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 red.
Red: Personal Foul Penalties
We know, the Red & Black Report has already mentioned penalties as a problem for the SDSU football team. But when you rank in the top 10 nationally for penalties per game it deserves to be mentioned more than once.
In its latest game, a 27-24 win over visiting University of Hawaii, San Diego State was whistled for nine penalties resulting in 104 free yards for the Rainbow Warriors. The nine penalties match the team’s average penalties per game during the first half of the season. Way too many flags to be successful consistently.
What stands out from the Hawaii game is how many of those yellow hankies on the ground represented 15-yard personal foul infractions.
In total, the Aztecs committed four personal foul penalties in the contest.
Ryan Henderson, sophomore edge, earned an ejection for his second quarter targeting penalty on the scrambling Hawaii quarterback.
Trey White, the outstanding sophomore edge who had a monster game defensively, received a personal foul call on a pretty soft roughing the passer penalty, if we’re being honest.
In the second half, safeties JD Coffey III and Dalesean Staley each had personal foul penalties called against them.
Again, the team needs to get penalties under control as it searches to find a balance between aggression and playing smart on the defensive side of the ball.
The Black: Resiliency/Grit/Moxie
Call it whatever you’d like, but the San Diego State Aztecs football team under head coach Sean Lewis displays resiliency, grit and moxie every single week.
It starts with QB1 Danny O’Neil. The true freshman quarterback from Indiana has fought through injuries to assume a leadership role for the offense and the team as a whole.
With a knee injury limiting his mobility, O’Neil stood tall in the pocket last Saturday against Hawaii and completed his first 10 pass attempts, finishing with a career-high 24 completions for the evening.
The offensive line has responded with similar grit. The unit lost starting tackle Joe Borjon for the season in this year’s opening game and the injuries have continued from there.
Each week the offensive-line has seen a shuffling of players and yet they have done a good job overall of protecting their young signal caller and giving running back Marquez Cooper just enough space to rack up two straight 100-yard rushing performances.
Cooper himself showed moxie in refusing to sit out with a leg injury that caused him to miss one day of practice recently. The grad senior has stepped in and carried the load in the running back spot for SDSU from game one.
His toughness and determination were on full display as he fought his way into the end zone for what proved to be the game-winning touchdown on Saturday.
Credit also goes to kicker Gabe Plascencia for winning back the place-kicking duties and nailing two field goals while converting all three extra points in the Hawaii game.
The junior has hit on 3 of his 4 field goal attempts this year, and is 7 for 8 in his Aztecs career. Let’s hope he can remain a consistent special teams performer.
Finally, the SDSU defense needs to be called out for also seeing several players on the field despite various injuries. Against Hawaii, the unit successfully overcame the loss of a defensive lineman who was ejected for targeting on the Rainbow Warrior quarterback.
Coach Lewis understands that these characteristics mark winning football teams.
“We’ve shown a character, an attitude, and a resolve that embodies our blue-collar and nastiness approach,” Lewis said in his post-game comments.
“There’s a job to be done, and regardless of what that job is, we’re willing to punch the clock and show up to do the work that’s required to win. To see them come together tonight was really powerful, and it’s a testament to the approach, the work, and the culture that our staff and the kids are building each and every day. We will continue to develop, improve, and compete.”
This team rarely hangs its head when something goes wrong. Instead, it counts on outstanding character traits like resiliency, grit and moxie to keep fighting on ‘till victory.
The Aztecs travel to Laramie to face the Wyoming Cowboys on Saturday, October 12. Game time is 12:30 p.m. Television coverage will be provided by CBS Sports Network with San Diego Sports 760 airing the radio broadcast.
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