August 21, 2018: Aztecs Fall Camp Weekly Update
The Aztecs ready themselves for a NY6-worthy schedule starting with No. 13- ranked Stanford on August 31st. Here’s the latest . . .
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Find out what’s going on in fall camp and other news about Aztecs football.
Wednesday Scrimmage
On Wednesday, August 15th the Aztecs played their second scrimmage.
“I thought the collisions were pretty good,” coach Rocky Long said.
Nobody stunned on Wednesday. Tuesday before the scrimmage, true freshmen running back Jordan Byrd, a 5′ 9″ rocket from Albuquerque, N.M., set the left sideline on fire for a blazing-fast touchdown run.
“When Jordan Byrd headed down the sideline and was faster than everybody on the field, he jumped out at me,” Long said.
First team Defensive line looks solid with senior ends Chibu Onyeukwu and Anthony Luke starting alongside senior tackle Noble Hall. The second-team also looks sharp.
Linebackers: First-team and Second-teams were solid.
Defensive backs: First-team, Second and Third teams were all on point.
The O- line First-team remains unchanged from the beginning of camp, and along with the Second-team is rock solid.
Senior Fred Trevillion and redshirt freshmen Ethan Dedeuax started at wide receiver. True freshmen Kobe Smith and Elijah Kothe are fighting hard for immediate play time.
A pair of 40-plus-yard receptions were caught, first when Christian Chapman found Trevillion open down the middle, and late when fourth-string quarterback Carson Baker found tight end Daniel Bellinger.
Junior Ryan Agnew was challenged by redshirt freshman Mark Salazar for the backup quarterback job. Nothing appears changed there.
The Aztecs may be the only D-I program with three left-footed kickers.
Seniors John Baron II, Garrett Erickson and true freshman Matt Araiza all made field goals. Baron scored at 49 yards and Araiza at 47 yards.
Starting running back Juwan Washington is ready for action. Sophomore Chase Jasmin looks to be the No. 2 running back spot.
Redshirt freshmen Kaegun Williams and Chance Bell and true freshmen Zidane Thomas and Jordan Byrd all got play time.
A 30-yard run by Bell was the biggest gain among the freshmen Wednesday.
Air Trevillion
Along with Running Back Juwan Washington, SDSU’s pick for a breakout season is 6-foot-2 senior Wide Receiver Fred Trevillion.
“I’d certainly like to see Fred really step up and be the leader of the receiver group, be much more consistent with his play,” SDSU offensive coordinator Jeff Horton said. “He’s a dynamic receiver. He led the nation in yardage per reception last year (26.2-yard average after catching 12 passes for 327 yards).
“We’d like to get him quadruple what he got last year because he’s a dynamite player like that and he can really stretch the defense and he’d be a big reason for getting those big chunks.”
Trevillion is needed to step into Mikah Holder’s job, who graduated after leading the Aztecs with 43 receptions in 2017.
While Trevillion represents SDSU’s deep threat, the Aztecs could use him in other ways as well this season. “I think they’re working me more in the short game this year,” Trevillion said.
Trevillion showed some his potential last season, catching an 89-yard touchdown pass against Boise State and a 47-yard TD against New Mexico.
Horton said, “I look for him to have really big year. He’s really worked hard trying to be a leader of the receiving group.”
Saturday Scrimmage
Saturday, August 18th saw the Aztecs’ latest scrimmage.
Special teams looked sharp, with two place kickers displaying supreme accuracy in punting. “The punters really did well today,” said Long, referring to junior starter Brandon Heicklen and true freshman Matt Araiza.
Defense is putting more pressure on the quarterback this season in an effort to match or beat 38 sacks from the 2016 season. Nine sacks in the scrimmage might be a sign of things to come.
Linebacker Keyahva Tezino led the way with two sacks.
Starting quarterback Christian Chapman and backup Ryan Agnew ran the first- and second-team offenses, respectively, over two-plus quarters.
In the fourth quarter, safety Denaylan Fuimaono picked an interception on a ball thrown by fourth-string QB Carson Baker.
In the scrimmage, defense outperformed offense. Rocky Long added “As the head coach, when you have a scrimmage, you’d really like it to be 50/50, where both sides of the ball did some really good stuff.”
The longest pass completion of the day came in the fourth quarter when true freshman Baker found true freshman wide receiver JR Justice along the sideline near midfield for a 35-yard gain.
Senior place-kicker John Baron II is the FBS leader in field goal percentage. He did well but just missed a 53-yard attempt before halftime.
The Aztecs are meticulously preparing for what is certain to be an action-packed, serious strength-of-schedule Fall 2018 season.
Stay tuned for our final Aztecs Fall camp update next week.