San Diego State's most irreplaceable player entering the 2026 season
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The San Diego State Aztecs are looking to build on their turnaround season of 2025 by making a good first impression in the first season of the new-look Pac-12 Conference.
The Aztecs must replace several key players on both sides of the ball and try to keep their returning stars healthy, a given with any team.
That raises the question: Who is the player the Aztecs can’t afford to lose this season?
Some might say it’s quarterback Jayden Denegal, who got through all 12 regular-season games last year despite dealing with injuries to both shoulders.
The pick here, though, is senior running back Lucky Sutton. Sutton had a breakout season by rushing for 1,297 yards and 10 touchdowns, both career-best marks that earned him a spot on the All-Mountain West first team.
Athlon Sports made Sutton a First-Team All-Pac-12 pick recently, reinforcing his importance to the Aztecs as they scramble to establish themselves in a league that includes four former MW foes, Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State and Utah State. The other members are fellow newcomer Texas State and holdovers Washington State and Oregon State.
Why Lucky Sutton is so valuable to SDSU
San Diego State’s offense had become ho-hum in Brady Hoke’s final few seasons as head coach and in Sean Lewis’ first season in 2024, when the Aztecs stumbled to a 3-9 finish, including 2-5 in the MW.
But the Aztecs rebounded in Lewis’ second year, when they won seven of their first eight games en route to a 9-4 finish that had them in line to host the MW title game until a double-overtime loss at New Mexico in the regular-season finale.
One of the constants last season, besides a ball-hawking defense led by senior cornerback Chris Johnson, was the play of Sutton, who went to San Diego’s Cathedral Catholic High School.
Sutton patiently waited through his freshman and sophomore seasons for his chance to become the starter, playing in just nine games total those two years.
After Marquez Cooper graduated following the 2024 season, with a career total of 5,130 yards — good for 19th on the all-time NCAA list — Sutton became the starter. He announced his arrival as a starter by rushing for 100 yards in a 42-0 season-opening win against Stony Brook, an FBS program.
He popped five more 100-yard games, including a career-best 158-yard performance in a 24-7 home win against Wyoming. He had a 150-yard night in a 17-7 home win against Boise State, the eventual MW champion and the preseason champion to claim the Pac-12 championship.
Sutton’s spot at “Running Back U”
San Diego State has become known as “Running Back U” over the decades after producing such stars as Marshall Faulk, Donnell Pumphrey and Rashaad Penny.
After three electrifying seasons on Montezuma Mesa, Faulk went on to an NFL career that carried him to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Pumphrey eclipsed Ron Dayne as the NCAA’s all-time rushing lead with 6,405 yards from 2013-16.
Sutton’s breakout season total of 1,297 yards placed him 16th on the Aztecs’ single-season list. He was the 20th player in school history to post a 1,000-yard season, and it was the 28th time an Aztecs back reached that plateau.
The final case for Sutton
If Denegal were to get hurt, the Aztecs could switch Bert Emanuel Jr. from wide receiver back to quarterback. Emanuel was the backup QB last year but figures he can take advantage of his talents by moving to wideout, the position his father played for five teams in eight NFL seasons.
If Sutton were to be lost to injury, next up would be Christian Washington, who ran for 563 yards and four touchdowns.
That’s why Sutton is the player SDSU can’t afford to lose this season.
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Bernie Wilson recently retired from The Associated Press after nearly 41 years, including stops in Spokane, Los Angeles and, for the final 33 years, San Diego. He grew up in Coeur d'Alene and graduated from the University of Idaho.