San Diego State's upset of Texas State gives Sean Lewis something he needed ahead of Oregon State

After weeks of adversity, the Aztecs found renewed confidence in an unlikely victory as they prepare for another difficult Pac-12 test

San Diego State Aztecs head coach Sean Lewis. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Like a lot of coaches, Sean Lewis of the San Diego State Aztecs is big on motivational sayings and cliches to fire up his players. 

He preaches about “AztecFAST” and “The Climb” and “next man up” and every other bit of coachspeak imaginable.

A week after a shorthanded, underdog SDSU team pulled off a stirring, improbable win against Texas State in the Pac-12 Conference opener, Lewis will likely dig deeper to inspire his Aztecs.

But now he has some good examples to share with his players.

SDSU (2-3, 1-0) has to quickly move on to be ready to face the high-powered Oregon State Beavers (3-2, 1-0) in Corvallis at 3 p.m. Saturday. 

The Aztecs are even bigger underdogs this week, at +14.5 points, and they still have an overwhelming number of players on the availability report due to injuries and a mumps outbreak. 

Texas State win provides a much-needed boost

It’s clear from the win over Texas State that the coaching staff had backups ready to play and those players were eager to shine when they got the chance. 

“Each game is unique in its own way, and we're going to find ways to win in a lot of different ways,” Lewis said. “I think this one’s uniquely special.”

He said the momentum boost provided by Jaylon Hawkins’ 96-yard touchdown return on the opening kickoff of the second half was still reverberating as the Aztecs began preparation for the Beavers. 

San Diego State Aztecs wide receiver Jaylon Hawkins. | Photo courtesy of San Diego State University Athletics

“There’s just a little bit more bounce in everyone's step,” the coach said. “Like it puts a little bit more wind in your sails. It's pretty clear that we're in the midst of a storm right now, and it's good to finally get the wind in our sails and to push us through the storm that we're in, and just again give a little bit more life, a little bit more urgency and to see how much better we can be in a lot of ways, but how resilient we were also in a lot of ways, and how all three phases and a lot of guys have come together.”

That storm had been brewing for three weeks, though increasingly lopsided losses at UCLA, at home against James Madison and then a 41-16 defeat at Toledo in the final non-conference game that saw running backs Lucky Sutton and Javion “Chop” Kinnard go down with injuries severe enough that they had to be helped off the field. 

The mumps outbreak ravaged the tight end room and other positions, and then linebacker Tano Letuli, a three-year captain, went out with an undisclosed injury against Texas State. 

SDSU's young players deliver when called upon

Linebacker Cam Cooper “did an unbelievable job, stepping up, really embodying the next man up mentality,” Lewis said. “When Tano went down, Cooper went from being a rotational player to stepping into the arena and being the every down guy. He got the block kick, got the pick-6, huge effort from him.”

And then there was true freshman Josiah Lucas, who turned a dismal situation at running back into another example of a player being ready when called on. 

Lucas scored on short runs after the defense and special teams got the ball back during a 21-0 spurt in the second quarter, and finished with 111 yards rushing. 

Lewis singled out Tainoa Lave and Javari Nash for blocking for Hawkins on his kickoff return.

“Jaylon Hawkins gets all the credit, but those two true freshmen are on that play making huge blocks. You know, like you’re out there for a lot of those key moments, and I mean, there's guys that are making plays that are stepping up, and so again, it's never been more apparent that we're going to need everyone within the program.”

Lewis said the Texas State win “inspires everyone to work a little bit harder, do a little bit more as we continue to go forward. … I mean, belief without evidence is faith. So, you ask them to have faith in a lot of different ways. Now there is concrete evidence. Like, hey, trust this process. Trust that it works because there's evidence, and we had seen that, we had felt that like hey, there's individual plays or there's individual drives where it's coming together. 

“Like now we have got to have maturity, and we have got to have the seriousness of our craft and the competitive stamina to do it.”

Can the Aztecs carry that momentum into Oregon State?

The Aztecs struggled mightily to find an identity through the first four games. Besides the injuries to Sutton and Kinnard, quarterback Jaylen Denegal was having a hard time igniting the offense and Bert Emanuel Jr., converted from backup QB to wide receiver, was a non-factor. 

They found that identity in the second quarter against the Bobcats, and now must keep it as they face what Lewis calls “a really dangerous team that's playing some really good ball right now.”

“This is a resilient group,” Lewis said. “They're going through a lot, and they went through a lot on Saturday night to find a way to victory, and I think that's going to be the character and resolve of this club. The depth and the challenges that we're going to face in this league, each opportunity is going to be a four-quarter fight, and so all these lessons that we've learned, we’ve got to apply them as we go forward.”

San Diego State vs. Oregon State: Game information

The OSU game will be carried by USA Network and San Diego Sports 760 radio.