The Cowboys will be looking for their second straight win of the season, with the newly Pac-12 indoctrinated San Diego State Aztecs making the trip to Laramie to take on a Cowboy team that earned their first win of the season in their last outing against Air Force.
Get to know San Diego State
The Aztecs are also off to a 1-0 start to Mountain West play after they recently defeated Hawaii by a score of 27-24. However, the Aztecs, similar to the Cowboys, struggled through their non-conference schedule, only finding a win over an FCS opponent during non-conference play.
The Aztecs’ offensive attack is headlined by talented running back Marquez Cooper, who has racked up an impressive 583 yards with five touchdowns through five games. He lines up in the backfield with freshman quarterback Danny O’Neil, who has thrown for 791 yards and five touchdowns, with no interceptions on the season.
“Anytime somebody’s getting 25 carries a game, they’re the focal point of your offense,” head coach Jay Sawvel said of the Aztecs’ running back. “So, we’re going to have to do a great job up front [and] playing off blocks.”
Sawvel also highlighted Trey White as a defensive pass rusher that the Cowboys will have to be cautious of. The sophomore has tallied nine sacks and 12 tackles for loss so far this season, numbers that caught the eye of the Cowboys’ first year head coach.
“He’s really disruptive, got good size, he’s quick and he plays with a motor. When you put all the things that he has together, then you’re going to have a guy that’s probably really productive,” Sawvel said of White.
How have the Cowboys recovered after their bye week?
The Cowboys entered their first bye week of the season with injury concerns for over 15 players. Sawvel claimed the bye week “couldn’t have come at a better time” due to how banged up his team was through their first five games.
This, of course, begged the question of just how healthy could the Cowboys get in such a short span of time?
“It helped us on the open date to get other people healthier and feeling better, but some of the other things are just longer term that we can’t get fixed in a week,” Sawvel said.
Some of those injuries that will take longer than a week to mend include injuries to both starting safeties for the Cowboys. Isaac White and Wyett Ekeler have been standouts at the position for multiple years, as Sawvel has come to rely on both players through both his head coaching career thus far and his time as a defensive coordinator.
“We went two straight years, I never took Isaac White out and never took Wyett Ekeler out…there was a big difference between taking them out and what was next, you know?” Sawvel said of his starting safeties.
The fallout from losing those two defensively has caused a shift in positions with the Cowboys’ defense. Standout nickelback Wrook Brown, who led the Cowboys in interceptions a year ago, will take over duties at the safety position for the time being. Tight end Caleb Merritt will make the transition to nickelback to help replace Brown’s absence alongside backup Malique Singleton.
“Merritt moved into nickel, so he’s backing up Singleton right now. We’re going to keep him there, that’s not going to be a short term thing,” Sawvel said.
The Cowboys will also still be missing crucial pieces on the offensive line, as offensive guards Jack Walsh and Wes King will likely not play against the Aztecs. Rex Johnsen and Alex Conn have stepped up in their place and helped lead the Cowboys towards their best offensive performance to date against Air Force. Sawvel has been particularly impressed by Johnsen and how he’s stepped up.
“I thought Rex played pretty well last week. Alex Conn stepped in, did okay, I think he will get better with more repetition at it,” Sawvel said.
In better news, senior defensive end DeVonne Harris will take to the field for the first time this season after missing the first five games with an injury.
Will we see the Cowboy offense remain consistent?
With the Cowboys stringing together their best offensive performance yet against Air Force in their last outing, how will they be able to follow that up against the Aztecs?
First and foremost, it will take another good effort from Sam Scott, who played a huge part in the Cowboys’ first win with 97 yards rushing and a touchdown. Sawvel would also like to see Jamari Ferrell get going, as the senior back has struggled so far this season with only 29 yards on 18 carries.
“Sam Scott is going to get the bulk of the carries, him and Jamari. Jake Wilson will really be our third running back right now, but Sam and Jamari would be the two,” Sawvel said.
The Cowboys’ young offensive line will look to pave the way for those two, as establishing a presence in the run game will ultimately help quarterback Evan Svoboda and the passing game to flourish. Sawvel will be looking for his group of young receivers, particularly freshman Chris Durr Jr. and Tyler “TK” King to step up as the Cowboys’ top weapons through the air.
“I think what you’re going to see a lot more of, especially on the inside is TK and Chris Durr, that’s what you’re going to see in there.”
Will another win see this season start to turn around?
While the Cowboys may be 1-4 on the season, their 1-0 start to conference play is the mark that truly matters at this point. A 2-0 start to conference play would vault this team towards the top of the Mountain West standings, regardless of how their non-conference slate turned out.
From there, this team may just find the momentum to completely turn this season around. And that all starts with winning their second straight game, with all their attention turned towards the Aztecs.
“We gotta do everything we can to try to win this game this week in the condition we’re in,” Sawvel said.
