Aztec Update : Hardy’s Run Had ‘em Researching : His 92-Yard Gallop Second Longest in School’s History

Chris Hardy’s 92-yard touchdown Saturday night against Colorado State, the second-longest in San Diego State history, was the longest Aztec running play in more than 30 years.

Phil Prokop set the school record with a 98-yard run against Pepperdine in 1952, 12 years before Hardy was born. Volney Quinlan also had 92-yard run against the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in 1951.

Hardy rushed for a career-high 235 yards in the 48-23 win over Colorado State, the fourth-highest total in Aztec history. Since the Aztecs joined Division 1 in 1969, it was second to David Turner’s 239 yards against Arkansas State in 1976.

The 92-yard touchdown run was only second best on Hardy’s all-time list.

“I had a 99-yard touchdown against La Jolla in high school,” said Hardy, who attended Clairemont. “I was mostly hoping to get out of the end zone on the play. I happened to turn the corner and go.”

Through three games in 1985, Hardy has averaged 113 yards rushing. He is second in the Western Athletic Conference by two yards a game to Colorado State’s Steve Bartalo, and he is 17th in the nation.

Hardy had earned his first start of the year against Colorado State when he carried five times for 50 yards the week before against UCLA.

“He made some great runs in the second quarter against UCLA,” said Dave Atkins, running backs coach. “If he could do it against UCLA, why not against these guys?”

Todd Santos had his second big game in as many years against Colorado State, passing for 243 yards and 2 touchdowns. He had passed for 418 yards and 2 touchdowns in a 41-24 win over the Rams in 1984.

Colorado State had switched from man-to-man to zone coverage this year, hoping to stop opponents from making the big passing play.

“They didn’t run very many coverages,” Santos said. “They stayed with their basic zone coverages, which made it easy for me.”

The entire evening was a breeze for the Aztec offense, which netted 561 yards on 71 plays. Beforehand, SDSU Coach Doug Scovil talked about how well Colorado State’s defense had played in a 17-3 loss to eighth-ranked Louisiana State the week before.

“I was happy with our offense,” Scovil said. “Colorado State held down LSU last week. It’s a tribute to our offense, especially the running attack.”

The Aztecs tied a record that will never be broken by not having to punt against Colorado State. However, their punt return team again recorded a key play when freshman Alfred Jackson blocked a punt for the second time in three games.

According to NCAA rules, the player who blocks a punt is awarded a punt return for the number of yards that the opposition loses on the blocked punt. Therefore, Jackson has been credited with two punt returns for 61 yards without carrying the ball.

Injuries continue to plague the career of senior linebacker Jack Eaton. He underwent surgery Sunday for a dislocated right thumb, which will keep him sidelined at least two weeks.

Eaton had an appendectomy as a freshman redshirt in 1981, had hip and ankle injuries in 1982 and arthroscopic knee surgery in 1983 and 1984.

“It’s a darn shame,” said Mike Smith, linebacker coach. “The poor guy was really down (Saturday night). The good thing is, he’s going to be back.”

Linebacker Steve Svitenko suffered a pulled rib muscle, but he is expected to play Saturday night against Stanford.

Webster Slaughter is tied with Brigham Young’s Mark Bellini for the WAC pass receiving lead, averaging 6.7 receptions a game. Slaughter, who missed practice most of last week with the flu, had only two receptions against Colorado State.

Santos is second in the WAC and 12th nationally in passing efficiency.

LaTanya Sheffield and Laura DeSnoo are among seven national finalists for the Broderick Sports Award in track. The award is given annually in each women’s sport based on performances in the NCAA championships.

Sheffield won the 400-meter hurdles in this year’s NCAA championships and DeSnoo won the discus.

The women’s volleyball team, which is 2-0 in the Pacific Coast Athletic Assn., plays three conference games this week, including two on the road against nationally ranked teams.

SDSU plays host to Cal State Long Beach on Tuesday night, then travels to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo on Friday and UC Santa Barbara on Saturday. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is the defending PCAA champion.