San Jose State finds itself on the edge of a perilous cliff in the Mountain West as it welcomes No. 24-ranked San Diego State to CEFCU Stadium on Friday night.
The Spartans are 9.5-point underdogs at home against the unbeaten Aztecs, who are primed to dethrone the reigning conference champion.
Though head coach Brent Brennan has named no starter, SJSU backup quarterback Nick Nash appears likely to make his third career start in place of the injured Nick Starkel, and last week’s 32-14 loss at Colorado State didn’t inspire a lot of confidence.
It snapped a nine-game winning streak in the Mountain West – and while it’s not time to push the panic button, San Jose State (3-3, 1-1 Mountain West) could face back-to-back losses for the first time this season.
“All we know is that we’ve got a game Friday night,” SJSU linebacker Kyle Harmon said after Saturday’s setback. “We’ve got to shake this one off and get back to the film room, practice hard and do what we do on defense. It’s always one week at a time and I don’t think we feel like our backs are against the wall. I think we just need to slow down, kind of regather ourselves and just go from there.”
Here are a few keys to victory in the Spartans’ 85th homecoming game against San Diego State (5-0, 1-0):
Home cooking
While the Spartans have struggled so far on the road, averaging a paltry 10.25 points per game, the offense has found the end zone at least five times in both games at home.
Nash was nearly flawless in a turnover-free game two weeks ago at CEFCU Stadium, but he threw an interception on the first drive at Colorado State and also lost a fumble.
Fans have inundated the stands in San Jose to the tune of over 15,000 attendees for both home games, and homecoming could provide another great atmosphere for the players to rally around.
“We have to get ready to play an excellent football team here in CEFCU Stadium,” San Jose State coach Brent Brennan said. “And whatever is happening surrounding it, whether that’s homecoming or the short week, those are just things that we have to deal with and not let them be distractions. Just make sure that our focus and our effort is on the right place.”
Battle in the trenches
San Diego State only passed for 44 yards in a triple-overtime 33-31 victory over Utah, one of two Pac-12 opponents the Aztecs have defeated.
Their season high in passing yards (183) came in the 38-14 rout at Arizona.
It’s obvious San Diego State is committed to the ground game, with 6-foot, 200-pound running back Greg Bell as its bell cow. He’s coming off a season-high 161 rushing yards a week ago and Brennan described him as an NFL-caliber back.
“In my time here, they’ve always had good running backs, they’ve always had a great o-line, they’ve always had a great tight end, they’ve always had a good quarterback,” Brennan said. “They’ve always been efficient on offense. That’s their identity, so you definitely have to get ready to play a very physical team.”
Brennan particularly praised the experience and size of the Aztecs’ offensive line.
Adjustments at line of scrimmage
For a couple of weeks, Brennan has stressed the difficulty of playing against San Diego State’s particular scheme on defense.
The Aztecs provide a different look from what the Spartans are accustomed to week in and week out, and with one fewer day to prepare the task just got tougher.
Whoever lines up under center for San Jose State must recognize what the defense is throwing at him on a constant basis.
“It’s just a ton of movement,” Brennan said. “They play with an extra defensive back, but they’re able to blitz and pressure you, they’re able to man you up, they’re able to play zone, they’re able to get in a heavy box and defend the run, they’re able to drop a bunch of people and play heavy coverage. Most people do that out of a more conventional scheme.”
San Diego State has yet to allow any team to score more than 24 points in regulation and would’ve pitched a shutout in last week’s conference opener if not for a fumble return for a touchdown by New Mexico, which lost 31-7.
Extend plays
Nash came off the bench last year at San Diego State to spark a second-half comeback after Starkel suffered an injury in the first quarter.
The element of surprise from the dual-threat QB certainly played a role in the 28-17 victory, which Nash sealed with a 14-yard scramble late in the fourth quarter.
“There’s a unique combination there where he can get himself out of trouble,” Brennan said.
“And these guys are so good on defense and they’re so aggressive and they come after you, so his ability to extend plays or extend drives is going to be really important.”
Except now the Aztecs not only have game footage to dissect from a year ago, but also from the previous two weeks.
Though Brennan isn’t sure how much of an impact that will have on San Diego State’s tactics.
“They’ve just been lights-out on defense, so it doesn’t matter to them,” Brennan said. “I would think they would do what they do, because they’ve kind of been getting after everybody so far.”
