Aztec Fast, under head San Diego State Aztecs football coach Sean Lewis, got off to a faulty start. The 33-point favorites scored three points in the first half and found themselves down by three at halftime. The issue was no longer whether the Aztecs would cover against FCS Texas A&M-Commerce. Would they win?

Less than nine minutes into the second half, the Aztecs led by 18. By the final whistle, they won by 31 (45-14) and started the Lewis era 1-0. 

“We found a way to play a heck of a lot better in the second half,” said Lewis following the win. “We need to find a way to play better in the first half and play with much better discipline. Happy to get a win … but lots of room for improvement.”

Running back Marquez Cooper (27 car, 223 yds, 2 TDs) shined in his first game as an Aztec and simply continued his historic collegiate career. On a 38-yard run late in the third quarter, Cooper became the 145th player in Division I history to surpass 4,000 rushing yards. 

“I feel great (about surpassing 4,000 yards) but I feel better about how my teammates, my coaches responded to the first half,” said Cooper postgame. “The first half was rough. I was apologizing to the defense because it wasn’t the start that we wanted. I’m thankful my coaches put me in the game, believed in me, and we were able to break through.”

Cooper kickstarted the second-half barrage by taking a handoff near midfield early in the third quarter, 47 yards to the end zone untouched. 

The defense quickly matched the offense with a score of their own. A bad snap over the head of QB Eric Rodriguez and Trey White’s chase down and deflection led to the football eventually rolling into the end zone, where Tano Letuli (tied for a team-high seven tackles with Eric Butler) fell on it for an Aztec touchdown to extend the score to double digits. 

“It was awesome,” Letuli said postgame when asked about the score in his first game coming home to San Diego. “It was my first college touchdown but I wouldn’t have been able to do it without my teammates. Trey White punching the ball out. I just happened to be at the right place at the right time.”

On the next offensive drive, Danny O’Neil threw his first career touchdown on a deep pass to Louis Brown IV. Brown (3 rec, 91 yds) caught the pass in stride as his defender fell down and ran into the end zone for the 44-yd score. 

After the Lions stemmed the tide with a touchdown and a 2-point conversion of their own, the Aztec offense scored on their third consecutive possession on Cooper’s second touchdown run. 

“I feel like I am one of the best backs in the nation if not the best back,” Cooper remarked postgame. “I don’t feel like a lot of people view me as that. A lot of people count me out because of my size, and I’ve been dealing with that my whole life, so I just continue to be the greatest man I could be every single day and every single practice, and I’m thankful for this opportunity.” 

Another defensive touchdown, this time on a 45-yard interception return by JD Coffey III, put the game out of reach at 38-14 early in the fourth quarter. SDSU’s defense scored two touchdowns in a game for the first time since November 5, 2016, against Hawai’i. 

O’Neil threw his second touchdown of the night, connecting with redshirt freshman Jordan Napier from eight yards out later in the fourth quarter, making it four touchdowns in four drives in the second half. 

O’Neil, who became the first true freshman QB to start the season for the Aztecs, struggled in the first half, overthrowing several receivers on deep passes and looking shaky with some decision-making. Leaning on Cooper and the run game helped stabilize O’Neil as the game progressed. The biggest statistic on a night for a true freshman making his first start is always turnovers. O’Neil had none. He completed 22 of 33 passes for 214 yards and added a nice 28-yard run as well.  

While the offense struggled in the first half, the defense, which saw ten of the 11 players make their first Division I starts, made their presence felt. All the talk during the offseason was about the 4-2-5 defense brought over by defense coordinator Eric Schmidt. While that defense was utilized on Saturday, the Aztecs actually started out in a 3-4 formation on the first series, flanking Trey White and Brady Nassar as OLBs next to three interior defensive linemen. 

In addition to the two touchdowns in the second half, the defense thwarted a potential scoring drive for the Lions early in the second quarter by forcing their first turnover of the year. Chris Johnson forced a fumble by the Lions’ Jared Wilson that Krishna Clay recovered at the SDSU 29. 

White led the team with 1.5 tackles for loss, while Ryan Henderson, Marlem Louis, and Brady Anderson led with one sack each. 

Gabriel Plascencia’s 50-yard field goal near the end of the first quarter provided the Aztecs their first points of the season. It tied Jack Browning’s 50-yard make against Toledo in September 2022 as the longest field goal in Snapdragon Stadium’s short history. 

EJ Oakmon’s 2-yard TD run with less than a minute left in the first half capped off a 10-play, 75-yard drive to give the Lions a 6-3 lead (Andy Gallegos missed the extra point).

The Aztecs drove down the field at the end of the half, but a sack on O’Neil lost 14 yards and forced a 48-yard field goal that Plascencia missed wide right. 

The recurring theme of the first half, however, was yellow. As in the color of penalty flags. The teams combined for 16 penalties for 147 yards. Even more, flags were thrown than assessed as the teams were called for penalties on the same play that offset and did not make it in the books. Another flag thrown for defensive pass interference on the Aztecs was picked up after a discussion by the referees.

Nine seconds into the second half, three more yellow flags were thrown for 21 yards. The number by the end of the game: 31 penalties for 273 yards. 

One of those penalties by the Aztecs negated a Dalesean Staley interception in the end zone. 

Eric Rodriguez completed 14-of-20 passes for 105 yards and one touchdown for the Lions. His backup, Ron Peace, worked two drives, completing 4 of 5 passes for 12 yards. Overall, they were held to only 180 yards versus the Aztecs’ 468. 

Brandon Tucker, Jr. led the Lions with 15 tackles, while Lavon Williams chipped in ten tackles, one sack, and two tackles for loss. 

Left tackle, Joseph Borjon left the game late in the first half for the Aztecs after having his left knee rolled on and did not return. Christian Jones slid over from left guard to replace Borjon, while Myles Murao took over at left guard. Borjon was seen on crutches post-game. 

Cooper reiterated that the Aztecs played their first game together with a lot of new pieces and things do not always click immediately. 

“I was just getting my feet wet tonight; we were all getting our feet wet tonight,” he added. “It’s a long season.”

The long season continues next Saturday as the Aztecs return to Snapdragon Stadium to host the Oregon State Beavers. Kickoff is at 7:30 pm.

Andre Haghverdian

Avid sports fan and historian of basketball, baseball, football and soccer. UC San Diego and San Diego State alumni living in America’s Finest City. Diverse team following across multiple sports leagues, but Aztecs come first in college athletics.