Written by Michael Huling
On Saturday, the San Diego State Aztecs began their football season with a very close victory over Weber State. The game was close throughout, with the Aztecs ultimately winning by a score of 6-0.
Quarterback Ryan Agnew completed 16 of 30 passes for 108 yards, while running back Juwan Washington had 22 carries for 55 yards. It was a defensively-dominated game, with no touchdowns scored. The Aztecs’ only scores came on field goals made by kicker Matt Araiza in the second and fourth quarters.
The Aztecs defense played brilliantly, shutting out a Weber State team that averaged just under 28 points per game last season. Safety Tariq Thompson had a late interception that helped seal the game. Despite the offensive struggles, this was the Aztecs’ first shutout since 2016, when they defeated Hawaii 55-0.
While a win is a win no matter the margin, SDSU was disappointed to have such a close game against a subpar opponent. Weber State plays in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), which is the lower division for college football. By contrast, SDSU plays in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). All of the college football powerhouse conferences are in the FBS, including the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, and the Southeastern Conference (SEC).
The Aztecs are coming off an up and down 2018 season, in which they finished with a 7-6 record (4-4 in conference). The highlight of last season for SDSU was clearly running back Rashaad Penny, who led all Division I FBS players with 2,248 rushing yards. Penny also had 23 rushing touchdowns, leading to him being named an All-American and the 2017 Mountain West Conference Offensive Player of the Year. All of this culminated into Penny being picked in the first round, 27th overall, by the Seattle Seahawks.
While the Aztecs don’t have anyone of Penny’s caliber currently on the roster, they have several players that coaches believe will have breakout years. In fact, a preseason media poll predicted that SDSU would finish second in the West Division of the Mountain West Conference.
SDSU’s next game will be tomorrow afternoon on the road against the UCLA Bruins. The Bruins are coming off an opening game loss against Cincinnati, being outscored 24-14. UCLA also had a brutal season last year, finishing 3-9 (3-6 in conference). The game will be a great opportunity for the Aztecs to start the 2019 season 2-0, putting the team in an excellent position to make a run in the Mountain West Conference.
