Aztecs Hope to Lose Bad Reputation : Stolz Plans a Turnaround, Starting Against Long Beach

For years, San Diego State’s football team has kept talking about that word--potential.

It’s what average teams say they have and good teams show they have.

The Aztecs, with three straight losing seasons for the first time in nearly three decades, hope to start a new era tonight, playing host to Cal State Long Beach in the season opener for both teams. The game marks the debut of Denny Stolz as Aztec football coach. “We’re ready to get rid of the losing and the bad reputation we have throughout Southern California,” said Robert Awalt, a senior tight end. “Especially the guys who have been here four or five years don’t want to hear about it. This is my second year here and I’m already tired of it. I don’t want this season to leave a bad taste in my mouth 10 years down the road.”

Numerous Aztecs have tasted numerous defeats in their career. SDSU has 42 fourth- and fifth-year players this year who have not had a winning season since the 1982 team went 7-5. According to Western Athletic Conference coaches and media, the Aztecs should expect another losing season. Both groups have picked SDSU to finish sixth in the nine-team conference.

And Street & Smith’s College Football Yearbook lists both SDSU and Long Beach as underdogs for tonight’s game.

“I don’t like being the underdog all of the time,” said linebacker Richard Brown. “As a senior and one of the leaders of this team, I’m very disappointed about that. I’m not just disappointed, I’m mad. I’m not going to say we have potential. We have the ability.”

Individual ability and team ability may be two separate entities. For instance, SDSU was 5-6-1 last year, yet three players were selected within the first five rounds of the NFL draft.

“These players have heard for so long that they are good players who can’t win or compete,” Stolz said. “It’s a tough thing to live with when you play .500 ball and have five or six kids drafted into the NFL. Whether Air Force would have any players drafted into the NFL is a good question. Yet, they win every game.”

Stolz’s Bowling Green team won all 11 regular-season games last year before losing to Fresno State, 51-7, in the California Bowl.

When comparing SDSU to Bowling Green, Stolz talks in terms of the known versus the unknown.

“I knew how the Bowling Green players would do because I put that team together,” Stolz said. “I do not know one of these kids here on a coach-player relationship in a ballgame. We’ve spent a lot of time talking about how to perform on the field and about Xs and O’s.

“There’s a whole other realm. That’s the father image, or doctor or priest. You have to take on the role as coach. There’s the unknown now. We don’t know how these kids will react under pressure and game situations because we’ve never coached them before.”

Some Aztecs have reacted very well in game situations. Todd Santos, a junior quarterback, already has passed for 4,940 yards and 30 touchdowns. And tailback Chris Hardy rushed for 1,150 yards last season.

In Stolz’s scheme, the three most important offensive players should be Santos, Hardy and tight end Awalt. Bowling Green often threw more than 40 passes a game, many of the passes being underneath to the tailback or tight end.

Again, there is the unknown--how these players will react in the Stolz system.

“Denny will tell you he’s at a disadvantage because it’s their first game together,” said Mike Sheppard, Long Beach coach. “He knows how good his kids are against each other and compared to Bowling Green’s. He’ll say it’s a predicament for them. I’d prefer his situation. He knows schematically what we’re going to do better than we know schematically what he’s going to do.”

Stolz disagreed.

“Why would I know more about his team than he knows about mine?” Stolz asked. “I look at his films, just like he looks at my films from Bowling Green. I don’t know how we can have an advantage.”

Aztec Notes

Athletic Director Fred Miller has a guarantee for season-ticket holders tonight: If any don’t like the game, they may have their tickets refunded for the remaining five home games. “I’m just letting people know we’re credible,” Miller said. “You have to take certain risks if your program is flat. I have to let people know we think we’re good. If you’re not happy, I don’t want you there.” . . . SDSU is 35-25-3 in season openers and 46-15-2 in home openers. The Aztecs have won 21 of their last 23 home openers, losing in 1980 to Missouri (31-7) and in 1984 to UCLA (18-15). . . . SDSU is 7-1-3 in its first game under new head coaches. Doug Scovil, the previous head coach, won his first game in 1981 at Colorado State, 30-14. . . . The Aztecs have a 14-10 series lead over Long Beach, including a 34-14 win in last year’s season opener.