AZTEC NOTEBOOK : Second-Quarter Touchdown the Turning Point That Wasn’t

In the What-Might-Have-Been Dept., a 65-yard second-quarter touchdown pass from SDSU quarterback Dan McGwire to Dennis Arey may have been the turning point had the Aztec defense not performed like it was in a coma and had Wyoming not have defeated SDSU, 52-51.

It came on third and seven from the Aztec 35 and SDSU was trailing, 14-3. Wyoming put 10 defenders on the line of scrimmage and blitzed. McGwire, picking up on it, called an audible.

On SDSU’s previous possession, two Wyoming blitzes had forced the Aztecs to kick a field goal when they could have had a touchdown. SDSU was trailing, 7-0, and had a second down on the Wyoming 9. But two blitzes resulted in sacks--one by linebacker Jarod Thiele and the other by free safety Brian Bowker--pushing SDSU back to the 28 and bringing Andy Trakas on for a 46-yard field goal.

“They came in with a new blitz we had not seen,” SDSU Coach Al Luginbill said. “We ran a slant and hit it, and then didn’t see (that particular blitz) anymore.”

They can’t escape it.

Two weeks ago, the Aztecs ran into a fired up Brigham Young team when the Provo newspaper picked up a story from the Daily Aztec which poked fun at Mormons. Now, on the high plains of Wyoming, SDSU found itself mired in another controversy Saturday, also sparked by a local newspaper.

The Casper Star printed a story in Friday’s edition which quoted SDSU Coach Al Luginbill as saying: “I think Wyoming as a football program feels San Diego State is not tough as them. A year ago, I think we shocked them by hitting them in the mouth (a 27-17 Aztec victory) and playing with them. I think we’ll do it again.”

He was quoted further as saying: “They’re 5-0, yet most of their games have been close going into the fourth quarter. They’re not a dominating team like they were in ’87 when they’d win by 30, 40 or 50 points.”

The statements were attributed to an Associated Press story, and Luginbill denied making them.

“I have no idea how those fabrications got into the paper,” a visibly angry Luginbill said after the game. “It’s absolutely absurd. I don’t ever want to demean a university. That’s never been my style. Why would I start now? It doesn’t make sense.”

It should be noted that no San Diego reporter heard Luginbill make those statements. An SDSU official checked with the AP writer in San Diego, who said the Casper paper took them out of context.

“We heard about them,” Wyoming quarterback Tom Corontzos said. “Everyone knew about them. We took it a little bit personally.”