San Diego State started hot on a cool and cloudy night at Snapdragon Stadium, but costly turnovers and failed opportunities doomed them to a 34-31 loss to Boise State.
It was the opener of the teams’ Mountain West conference slate and Boise State (2-2, 1-0 MW) unleashed a huge rushing attack, led by running back Ashton Jeanty with 205 yards and two touchdowns.
Coach Brady Hoke said the team needed to do a better job at tackling and again lamented the
Aztecs’ penalties.
“We were good for about three weeks,” he said. “We need to do better.”
But the Aztecs (2-3, 0-1 MW) started with a bang as Kenan Christon returned the kickoff for 71 yards to the Boise State 29-yard-line.
After a couple of running plays got the Aztecs closer to the goal line, quarterback Jalen Mayden burst up the middle to apparently get to the 1-yard line.
But Boise State players began celebrating what they thought was a fumble recovery and after a review, the officials agreed. Worse, Mayden fumbled into the end zone, resulting in a touchback and giving the ball to Boise State at their 20.
The Aztecs defense was able to force Boise State into a punt, which led to another return of 36 yards. SDSU relied on its running game for a few plays and then Mayden threw a pass that wide receiver Baylin Brooks caught near the right sideline and ran in for a 34-yard touchdown, giving the Aztecs a 7-0 lead.
From there, San Diego State’s defense clamped down, holding Boise State to just 26 yards and one first down in the first quarter.
The second quarter would be a different story, with the teams trading scores.
Boise State got a 37-yard return on the kickoff and used rushing plays to get them past midfield where quarterback Taylen Green hurled a 25-yard pass to his leading receiver, Eric McAlister in the left corner of the end zone. The touchdown tied the game 7-7.
The Aztecs would answer back with a 22-yard field goal. They could have had more, but were stopped on third down just four yards short of the end zone. Nevertheless, the Aztecs had the lead again, 10-7.
Boise State scored on a big play, as Jeanty took the handoff at his own 42-yard line and broke a couple of tackles on a 58-yard run to the end zone. The touchdown made it 14-10 Boise State.
The Aztecs stormed back on a 7-play, 75-yard drive. It featured a couple of highlight plays, including a handoff to running back Martin Blake – who then passed the ball for 32 yards to Brionne Penny– and a bruising 2-yard touchdown run by Jaylon Armstead to make it 17-14 Aztecs.
The Broncos got the ball back and went into a hurry-up offense to drive 72 yards in only 2:22 and settle for a field goal to tie the game at 17-17 entering the half.
The second half started poorly for the Aztecs, who after forcing Boise State to punt, saw a scoring opportunity slip away when kicker Jack Browning missed a 40-yard field goal. That came back to haunt the Aztecs on the next series as the Broncos drove 68 yards in 4:19 to kick a 27-yard field goal and take a 20-17 lead.
The frustrations mounted for the Aztecs after Mayden fumbled again on their next drive. Boise State took advantage, with Green scoring on a 10-yard keeper along the left sideline and into the end zone, increasing the Broncos’ advantage to 27-17.
But the Aztecs would cut into the lead on their next possession. Mayden rushed 16 yards to set up a 10-yard touchdown run by Armstead on the next play, to pull closer at 27-24.
Boise State kept up the pressure, adding another touchdown late in the fourth to make it 34-24, leaving the Aztecs with less than two minutes to bridge the gap.
And they made it part of the way, mounting a furious last-minute drive with Mayden scrambling 10 yards for a touchdown.
Trailing 34-31 with 42 seconds left, the Aztecs tried a desperation onside kick, but it failed, and the Broncos ran out the clock.
Mayden noted after the game that “it’s a long season. We’re still in this thing.” Yet he clearly felt the weight of his fumbles.
“I gotta play a complete game,” Mayden said. “It starts with me. Like coach said, I can’t allow
myself to make these mistakes.”
San Diego State next plays at Air Force on Sept. 30.
