Aztecs Promote Edges Coach Rob Aurich to Defensive Coordinator

Just this week SDSU Football’s Defensive Coordinator Eric Schmidt had announced his departure from the Mesa to take on the HC position at his alma mater North Dakota of the FCS Big Sky Conference.

It was unclear if any positional coaches of this Aztecs staff would be leaving with Schmidt on his new venture. Today we know for sure that Defensive Edges Coach Rob Aurich will not be one of them.

Friday evening news broke that Coach Rob Aurich was being named as Defensive Coordinator of the Aztecs. Aurich who was promoted from within the San Diego State football coaching staff will assume the same positional duties of Linebackers that Schmidt handled in addition to the coordinator role.

Aurich who has spent the last several seasons on several different programs including Idaho as defensive coordinator and linebackers for two seasons, South Dakota, Bemidji State, brings with him a reputation of defenses improving their points allowed average each season.

Last season with the Aztecs he was responsible with overseeing the progress of the edge unit that featured one of the NCAA’s premier sack leader in #47 Trey White.

While Aurich does not have a wealth of years in experience, he has contrasted that in how quickly he has risen up the ranks in CFB. Each stop in his career he has coached has lasted an average of two seasons before being promoted to a higher elevated program and has still maintained his success.

Now that is something to get excited about. And listen here Aztec Nation, Coach Aurich has been in San Diego already one season as a positional coach and he actually has his social media profile already representing his current school and employer—the San Diego State Aztecs. Go figure.

This move to an Aurich led defense shouldn’t change the current 4-2-5 scheme the Aztecs run and that was a large part of this hire—keeping continuity.

With the ever changing landscape in college football each season is viewed as a unique team with different moving parts & personnel. Keeping that continuity will be key in improving the defense that played very well at times last season.

Though the Aztecs have been billed as a fast paced offensive minded program, the defense is ahead of the offense in a few regards. Several of the key notable returners have made their commitment known to ‘unfinished business’ with the Aztecs for the 2025 season.

The same cannot be said for the offense.

Trey White, Tano Letuli, and Chris Johnson, will lead a defense experienced and primed to a breakout 2025 season. Fostering their growth together was ensured with the promotion of Aurich to oversee just that. And by everything that Sons of Montezuma has heard, this was an excellent choice in promotion for the position.

Rob Aurich played his football days at Minnesota Duluth and won national titles with the Bulldogs in 2008 and 2010. There he earned the second-leading tackler all-time with 310 tackles and was a 1st team All-American in 2009 and is a 3-time all-NSIC honoree.