What San Diego State football coach Sean Lewis said about New Mexico Bowl, losing defensive coordinator

It’s been a busy few days for the San Diego State Aztecs, who on Sunday accepted an invitation to play North Texas in the New Mexico Bowl and then found out that defensive coordinator Rob Aurich was hired away by Nebraska.

On Monday, coach Sean Lewis announced that Demetrius Sulmer will be the interim defensive coordinator for the bowl game, which is Dec. 27.

Aurich built a defense that has held opponents to 12.6 points per game, fifth-best in the country. North Texas leads the country in scoring at 44.8 points per game.

Sulmer has shown “commitment to the program first and foremost,” Lewis said. “He's a great connector of young men, and that's important in this time right now, to have a leader who does that at an elite level. He's a great football mind that has a depth of knowledge of scheme from what he learned with coach Rocky Long and previous coordinators that he's worked under. He has developed his own skill set and his own ideas, and he's done a great job the past two years as well. I'm excited to see him lead our guys.”

The Aztecs (9-3) can win 10 games for the first time since going 12-2 in 2021. North Texas is 11-2.

Here are the highlights of Lewis’ news conference:

Lewis on former defensive coordinator Rob Aurich

“(We’re) very thankful for the work that Rob has done for the past two years and the commitment of him and his family to our program. We're in a better place because of the work that he did. There's a good opportunity that he felt was best for him and his family. (I) wish him the best with that as we move forward.”

Lewis on the process of searching for a permanent defensive coordinator

“We'll see. I've done (this) enough to where I've learned. I have the scars from doing it too quickly, and it's more important to get it right than to do it right now. (I) understand the urgency that we need to have, but it's about getting the right individual to fit our culture. That's what college football is. It's a talent acquisition business. It's making sure that you get the right people in the building who are aligned and unified.”

Lewis on the decision to promote Sulmer

“The connection and brotherhood in that locker room are what drives us. We talked to the guys about moments of adversity, moments of change. Those are things that are going to be constant in their lives, and those things are (what) we have felt through this year. Our guys have responded at a really high level, and I know that we'll do that again.”

Lewis on the difficulty of preparing for North Texas quarterback Drew Mestemaker

“They've got talent everywhere. (They have) dudes that stress you out and can change the scoreboard at any moment in time. Their scheme is really sound, and you can tell that the quarterback knows where the answers are, regardless of the problems. It's a great league with great coaches and great talent. Teams have tried to throw every single different problem at him, and he's found the solution to really stress them out. “(He’s) one of the best in the country. He leads the nation in passing right now. The numbers speak for themselves. He's got incredible talent. He's got an incredible journey, which means he's a resilient kid.”

Lewis on the upcoming transfer portal cycle

“It's going to be unique and different. I think people have gotten their finances in order, so there won't be as much movement because people are doing a better job of retaining their own. There might be more movement, because there's not a spring portal. Some decisions are going to have to be made from both the player and program side of things to reconstruct the roster. There is the unknown of staffing changes and all the things that are still playing out. Some teams are adhering to the cap. Others aren't adhering to the cap. Some people will have a massive war chest. Some have a little war chest. Each and every program has a set of circumstances that’s unique to its own home.”

Lewis on continuing to add talent

“We're always looking to upgrade everywhere. The program's in a good spot. When it comes to acquiring talent, whether it's coaches to join, players to join, we're going to vet out all possible situations, all possible options to increase the talent pool for our roster. It's the constant improvement and constant competition that we lean into. We have the year of evaluation. We have these bowl practices that we'll evaluate. We'll make decisions based on that, and then we'll live with those decisions. We'll grow, we'll get better, and we'll continue to ascend and climb higher as we go into the Pac-12.”

Lewis on his preparation for the New Mexico Bowl

“I just wanted to know who, when, and where. We got all the information yesterday. (We’re) ready to go, ready to get after it, and ready to do the work that's required to go get a 10th win. Winning is hard, especially against a great opponent. This is an opportunity to have more time with our guys, to continue to grow our program and develop our club and our talent.”

Lewis on the Aztecs’ overall success this season

“There was a lot of hard work that was put into here. I believe in the team. We got a chance to be special. I know our strengths as a program. I know our perceived weaknesses as a program. I know the areas that we have to get better at. I'm tirelessly working to get better at them each and every single day. I believe in all the hard work that we have to do as we go forward again over the course of the next six weeks. Let's do the work, and let's go make some great things happen, given what it is, because if we don't adapt, what's the alternative?”