3-0 Aztecs Face 1-2 FCS Towson In Carson

(Photo) SDSU Cornerback Noah Avinger celebrates a big defensive stop vs Utah.

It’s game week! #BeatTowson #Win22 pic.twitter.com/H66mR5aHTD
— San Diego State Football (@AztecFB) September 20, 2021

Carson, Calif. – FCS. It has been an opponent commonly seen as a gentle challenge to most FBS teams. A minor league team playing a major league team. A sure win. A game needing exciting promos to get fans into the seats. A practice game where you can get 2nd and 3rd string players into the game for building the future.

For San Diego State football, it has been a troubling opponent for quite some time. Former head coach Rocky Long was always outspoken to the media, the fans, and to his players no team should be taken lightly. This would fit into the category of being a trap game. To a casual audience, there’s not much enthusiasm on weekends like this.

Brady Hoke and the entire SDSU coaching staff would beg to differ. This is a game to show how your team rises up to an opponent who will quite possibly be the deepest underdog in the 2021 season. This is a game that shows whether or not a team is looking forward to the next opponent or taking each game as serious as any other week.

"They are a physical football team. People need to realize they played a really good football team last week. There aren’t a whole lot of schools that want to say ‘hey, I want to play North Dakota State.’ That doesn’t happen. I thought even though that score probably isn’t indicative of the total game. I think they are a physical football team (and) they are a well-coached football team."

Brady Hoke on Towson

This is business. This is a game that can slip away and potentially bruise the swagger of a team starting out undefeated, which includes two back-to-back Pac 12 opponents.

Senior offensive tackle and team captain Zachary Thomas had this to say about preparing for Towson: “As a team captain I’m just making sure we are treating this game the same as every other because every game is just as important as the last no matter if it’s FCS, FBS, Pac-12, Mountain West, whatever it may be. Every game has the same importance.”

This is the first time both teams have played each other, and the first time both teams have faced an opponent from each conference. Adding to the fact that both teams have no history, this is an opponent that San Diego State will face which uses a power offense, and yet uses a 5-receiver spread.

Reminder to all Southern California active and retired military service members that you can purchase vouchers on base to attend any of our home games this season for just $10. Thank you for your service! 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/yK3YjrCjvn
— San Diego State Football (@AztecFB) September 22, 2021

Towson is coming off a loss to a top-5 ranked FCS North Dakota State. It was a game that wasn’t much of a contest in a 35-7 loss. They’ll be hoping to bounce back and give the Aztecs all their muscle. Towson University is located in Maryland, which means this is a team that had to fly all the way across the nation on Friday to compete in this contest.

Cross-country flights have a tendency to be tiring. It’ll be interesting to see if Towson comes out sluggish or if they use this big opportunity against an FBS team to put a scare into Hoke and this 2021 football team.

On offense, Towson has a transfer in the backfield in #31 Jerry Howard Jr. who comes in from Georgia Tech, and receiver #9 Darian Street who transferred from Pittsburgh. On defense, the Tigers have a University of South Carolina transfer in #8 Jesus Gibbs on the defensive line, and #3 Keyvone Bruton is a transfer from Temple at linebacker.

Next up...Towson at 12:30 pm this Saturday! Single game tickets for this week's home game start at just $15! Order yours today at https://t.co/NPcwIgmXWb. pic.twitter.com/7sGFTV3L8G
— San Diego State Football (@AztecFB) September 21, 2021

With the first quarter of the season complete, this will be the last non-conference game for San Diego State before getting a bye next weekend as the team prepares to open up Mountain West Conference play against New Mexico in Carson. Today’s game will be the 2nd of 3 games played at home.

When Brady Hoke was asked about the position of the bye week coming next weekend, he felt it was well-placed for where the team is at right now.

"It does always cross your mind a little bit to see where it's at. My feelings are it's probably at a good place. We'll do a couple things next week, but we'll try and get rested to some degree because then it's a long haul. We've got 8 conference opportunities, so I think as we move forward, this is probably is a good time for it."

SDSU Football Head Coach Brady Hoke

What To Watch

After a triple overtime win over Utah last weekend, how does San Diego State come out on offense, defense, and special teams? On offense, San Diego State was able to take a slight advantage of time of possession. After scoring 21 points in the 2nd and 3rd quarter, the Easter egg in the 4th left the game to be decided in overtime. On defense, the Aztecs struggled to contain the quarterback change made by Utah late in the game. SDSU was able to contain the rushing game, but struggled against some productive passes. Utah finished with twenty one 1st downs. On special teams, Jordan Byrd was able to put points on the board with a big kickoff return for a touchdown. Matt Araiza was able to record a career best 51-yard field goal, but missed one for 3 in overtime that would’ve been the game-winner.

How does the start time at 12:30PM affect both teams? As mentioned, Towson will be travelling from the opposite side of the United States, but will essentially be playing a 3:30pm game for their internal clock. San Diego State, however, is not accustomed to playing games so early.

Will the Aztecs continue the path of reducing the number of penalties and win the turnover margin? Against New Mexico State and Utah, San Diego State tied the turnover margin. Against Arizona, the Aztecs gave up one turnover, but was unable to create a turnover on defense. These are numbers that’ll play huge factors in competing for the 2021 Mountain West Conference championship.

NOTES

The last time Towson travelled out to California was back in 2000 when they faced St. Mary’s and the first West Coast trip since beating Eastern Washington in 2013 in a FCS semi-final win.
Towson was 1 of 35 FCS programs that chose not to play last year due to COVID-19 obstacles. They went 651 days not playing a game from November 23, 2019 to September 4, 2021.
San Diego State is among 7 undefeated teams in the nation to utilize 2 quarterbacks.
Since playing home games up in Carson last year, San Diego State is 5-1 in home games.
The Aztecs will be aiming for its first 4-0 start since 2017 when they recorded two big wins against Arizona State on the road and the memorable “blackout” win against a ranked Stanford at then SDCCU stadium.