What the San Diego State Aztecs said after first fall camp practice

Aztecs looking to rebound in coach Sean Lewis' second season

San Diego State Aztecs head coach Sean Lewis. | Abe Arredondo-Imagn Images

San Diego State opened fall camp on Monday with expectations that they’ve improved over last year, when they finished 3-9 in coach Sean Lewis’ first season as head coach.

“We had great energy on the first day, but it’s easy to have energy on the first day,” Lewis said afterward. 

This is a big season for the Aztecs, who want to rebound from last season’s disappointing finish and head into the new-look Pac-12 with some momentum. They have 23 more practices before hosting Stony Brook in their season opener at Snapdragon Stadium on Aug. 28. 

“We had some big plays offensively and there were some turnovers defensively,” Lewis said. “There was a ton we need to clean up, but the install was as heavy as it’s ever been on our first day because of the access we had to the guys over the summer. There wasn’t a ton of mental errors, just things we need to refine from a technique standpoint for better and more consistent execution.

“All around in all three phases without seeing the tape, it was good energy and a good first day.” 

Here are the highlights of what the Aztecs said after practice.

Lewis on the team’s focus

“As we moved through summer conditioning, we really dialed into each attribute we’ve emphasized this year. Now when we get to this point, those buzzwords really mean things. When we say focused, that one word tells a whole story. Focus is the depth and direction of your time, effort and energy. So where is your time, where is your effort, where is your effort going? Where’s it pointing to? How deep are you willing to go so that we don’t just know things at a surface level?”

Junior edge Trey White on the different feeling in camp this year

“It felt good to be out here. We’ve been waiting for this moment all winter and all summer, and it’s good to be finally playing some football. I think the intent and the energy we brought today (was noticeable). Everyone was excited to be out here, and everyone was intentional in what they were doing, paying more attention to detail and less mistakes out there on day one. It was good to see, and we have a lot to work on, but I’m excited to see what happens.”

Junior Lucky Sutton on moving up the depth chart at running back

“It’s a great thing to be out there with my guys. Everybody was very excited, and we had great energy. The offensive line was disciplined today and nobody false started. Today was a good day. We play against a good defense every single day, which is only going to help us compete and get better.”

Senior kicker Gabe Plascencia on being named the MW preseason special teams player of the year 

“It’s pretty cool to receive the honor, but at the end of the day, it’s preseason. The thing we’re looking for is to get the (award) at the end of the year and obviously win a Mountain West championship. That’s all we’re really focused on right now.”