SDSU Football Starts 2025 Fall Camp

SAN DIEGO -- The San Diego State football team conducted its first practice of the 2025 fall camp on Wednesday at the on-campus facility.

The practice went for just over two hours under sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-70s. The Aztecs utilized both the turf practice field and the grass field, taking advantage of fresh legs and the sounds of up-tempo music for a team that is coming off a good spring season and is onto phase 4 of the process.  

After team, special teams and position meetings, a walk-thru, warm-ups and stretching, SDSU continued with position drills, ball security, offensive/defensive sets, 1-on-1s, tempo skelly, team tempo and situational drills, including 11-on-11 matchups.

Lewis was happy with day one of his second season at the helm and San Diego State’s last in the Mountain West before it leaves for the new Pac-12.  

“We had great energy on the first day, but it’s easy to have energy on the first day,” said Lewis. “We had some big plays offensively and there were some turnovers defensively. There was a ton (of things) we need to clean up, but the install was as heavy as it’s ever been on our first day because of the access we had to the guys over the summer. There wasn’t a ton of mental errors, just things we need to refine from a technique standpoint for better and more consistent execution. All around in all three phases without seeing the tape, it was good energy and a good first day.”

The Aztecs were 3-3 halfway through the 2024 campaign but lost their final six games of the season en route to a 3-9 finish, going 2-3 in one-score games. Lewis began his head coaching career at Kent State in 2018, as the Golden Flashes went 2-10 in his first season at the helm. The following year, Lewis led Kent State to a 7-6 record, including a 6-2 mark in Mid-American Conference play and a berth in the MAC Championship game. The Golden Flashes then went on to win the Frisco Bowl over Utah State, 51-41, the program’s first bowl win in program history. Lewis departed Kent State to be the offensive coordinator at Colorado in 2023. Over the last two seasons without Lewis at the helm, the Golden Flashes are 1-23 with 21 consecutive losses, including an 0-16 mark in MAC play.

Focus has been one of the main words used this offseason throughout the program.

“As we moved through summer conditioning, we really dialed into each attribute we’ve emphasized this year,” added Lewis. “Now when we get to this point, those buzz words really mean things. When we say focused, that one word tells a whole story. (Focus) is the depth and the direction of your time, effort and energy. So where is your time, where is your effort, where is your energy going? Where’s it pointing to? How deep are you willing to go so that we don’t just know things at a surface level?”

Junior EDGE Trey White (San Diego/Eastlake High) says this season already feels different than last year.

“It felt good to be out here, we’ve been waiting for this moment all winter and all summer, and it’s good to be finally playing some football,” said White. “I think the intent and the energy we brought today (was noticeable). Everyone was excited to be out here, and everyone was intentional in what they were doing, paying more attention to detail and less mistakes out there on day one. It was good to see, and we have a lot to work on, but I’m excited to see what happens (this year).”

White was named to the Bronko Nagurski Trophy Watch List on Tuesday, which goes out to the national defensive player of the year. The Mountain West preseason defensive player of the year totaled 60 tackles (40 solo) a year ago, including 18.5 tackles for loss (No. 1 in MW, No. 7 (tied) in FBS), 12.5 sacks (No. 1 in MW, No. 5 (tied) in FBS), two pass breakups and a forced fumble. White’s 12.5 sacks were tied for the third most in SDSU single-season history. White was the first San Diego State defensive lineman to be named the MW preseason defensive player of the year and the fourth defensive player overall, joining cornerback Leon McFadden in 2012, cornerback Damontae Kazee in 2016 and safety Patrick McMorris in 2022.

Junior running back Lucky Sutton (San Diego/Cathedral Catholic High) also was excited to get the season underway after playing sparingly behind all-MW first-team performer Marquez Cooper in 2024.

“It’s a great thing to be out there with my guys,” said Sutton. “Everybody was very excited, and we had great energy. The offensive line was disciplined today and nobody false started. Today was a good day. We play against a good defense every single day, which is only going to help us compete and get better.”

Sutton carried just five times for 35 yards in 2024 but ran for two touchdowns and 157 yards as a redshirt sophomore in 2023. Sutton starred at nearby Cathedral Catholic High School in San Diego, leading the Dons to a 12-2 record in 2021 and a state championship. Sutton captured numerous awards including the KUSI Silver Pigskin, the Honor Bowl MVP and Holy Bowl MVP in the 2021 season as a senior, rushing for 2,628 yards and 36 touchdowns on 232 carries, averaging 11.3 yards per attempt and 202.2 yards per game.

Senior kicker Gabe Plascencia (Oakland, Calif.) was named the Mountain West preseason special teams player of the year earlier this month but knows that nothing is decided in the preseason.

“It’s pretty cool to receive the honor, but at the end of the day it’s preseason,” said Plascencia. “The thing we’re looking for is to get the (award) at the end of the year and obviously win a Mountain West championship. That’s all we’re really focused on right now.”

Plascencia made 13 of 14 field goals last year for the best field goal percentage (.929) in program history. The left-footed kicker has made 12 consecutive field goals entering 2025, tied for the sixth-longest active streak in the country and the second longest by an Aztec since at least the 1996 season.

The second of 24 fall practices before the opener against Stony Brook on Thursday, Aug. 28 at Snapdragon Stadium is set for Thursday morning.

San Diego State also has home games vs. California (Sept. 20 at 7:30 p.m. PT), Colorado State (Oct. 3 at 7:30 p.m. PT), Wyoming (Nov. 1 at 4 p.m. PT), Boise State (Nov. 15 at 7:30 p.m. PT) and San Jose State (Nov. 22, time TBA).

Fan Fest Information
The San Diego State football team will host its annual Fan Fest on Thursday, Aug. 14 at Snapdragon Stadium.

Admission to the Aug. 14 Fan Fest is free, but all fans will need to claim their ticket in advance at https://am.ticketmaster.com/sdsu/buy/AztecFanFest. Fans may claim up to four tickets. If you need additional tickets, please call the Aztec Ticket Office at (619) 283-SDSU (7378). Parking is $10 and can also be purchased at the same link.

The parking lot opens at 5 p.m. PT with the gates opening at 6 p.m. Kickoff is set for 7:05 p.m. PT.

The team store and select concessions will also be open.

Ticket Information
Season Tickets

Season tickets for the 2025 campaign start at just $200 ($175 plus $25 Aztec Club Membership), only $33.33 per game. Fans are encouraged to purchase season tickets with benefits featuring interest-free payment plans, pre-sale access for most third-party events, and discounts on merchandise at the team store, additional single-game tickets and food/beverage. Additionally, season-ticket members will have the ability to purchase discounted season parking, access to a personal account representative and the ability to transfer and resell tickets digitally.

To purchase, or renew, your season tickets, visit goaztecs.com/sports/football-tickets.

Mini Plans

For the first time, fans can now build their own three-game mini-plan completely online. Fans can choose from any of SDSU’s six home games and save on single-game fees. Fans can also leverage their three-game mini-plans into becoming a season-ticket member. For example, purchasing an Orange Mini-Plan puts you just $39 away from becoming a season-ticket member. Contact the SDSU Athletics Ticket Sales Office at (619) 594-9834 to discuss other ways to save money while enjoying San Diego State football.

Single-Game Tickets

Single-game tickets can be also purchased Monday for as low as $23, which includes all fees.