COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- San Diego State football's Kyahva Tezino and Matt Araiza have been named Mountain West Players of the Week, the league announced Monday. Tezino was named the MW Defensive Player of the Week for the third time of his career, while Araiza was honored as the MW Special Teams Player of the Week for the first time of his career.
The duo helped the Aztecs (2-0) defeat UCLA, 23-14, Saturday at Rose Bowl Stadium, SDSU's first win over the Bruins in program history. San Diego State is now 5-1 against teams from the Pac-12 Conference since the beginning of the 2016 season.
Tezino, who was named to three national player of the year watch lists in the preseason, had nine tackles (seven solo), including a sack and 1.5 tackles for loss, and his first career forced fumble. Tezino's three biggest plays came in the second half as he sacked UCLA quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson on a third-and-7 situation and forced a fumble on the first drive of the third quarter, which was scooped up by Caden McDonald. The turnover led to a Ryan Agnew 34-yard touchdown pass to Kobe Smith. On the Bruins' final two drives of the game in the fourth quarter, Tezino stuffed Thompson-Robinson on fourth-and-1 on the UCLA 46 and then stopped Joshua Kelley for a 4-yard loss (along with Troy Cassidy) on a fourth-and-1 on the Bruin 32 to secure the win for San Diego State.
Tezino captained an Aztec defense that held UCLA to 14 points, its fewest in the series since 1933 and the fewest allowed against a Power 5 school since giving up 14 to Wisconsin on Sept. 16, 2006. Additionally, SDSU held the Bruins to their lowest total offense (261) at home since Sept. 11, 2010 vs. No. 25 Stanford.
Araiza, meanwhile, made three field goals and both of his PAT chances, accounting for 11 of the team's 23 points. Playing in just his second career game, Araiza hit a career-long 43-yard in the first quarter, and put the game away with kicks of 31 and 25 yards late in the third and fourth quarters, respectively. Araiza set a career high with three field goals and added a career-best five touchbacks in the San Diego State victory.
An Aztec kicker has now won the MW Special Teams Player of the Week award six times in 14 chances since the beginning of 2018.
SDSU looks for its third 3-0 start in four seasons when it travels to Las Cruces, N.M., to take on New Mexico State at 6 p.m. MT Saturday.
Tezino and Araiza Named MW Players of the Week
