EL PASO, Texas – Viliami Teu and Carson Clark each surpassed 100 yards, and the SJSU defense recorded 11 sacks and 14 tackles for loss to lead San José State (4-3, 2-1 MW) in a 24-11 victory over UTEP (1-6, 0-3 MW) on Saturday night from the Sun Bowl.

Teu led San José State’s offense with 156 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries. His 67-yard touchdown run in the third quarter gave the Spartans a 21-0 advantage and marked his second score of the night. Teu also scored on a two-yard rush earlier in the third.

Quarterback Daniel Rolovich completed 12 of 23 passes for 193 yards and a touchdown in his first career game and start. Clark was his top target, catching five passes for 104 yards, including an 11-yard touchdown reception that opened the scoring in the first quarter.

San José State’s defense held UTEP scoreless through the first half and recorded 11 sacks, two off from the SJSU single-game all-time record set back in 1981. Jayland McGlothen led the Spartans with 3.5 sacks, while Dylan Lee added a pair of sacks and a team-high 12 tackles. Justin Stearns recorded two sacks, and Aizik Mahuka contributed 1.5 sacks.

UTEP cut the deficit to 24-11 with 10:52 remaining, but San José State’s defense stopped the Miners on downs inside the Spartans’ 25-yard line with 1:49 left to secure the victory.

The Spartans have now won three in a row when playing in the Sun Bowl and four out of their last five against UTEP
Teu’s 156 yards, two touchdowns, and 20 carries were all career-highs
Teu’s 67-yard touchdown was also a career-long run
This was Teu’s first career game over 100 rushing yards
Teu’s two touchdowns were his first two of the season, and he is now up to three in his career
Clark’s touchdown in the first quarter was the Spartans’ first opening-drive TD this season 
Clark’s 104 receiving yards set a new career-high
Clark is the first Spartan freshman to surpass 100 receiving yards in a game since Tre Walker had 104 yards against UNLV on Sept. 30, 2017
Clark’s touchdown puts his season total at five, one away from tying the SJSU freshman receiving touchdown record
Clark has recorded at least five receptions in all seven games this season
Clark’s 63-yard reception in the third quarter was a career-long
Rolovich’s passing touchdown to Clark was the first of his career
Rolovich is the first Spartan freshman to throw a touchdown since Nick Nash in 2019
Rolovich is just the second true freshman to start a game for the Spartans since 1998
Rolovich also rushed for 39 yards in the game
Rolovich is the fifth Spartan to start at quarterback since 2024
Isaiah Carlson’s 38 yards set a new career-high, and his 16-yard rush was a career-long
The Spartans’ 11 sacks were the most this century
The Spartans now have 20 sacks across their last two games
McGlothen’s 3.5 sacks were the most in the game for the Spartans since Cade Hall tallied four sacks against Nevada on Oct. 29, 2022
McGlothen now has six sacks and 6.5 tackles for loss on the season
Stearns’ two sacks set a new career-high, and his two tackles for loss tied his career-high
Stearns is now up to four sacks and 5.5 tackles for loss on the season
Mahuka’s 1.5 sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss both set new career-highs
Lee’s 12 tackles, two sacks and two tackles for loss were all career-highs
Nate Lewis finished with a sack, two tackles for loss and a forced fumble
Lewis’ sack, tackle for loss, and forced fumble were all the first of his career
Jeremiah Tuiileila also notched a sack and a tackle for loss, putting him up to 3.5 sacks and 6.5 tackles for loss on the season
Naseri Danielson and Brian Dukes, Jr. each had 10 tackles
Jayden Robertson had a tackle for loss and a pass breakup
Solomone Langi blocked a UTEP field goal
Langi’s blocked field goal marked the first blocked field goal by the Spartans since Oct. 21, 2021, when they did it against UNLV
Trent Carrizosa punted six times, placing three inside the 20
Trajan Sinatra made his lone field goal attempt from 26 yards

UP NEXT: The Spartans will head to Reno, Nev., to face Nevada on Saturday, Oct. 24, at 2:00 p.m. from Mackay Stadium. The game can be watched on MW+.

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