One player or another has changed his jersey number seemingly every day since San Diego State began preseason camp three weeks ago.
Jersey Nos. 10 through 99 are distributed by SDSU equipment manager Omer Melzer-Bronstein on a seniority basis (and some NCAA numbering restrictions) as players try to secure numbers that are meaningful to them for various reasons.
Single-digit numbers need the approval of SDSU coach Sean Lewis, who took control of them last year when he asked for more accountability from the players.
Lewis called it “a very real currency.”
“The number matters,” he said. “The guys are driven and motivated by it. We’re using that as a leverage point to champion and get the behaviors that we want.”
Single-digit numbers were already assigned to several returners this season, like wide receiver Jordan Napier (2), quarterback Jayden Denegal (4), quarterback-to-receiver Bert Emanuel Jr. (5), running back Lucky Sutton (7) and safety Dalesean Staley (9).
San Diego State running back Lucky Sutton wearing No. 7 seems only fitting, but he had to prove he was worthy. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
“The expectations are going to be significantly higher for you individually if you’re a single-digit guy,” Lewis said. “Those are the elite of the elite. … Zero to nine mean a lot. Those are the guys in all three phases that we’re going to build game plans around. Sorry, not sorry. If we’re going to build a game plan around you, you don’t get to have a bad day. So figure it out.”
Sutton wore No. 7 his first three seasons at SDSU. He was reassigned No. 27 during the spring of 2025 and required to earn back the privilege of wearing No. 7.
Senior defensive lineman Malachi Finau changed from No. 18 to No. 6 during the first week of camp, a nod to the leadership role Finau has assumed as a returning starter and team leader.
At first glance, the 300-pound man seemed to overwhelm the single digit. But it is especially meaningful to him.
“Six was my very first number when I started,” Finau said. “So it’s like why not finish how I started?”
As of Monday, Lewis had not yet issued Nos. 0, 1 or 3.
By midweek, two more single-digit numbers were given out, with senior linebacker Sione Hala changing from No. 56 to No. 0 and senior wide receiver Nathan Acevedo going from No. 13 to No. 3.
Hala transferred from Weber State in January and was among the spring standouts, quickly emerging as a defensive leader with his high motor and all-over-the-field presence.
Acevedo is a Lincoln High School graduate who returned to his hometown last year after three years at Fresno State. He had a breakout game in the New Mexico Bowl, catching four passes for 61 yards and returning a punt for a touchdown.
Acevedo asked to switch numbers in the spring. He said Lewis told him, “We’ll think about it.”
“I totally forgot about it, and (Lewis) brought it back up to me,” Acevedo said. “Single digits as an Aztec is a standard. Every day when I put my gear on, I feel like I hold the standard and I bring guys with me to the standard.”
The No. 8 jersey remains tucked away.
It was retired after former SDSU quarterback Todd Santos led SDSU to the 1986 Holiday Bowl. He finished his career a year later with a then-NCAA-record 11,425 career passing yards. The number was brought out of mothballs in 2017, when wide receiver Quest Truxton wore it for the Aztecs.
It seems single-digit numbers were already coveted at least a decade ago.
“There’s probably 40 guys on our team who want a single-digit number,” former SDSU coach Rocky Long said at the time.
SDSU had no rules against bringing a number out of retirement. Perhaps to get Truxton to quit pestering him, Long said: “The only way he could wear it was if he got permission. Call up Todd Santos and ask him for it.”
That’s exactly what Truxton did. Santos quickly agreed to let him wear the number. But there was one condition:
“You better have a damn good season,” Santos told him.
“Yes, sir,” Truxton said.
Lewis still has not issued No. 1. It was worn by cornerback Chris Johnson, who earned All-American honors last season and was a first-round pick of the Miami Dolphins in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Like Santos’ challenge for Truxton, the next person to wear Johnson’s number for the Aztecs better be in store for an outstanding season. The wait to issue No. 1 could go up to the start of the season, or even beyond.
“We’ve done it within the season that we change a number,” said Lewis, adding, “That’s something where we want to put the emphasis on doing the work each and every single day. It’s such a privilege that we get to do it.
“I know (Melzer-Bronstein) would rather us get it done sooner so he can get it to the tailor’s and all that stuff. But I know we’ve got great people, and if the tailor needs to open late so that we can get a nameplate on it, I think there will be an Aztec supporter that can make it happen.”