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.
SDSU’s Week 9 Red & Black Report following a 29-26 loss to Washington State at home on Homecoming
Red: Discipline or Lack Thereof
Seven games into the season and discipline remains a concern for the 2024 San Diego State football team.
The Red & Black Report has harped on the team’s propensity to commit penalties, many at the most inopportune times. That continued with 8 more penalties for 78 yards in Saturday’s 29-26 loss to the Cougars of Washington State.
A personal foul call against senior wide receiver Ja’Shaun Poke for an illegal crackback block put the Aztecs in a deep down-and-distance hole as they were driving for a tying or go ahead score in the fourth quarter.
The game-sealing play (aka nail in the coffin) also involved an SDSU 15-yard penalty. This time, a roughing-the-kicker call against senior Arnold Escano (Olympian High and Southwestern College) for his hit on the Wazzu punter, gave the automatic first down and possession back to Washington State in the final moments of the night. Thus, ending any chance the Aztecs had of attempting a Hail Mary or two to get in position to kick a game-tying field goal.
The lack of discipline didn’t just end with penalties. The trend to not fall for trick plays has also become a bad habit this season. In back-to-back weeks, the defense has been burned by flea flickers from the opposing offense with receivers running wide open in the secondary.
Additionally, in the Cougars go ahead score late in the 4th quarter, on the two point conversion, QB Mateer was on the receiving end of a ‘Philly Special’ score wide open in the end zone.
Those momentum-shifting plays typically work against teams that don’t maintain their defensive assignments, in effect their discipline as defenders.
And then there is the concerning issue that three Aztecs missed the game due to suspected discipline issues. Starters WR Louis Brown IV and TE Jude Wolfe joined backup QB AJ Duffy on the sidelines for the game. The UT reported it was for violations of team rules.
Coach Sean Lewis addressed it immediately in his postgame presser.
“Key guys were missing tonight,” he began. “Before we get into questions or anything about that, just to let you guys know that it’s a coach’s decision, and we have incredibly high standards and expectations in our program. Everyone knows that each guy who was not dressed this evening was in three separate and completely different situations that were all unique to one another.“
“The big piece is to grow in these football games, but a bigger piece for us, and for the championship culture that we’re establishing, is appropriate human beings off of it,” Lewis added. “Those guys know what it is, the team knows what it is and embraced the accountability.”
Let’s hope with the biggest conference matchup of the season, on short week’s rest, and Halloween festivities abound, that the coach’s message has been received. Any chance you have to play an opponent ranked inside the Top-15 is an opportunity to not only show off your own skillset as an individual to a National audience, but also to professional scouts in attendance.
The Black: Freshman Wide Receiver Jordan Napier
With WR Louis Brown IV on the sidelines, redshirt freshman WR Jordan Napier continued his recent run of strong play against visiting WSU. The 6’2” wide receiver from Fontana, CA hauled in 3 passes for 44 yards last Saturday, including a brilliant juggling catch with a Cougar defender draped all over him.
But the evening’s highlight was Napier’s perfectly thrown pass to fellow wide out #11 Nate Bennett in the third quarter. The 27-yard touchdown strike came off an end-around where Napier had the option to pass downfield or tuck it and run.
The well-executed creative play call gave the Aztecs their first lead of the contest.
On the season, Napier, who has played in all seven games, has made 17 receptions for 269 yards and 3 touchdowns.
In his last three games, the frosh has 12 catches for 176 yards and a touchdown.
It is great to see a young player who is unafraid of the big moment. His two fourth-quarter grabs against Wyoming from fellow freshman standout QB Danny O’Neil helped the Red & Black secure that victory.
The hope for Aztecs fans is that we will get to see the duo of O’Neil to Napier for years to come. Or at the very least this weekend against the Broncos.
The Aztecs head out on the road this week with a game on the “Smurf Turf” in Boise, Idaho. The game against Boise State kicks off at 5pm on Friday, November 1. Television coverage will be provided by Fox Sports 1 with San Diego Sports 760 airing the radio broadcast.
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