![\"San](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/SUT-L-azfoot-1012-02.jpg\")
San Diego State quarterback Draiden Trudeau (13) throws the ball in the second half of Saturday\u2019s loss to Oregon State at Reser Stadium in Corvallis, Ore. (Photo by Logan Hannigan-Downs\/Icon Sportswire) (Icon Sportswire via AP Images)<\/p>\nTwo days after San Diego State\u2019s 66-14 Pac-12 loss at Oregon State, SDSU coach Sean Lewis reiterated his embarrassment from the lopsided loss, took responsibility as the leader of the program and promised \u201cwe will be better across the board.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have to learn from it,\u201d Lewis said Monday. \u201cWe\u2019ve got to have the ability to have resiliency and know that we got what we earned. Because of that, we have the ability to make it right as we continue to go forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
The starting quarterback position will provide one of the storylines this week as the Aztecs (2-4, 1-1 Pac-12) prepare for Saturday night\u2019s game against Fresno State (4-2, 1-1) at Snapdragon Stadium.<\/p>\n
The first question Lewis was asked at Monday\u2019s press conference was if he plans to have a change at QB.<\/p>\n
Starting quarterback Jayden Denegal is coming off a 5-for-19 performance for 78 yards against Oregon State that dropped Denegal\u2019s completion percentage to 53.9 percent. That ranks 120th in the nation. SDSU ranks 104th in scoring offense (22.8 ppg), 130th in passing offense (143.7 ypg) and 135th in total offense (277.7).<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re going to evaluate everything as we go with it,\u201d Lewis said. \u201cWe haven\u2019t gotten back out on the field, but everything\u2019s on the table for all positions across the board.\u201d<\/p>\n
Complicating any change in quarterbacks is what options there are for the Aztecs.<\/p>\n
Backup quarterback Stone Saunders has been out with a broken collarbone suffered in the season opener against Portland State. Saunders had surgery the following week. He has returned to practice and was in pads for the first time last week.<\/p>\n
Said Lewis: \u201cStone continues to progress. \u2026 We\u2019ll see where that goes as we move forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lewis has said that Saunders, a redshirt freshman transfer from Kentucky, is structurally sound. The question is when he will be cleared for contact. Scans this week are expected to determine whether he is cleared and available against Fresno State.<\/p>\n
Asked what will determine how the Aztecs move forward at QB, Lewis said: \u201cThe work that gets done this week.\u201d<\/p>\n
He was pressed on Denegal\u2019s performance and asked, \u201cAre you in denial that he\u2019s deficient?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo,\u201d Lewis said. \u201cI\u2019m aware of his deficiencies. I\u2019m aware of his strengths. I also know what else is there. What else we have.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd, so, change for the sake of change, if it\u2019s not warranted and doesn\u2019t give the team and the program the best opportunity to be successful, that\u2019s not the right thing to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
With Saunders injured, the only two quarterbacks on the roster behind Denegal are walk-on redshirt freshman Draiden Trudeau and true freshman Brady Campbell. Lewis said moving wide receiver Bert Emanuel Jr. back to quarterback is not a consideration.<\/p>\n
Trudeau relieved Denegal four minutes into the second half at Oregon State with SDSU trailing 52-7 against the Beavers.<\/p>\n
San Diego State quarterback Draiden Trudeau (13) throws the ball in the second half of Saturday\u2019s loss to Oregon State at Reser Stadium in Corvallis, Ore. (Photo by Logan Hannigan-Downs\/Icon Sportswire) (Icon Sportswire via AP Images)<\/p>\n
The first series ended with Trudeau throwing into triple coverage for an interception. Trudeau finished the game 4-for-8 for 13 yards. The Mission Viejo High School graduate also played late in the game two weeks earlier at Toledo, going 4-for-5 for 53 yards and a touchdown. He was 0-for-1 in a brief late appearance at UCLA.<\/p>\n
The 6-foot-1 Saunders was a prolific high school passer who did not play last year at Kentucky and entered the portal after a coaching change with the Wildcats. Saunders\u00a0was a four-star recruit coming out of Pennsylvania\u2019s Bishop McDevitt High School, where he set state records for passing yards (13,719), touchdowns (204) and completions (781) over his four-year varsity career. The 204 career touchdown passes ranks third all-time nationally.<\/p>\n
Saunders relieved Denegal with the game in hand against Portland State, going 2-for-4 for 20 yards. He was injured when he was sacked on SDSU\u2019s final offensive play of the game.<\/p>\n
Pac-12 honors<\/p>\n
SDSU redshirt freshman Jaylon Hawkins was honored as Pac-12 Special Teams Player of the Week for the second straight week and third time this season for his 97-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against Oregon State.<\/p>\n
Hawkins is one of only five players since 2020 with kickoff returns for touchdowns in back-to-back games.<\/p>\n
He had a 100-yarder in the season opener against Portland State and a 96-yarder last week against Texas State.<\/p>\n
Hawkins\u2019 three return TDs ties Rashaad Penny (2015) for SDSU\u2019s single-season school record in the category.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s explosive, ball in hand,\u201d Lewis said of Hawkins. \u201cHe\u2019s got great body control. He has elite top-end speed. He\u2019s continuing to grow his football IQ. Players make plays come to life. Obviously, when that kid has the ball in his hands, things come to life in a big-time way.\u201d<\/p>\n
The other Pac-12 weekly honors went to Utah State linebacker Asher Cunningham (17 tackles, two forced fumbles, fumble recovery) on defense and Oregon State quarterback Braden Atkinson (29-for-38, 407 yards, 5 TDs) and wide receiver Jesse Legree (10 catches, 191 yards, 3 TDs) on offense and freshman, respectively. Legree has been freshman of the week all six weeks this season.<\/p>\n
Injury update<\/p>\n
Lewis said starting running back Lucky Sutton (ankle) continues to progress and \u201chopefully, he will be able to contribute this week.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sutton (45 carries, 150 yards, 3 TDs) has missed three games this season with a high ankle sprain. An indication of Sutton\u2019s status for the game will come Wednesday evening when the first Pac-12 Availability Report is posted.<\/p>\n
Quick hits<\/p>\n
\u2022\u00a0SDSU\u2019s three FBS nonconference opponents \u2014 No. 12 UCLA (5-0), James Madison (6-0) and Toledo (4-2) \u2014 are a combined 15-2 on the season.<\/p>\n
\u2022 SDSU dropped to 138th (last) in the nation in average time of possession (24 minutes per game) after holding the ball for only 17:28 of 60 minutes at Oregon State.<\/p>\n
\u2022\u00a0Hawkins has helped the Aztecs rank first in the Pac-12 and fifth in the nation in kickoff returns, with an average of 36.4 yards per return.<\/p>\n
\u2022\u00a0SDSU is offering alumni $30 seats in the lower bowl for Saturday\u2019s game against the Bulldogs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Two days after San Diego State\u2019s 66-14 Pac-12 loss at Oregon State, SDSU coach Sean Lewis reiterated his…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":495597,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[1327,112,114,113,181,305,127],"class_list":["post-495596","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fresno","tag-college-sports","tag-fresno","tag-fresno-headlines","tag-fresno-news","tag-latest-headlines","tag-sdsu-aztecs","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/495596","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=495596"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/495596\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/495597"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=495596"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=495596"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=495596"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}