be a heck of a competition," Long said. "They all have strengths and weaknesses, but they're all pretty good."
"I think the best thing about the (all-MW) team is that we have two offensive linemen (Slater and Siragusa) on the list," Long continued. "Because when you look at the seasons (Pumphrey) and (senior running back) Chase Price had, it's nice to see that people recognized that they had help. DJ and Chase don't do that on their own. Somebody has to get them started."
Not that the league's Coach of the Year will hesitate getting them started. Not now. Not after coming this far. And particularly not when a move to the high-rent district could be but a high step away.