AZTEC NOTEBOOK / SCOTT MILLER : Luginbill Applauds After Season’s 1st Act

The first intrasquad scrimmage of the fall did nothing to dampen the enthusiasm of Al Luginbill, San Diego State’s football coach. His team Wednesday ran through 107 plays with a lot of passing, a little rustiness, a few mistakes and no injuries.

As for what Luginbill liked best, well, shhh, don’t repeat this too loudly:

“The thing I’m most proud of is that they flat-out competed,” Luginbill said. “There was some real violent contact. I hate to use that term ‘violent,’ I don’t want to scare off any mothers, but that’s the type of sport this is.”

By the end, Luginbill was praising both the defense and the offense, and the offense was praising the defense.

Of course, not everything was perfect and, being a perfectionist, Luginbill found a few things he things the Aztecs need to work on before their opener Sept. 8 at Oregon.

What most brought a frown to Luginbill’s face was that the officials whistled the Aztecs for 13 penalties.

“I’m disappointed in the penalties,” Luginbill said. “Eleven of the 13 should not have happened.

In particular, he was referring to penalties such as defensive holding, offsides and illegal motion. Still, by the time he finished talking to the team afterward, he wasn’t too upset.

“It didn’t seem to be the same person who was making them,” he said. “We’ll get that corrected. The team feels badly. They know these are mistakes.”

Quarterback Dan McGwire completed 15 of 23 passes for 207 yards and two touchdowns, with one interception.

To McGwire, one of his passes stood out: a 47-yard completion to Patrick Rowe.

The catch by Rowe was spectacular. He was streaking down the right sideline when McGwire found him, and he made a diving catch, his body fully extended. It was the kind of catch receivers dream of, but it had McGwire shaking his head.

“It should have been a touchdown,” McGwire said. “He had them beat. If I put more air under the ball, he would have been gone, and it would have been six points. That’s the difference between a long completion and a touchdown.”

A McGwire pass was intercepted by free safety Johnny Walker, who was playing center field before sprinting 10 yards to his left at the last minute to make the catch. The interception didn’t seem to bother Luginbill.

“We haven’t had a free safety make a play like that in two springs, a year and a fall,” Luginbill said.

Also noteworthy:

--The Aztec special teams showed they still need some work when they were burned on kickoff returns by Keith Williams (50 yards) and Rowe (40 yards).

--Receiver Dennis Arey thinks the defense it has improved.

“It’s a much different atmosphere,” he said. “We (the offense) have to work so much harder for what we get than we used to.”

--Luginbill also continues to be excited by SDSU’s team speed on both sides of the ball, particularly offense.

“If one side (of the line of scrimmage) makes a mistake executing, the other side pays dearly because of our tremendous team speed,” he said. “If the defense misses anything anytime, they risk a big play.”

Aztec Notes

Tommy Booker, who carried 10 times for 84 yards and a touchdown, was the leading rusher. He could have had two touchdowns, but he was stopped on a breakaway run after 28 yards when safety Morey Paul caught him from behind. “Two-a-day legs,” Booker said, smiling. “That doesn’t bother me too much.” . . . Other statistics: T.C. Wright carried four times for five yards; Curtis Butts carried five times for 63 yards, including a 37-yard touchdown run; Kipp Jeffries carried five times for 46 yards; receiver Patrick Rowe caught six passes for 105 yards; Keith Williams caught five for 88; Jimmy Raye caught five for 69, including a 19-yard touchdown, and Dennis Arey and Mert Harris each caught four for 48. . . . Outside linebacker Haywood Mathis had two sacks.

Because of injuries, both the Aztecs’ first- and second-team middle linebackers were freshmen. Jamal Duff lined up with the first team, and Andy Coviello was in the middle for the second team. “I thought Jamal held his own,” Luginbill said. Neither Lou Foster (hamstring) nor Sai Niu (hamstring) played. . . . Injury update: Defensive back Zac Stokes, whose shoulder was thought to be bruised actually has a fracture and will be out at least a couple of weeks. Redshirt freshman receiver Jake Nyberg (hamstring) is not expected back before the end of the week. . . . Kicker Andy Trakas made one of three field goal attempts, but had the uprights been college-sized instead of NFL-sized, Coach Al Luginbill figured he would have been two of three. When it looked as if the NCAA was going to narrow the gap between uprights several months ago, Luginbill had them changed at the SDSU practice field. When the NCAA changed its mind, Luginbill left them alone, figuring if Trakas kicked at a narrow target in practice, it would look all that much bigger in games. Trakas hit from 20 yards out but missed from 32 and 42. . . . Freshman quarterback Tim Gutierrez completed five of seven passes for 83 yards and has impressed Luginbill during fall camp. “The individual I think who has a future at San Diego State is (Gutierrez),” Luginbill said. “He has a way of naturally knowing where the ball is supposed to go.” . . . Freshman cornerback Eric Sutton, from Inglewood, has left the team for personal reasons.