A lot changes in 1,099 days.
That’s how long it’s been since San Diego State last played Cal Poly, a 29-27 loss in 2008. That Aztecs team went 2-10 and saw its head coach, Chuck Long, fired at the end of the season.
But this SDSU squad is completely different, coming off a 9-4 season and a Poinsettia Bowl victory. And although it wasn’t a flawless performance, the Aztecs still recorded a dominating 49-21 victory over the FCS Mustangs Saturday night at Qualcomm Stadium.
“I think it was a great win, especially when you consider the history of this series,” head coach Rocky Long said. “The last two times they’ve walked into the stadium and walked out with a win … It was a big win, I think we can do a whole lot better than we did tonight, but it’s fun to start that way.”
The two players most responsible for SDSU’s success last season picked up right where they left off. Sophomore running back Ronnie Hillman rushed for 189 yards and two scores and senior quarterback Ryan Lindley threw for four touchdowns to pass Aztec legend Todd Santos for first-place on SDSU’s career passing touchdown list with 71.
Coming into the season, the team’s biggest question mark was at wide receiver, where the Aztecs had to replace two NFL draft picks, Vincent Brown and DeMarco Sampson. It may have found a couple of big-play replacements in sophomores Dylan Denso (four catches for 66 yards and two touchdowns) and Colin Lockett (3/82/1), who also recorded a 94-yard kickoff return for a score in the fourth quarter. Both receivers made their first career starts on Saturday.
Lindley gushed about his two new weapons after the game.
“Colin’s a guy who’s got some explosion,” the senior quarterback said. “There were a couple plays too where we’ll look back and adjust and get on the same page. I’m excited, he’s going to be a guy who’s just going to blow up. Who knows where he’s going to be at the end of the year. He could be a VJ [Vincent Brown] or DeMarco [Sampson] type.
“Dylan did awesome. He showed up in spring ball and he’s been a consistent player. He’s really just a guy you can depend on play in and play out.”
New head coach Rocky Long had his first big coaching decision halfway through the second quarter. Up 14-7, the Aztecs found themselves at the three yard-line, fourth-and-goal. Instead of kicking a field goal and taking the easy three points, Long opted to go for it. The boldness paid off — Lindley found Denso for his second touchdown pass of the game.
Neither team could muster up much offense coming out of halftime until junior running back Walter Kazee rumbled 41 yards to the Cal Poly 20-yard line. Lindley found Lockett for another touchdown to go up 35-14, and the outcome was never in doubt after that.
Although SDSU won big, Lindley said he believes the team still has things to improve on and will aim to do so as the season goes on.
“We expect more out of ourselves so we’re going to push ourselves to the next level, which is going to make our team better,” Lindley said. “We’re a more mature team, more experienced team, and as the year goes on you’re going to see us improve.”
