For the first time in 54 years, San Diego State and University of San Diego will square off on the gridiron when they meet this Saturday at Qualcomm Stadium for both teams’ season opener.
SDSU plays in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) and have made five straight bowl appearances while USD still plays in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), the second-tier of college football, but the Aztecs are not taking their cross-town rivals lightly.
“They’re an up and coming program,” said senior cornerback J.J. Whittaker during a Tuesday press conference. “They went 9-4 last year and were predicted to win their conference as well, so we don’t look at them as an underdog. We respect our opponents.”
Along with going 9-4, the Toreros also won the Pioneer Football League title last year and competed in their first Division II playoff game.
For the USD though, this will be the first time its players will experience playing a game at Qualcomm Stadium and the Aztecs believe that will have some type of effect, for better or for worse.
“When I first went in, it was for fall scrimmage and I was amazed. I think if it’s your first time, you’ll definitely be amazed at how big it is and how many seats there are,” senior offensive lineman Pearce Slater said. “It’s definitely one of the biggest stadiums that I’ve ever played in so it was a pretty big deal for me and I think it will be for them too.”
Something to watch for the Aztecs this week will be the play of senior graduate-transfer quarterback Maxwell Smith, who was named the starter on Monday.
“This is my personal opinion and I don’t know if it’s true, but I think him just being older and having already played at the college level some gives him a little bit of maturity advantage,” said head coach Rocky Long.
However, Smith will be working behind a patchwork offensive line that is working with a new center, left tackle, right tackle and right guard from last year.
Long expressed that the inexperience of his offensive line is one of his main concerns coming out of camp, along with the depth on the defensive side of the ball.
