San Diego State Aztecs @ Army Black Knights Football Recap

San Diego State 23, Army 20

The San Diego State Aztecs couldn’t hold onto the ball in week two of the college football season. Fortunately for them, neither could the Army Black Knights. Given enough time to get things right, the Aztecs did just enough to dig out a road win and survive a cross country flight to the Eastern time zone, accompanied by one of those early kickoffs (noon Eastern time) that often sabotages a West Coast team in September.

After sprinting out to a quick 14-0 lead, San Diego State held on to beat error-prone Army 23-20 in West Point on Saturday afternoon.

The scoring started in a burst, as just 30 seconds into the game Aztec quarterback Ryan Lindley hit Colin Lockett on a 68-yard scoring strike. As Army’s defense had struggled with the dynamic play of Northern Illinois last week, it seemed Army could be in trouble. The worry was hastened when 10 minutes later, San Diego State converted a 27-yard field into a touchdown, already Army’s second lost fumble of the game.

However, as the game unfolded, the Aztecs dropped two long balls that would have gone for touchdowns, and they dropped other passes that put a hitch in their git-along. Army had its own chronic problem with ball security (more on that in a bit), but the Black Knights used SDSU’s untimely case of the dropsies to get back into contention. Quarterback Trent Steelman led the Black Knights to answer the bell, however, marching them to a 71-yard touchdown drive to close the first quarter at 14-7. After holding the Aztecs to a quick possession, Army undertook a vintage option-offense drive. The 15-play drive featured only one pass—an incompletion—as Army ran 14 times for 82 yards to tie the game at 14-14.

Never trailing in the game, San Diego State went back ahead 20-14. On the strength of 45 rushing yards and a 24-yard reception from Ronnie Hillman, the Aztecs went 80 yards in three minutes. They were able to diversify their offense and avoid dropped passes, thereby creating just enough momentum to inch ahead of a dogged opponent. Immediately after a game-tying touchdown from Army (followed by a missed extra point that matched   the Aztecs’ botched PAT just minutes earlier), SDSU moved 55 yards for the go-ahead field goal. Trailing 23-20, Army moved only 35 yards in eight minutes of possession and gave the ball up on downs.

Army outgained San Diego State by the count of 446 to 292. In addition to three lost fumbles, Army put the ball on the turf another five times. Steelman finished with 157 rushing yards in the loss. Hillman tallied 117 yards on 17 carries for the Aztecs.

By: Matt Zemek
DFN Sports Senior Staff Writer