What San Diego State football coach Sean Lewis said about retaining players on official signing day

Official signing day has taken on a whole new meaning at San Diego State and other schools, thanks to the early signing date and the transfer portal.

San Diego State coach Sean Lewis, who is looking to build on the success of a 9-4 season as the Aztecs move into the new-look Pac-12, says retaining players is just as important as welcoming the players who signed in December.

“It’s different, we are no longer huddled around the fax machine,” Lewis said. We are spending more time and having more conversations today with 2027 recruits than 2026. Obviously, the staff did a great job in December and there were over 20 high school signees there. You know, this has been more about, obviously, the past month or so, with the retention of our own roster, and then the portal, there's been a ton of movement there. So, you know things that we've done, first and foremost, the retention piece is always critically important to us.”

Here are the highlights of Lewis’ news conference:

Lewis on retaining players

“The retention piece is always critically important to us. There were about 25 individuals that had played over 200 snaps for us last year that we identified as key players that we needed to retain. We retained 21 out of those 25 obviously, four of those individuals got awesome opportunities, and because of the development and the experience that we've provided them with, they've got a tremendous opportunity to maximize the remaining time that they have in collegiate football. We are really happy for them, and really happy about where we are with the health of our roster, the health of our program.”

Lewis on the class of 2026

“We brought in 27 new kids, from all different levels, in places and spaces, that was eight from the P4 Four [The Power Four NCAA Conferences], four from the Group of Six, nine from FCS [Football Championship Subdivision], two from NCAA Division II, and four from junior college. So, like, we talked all about wherever those talent buckets are, we're going to go look, and we're going to go find the kids who are able to help us genetically and then their character who are a great fit for our culture and for our great city and this proud university.”

Lewis on the addition of quarterback Stone Saunders

“Yeah, so I knew Stone from all the way back from his recruitment from high school, he was the class behind Danny [Danny O’Neil], and he'd actually taken a trip all the way out to Colorado. So I have known him for a really long time. Obviously, a ton of production at a high level and from a state that has produced some really good quarterbacks over the years. He ended up at the SEC and then there was a coaching change that happened there. So, he was looking for an opportunity with people that he could trust and entrust his development and his journey too. So, I’m getting excited about his skill set. He's got a live arm. His dad comes from a coaching background, he is a former NFL strength and conditioning coach, so he's wired the right way. I've been back here for three days now, being around the guys. Past couple weeks, I've been on the road recruiting but just the way that he's approached the work thus far, you know, excited to have him in the program, and he'll get a lot of opportunity here through the winter and spring, as Denny [Jayden Denegal] continues to get healthy, to get some good quality reps. he has the ability to run the ball, but he's going to do a majority of his damage from the pocket.”

Lewis on the depth and additions to the wide receiver room

“I think going into year three is probably the deepest and most talented room [wide receiver corps] that we've had thus far on paper. We all know what that potential means right now. It's our job to coach them up, but I'm excited about the production that we have coming back in Donovan [Donovan Brown] and Napier [Jordan Napier], obviously, and Bostick [Jacob Bostick], and what those guys showed and their understanding of what we want to get done, and then obviously the additions of Justius Lowe and Aldo [Aldrich Doe] and Deshaun Davis getting here early and some of the others that we've added I'm excited about it. There is going to be good competition in that room with the continued development of Will Cianfrini and Parker Threatt as he makes that transition. Excited to see those guys step up. I think the nuance of playing pitch and catch and throwing the ball and the craftsmanship of route running and understanding leverage points and when to step on the gas versus when to play with tempo and how to set things up is it takes time.”

Lewis on not having to break in a new quarterback this season

“I'm excited beyond just the receiver room, but I'm sure this is the first time for me since transitioning from the 2020 season to the 2021 season where there's not a new quarterback that I'm breaking in. So, there's a lot that goes into the throw game equation. It's O-line protection. It's the quarterback knowing what to do and reading it properly, and then throwing it on time and on target, and the receivers being where they need to be and when they need to be there, on time and on target. Like you got to accumulate reps at doing that. I'm excited again, like it was when we left Kent State and Shedeur [Sanders] has got to learn it. Even before that, like from 2021 to 2022 Collin Schlee was stepping in as the new starting quarterback. Then in 2023 Shedeur Sanders is learning it for the first time. Then in 2024 Danny's [O’Neil] learned it for the first time. Then Denny [Jayden Denegal] for the first time. Well, now there's some continuity with the trigger man and the operator that's going to make it go that I'm really excited about.”

Lewis on the Aztecs’ 2026 nonconference schedule

“Yeah, I think it's great and kind of interesting. We'll play old JMU [James Madison University], who's now at UCLA [ex-James Madison coach Bob Chesney). Then we'll play the new James Madison University. I am very excited about the opportunities. They are all quality programs; it'll be really interesting. I mean, the number of new coaching staffs that we're going to play in new places will make for some interesting prep as we move through the offseason, as we're doing some of that advanced scouting. You know, those changes that just occurred, Portland State's got a new coach. Toledo's got a new coach. … But yeah, those first four are going to be a great opportunity for us, two home, two away. You know, a majority of them are right here in our backyard, we'll see where we're playing UCLA at, but either venue will be awesome. It'll be a great experience. At the end of the day, as we learned last year, win, and it solves a lot of your problems. So, we're going to do all that we can to just win and position ourselves in this program, this university, in the best spot to maximize this inaugural year in the Pac-12.”

Lewis on his transfer portal recruiting philosophy

“There has not been anything philosophically changed, per se. We want to value the production of guys that have done it. You know, there's this interesting puzzle that needs to come together when you identify a prospect and what sort of production they have. Are they a good cultural fit, and what's their price tag, and can you afford them? So we've been able to move mountains and increase our revenue share and the way that the community has stepped up and competed with us has allowed us to maximize all the resources that we have at our disposal, and then being able to identify, again, the right cultural fit, the needs that we have.”