{"id":435170,"date":"2026-08-17T10:52:20","date_gmt":"2026-08-17T10:52:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/435170\/"},"modified":"2026-08-17T10:52:20","modified_gmt":"2026-08-17T10:52:20","slug":"3-thoughts-from-san-diego-states-scrimmage-at-snapdragon-stadium","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/435170\/","title":{"rendered":"3 thoughts … from San Diego State’s scrimmage at Snapdragon Stadium"},"content":{"rendered":"

Three thoughts after San Diego State\u2019s scrimmage Saturday evening at Snapdragon Stadium:<\/p>\n

1. Weaponizing wide receiver<\/p>\n

In quarterback-turned-receiver Bert Emanuel Jr., San Diego State has an offensive weapon that is simply unfair for opponents.<\/p>\n

Emanuel Jr. made two catches within the first few minutes of the workout that required him to leap high and make an athletic move in midair in order to secure the ball.<\/p>\n

The plays weren\u2019t something just any receiver does, especially one who came to the position just eight months ago. Emanuel finished with four receptions for 49 yards<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s working really hard at the craft,\u201d SDSU coach Sean Lewis said after the scrimmage. \u201cHis development has really started to hit an uptick, because there\u2019s some base things that you really don\u2019t know what you don\u2019t know when you make that change\u2026 He\u2019s settling into it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"SanSan Diego State\u2019s Bert Emanuel Jr. show a special skill set in the New Mexico Bowl at University Stadium on December 27, 2025 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. (Photo by Sam Wasson\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

We knew there was something special about Emanuel when he started at quarterback in the New Mexico Bowl and rushed 11 times for 170 yards before leaving with an injury. He had bursts up the middle for 72 and 69 yards, the Aztecs\u2019 two longest runs from scrimmage all season.<\/p>\n

Emanuel who approached the coaches about switching positions during the offseason. It\u2019s history repeating itself. His father did the same thing, moving to receiver in the NFL after starring at quarterback for Rice University.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think anyone over the offseason caught more balls off the Jugs machine than him,\u201d Lewis said.<\/p>\n

The experience of playing quarterback since he was 6 years old is proving invaluable in Emanuel\u2019s development.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe sees it from both sides,\u201d Lewis said. \u201cHe\u2019s got a good feel. When you\u2019ve been the guy in the pocket, you really understand the timing of when the ball needs to get out of your hand and the location of where you want the receivers to be. \u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you have a quarterback background, I think you have a greater appreciation of all the things that are going on within the pocket and the urgency that you have to work with on the edge \u2014 as opposed to when you\u2019ve just played on the edge your whole life.\u201d<\/p>\n

At 6-foot-3 and 235 pounds, Emanuel is going to present matchup problems with defenders.<\/p>\n

Oh, and did we mention Emanuel also is the fastest player on the team? The GPS tracker he wears has clocked Emanuel as high as 23.2 mph.<\/p>\n

\"TrueTrue freshman Carson Diehl benefited greatly from graduating high school early and enrolling at San Diego State in the spring. (Meg McLaughlin \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)
\n2. True freshman emerges<\/p>\n

It used to be unusual for high school seniors to graduate early and enroll in college for the spring semester, but SDSU had a dozen early enrollees this year.<\/p>\n

Freshman wide receiver Carson Diehl is an example of how it can pay immediate dividends.<\/p>\n

Diehl had four receptions for 25 yards in the scrimmage, with three of the catches on successive plays in the second quarter. It\u2019s difficult to imagine Diehl making such an impact if he arrived on campus as a June graduate.<\/p>\n

For one thing, Diehl wouldn\u2019t have taken advantage of SDSU\u2019s winter training and conditioning program. He was listed at 6-0 and 160 pounds on La Jolla High School\u2019s roster last season. He is listed at 6-3, 195 pounds on SDSU\u2019s roster this season.<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes you don\u2019t know when the light\u2019s going to come on for a true freshman and how they\u2019re going to absorb everything \u2014 the speed of the game,\u201d Lewis said. \u201cIt\u2019s one of those deals where all apples kind of ripen at different spots. He\u2019s really blooming and ripening pretty early here.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s done an unbelievable job changing his body from the time he came in here. That\u2019s given him more confidence. He has a quiet, professional demeanor about him that we saw when we were evaluating him.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Aztecs had several opportunities to evaluate Diehl since he played locally. The scouting report?<\/p>\n

\u201cHe knows what winning takes, so you\u2019re not explaining that to him,\u201d Lewis said. \u201cHe\u2019s one of those guys who has adapted quickly and has earned the trust of the quarterbacks.\u201d<\/p>\n

Diehl was also praised for situational awareness, like knowing when to get out of bounds after making a catch.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose are mature decisions for a true freshman,\u201d Lewis said.<\/p>\n

\"SanSan Diego State running back Lucky Sutton\u2019s touches were limited to drills before scrimmage at Snapdragon Stadium on Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026 in San Diego, California. (Meg McLaughlin \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)
\n3. Watchful eye<\/p>\n

Lucky Sutton was asked after a practice late last week how much activity he expected to get in the scrimmage.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not too sure,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

How about none at all?<\/p>\n

After rushing for 1,297 yards and 10 touchdowns last season, Sutton will stay out of harm\u2019s way until the season opener. If they made a jersey out of bubble wrap, Sutton would be wearing one. It wouldn\u2019t be surprising for him to have a food taster and an escort to class.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no secrets,\u201d Lewis said. \u201cHe\u2019s pretty good. We need him on Sept. 5 (against Portland State) and everything going forward. He knew. Everyone knew (Sutton wouldn\u2019t be playing). He\u2019s really mad at me because he really likes to play football and he wants to get hit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lewis said that last part with a smile.<\/p>\n

Sutton knows the drill.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love practicing, being out there with my guys and getting some game sense out there,\u201d Sutton said. \u201cBut it\u2019s for the betterment of the team.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to do my part, give energy when I can and really teach these young guys and everyone else that\u2019s on the field. I don\u2019t have to be out there all the time. Getting off-the-field work and seeing it from the sidelines is also good for me.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Three thoughts after San Diego State\u2019s scrimmage Saturday evening at Snapdragon Stadium: 1. Weaponizing wide receiver In quarterback-turned-receiver…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":435171,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[59157,172729,18556,74,76,75,300,18952],"class_list":["post-435170","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-diego","tag-bert-emanuel-jr","tag-carson-diehl","tag-lucky-sutton","tag-san-diego","tag-san-diego-headlines","tag-san-diego-news","tag-san-diego-state","tag-sean-lewis"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435170","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=435170"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435170\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/435171"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=435170"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=435170"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=435170"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}