SAN DIEGO – In a reversal of the last couple of Fan Fest scrimmages, the San Diego State offense was the star of the game at the program's annual preseason scrimmage at SDCCU Stadium on Saturday night.
The offense totaled 478 yards, 230 of which came on the ground from eight rushers. Freshmen Zidane Thomas and Justin Dinka led the team with 72 and 71 yards, respectively.
"You want as many (running backs) out here getting reps as possible," said quarterback Ryan Agnew, who was under center for three possessions in the first half. "I think there were a lot of great performances on offense but you know the saying that it is never as good as you think or as bad as you think. When we watch it on film there will be a lot of things we can work on but it was awesome to get in this environment and see everyone do well."
Following the conclusion of the first two possessions, an 11-play drive followed by a 12-play effort, freshman Matt Araiza hit field goals of 43 yards and 33 yards. The main contributor in the second drive, which covered 60 yards in just over six minutes, was sophomore running back Chance Bell. Bell ran for a total of 52 yards on the drive, 40 on the ground and 12 through the air.
With six points on the board, junior quarterback Jordon Brookshire (13-for-21, 123 yards) took over early in the second quarter and guided the offense on a 12-play, 62-yard drive which resulted in the scrimmage's first touchdown. Kaegun Williams punched the ball in from 2-yards out and was responsible for the final 36 yards of the drive, which included a 22-yard run and a 12-yard reception before his scoring scamper.
After a 3-and-out on the next drive, Brookshire returned to the field and in 3:22, drove the team to its second touchdown. The drive looked like it was going to stall, but Brookshire found Chaz Collins for 18 yards and, after a 15-yard face mask penalty was tacked on, the offense struck. Brookshire found Isaiah Richardson on a fade route in the corner of the end zone.
In the final drive of the half, Brookshire took the offense on a 13-play drive which culminated in Araiza's third field goal, a 39-yard boot. For the half, the offense scored 23 points.
On the opening drive of the second half, the defense got into the action and on the scoreboard. Senior safety Kyree Woods forced a fumble, recovered the ball and scampered 45 yards for the defense's lone score on the day.
The next drive of the half would be the most exciting of the game. Freshman running back Justin Dinka had a 1-yard run up the gut on the opening play and then went around the left end on the next play for 74 yards and a touchdown, which would be the final points of the scrimmage.
Three Aztecs - junior safety Dwayne Johnson Jr., freshman safety Allan Mwata and freshman linebacker Michael Shawcroft - led the defense with eight tackles apiece. Woods had six tackles, including one for a loss of three yards, his fumble recovery and touchdown. On the final play of the scrimmage, freshman defensive lineman Shawn Nielson had an interception on a ball which was deflected at the line of scrimmage.
UP NEXT
San Diego State will continue fall camp in preparation for its season opener against Weber State on Aug. 31. Kick-off is set for 6:00 p.m. PT at SDCCU Stadium.
San Diego State Fan Fest
August 17, 2019
SDCCU Stadium
Final Statistics
RUSHING TOTALS (carries - yards - touchdowns)
Zidane Thomas 16-72-0, Justin Dinka 9-71-1, Kaegun Williams 9-41-1, Chance Bell 7-40-0, Jordon Brookshire 3-16-0, Jordan Byrd 4-8-0, Dominic Benson 1-0-0, Carson Baker 3-(-18)-0. TOTALS 52-230-2.
PASSING TOTALS (completions - attempts - interceptions, yards, touchdowns)
Jordon Brookshire 13-21-0, 123, 1; Ryan Agnew 6-13-0, 76, 0; Carson Baker 6-12-1, 46, 0; Mark Salazar 1-4-0, 3, 0. TOTALS 26-50-1, 248, 1.
RECEIVING TOTALS (number - yards - touchdowns)
Isaiah Richardson 6-64-1, Kobe Smith 4-28-0, Chance Bell 3-27-0, Kaegun Williams 3-27-0, Jesse Matthews 2-39-0, Chaz Collins 2-26-0, Zidane Thomas 1-9-0, Elijah Kothe 1-8-0, Nash Devan 1-7-0, Parker Houston 1-5-0, Alex Wilson 1-5-0, Justin Dinka 1-3-0. TOTALS 26-248-1.
TACKLES (UA-A-Total)
Allan Mwata 4-4-8, Dwayne Johnson Jr. 2-6-8, Michael Shawcroft 1-7-8, Kaelin Himphill 3-4-7, Kyree Woods 5-1-6, Sammy Morrison 4-1-5, Trenton Thompson 0-5-5, Luq Barcoo 2-2-4, Kyron White 2-2-4, Eric Wilson 2-2-4, Jalil Lecky 1-3-4, Nolen Harris 2-1-3, Jonah Tavai 1-2-3, Adonis Brown 1-1-2, Darren Hall 1-1-2, Seyddrick Lakalaka 1-1-2, Shawn Nielsen 1-1-2, Daniel To'oto'o 1-1-2, Troy Cassidy 0-2-2, Caden McDonald 0-2-2, Patrick McMorris 0-2-2, Kyahva Tezino 0-2-2, Cameron Thomas 0-2-2, Jeffrey Blake 1-0-1, Nassir Sims 1-0-1, Cliffton Styles 1-0-1, Dylan Taylor 1-0-1, Noah Tumblin 1-0-1, Davaughn Celestine 0-1-1, Myles Cheatum 0-1-1, Josh Bornes 0-1-1, Garret Fountain 0-1-1, Sam Hines 0-1-1, Kahi Neves 0-1-1, Tariq Thompson 0-1-1. TOTALS 39-62-101.
TACKLES FOR LOSS
Kaelin Himphill 2.5-12, Myles Cheatum 1.0-7, Kyree Woods 1.0-3, Adonis Brown 1.0-2, Dylan Taylor 1.0-2, Michael Shawcroft 0.5-3, Patrick McMorris 0.5-2, Shawn Nielsen 0.5-2. TOTALS: 8-36.
SACKS
Kaelin Himphill 1.5-8, Myles Cheatum 1-7, Michael Shawcroft 0.5-3. TOTALS: 3-18.
PASSES BROKEN UP
Luq Barcoo 1, Adonis Brown 1.Seyddrick Lakalaka 1, Allan Mwata 1, Noah Tumblin 1, Kyree Woods 1. TOTALS: 6
FORCED FUMBLES
Sammy Morrison 1, Kyree Woods 1. TOTALS: 2
FUMBLES RECOVERED
Kyree Woods 1-45, 1 TD. TOTALS: 1
INTERCEPTIONS (no.-yards-TD)
Shawn Nielsen 1-0-0. TOTALS: 1-0-0
FIELD GOALS
Matt Araiza 3-for-3: 43g, 33g, 39g. TOTALS: 3-for-3
PUNTS (number - yards (avg.)
Brandon Heicklen 5-243 (46.6); Matt Araiza 6-250 (41.7). TOTALS: 11-493 (44.8).
Offense Shines at Football's Fan Fest Scrimmage
