Aztecs Nick Tenhaeff sacks Derek Carr in the third quarter for a 14 yard loss.
Aztecs Nick Tenhaeff sacks Derek Carr in the third quarter for a 14 yard loss. — Sean M. Haffey

The Aztecs were amped to play Fresno State on Saturday night, and it showed. Rocky Long's inconsistent team put together it's best game of the year -- with an asterisk for the kicking bungles -- and despite the 35-28 defeat in OT, they proved that they can hang with one of the best teams in the country.

Right or wrong, there were definitely a few calls that affected the momentum of the game. I highly doubt the officials were biased by intention because hey, didn't they take away Fresno State's first attempt at a touchdown in overtime too? But there were a couple of calls from Saturday's game that left room for skepticism.

SDSU linebacker Josh Gavert had a sack and forced fumble taken away in the second quarter when officials ruled the play an incomplete pass because they said Fresno quarterback Derek Carr's arm was going forward when he was hit. But look closely and it looks like he was bringing his arm back to his body with the ball still in his hand. Wouldn't he have released the ball before that if he'd been trying to pass or get rid of it?

Pump fake that became a fumble? Or incomplete pass? Looked to me like he got the stuffing knocked out of him and let go of the ball as Gavert drilled him.

Aztecs' cornerback King Holder was also penalized for defensive pass interference early in the game on a play that looked more like the receiver Davante Adams was causing the interference.

Then there's the fumble-that-wasn't-a-fumble-that-was-then-a-78-yard-Bulldogs-touchdown.

Was WR Ezell Ruffin down at the 22 before Fresno State's Ejiro Ederaine wrestled the ball out of his hands and ran it back for a score? Ruffin and Rocky Long certainly thought so, as did the rest of the Aztecs offense, and most of the Bulldogs' defense.

Guess it's all irrelevant at this point.

Here's how I thought the Aztecs graded out.


Grade: B+

The Aztecs took a couple of possessions to get their rhythm going, but once they jumpstarted the engine, what a terrific run it was.

SDSU's 507 offensive yards was a season-high, and the Aztecs showed versatility in the way they used their skill players. Everyone, it seemed, contributed something.

WR Ezell Ruffin had a career day, with 10 receptions for 181 yards, while Adam Roberts, Eric Judge, Chad Young and Tim Vizzi all made plays when called upon to do so.

The Aztecs converted a third-and-17 in the first quarter and a third-and-18 in the second -- their two longest third down conversions of the season.

Running back Adam Muema ran better than he has all year, rushing 27 times for 111 yards and two scores, and looking every bit like the stiff-arming, tackle-breaking yardage machine he was in 2012.

Freshman D.J. Pumphrey was held to 18 receiving yards and 37 rushing yards, but the beauty of having two in-form running backs is that you don't always need both to get hot in the same game.

Quinn Kaehler is coming along nicely at quarterback. He was sacked twice, but avoided a couple other sacks by making smart decisions. While he threw his fifth interception of the year and had a lower-than-average 53.8 completion percentage, he also put up a career-high 337 yards and once again distributed the ball well.

Kaehler has a knack for moving around in the pocket, and he even showed surprising elusiveness with his feet, breaking away from a defender in the first quarter to extend the play with a 4-yard pass to Adam Roberts.

He's established a solid rapport with Ruffin, and Roberts is also emerging as a reliable receiving threat.

Judge needs to start getting more reps. The kid has sure hands and has proved that he can make plays in traffic.


Grade: A

Aztecs' safety Eric Pinkins promised this week that we would see a different intensity from the SDSU defense against Fresno State. He led by example, and finished tied with Nick Tenhaeff for a team-high eight tackles.

The defense finally delivered a complete game. SDSU kept Carr, Fresno State's Heisman hopeful, on the run all night long as they blitzed, blitzed and blitzed some more.

A new wrinkle that worked really well: Every time the Bulldogs lined up with an empty backfield, SDSU's defensive line started standing up and go hurtling into the backfield off the snap. They only got into their three-point stances when Fresno had a back in the backfield.

The Aztecs' defense came away with two official sacks (by linebackers Nick Tenhaeff and Josh Gavert) but kept solid pressure on Carr.

The defensive backs played magnificently as SDSU notched a season-high nine pass breakups (cornerback J.J. Whittaker and safety Nat Berhe had two apiece) and kept a lid on Fresno's receivers in man coverage.

For only the second time this year, the Bulldogs came away from the game without a 100-yard receiver. Their performance on Saturday night showed the Aztecs' secondary that they have the ability to hang with the best receivers in the country.


Grade: C+

You can't help but rue the two missed field goals. The early 40-yarder would have rendered the 37-yarder at the end of regulation completely unnecessary. The 37-yarder would have won the game for the Aztecs and negated the need for OT.

SDSU's sophomore kicker Seamus McMorrow missed both. Yet, it would be unfair to make him the goat here. McMorrow has been near perfect on kickoffs all year, and his perfectly executed onside kick in the fourth quarter kept the Aztecs in the game when it looked as if the momentum had swung in the Bulldogs' direction.

McMorrow also made all four of his PATs, which counts for something when you consider that those haven't exactly been automatic for SDSU this season either.

Still, the Aztecs clearly have a problem on field goals -- which makes you wonder why they played with a field goal in mind at the end of regulation instead of going all gunslinger style and gutting it out to go for a touchdown. End-of-game decisions are a no-man's land for any coach though. Unless you win, someone's always going to second guess you.

For what it's worth, Joel Alesi put up another spectacular punting performance, with five punts for 204 yards, including two with monstrous hang that dropped behind the Bulldogs' 20. Alesi's 33-yard touch punt from the Fresno 44 that pinned the Bulldogs on their 11 was also a thing of beauty.

It's always an advantage when your punter can flip the field like that.