After three quarters of Saturday’s game, San Diego State led San Jose State 24-17. It was not the widest of margins, but the way the defense was playing, it seemed like enough to hold on for a victory. Obviously it was not.
SDSU gave up three fourth quarter touchdowns and was outscored 21-10 in the final 15 minutes of the game en route to losing 38-34.
The Spartans scored two touchdowns in less than three and a half minutes, including one with 50 seconds left in the game, to steal two leads from the Aztecs.
“The defensive effort was bad the last two drives,” SDSU head coach Rocky Long said. “I thought the defensive effort was pretty good except for the last two drives and then I think it stinks. You can blame me for that. Obviously, we’re trying to make our players do something that they can’t and that’s a coaching thing. So that’s totally on me.”
Long said adjustments will need to be made.
“The option now is you’ve got to be inventive and try to figure out some zones that you’re going to give up some pass plays, but some zones where you can maybe get a decent heat on the quarterback,” Long said. “You’ll give up passes like you always do, but we obvi- ously can’t get to the quarterback quick enough when we blitz or we don’t play good enough man cov- erage when we blitz. And when we rush four, we don’t even get close.”
Kicking game plays a factor
SJSU gained 253 yards and one touchdown on seven kickoff returns compared to the 22 yards North Dakota gained on two kickoff returns the previous week.
A large reason for this was because the Spartans return men actually had several opportunities to return kicks.
SDSU freshman kicker Seamus McMorrow, who is No. 1 on the depth chart for kickoffs and punts and routinely kicks touchbacks on kickoffs, was suspended for the week for violation of team rules, Long said.
Senior placekicker Chance Marden hit his first two field goals of the season and of his collegiate career.
The first came with less than a minute left in the first half and tied the score at 17. His second was from 41 yards out and gave SDSU a 27-24 lead with 5:33 left in the game.
The offense remains on a roll
After putting up at least 42 points in each of the last two weeks, the SDSU offense continued to im- press by scoring 34 points against SJSU.
Sophomore running back Adam Muema rushed for 202 yards and an 83-yard touchdown, while se- nior running back Walter Kazee finished the game with 90 yards and one touchdown.
Senior quarterback Ryan Katz was 17-for-27 for 213 yards and two touchdowns. Junior wide receiver Colin Lockett led all SDSU receivers with 73 yards and one touchdown on three catches, while junior tight end Gavin Escobar caught five passes for 46 yards and one touchdown.
News and notes
•Long is now 10-7 as SDSU’s head coach.
•Junior wide receiver Tim Vizzi’s first quarter fumble on a punt return was the team’s first turn- over since the third quarter of the Washington game.
•SDSU gained more than 200 yards rushing for the eighth time in the last 12 games.
•SDSU allowed a kickoff return for a touchdown, the first allowed by the Aztecs since Oct. 28, 2000 against Colorado State.
•Muema had a career-high 202 yards on a career-high 25 carries.
•Kazee now has five touchdowns on the season. He has scored nine touchdowns in the last six games.
