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SDSU football squad reloading with local prep talent

08/30/2017

San Diego State University’s football team will kick off the 2017 season with three South County players on its fall roster.

Donning pads for the Red and Black this season are freshman offensive lineman Dominic Gudino and freshman receiver Collin Andrews, both out of Olympian High School, and senior defensive lineman Alex Valenzuela, an alumnus of Otay Ranch High School.

Gudino played on last fall’s CIF runner-up squad for the Eagles; Andrews played varsity football at Olympian in 2014-15. Valenzuela, who last played for the Mustangs in 2012, is up from SDSU’s scout squad.

Gudino (6-3, 300) played center and guard at Olympian, earning First Team All-Metro-Mesa League honors in 2016, while Andrews (6-3, 185) played free safety and receiver.

Olympian head coach Paul Van Nostrand said Gudino, a true freshman, was tabbed by some college coaches as the best offensive lineman prospect in California last year.

Gudino is currently competing for the starting center position at SDSU and is also taking reps at guard.

Van Nostrand called the 2016 All-CIF selection a “tenacious physical blocker who embraces the center position.”

“He loves football and the weight room,” the Eagles coach said. “He is an excellent student as well, as he was offered by West Point (Army). He is a team leader and a pleasure to coach.”

Andrews played only one game his senior year at Olympian due to a knee injury. He finished second in the long jump event at the 2015 Mesa League track and field finals.

Van Nostrand called him a “talented, long (6-foot-3), athletic wide receiver.”

“He walked on at SDSU last year and has worked his way to the second offense,” the Olympian coach explained. “He’s also a solid student who is competing in hopes of obtaining a scholarship.

“Both players have represented Olympian High School with class and dignity and we were lucky to have such great kids come through our program. Their parents are quality people as well who have raised two outstanding young men who will represent SDSU in the next few years.”

Valenzuela was a three-sport athlete at Otay Ranch (football, wrestling and track and field). He played offensive tackle on the football team, won a league title in wrestling in 2013 and in the discus throw in track and field.

The Aztecs kick off the new season Sept. 2 against UC-Davis. Game time is 5:30 p.m. at San Diego Stadium (formerly Qualcomm Stadium).

SDSU football fans got a preview of the 2017 squad on Saturday, Aug. 19, when the team held its annual Aztec Family Day at the stadium.

Andrews made four catches in the intrasquad scrimmage to highlight performances by the SDSU South County prospects.

UC Davis features one prominent former Eastlake Titan on its roster: junior defensive back Isiah Olave. He joins former Oceanside standout Justin Williams (senior running back), ex-Cathedral Catholic Don Dan Plum (sophomore tight end), former Grossmont Foothiller Ryan Green (senior receiver) and ex-Helix Highlander Evan Perkins (freshman defensive back) from San Diego County on the Aggies roster.

Olave, a 2014 EHS graduate and 2013 Mesa League Offensive Player of the Year, started all 11 games of last season with UC Davis. He finished with a total of 35 tackles (24 unassisted) and six pass breakups. He also had three tackles for a loss of seven yards. He had an interception return for a touchdown against Northern Colorado that made him just one of 12 Big Sky players to record a pick six last season.

Homegrown
The Aztecs boast a total of 20 San Diego County prep products on their 2017 fall roster.

Carlsbad has proven to be a hotbed of recruiting for SDSU with four players on this year’s roster: junior quarterback Chris Chapman, Carlsbad’s Troy Cassidy (sophomore linebacker), junior offensive lineman Garrison Young and redshirt freshman offensive lineman Zachary Thomas.

Cathedral Catholic and Ramona high schools each have with three players.

Cathedral Catholic’s trio include freshman fullback Adam Eastwood, freshman kicker Liam King and freshman long snapper Cameron King — all off last year’s state bowl championship 15-0 team.

Ramona’s contribution to SDSU’s program include sophomore cornerback Garrett Binkley redshirt freshman fullback Grady Vazquez and senior receiver Brandon Fitzpatrick.

Other county locals include Mira Mesa’s Trey Lomax (senior safety), Rancho Bernardo’s Mark Salazar (freshman quarterback), Oceanside’s Mikah Holder (senior receiver), Mission Hills’ Will Stricklin II (redshirt freshman safety), St. Augustine’s Tariq Thompson (freshman defensive back), Valley Center’s Micah Wierenga (freshman linebacker) and Vista’s Chad Woolsey (junior running back).

Holder is the more experienced players on the team after starting the most games at wide receiver over the past two years. He’s averaged 19.2 yards per catch during his career.

With the departure of the NFL Chargers, the Aztecs will have San Diego Stadium all to themselves this season. The team has embraced a “one city, one team” slogan for the upcoming pigskin campaign even though the future of the team’s Mission Valley playing site remains unclear.

SDSU is coming off an 11-3 season, defeating Wyoming, 27-24, in the MW championship game and Houston, 34-10, in the Las Vegas Bowl, to finish with a No. 25 ranking in both the AP Top 25 poll.

The Aztecs have been picked to win West Division of the Mountain West Conference for a third time this season, though Long would like to reserve his final judgment until the team sorts itself out through training camp.

“We’re right in the middle of training camp right now,” Long pointed out to the media during a press conference earlier this week. “There are some signs of improvement even though we’ve got a long way to go until we’re worth me saying we are a good football team, because we are not right now.

“We’ve made some improvement in some positions — our wide receivers have made good improvement, and we have a couple of safeties that are playing well and look like they might be able to play this year. That’s a good sign.”

The Aztecs will need to beef up their play on the offensive line after losing four-year starter Nico Siragusa from Mater Dei Catholic High School to the Baltimore Ravens in the NFL Draft.

An All-American during his playing days on Montezuma Mesa, Siragusa, 23, signed a four-year contract worth $3,021,428 with the Ravens on May 4. He received a guarantee worth $621,428, including a $621,428 signing bonus.

However, Siragusa (6-4, 319) suffered a season-ending injury (ligament damage to his knee) on Aug. 1 as the NFL team’s training camp opened. He is out for the season and will have to make his professional debut next year.

Known for his good-natured personality, Siragusa is reported to have quipped that he has now a “comeback season in the works.”

The Ravens have another high profile Chula Vistan on their roster: Eastlake High School grad Tony Jefferson.

Jefferson signed a four-year $34 million free agent contract with the Ravens earlier this year after playing his first four NFL seasons with the Arizona Cardinals.

The former Titan received a $10 million signing bonus and will draw an average salary of $8.5 million each year.

Siragusa, the 122th overall pick in his year’s NFL Draft, was one of seven former SDSU players to attend NFL training camps this summer.

The Philadelphia Eagles tabbed record-setting rusher Donnel Pumphrey in the fourth round (132nd overall pick) while the Atlanta Falcons selected defensive back Damontae Kazee in the fifth round (149th overall).

Siragusa was part of the vaunted front line that enabled Pumphrey, with 6,405 career rushing yards to his credit, to set numerous rushing records at the school.

Siragusa was the highest player from the MWC taken in this year’s NFL Draft; the three Aztecs draft picks were the most by any MWC team.

The Aztecs lost four of five players from that front line and will need to overcome that loss this season. Long suggested rebuilding the SDSU front line may start with a youth movement.

“We are pretty comfortable that we have two redshirt freshmen who are going to play pretty well,” the Aztec head coach said. “I’m not going to tell you which ones they are until after I watch them on Saturday because that’s going to be our biggest scrimmage and they are going to get a lot of reps. So far they have played pretty well.

“Probably 10 days before the first game we’ll come out with a pretty legit depth chart.”

Saturday’s scrimmage was a big one for the team while still in training camp.

“Any time our players go down (to the stadium) it adds excitement to the practice,” Long said. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been a player, but most players don’t like to practice but they like to play. And going to the stadium and scrimmaging is just like playing, so they will be there with the right attitude and they’ll be there to have some fun. It’s really a great time to have a scrimmage because it doesn’t matter who wins or loses. You can just play for the fun of the game.”

Go Aztecs
•Rashaad Penny (Norwalk) Antonio Rosales (Tucson) Kameron Kelly (Murphy, Texas) and Lomax have been selected as team captains for the 2017 season.

•Penny is on the elite Walter Camp Player of the Year Watch List. Other SDSU players on preseason watch lists include running back Juwan Washington (Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award), linebacker Ronley Lakalaka (Polynesian College Football Player of the Year Award), tight end David Wells (Wuerffel Trophy), kicker John Baron II (Lou Gorza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award) and Chapman (Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award).

•Overall the Aztecs had 13 players named to the preseason All-Mountain West team.

Macklin hauls in two touchdowns in Fan Fest scrimmage

Redshirt freshman wide receiver Isiah Macklin had two touchdown receptions to highlight the Aztecs’ annual Fan Fest scrimmage.

Sophomore quarterback Ryan Agnew navigated a four-play drive that lasted two minutes, culminating in a Macklin 23-yard touchdown reception. Aiding the drive was a 13-yard rush by Chance Bell.

The offense got back to work in the second quarter. On the first possession, Chris Laviano directed a nine-play touchdown drive that featured three catches by Collin Andrews, including a 26-yarder, a big catch by Mikah Holder and a six-yard scoring catch by Macklin. Similar to Macklin’s first TD, the extra point was converted by John Baron II.

In the final 10 minutes of the half, SDSU scored once more on a 36-yard field goal from Baron II.

A subsequent third-quarter drive led by Christian Chapman ended in a 30-yard field goal by Baron II.

Later in the third quarter, Chase Jasmin crossed the goal line from two yards out for a touchdown. Baron II connected on the PAT.

In the fourth quarter, which featured a running clock, Jeff Clay intercepted Mark Salazar on the first play and returned the ball 45 yards for the final score of the night.

Kaegun Williams led the offense with 100 rushing yards on 20 carries while Jasmin added 60 yards on 16 attempts. Andrews led the receivers with four catches and 53 yards, and Macklin finished with 29 yards on his two TD grabs.

Defensively, Parker Baldwin and Garrett Binkley led all Aztecs with seven tackles apiece. Randy Ricks had a team-high three tackles for loss and Kyahva Tezino shared game-high honors with Ricks as both had two sacks.

Eastlake Titans Alumni
Playing College Football

Arturo Hurtado (Fort Lewis College)

Travis Gardner (Fort Lewis College)

Ty Stevens (Dixie State University)

Isiah Olave (UC Davis)

Jake Suggett (Central College)

Dylan Teller (Dakota State University)

Jae Vitin (College of Idaho)

Aeden Johnson (North Carolina Central University)

Justin Scott (Capital University)

Isaiah Strayhorn (Southwestern College)

Francisco Aguilar (Southwestern College)