By Musa Abdikadir
On Saturday, September 5th, 2026, the San Diego State Aztecs kicked off their season at home against an FCS opponent and member of the Big Sky Conference, the Portland State Vikings. As expected, the Aztecs routed the Vikings 53-20 however, the lopsided final score doesn’t tell the whole story, as the men in black and red played a mixed-bag game that cannot be replicated against superior opponents in the future. In this article, I will recap the game and go over the good and the bad.
The Good
The Aztecs scored 50+ points, their first time achieving this feat since November 4th, 2017, when they defeated San Jose State 52-7 on the road during the Rocky Long era. 8 years and 10 months ago to be exact.
That being said, the Aztec offensive performance for a majority of the first quarter was forgettable, as their first two drives combined for 29 yards ending in a punt and an ugly interception before a 55-yard run from Javion Kinnard and shortly followed by a 9-yard touch pass touchdown by senior wide receiver Nathan Acevedo in the last two minutes of the first quarter gave the Aztecs their first poins and lead of the game sparking a 53-14 run as the men in black and red never looked back.
Denegal’s ability to shake off a bad start and lead consistent scoring drives was on full display when he connected with Oregon transfer and senior wide receiver Justius Lowe for a 40-yard touchdown in the middle of the second quarter, capping off a 6-play, 83-yard drive.
Acevado played a very good game with his aforementioned touch pass touchdown and a 29-yard connection with Jayden Denegal on 3rd and 12 at the 8:59 mark of the second quarter.
The run blocking paved the way for senior Lucky Sutton and his three touchdown scores of 1, 13, and 5 yards, solidifying the Aztecs’ historic identity as a physical run game on the offensive side of the ball as he picked up where he left off last season. Sophomore offensive lineman Michael Leville Watkins came in and helped stabilize the Aztecs’ offensive line through specialized roles.
The Aztecs special teams unit had an excellent night, as their first big play came at the beginning of the second quarter, when Portland State was forced to punt from their end zone which was blocked by senior running back Christian Washington and recovered at the Vikings one yard line by sophomore wide receiver Parker Threatt. This led to an easy one-yard Lucky Sutton touchdown.
At the 11:31 mark in the third quarter, redshirt freshman wide receiver Jaylon Hawkins went the distance of the field, scoring a 100-yard kick return touchdown, shifting the momentum back in the Aztecs’ favor after the Vikings scored their first touchdown of the game off of a muffed Nathan Acevedo fair catch.
The final big special teams play occurred with 9:59 to go in the third quarter when sophomore linebacker Oberhiri Eyafe blocked a punt, setting up a 7-play, 30-yard Aztec touchdown drive.
New kicker senior Cooper Dileva was on point, going 6-for-6 on extra-point attempts and making his only field-goal attempt at the 14:18 mark in the fourth quarter, which went for 31 yards. This capped off an 8-play, 61-yard drive.
Once the defense settled in, they forced three total turnovers, the first coming with a little over two minutes left in the first half on 3rd-and-9. Idaho State transfer and sophomore cornerback Mike Linsay undercut Gabe Downing’s pass, forcing the first Aztec turnover of the season.
On the following drive, on 1st and 10 at the SDSU 39-yard line, Mike Linsay forced an incompletion, which was tipped and intercepted by PSU transfer and Junior safety Isaiah Green. The final turnover came at the 2:55 mark of the fourth quarter when Vikings runningback and junior Niall Raby and botched the handoff which was then recovered by Aztec freshman safety Cameron Purnell.
The run defense also kept PSU under 100 rushing yards.
Redshirt freshman and Kentucky transfer Stone Saunders, led the second unit of the very late stages of the game, showed quickness and led a 7-play, 65-yard touchdown drive capped off by a 2-yard touchdown run by redshirt freshman Jordin Thomas.
The Bad
As I mentioned earlier, the Aztecs started this game poorly, which contrasts with the “Aztec Fast” moniker, and to say the men in black and red had a dreadfully slow start may be an understatement. Their first drive lasted 6 plays and 17 yards before Lucky Sutton was stopped in the backfield on a two-yard loss on 3rd and 1. Their second drive lasted 4 plays and gained 12 yards before ending on an ill-advised throw by Jayden Denegal that led to an interception.
On the defensive side of the ball the Aztecs defense allowed a 14 played 5 minute 34 second field goal drive followed by a 8 play 44 yard 2 minute and 52 second drive. The Aztecs found themselves down 6-0 at the 2:00 minute mark of the first quarter was despite the Vikings being an FCS opponent being led by their second string quarterback junior Gabe Downing.
In the first quarter, the Aztecs were dominated and outmuscled in the trenches on both sides of the ball, and Sumler’s decision to play off-man coverage instead of man coverage was puzzling, as the Vikings offense routinely found receivers in open space.
The defensive line couldn’t generate much pressure or bring down Gabe Downing for sacks, as they totaled just 1 sack all game, and their ability to control the line of scrimmage was inconsistent, with just 3 tackles for loss.
The Aztecs were outgained by the Vikings in total yardage, 394 to 375, with 237 of the Aztecs’ yards coming on the ground. Jayden Denegal, who was understandably rusty after not playing for months and working with new weapons, could not get consistent downfield chunk plays and hit open receivers in space, as there were a few underthrows, an issue I’m optimistic will be resolved as the season progresses. The offense will need the passing game more than ever, as teams will inevitably load the box to stop Lucky Sutton and the run game.
Vikings wide receiver and senior Terence Loville found himself in way too much comfort as he totaled 10 receptions for 119 yards and could have easily made more plays had his quarterback found him in stride.
Turnovers were also a big problem as the Aztecs totaled three one interception, one fumble on a 12-yard run from senior running back Christian Washington at the 10:33 mark in the fourth quarter, and a muffed punt from wide receiver Nathan Acevedo recovered at the Aztec 10-yard line early in the third quarter, which led to a 10-yard PSU touchdown.
The Aztecs committed 6 penalties for 55 yards, displaying a lack of discipline at times, made worse when senior edge rusher Brady Nassar had Gabe Downing in his sights for an easy 9-yard sack at the 14:02 mark of the second quarter, only for it to be erased by a silly facemask penalty, gifting PSU 15 free yards on what should’ve been an easy routine first-down sack and likely three and out.
It doesn’t matter who or where the Aztecs are playing those mistakes will need to be cleaned up before next weekend’s trip to Pasadena. It will be interesting to see how head coach Sean Lewis and the rest of the coaching staff respond against an actual FBS program and Power 4 member. The players and coaching staff have a lot to fix as they gear up to take on a Big Ten and in-state opponent up north, the UCLA Bruins, at the famed Rose Bowl.
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