J.J. Whittaker Season 2012

#34
PositionDEFENSIVE BACK
Weight180 lbs
Height5-10
ClassSophomore
HometownOceanside, Calif.

A highly touted recruit, who suffered injuriesthree straight years before finally playing in2013 and starting all 13 games ... Ended upearning all-conference honors as an honorablemention pick ... Started all 13 gamesagain in 2014, earning second-team honors... Was granted a sixth year by the NCAA,thanks to a waiver request, in November2014 and is now considered a senior thisyear ... Is an SDSU scholar-athlete ... Hasstarted each of the last 26 games ... Graduatedwith a criminal justice degree in May2014 and is working on a master's degree.

2015: Was named a preseason all-Mountain Westselection by Lindy's Sports ... Also was chosenas a second-team preseason all-leaguepick by Phil Steele and Athlon Sports ... Wasslated as the "No. 7 NFL Talent in the MountainWest" by Lindy's Sports.

2014: Was named a second-team all-MountainWest pick by the league's coaches andmedia ... Received a Captain's Award at theteam's banquet ... Was on the Thorpe AwardWatch List, which goes out to the nation'stop defensive back ... Was named one of theteam captains ... Also was named to the all-Mountain West team by the league's media,and a preseason first-team selection byAthlon Sports, Lindy's Sports, Phil Steeleand Sporting News ... Was chosen as the"Best Cover Corner" and a player to watchby Lindy's ... Started all 13 games for thesecond straight year ... Had 63 tackles (43solo), six pass breakups, two interceptionsfor 26 yards and two tackles for loss ...Ranked third on the team with two interceptionsand 43 solo stops ... Led the team with38 tackles on passing plays ... Started for the14th straight game in the opener with NorthernArizona, where he made six tackles (foursolo) ... Came up with seven tackles (sixsolo) at No. 21/23 North Carolina ... Theseven stops were tied with Na'im McGee forthe second most on the team ... Had a career-high 11 tackles (eight solo) at OregonState ... The 11 tackles tied Trey Lomax forthe most on either team ... Had one solo stopin another start vs. UNLV ... Recorded twotackles and his first interception of the season(fourth of career) at Fresno State ...Made six stops (three solo) in another startat New Mexico ... Had four tackles (two solo)and a season-high two pass breakups vs.Hawai`i ... Came up with five tackles (foursolo) at Nevada, which were tied for the thirdmost on the team ... Had a solid outingagainst Idaho, making three solo tackles, a2-yard tackle for loss and a pass breakup ...Made two tackles (one solo) and added aninterception in another start at Boise State... Returned the interception 26 yards, whichset up touchdown pass from Quinn Kaehlerto Daniel Brunskill, which put SDSU up 20-0 ... It was his second pick of the season andfifth of his career, including three in just twogames vs. the Broncos ... Finished with sixtackles (four solo) and two pass breakups ina start vs. Air Force ... Made five tackles(four solo) with a TFL and a pass breakupvs. San José State ... Recorded five tackles(two solo) vs. Navy in the Poinsettia Bowl.

2013: Was named an honorable mention all-MW pick, which was voted on by the league coaches and selected media ... Had 32 tackles (24 solos) in his first 13 career starts and games played, along with 11 pass breakups, three interceptions, a forced fumble and two tackles for loss ... Ranked fifth in the MW with 1.08 passes defended (PBUs + INT's) per game (14 total) ... vs. Eastern Illinois (Aug. 31) ... Played his first collegiate game in the opener vs. Eastern Illinois, earning the start at left cornerback ... Finished with a solo tackle in the loss ... at No. 3/2 Ohio State (Sept. 7) ... Started again at Ohio State and had three tackles (all solo) ... vs. Oregon State (Sept. 21) ... Started vs. Oregon State and had five stops ... at New Mexico State (Sept. 28) ... Had his first career two pass breakups and a solo tackle at New Mexico State ... vs. Nevada (Oct. 4) ... Had a breakout game vs. Nevada, setting a career high with six tackles and five pass breakups ... The five pass deflections were tied for the second most in school history and tied for the second most in a game in the country ... at Air Force (Oct. 10) ... Made two tackles, including his first TFL, and his first forced fumble at Air Force ... vs. No. 15/18 Fresno State (Oct. 26) ... Had four tackles (three solo) and two pass breakups against Fresno State ... vs. New Mexico (Nov. 2) ... Had five tackles, including four of the solo variety, against New Mexico ... at San José State (Nov. 9) ... Had two tackles at San José State and his first career interception late in the fourth quarter, which allowed SDSU to run out the clock and preserve the 34-30 win ... at Hawai'i (Nov. 16) ... Started for the 10th straight game at Hawai'i without recording a stat ... vs. Boise State (Nov. 23) ... Was named the Mountain West Defensive Player of the Week and a CFPA honorable mention defensive back of the week for his play against Boise State where he had two tackles, two interceptions, including one for a touchdown, and two pass breakups ... The 18-yard interception return for a touchdown tied the game at 21-21 ... The two interceptions in a single game were tied for a league high this season and the fourth most in the nation ... Became the first SDSU player with two interceptions in a game since Derek Largent had two against Colorado State on Oct. 12, 2012, and the first Aztec with an interception returned for a touchdown since both Leon McFadden and Eric Pinkins had one apiece at Fresno State on Sept. 29, 2012 ... at UNLV (Nov. 30) ... Earned his 12th consecutive start at UNLV, but did not find the stat sheet ... vs. Buffalo (Dec. 21, Famous Idaho Potato Bowl) ... Had one tackle, which was a 1-yard loss, vs. Buffalo in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl.

2012: Missed the 2012 season after breaking his scapula in the team's fall scrimmage.

2011: Missed all of 2011 with a knee injury.

2010: Redshirted after tearing his ACL prior to the start of fall camp.

High School: A three-star recruit out of Oceanside High by Rivals.com and Scout.com ... Ranked as the 118th recruit at the athlete position nationally by Scout.com ... Two-time first-team all-league, all-North County and all-CIF honoree ... Posted big offensive numbers as a senior for the Pirates with 68 carries for 627 yards and five touchdowns and caught 49 balls for 770 yards and six touchdowns ... Named a member of the 2009 all-state team by CalHiSports.com (second team) ... As a junior, had 772 yards on 40 catches and six scores on offense and picked off six passes, while defending 20 others on defense ... Was a three-year letterwinner in basketball, earning first-team all-league honors and all-CIF honors as a senior.

Personal: Born July 17, 1991, in Long Beach, Calif. ... Son of Jerry and Lanie Whittaker ... Father, Jerry, played baseball at Oklahoma and was a second-round Draft pick by the Chicago White Sox ... Chose San Diego State over scholarship offers from Arizona, Washington, Washington State and New Mexico State ... Also was looked at by Texas A&M ... Full name is Jerry Augustus Whittaker, Jr. ... Graduated with a criminal justice degree in May and is working on a master's degree.