San Diego State’s new-look football team took the field on Saturday evening for the first time in 2024. Matched against FCS opponent Texas A&M-Commerce, first-year Coach Sean Lewis’s “AztecFAST” offense sputtered off the mark, but found its footing in a dominant second half, as SDSU came away with a 45-14 win.
As a new feature this season, Sons of Montezuma offers this quick Red & Black Report. Think of it as a bit like an accounting ledger – RED are areas to address and BLACK are those areas contributing positively to the bottom line.
In this case, black means areas that help win football games.
Let’s start with the red.
Penalties.
On the evening the Aztecs were whistled for 16 penalties piling up 149 yards in infractions. Nine penalties came in a sloppy and sluggish first half with holding calls stalling drives and defensive personal fouls extending Texas A&M-Commerce drives that resulted in scores.
While some of the miscues could be chalked up to first-game jitters or being overly hyped, there is very little chance this many penalties in a game will spell victory against the remaining foes on the schedule.
Even Coach Lewis stated the team’s discipline will need to improve moving forward.
“We’re going to do a much better job with our discipline and limit the number of penalties. Obviously, that is unacceptable, but I’m really happy to get the win,” he said postgame.
“It’s going to be a lot better to clean up a win than it is a messy loss. We’re happy to do that. But obviously, lots of room for improvement, lots of room to grow.”
Let’s move to the Black.
Best Back in the Conference?
Aztecs fans say hello to transfer running back Marquez Cooper. In his first game wearing the coolest helmet in college football, Cooper showed why he is the leading returning rusher in FBS football.
Taking a pitch on the first drive of the second half, Cooper stayed behind his linemen and then burst through a gap on the left side on his way to a 47-yard touchdown run putting the Aztecs ahead to stay.
In total, the 5’8” running back from Kent State/Ball State carried 27 times for 224 yards, the most for an Aztecs’ back since Rashaad Penny in 2017. Cooper demonstrated the skills of a top-flight back – patience, burst, toughness, vision, and an ability to break arm tackles and gain yards after contact.
He also has one other trait all the great backs possess – confidence.
“I feel like I’m one of the best backs in the nation, if not the best back,” Cooper told the media after the game. “So, I don’t feel like a lot of people view me as that or look at me as that.”
“A lot of people count me out because of my size, and I’ve been dealing with that for my whole life. So, I’m just trying to continue to be the greatest man I can be every single day, every single practice, and I’m thankful for this opportunity every single day.”
And Aztecs fans are grateful Cooper chose to once again play for Coach Lewis for his final collegiate season.
San Diego State takes a significant step up in competition when it welcomes the Beavers of Oregon State to Snapdragon Stadium on Saturday, September 7 at 7:30 p.m. Television coverage will be provided by CBS Sports Network.
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