San Diego, CA
Aztecs alone atop the Mountain West after beating Boise State
Chapter 10 in the San Diego State football team’s climb to the top of the Mountain West standings will be titled “Redemption in the Rain.”
SDSU defensive coordinator Rob Aurich offered the hopeful suggestion during warmups before the Aztecs played Boise State in a first-place showdown on a crisp, wet Saturday night at Snapdragon Stadium.
After a lopsided loss to Hawaii last week amid a steady rain in Honolulu, Aurich was eager to see his defense respond against the Broncos on a rare rain day in San Diego.
Boise State’s strong running game got its yards (164 of them), but the SDSU defense stood firm when it mattered most in the Aztecs’ 17-7 win before an announced crowd of 29,201 (15,804 turnstile), which weathered a night of intermittent rain that didn’t dampen the spirits of those in attendance.
SDSU took a 14-10 halftime lead and all but decided the matter on Gabe Plascencia’s 47-yard field goal with 10:51 remaining in the game.
While the Broncos put up some rushing yards, they paled in comparison to the 277 yards piled up by SDSU. Running backs Lucky Sutton (25 carries, 150 yards), who went over 1,000 yards for the season, and Christian Washington (9 carries, 98 yards) did most of the damage.
Those who braved the elements watched the Aztecs take control of the conference. SDSU (8-2, 5-1 MW) assumed a one-game lead in the Mountain West with two games remaining in the regular season. Boise State (6-4, 4-2) fell into a five-way tie for second place with Fresno State, Hawaii, New Mexico and UNLV.
The Aztecs close out the season with a home game Saturday night against San Jose State and a road game the day after Thanksgiving against New Mexico.
Boise State and SDSU have two of the better running teams around, and this contest set up as a ground-and-pound game even before weather put a premium on ball handling. For one thing, Boise State wanted to take the pressure off quarterback Max Cutforth (12-for-18, 108 yards), who was making his first start in place of the injured starter Maddux Madsen. Cutforth had fewer than 40 yards passing before a last-ditch drive that ended with Colton Boomer’s missed 41-yard field goal.
SDSU opened the scoring with a six-play, 80-yard scoring drive. Washington rushed five times for 79 of the yards, most of them coming on 41- and 26-yard runs that advanced the ball to Boise’s 1-yard line. SDSU quarterback Jayden Denegal (6-for-10, 17 yards) took it from there, pushing across the goal line for the final yard and a 7-0 lead with 13:15 remaining in the second quarter.
Boise State responded with a 14-play, 75-yard drive that included 13 rushes. interrupted only by a 6-yard pass by Cutforth. Broncos running backs Dylan Riley (21 carries, 79 yards) and Sire Gaines (13 carries, 78 yards) took turns moving the ball down the field before Riley evened the score on a 9-yard touchdown run with 5:29 remaining in the half.
Then it was SDSU’s turn again, and the Aztecs assembled an 11-play, 71-yard drive with running back Lucky Sutton handling the workload. Sutton rushed seven times, collecting 50 yards. Denegal attempted to pass twice, losing two yards on one attempt while the other was incomplete, before scoring on a 8-yard draw up the middle with 1:10 remaining in the half.
SDSU wide receiver Jordan Napier was the target on the sidline incompletion. He was injured on the play with 4:14 remaining in the half, heading to the treatment tent with a lower left leg injury. Napier did not return. No immediate update was available on his condition.
Linebackers Owen Chambliss and Mister Williams led the Aztecs with eight tackles apiece. The defense was boosted by cornerback Chris Johnson, who returned to the lineup after missing last week with a lower leg injury.
Joan Endres
OBITUARY
Born January 1939 in Cincinnati Ohio. Died February 14, 2026, in San Diego, California, with her sons at her side. Her beloved husband Dean passed away in 2010.
Joan was the only child of Thomas and Edna Palmer. In 1943, the family moved to San Diego, where Joan graduated from Helix High School in 1956.
In 1957 Joan married Dean Endres of San Diego, where they raised two sons. Joan followed her two great passions outside the home, the Arts, and Gardening. Both activities being a way to bring beauty to others and to the community.
Joan received a degree in Environmental Design from San Diego State University, and afterwords worked at UCSD, for the Campus Architect.
As an artist, Joan worked in various media, especially ceramics. She was active in many cultural and arts organizations, eventually becoming President of the Combined Organization for the Visual Arts (COVA). Later she turned to gardening, with the Water Conservation Garden at Cuyamaca Community College and the Master Gardener Association of San Diego County.
Joan is survived by her son Jeff and wife Katrin, grandson Jackson, and son Todd Endres, all of La Mesa, and sisters Alice Buck of Phoenix, Elaine Kennedy of San Diego, Nancy and husband Don Jones of Vista, Eva Budzinski of Cloudcroft, New Mexico, and their children and grandchildren.
There will be a Celebration of Life for Joan in the near future. Those who wish to attend should contact celebratejoanuvart@gmail.com to receive details when they are confirmed. In lieu of flowers, the family respectfully suggests a donation to the Water Conservation Garden or the Diego Visual Arts Network (SDVAN).
The San Diego State Aztecs’ have moved off the bubble and back into the NCAA Tournament’s Field of 64 in the latest ESPN’s Bracketology projections.
The Aztecs must feel like a yo-yo, but now it’s in a good way. Bracket expert Joe Lunardi moved them from the bottom of the First Four Out — No. 72 — to holding the Mountain West’s automatic bid after an 89-72 home romp Wednesday night over Utah State, which had held the auto-bid in bracketology for a few weeks now.
Lunardi now has the Aztecs as the No. 11 seed in the West Region, with a projected first-round date against former MW rival BYU in Portland.
Lunardi wrote that SDSU’s auto-bid “shifts the entire bubble.”
Wednesday night’s victory not only pulled the Aztecs (19-8, 13-4) into a tie with Utah State (23-5, 13-4) atop the MW standings, but it was just their second Quad 1 victory in six such opportunities.
SDSU’s next two games are both Quad 1 chances, at New Mexico on Saturday and then at Boise State on Tuesday night.
The win lifted the Aztecs only one spot in the NCAA NET Rankings, to No. 43. Those rankings are used by the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee as the primary sorting tool for selection and seeding for March Madness.
SDSU’s resume for earning an at-large berth has been on shaky ground all season, and was seriously damaged last week when the Aztecs lost at home to Grand Canyon and were then routed at Colorado State, both Quad 2 games.
SDSU’s best bet to assure a trip to March Madness for the sixth straight season is to win the MW tournament in Las Vegas and claim the automatic bid. That requires winning three games in as many days, and perhaps a third showdown against the Aggies, who beat the Aztecs 71-66 in Logan on Jan. 31.
Lunardi now has Utah State projected as an at-large team, but still with the No. 7 seed in the East, facing No. 10 Texas A&M in a first-round game in St. Louis.
New Mexico (21-7, 12-5), lurking just a game behind SDSU and USU, has dropped from the Last Four In at No. 68 to the First Four Out at No. 70.
The Aztecs were the unanimous preseason pick to win the MW regular-season title in their final season in the league before moving into the Pac-12 along with Utah State, Boise State, Fresno State and Colorado State.
Saturday’s game at New Mexico is set to tip off at 11 a.m. PT and will air on CBS.
Tennessee senator with Iranian roots calls for diplomacy following U.S.-Israel attack on Iran
St. Andrew’s Prom Closet helps North Texas teens shine without the high cost
Reading changed these authors’ lives, now they want the same for Utah’s youth
Spaulding wrestling dethrones Mount Anthony, ends 36-year title reign
Virginia Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 Night results for Feb. 28, 2026
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Indiana Members Credit Union announced as new anchor tenant at Bottleworks District
Mamdani’s response to Trump’s Iran strike sparks conservative backlash: ‘Rooting for the ayatollah’
Activists hail ‘historic’ EU’s decision on accessible abortion
A long-buried recording and the Supreme Court of old (CT+) : Consider This from NPR
2 Survivors Describe the Terror and Tragedy of the Tahoe Avalanche
Iran fires missiles at US bases across Middle East after American strikes on nuclear, IRGC sites
-
World3 days agoExclusive: DeepSeek withholds latest AI model from US chipmakers including Nvidia, sources say
-
Massachusetts3 days agoMother and daughter injured in Taunton house explosion
-
Montana1 week ago2026 MHSA Montana Wrestling State Championship Brackets And Results – FloWrestling
-
Louisiana6 days agoWildfire near Gum Swamp Road in Livingston Parish now under control; more than 200 acres burned
-
Denver, CO3 days ago10 acres charred, 5 injured in Thornton grass fire, evacuation orders lifted
-
Technology1 week agoYouTube TV billing scam emails are hitting inboxes
-
Technology1 week agoStellantis is in a crisis of its own making
-
Politics1 week agoOpenAI didn’t contact police despite employees flagging mass shooter’s concerning chatbot interactions: REPORT