One Thing SDSU’s Certain of: Lots of Offense Tonight

Doug Scovil won’t remind anybody of Larry King or Jimmy (The Greek) Snyder when it comes to making predictions.

Before his San Diego State football team played Stanford two weeks ago, Scovil said he wouldn’t even predict whether it would be a high-scoring game.

It was, and SDSU won, 41-22.

Scovil is changing his tune regarding predictions for tonight’s Western Athletic Conference game against Utah at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium.

“To me, it looks like this could be a real shootout,” Scovil said. “I think it would be a great game to watch.”

When Utah has the ball, Scovil might wish he didn’t have to watch. The Utes are eighth in the nation with a 35.3 scoring average.

Burnie Miller, SDSU’s defensive coordinator, said Utah runs so many formations that he didn’t even count them this week. He simply tried to analyze the formations Utah most often utilized.

According to Miller, Utah passes 60% of the time. Nevertheless, Ute running back Eddie Lewis leads the WAC in rushing.

“We have great backs who can run the ball well,” Utah quarterback Larry Egger said. “You can’t key on one thing against us. If you stop the run, we can pass. If you stop the pass, we can run. We have so many options to each package we run that somebody should be open.”

Coach Jim Fassel didn’t just bring a wide-open attack to Utah in his first year there. He also brought offensive coordinator Jack Reilly, who coached Egger and wide receiver Loren Richey at El Camino College last year. Richey is seventh nationally in receiving.

Utah has had an unusual situation at running back. Eddie Johnson, who made the first-team All-WAC as a freshman last year, was injured early and Lewis took his spot. Lewis missed last week’s game at Arizona State with a sore knee, but he is expected to start tonight.

The Aztecs must fear Utah’s running and short passing game. Two weeks ago, Stanford’s John Paye completed a school-record 40 passes for 390 yards against SDSU.

“Utah’s head coach used to be at Stanford,” Aztec linebacker Steve Svitenko said. “It looks like he brought some of that offense with him. He uses the run to set up the pass, and it works pretty well. Their receivers run good routes and their quarterback is accurate.”

Egger has completed 98 of 180 passes for 1,253 yards and 10 touchdowns. He has been intercepted nine times, four in last week’s 34-27 loss at ASU.

SDSU’s defense played well overall in a 28-0 loss at Brigham Young last week. After allowing two touchdowns in the first 11 minutes, the Aztecs held BYU scoreless for the next 32:14.

“They are a lot like our defense in that they bend but don’t break,” Fassel said. “If you take the ball and drive for a touchdown against them, you’ve earned it. They don’t give you a lot.”

The Aztecs didn’t give the ball to their running backs often against BYU, passing on 44 of 59 plays. Scovil said he didn’t run because the BYU defensive line was too physical.

Utah has a much smaller defensive line, and the Utes have allowed 211 yards rushing and 244.5 yards passing a game. And the Utes have bent quite a bit, giving up an average of 25.7 points a game compared to SDSU’s 24.2. However, Utah’s defense has forced 21 turnovers in six games.

The Aztecs’ best bet may be to unleash their running game. Chris Hardy, who rushed for 235 yards and 2 touchdowns against Colorado State three weeks ago, was limited to 17 yards in 4 attempts against BYU. He is the WAC’s fifth-leading rusher.

“He has the speed and really good moves,” said Utah safety Clarence Fields, Hardy’s teammate at San Diego Clairemont High. “If you let him get started, he’ll run up points on you.”

In that regard, Hardy sounds much like Utah’s offense.

Aztec Notes The SDSU-Utah series is tied at 3-3-1. Neither team has beaten the other by more than four points. SDSU has outscored Utah, 139-138 . . . Utah’s Erroll Tucker leads the nation in punt return average (27.3) and is fourth in kickoff return average (30.6). Tucker scored on an 89-yard punt return against Arizona State and 100-yard kickoff return against Hawaii. He actually returned the ball 103 yards against Hawaii, but NCAA statistics allow a maximum credit of 100 yards on a return. . . . Utah was off to its best start since 1947 before losing last week at Arizona State. The Utes had trailed, 34-0, with nine minutes remaining. “We were a little in awe of playing Arizona State in their big stadium,” Loren Richey said. “I think we had our doubts as to whether we could compete with them. We had confidence, but something just wasn’t there.” . . . Richey’s brother, Kevin, was a four-year starter on the defensive line for SDSU from 1979-82. . . . The Aztecs may suffer a letdown after last week’s game at BYU. SDSU was 4-0 in 1981 before it lost to BYU, then it finished with a 6-5 record. “There might’ve been a letdown in the past,” Steve Svitenko said. “It’s not going to happen this week. Our goal has been to do our best to get in a bowl game. This is one of the games we need to win.” . . . SDSU has averaged 27.8 points a game. Quarterback Todd Santos fell from first to eighth nationally in passing efficiency after the BYU game. “They have the capability of exploding offensively,” Jim Fassel said. “Santos has played really well. He has the potential to control the game.” . . . Aztec nose guard Levi Esene is expected to miss his fourth straight game with a dislocated elbow.