Sure the San Diego State Aztecs have struggled in Ryan Lindley’s first two seasons on Montezuma Mesa. But few feel that the 2-10 campaign of 2008 or the 4-8 season of a year ago were the fault of the quarterback.

Lindley, who hails from Alpine and Lakeside’s El Capitan High School, has established himself as one of the better signal-callers in the Mountain West Conference, passing for well over 5,000 yards and 39 touchdowns.

Now comes his junior season, which kicks off this Saturday night at Qualcomm Stadium against Nicholls State. And with it comes the excitement the knowing that he has a pair of 1,000-yard receivers in Vincent Brown and DeMarco Sampson to throw to.

In this visit with 619Sports.net, Lindley talks about the promise of a new season ahead — and why the Aztecs might just surprise some people in Coach Brady Hoke’s second year:

Download audio file (Lindley.mp3)

Meanwhile, the Aztec defense will enter its second season in defensive coordinator Rocky Long’s intriguing 3-3-5 setup. One big change will be the shift of senior Ernie Lawson from nose tackle to defensive end.

Though Lawson tells 619Sports.net that he and his mates are far more comfortable with Long’s schemes heading into year number two, the real key to success is simply beating the man in front of him, getting to the quarterback — and finishing:

Download audio file (Lawson.mp3)

Seven thoughts on the seventh day…

1) Small tweaks are starting to add up to a defensive problem for the Padres.  I’m not worried about their current three-game losing streak.  Heck, by the time you read this column, their Sunday magic may have already put a winning touch to the weekend.  But I am worried about how this team’s defense is shaping up for the playoffs.

Losing Tony Gwynn to a broken hamate bone has turned out to be a bigger blow than expected to the Padres’ mojo.  While Chris Denorfia has been swinging an almost ridiculously hot bat during the summer, he is clearly not the equal of Gwynn defensively.  Gwynn’s speed and range were Gold Glove-caliber, while Deno is average at best and leaves his feet too much, turning hits into triples.

Miguel Tejada has hit well, played with passion and seemingly over-achieved defensively at shortstop.  What was supposed to be a major issue for the Padres has been a pleasant surprise so far.  But Saturday’s 3-1 loss to Philly contained a play I’ve been waiting to see for a while.

In the fifth with a runner at second base and one out, Tejada was challenged defensively…to his left.  He had made a couple of nice plays in the hole to his right so far, but I hadn’t seen him make a rangy play to his left.  Shane Victorino hit a ground ball up the middle which I’m convinced Everth Cabrera would have caught…probably Jerry Hairston Jr. as well pre-shin splints.  Tejada dove and couldn’t get it, and the Phillies were on the board.

It’s just one play.  But while Tejada’s solid positioning and strong arm have served him well so far at shortstop, you can’t escape the fact that his range is limited.  Baseball saw this two years ago, so the Padres might as well keep their eyes open.  David Eckstein is a similar player at second base.  He’ll make the play on everything he catches, but some balls are going to get through.

Center field, shortstop, second base…the most important defensive positions on the diamond, and right now the Padres are average at best.  Hairston had defended well at both short and second this year, but his range had seemingly decreased in recent weeks as well.  Now Jerry’s out of the lineup for some time defensively, meaning it’s Tejada or nada at shortstop, and Eck all the way at second base.  Keep an eye on this as the season continues into October.

Note: in Sunday’s starting lineup, Will Venable is starting in center, as Chris Denorfia has a sore back.  I’d like to see Bud Black try out Venable more in center in the coming weeks.  If you’re not going to have Gwynn’s services available, Venable has the most range of the remaining Padres outfielders.

Six more thoughts, including a Chargers/Saints review and an unbelievable story from Del Mar, after the jump:

2)

Along the same lines, defense will prevent the Giants from making a run at the Padres.  San Francisco came into the season with a team very similar to San Diego.  Great pitching, solid defense in the outfield, and very questionable hitting.  Giants’ GM Brian Sabean and Padres’ GM Jed Hoyer each had to decide how to approach their respective team’s struggling lineups.

He's "Pat the Bat" but his glove ain't all that

Sabean made the choice to revamp from the outside, and each move he’s made has crippled the Giants’ defense.  Pat Burrell is a DH in left field, and Jose Guillen is one of the worst defensive outfielders around in terms of range.  Around the infield, there are no standouts and a couple of louts (I’m looking at you, Kung Fu Panda).

Any wonder this team just played a 12-11 game at home, where they committed five errors?  Combined with the struggles of their starting pitchers (and of course, the problems are inter-related) and you’ve got a team which is collapsing on multiple fronts.

3) Things I liked from the Chargers game on Friday night:

• Ryan Mathews (again)
• Ball-control offense
• Run defense (mostly)

The combination of Cam Thomas and Vaughn Martin give the Chargers legit beef on the defensive line.  If Ron Rivera can manage the substitution patterns he wants to get the right matchups on the field, the Bolts could be better up front than anticipated.  I expect lots of teams to do what the Saints did on Friday, which was to go hurry-up and try to limit San Diego’s ability to substitute.

Mathews is going to make this offense so much better, it’s not even funny.  We’ll have another Chargers video up later tonight on this subject, but his 3rd-and-1 sweep for 16 yards is just another on the list of “wow” moments the rookie has already provided in preseason.

His biggest contribution, though, will come in the natural fight and desire he brings to gain those extra couple of yards.  L.T. used to fight for yards like that when he came into the NFL, but time (and thousands upon thousands of hits) led Tomlinson to seek the safety of the sideline or the ground on contact.  I’m sure a veteran running back calls it “being smart”.

Mathews doesn’t know better yet, and that will give the Chargers offense those 3rd-and-3’s which were once 3rd-and-6.

4) Things I didn’t like from the Chargers game on Friday night:

• Stupid penalties (again)
• Pass rush (as usual)
• Cason on the corner

Can this Chargers team be a championship-level defense?  I believe Eric Weddle when he says the defensive secondary is playing together in a way they haven’t seen in years.  I believe what I see up front, even while knowing there are no obvious stars in the group.  But the linebacking corps looks like the same old group of rascals that could cost the Bolts a big game.

Is Shaun Phillips determined to lead the league in dumb personal fouls?  Will Shawne Merriman ever actually play, or will he remain in injury limbo for the rest of his Chargers career?  Seems like Lights Out is more like Light Flickering, he’s never quite in or out and it’s starting to annoy me.  I thought Larry English was supposed to replace that flickering bulb anyhow.

Kevin Burnett has looked terrific in preseason, and Stephen Cooper seems like himself,  but there are questions remaining unanswered right now in the linebacking corps, and the Shaun/Shawne portion of the locker room is where the biggest question marks are directed.

Meanwhile, Drew Brees had all the time in the world to throw on Friday, but I can’t necessarily blame that on the Chargers.  After all, there are three Pro Bowlers on a Saints offensive line which returns all five starters, and Brees is a master of quick release and fast-break offense.

Still, somebody better touch the darn QB if the Chargers want to get to the promised land.  Haven’t seen much of it so far outside of safety/corner blitzes.

Last but not least, is Antonie Cason going to hold up to the pressure?  Norv Turner was complimentary toward Cason during Saturday’s press conference, explaining away the touchdown that went through his hands as a mistake he’ll correct.

Maybe he will.  But mistakes on the corner usually lead to six points, and Cason has made enough mistakes during his time in San Diego to make you wonder if he’ll be a persistent target for opposing quarterbacks.

5) My first high school Top-10 list of the year looks like this:

1. Cathedral Catholic
2. Vista
3. Oceanside
4. Eastlake
5. Helix
6. Mission Bay
7. Point Loma
8. SF Christian
9. Ramona
10. Escondido

Hey, what do I know?  None of these teams have taken the field yet, so I’m going on a respected source’s say-so, along with spreading around the ‘dap to some of the top programs around the county.

Cathedral Catholic is the closest thing I’ve seen to Mater Dei or Concord De La Salle in San Diego County, so they go to the top until proven otherwise.  Vista is supposed to be even better than last year’s talented team, and while Oceanside lost a ton (thankfully, much of the talent going to Brady Hoke and SDSU), the Pirates are a “reload not rebuild” type of program.

Teams like Mission Bay and Escondido will have a lot to prove with superstars Dillon Baxter and Ricky Seale moving on to college, while it looks like Eastlake has more than enough to withstand Tony Jefferson’s departure to Oklahoma.

I left La Costa Canyon off my Top-10 list because with head coach Darrin Brown having left along with a lot of senior talent, I need to see them succeed before they earn a ranking.  My eyes are still on you though, Mavericks.

We’ll be back out covering the Friday Night Lights like no one else on 619Sports.Net this fall.  If you are (or you happen to know) a college upperclassmen or above and would like to join our prep football reporting crew, please drop me a line at craig@619sports.net with your qualifications.

6) Will our local college quarterbacks be allowed to stay upright this season?  It could determine the fate of both SDSU and USD.

A visit to Toreros practice last Thursday  (where we taped a number of video interviews you’ll see in the coming week) revealed a USD team with some great skill players on offense.  I think Sam Scudellari can have a big year throwing to John McGough, Godfrey Smith and tight end Patrick Doyle.

The question is, will Scud have time to fire?  Four new starters on the offensive line could lead to Scudellari running for his life.  At the practice I witnessed, it was tough for Sam to get off anything short of a quick pass or bubble screen without getting hit.

Same question goes for the boys at Montezuma Mesa as they get ready for the opener against Nicholls State next Saturday.  Lindley, with time to operate, should have a career year throwing to Vincent Brown, DeMarco Sampson and Alston Umuolo.  Ronnie Hillman’s injection of speed into the running game will keep defenses from pinning their ears back.

But there’s a lot of inexperience up front for SDSU and I wonder when conference play starts if Lindley will be under duress.  Ryan hasn’t shown great accuracy or touch on quick, short passes in his Aztecs career, the best remedy for a pass rush.  He’s been a guy who needs a pocket to work from so he can aim downfield.

Hopefully, Lindley’s improved on those underneath passes.  Otherwise, keeping him clean will be a difficult and demanding task.

7) Overheard on the felt this week…the story of a lucky day at the races.  You can’t believe everything (or even many things) you hear at a poker table.  But this man’s story I believe, and the Del Mar Racetrack results back up his account of fortune turning on a scratch and a scramble.

On Wednesday, the 6th race at Del Mar was a $15,000 purse claiming race for three year olds and upwards, fillies and mares.  Our hero (we’ll call him Mike) was dragged out to the racetrack with his buddies.  Mike is not a horse player, not even close.  His previous trips to the track have been fun but never profitable.

As the sixth race rolled around, Mike was drinking beers with his buddies and making small bets (saving his money for the poker table).  He filled out a $2 exacta ticket, putting the 8 horse (Celebration) together with a couple of medium longshots, the 5 horse (Entabeni) and the 10 horse (Tribul Witch).

As the horses were being loaded into the starting gate, the 8 horse spooked and bucked, bolting early.  He was scratched, and so was Mike’s trifecta.

Except, Mike’s trifecta didn’t have to be scratched…but it did have to be changed.  It was announced over the track public address system that the betting windows would re-open for 3 minutes so players could take out the 8-horse and replace him with another entrant.

Mike, busy chatting with a friend, frittered away at least a minute of his three-minute window.  He wasn’t even sure if it was worth it, but decided last second to go ahead and change his ticket.  By this time, he had to wait for two other people in front of him at the betting window.

As Mike reached the window, he told the cashier “take out the 8 horse and replace him with the 1″, handing him the proper trifecta betting form.  The 1-horse (Too Pink) happened to be a 46-1 longshot.

“It’s too late,” said the cashier, “the time’s up”.

“Run the ticket”, said Mike.

The cashier obliged, and voila!  A betting slip popped out of the computer, meaning the bet was in on time and valid.

“Wow, that must have gotten in at the literal last second,” said the cashier, “because my screen said there were 0 minutes remaining.”

Mike settled back in to watch the race…and was promptly on his feet and screaming as Too Pink hit the wire first, followed by Tribul Witch and Entabeni.

The $2 exacta ticket, originally a loser, then switched at the last possible second for a winner, paid $7,008.00.

Now that’s what I call being lucky.  Hope you have a very fortunate week as well!

Kickoff for the college football season in San Diego is just a week away!  On September 4th the Aztecs will battle Nicholls State at Qualcomm Stadium, hoping for a 2010 season which furthers the turnaround of the SDSU program under Brady Hoke.

Senior cornerback Jose Perez has taken a long and winding road to get to Saturday’s game.  He signed a letter of intent to play for the Aztecs…in 2003.  Three years of pro baseball delayed his college debut, and Perez then was converted from a wide receiver to a defensive back.  Now he’s hoping to end his college career with a bowl appearance.

619Sports.Net’s Craig Elsten caught up with Perez after fall practice for a 1-on-1 video interview:

NEW PODCAST: The baseball world was rocked yesterday by the news of Stephen Strasburg’s need for Tommy John surgery on his right elbow.  MLB’s top phenom will be under the knife soon, and likely will miss all of the 2011 season.  The former Aztec great will have to wait until 2012 to resume his assault on opposing hitters.

Craig and Chris followed Strasburg all the way through college and saw first-hand how the Aztecs ace was protected from overuse.  In the minors and with the Nationals, Strasburg’s pitch count and workload have been tightly monitored.  What else could have been done to protect Stephen from injury?  Probably nothing.

In their latest podcast for 619Sports.Net, the guys react to Strasburg’s injury, discuss his future, the Nationals complicity (if any) in his getting hurt, and how Strasburg’s story should (or should not) affect the Padres’ handling of Mat Latos:

Download audio file (082710-strasburg-hurt.mp3)

Mitch Blackburn looks out the window of his hotel room.  He’s in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Knows no one.  No place to live past tomorrow.  No way to get to where he’s going.  He might as well be on the moon.

And if they played ball on the moon, Mitch would probably throw his glove onto the field for a shot there too.

*  *  *

619 Sports caught up with two of the best players who have come through our local colleges in the past few years.  No, not Stephen Strasburg and Brian Matusz, players who were picked in the Top-5 of the draft, signed for millions, and jetted to the big leagues.  Their stories are in SI and the Washington Post.

Mitch Blackburn and Vance Albitz played baseball the way the game was meant to be played.  Team players.  Did the little things right.  Hit the other way.  Fielded their positions flawlessly.  Too small, too slow, no power…a scout’s nightmare, a manager’s dream.

They could have been teammates.  UCSD head coach Dan O’Brien tried hard to get Blackburn to come to La Jolla from Palomar College.  Almost got him, too.  But Tony Gwynn and SDSU came calling and Mitch answered.

Blackburn started for two years at San Diego State, hitting .306 as a junior and .372 in his senior year.  On our goaztecs.com game broadcasts, I always used to say, “leave it to Mitch” when he came to the plate, because he would inevitably do what needed to be done at that moment; whether it be to move a runner, slash the ball into the hole on a hit & run, or draw a walk.  Mitch was named to the all-Mountain West Conference second-team.

Vance Albitz was simply the best player in UC San Diego history.  The school’s all-time hits and runs leader, a two-time national Gold Glove winner at shortstop and a first-team All-American his senior year, Vance and the Tritons made it to back-to-back College World Series, reaching the championship game this summer.

You couldn’t watch SDSU or UCSD play baseball and not come away knowing that these young men were the engines of their teams.  But come draft day in June, neither got a sniff.

50 rounds.  30 teams.  No phone call.

That’s a lot of denial for any young man to take.

And yet, just two months later, both players are in pro ball, each having reached similar levels and faced similar challenges.

Blackburn, improbably, finds himself in Double-A with the Arkansas Travelers of the LA Angels (of Anaheim) farm system.

Albitz is in the American Association, a talent-filled independent league which plays in front of thousands per night and compares favorably to Double-A baseball, as a member of the Lincoln SaltDogs.

They both know where they want to get.  Neither is anywhere close just yet.  Their paths have been different, but their goal is the same: two longshots hoping to get one shot to play someday, somewhere in the major leagues.

Tomorrow, we’ll profile Vance Albitz’s journey from La Jolla to Lincoln, Nebraska.  Today, click through to read Mitch Blackburn’s story:

* * * PART ONE: Mitch Blackburn * * *

Mitch Blackburn felt like he had been let down and left out.

“After the year I had, I definitely expected to get drafted,” said Blackburn from his temporary Arkansas quarters, a Little Rock hotel room downtown.  He’s just been called up to Double-A after spending less than a month in Arizona rookie ball.

It sounds like the path of a high-round draft pick, but Mitch knows all too well he is not on the chosen path.

“One of the teams who had talked to me (before the 2010 MLB first-year player draft) said it wasn’t a matter of if they would draft me, but when.  The North County Times had me in the paper the week before the draft as one of the local players to watch for.  Then the draft came, and I sat through all three days, all fifty rounds.  Nobody called my name.”

“It was kind of difficult after the last round, not knowing what to do next.”

Next was the vast unknown of free agency.  When you’re cast into a giant pool, it helps to have a lifeline.

Mitch’s lifeline was a contact, courtesy of the family business.  Blackburn’s dad Mark runs a business out of LA, and one of his employees was a former Padres and Angels farm hand by the name of Ryan O’Donnell.  Born and raised in Arizona, O’Donnell had family contacts with one of the scouts in the Angels system.

Through a series of phone calls, an open tryout was arranged at the Angels’ spring training complex in Tempe.  Mitch made the drive down I-8 and into Arizona, his dreams packed in a duffel bag.

He pulled out his glove, cleats and bat and went through a half-hour workout in front of an Angels scout.  Batting practice.  Ground balls.  It was over before he knew it.

“The scout came up to me, and said he liked what he saw.  He said, ‘we’ll see what we need, and if we need a middle infielder, I’ll make sure your name is high on the list.’”

As far as promises go, it wasn’t much.  Blackburn retreated to Temecula, continued to work out at Palomar College, and waited for a phone call, all the while plotting his next step.

“I didn’t want to get my hopes up, after what happened with the draft.  I figured, it was a great experience, if it happens (getting signed), then great.  If not, I’ll look for the next option.”

One week turned into two, and then three.  The workout faded into memory.  But someone in Anaheim (or Tempe) remembered.

“Middle of the third week, I got a call from (Angels’ director of player development) Abe Flores.  He asked if I had signed with anyone yet, or if I was still looking.”

“The next day, I was back on a plane to Tempe.”

The Angels signed Blackburn and assigned him to the rookie league AZL Angels.  The organization’s third-round draft pick, shorstop Wendell Soto, was injured.  Despite being a second baseman throughout most of college, Mitch was thrust into the starting job at shortstop.

For the first week or two, the dream seemed to be at hand.

“Here I was, walking into a professional clubhouse, putting on the uniform and going to work,” said Mitch, “One part of my dream had come true.  Now it was about taking the next step.”

Blackburn played every day for about two weeks.  He didn’t hit for a high average (.204 in 49 at-bats), but hit into some hard luck.  Mitch described an 0-for-17 slump in which six or seven of the outs were line drives.  The Angels’ roving hitting instructor took notice, and praised Blackburn for his approach at the plate.

Then, Soto got healthy, and got his starting job back.  Mitch went from playing every day to fighting for a spot start once or twice a week.

“It was kind of difficult, because growing up, I never had to sit on the bench.  I tried to keep a good attitude, and not show them I was upset or anything like that.  I understand it’s part of the business.  People who sign for big money are going to get the opportunity over those who don’t.”

Still, Mitch was just about a month into his pro career, and already was seemingly adrift, riding the pine in rookie ball.  Then came an unexpected phone call.

“I’m sitting at home on my off day, and get a phone call from my manager.”

Mitch’s heart pace quickened.  Could it come in this cold a fashion?  Could he get released over the phone?

No release was coming; instead, a promotion.  Blackburn was heading to Double-A Arkansas.

Another injury had forced the Angels to shuffle the deck, and they wanted to keep Soto starting every day at rookie ball.  As an expendable piece of flotsam in the Angels’ system, Mitch had suddenly been thrust forward instead of backward.

He joined the Travelers on the road, knowing absolutely no one.

Mitch's new home ballpark, Dickey Stephens Park in Little Rock

“Most guys, when they get promoted, they have players on the team who they’ve played with in past years, spring training and all of that.  I hadn’t been in the organization for more than a month.”

He arrived to a chilly reception.  The minors aren’t like the big leagues in many ways, and clubhouse welcome is one aspect which is decidedly different.  In the big leagues, the first arrival is a rite of passage appreciated by everyone who’s made the journey before.  In the minors, every new face who arrives in the clubhouse could potentially be the one who takes your job, ends your dream.

“There are guys who are friendly, and guys who look at you like ‘who are you and why are you here?’  You get mixed emotions from people…some are nice, and some act friendly but they’re really not.”

Mitch played once on the road, got into a game late as a defensive sub.  Never got to hit outside batting practice.

A new surprise would be waiting when the Travelers arrived at Blackburn’s new “home”.

New minor leaguers are eased into life on baseball’s rocky road.  There are host families for players in rookie ball and low-A ball, home-cooked meals, and transportation to the ballpark.

This was Mitch Blackburn’s life in Tempe.  Little Rock would be a different story.

“When I got here, the clubhouse attendant told me in Double-A and above, the team gives you three nights in a hotel, and then the Angels stop paying and you have to find a place to live and transportation.”

From a wide-eyed newbie in baseball to a transient in Arkansas.  Blackburn doesn’t have the luxury of most pipeline players, teammates in AA who he has played with for years.  There’s no one to take him under his wing, no couch to crash on.

He’s renting a hotel, chewing into his modest salary.  It’s a cheaper one than the team would provide, but it’s doing just fine.  Staring at four walls in a town you don’t know, they might as well be any four walls.  No point in setting down roots when Mitch knows he could just as easily be on the road back to rookie ball, or worse, at any moment.

Does this sound like living the dream?  Ready for the secret?  It is.

“I’m very excited,” says Mitch Blackburn, “Couldn’t be happier right now.”

Mitch got to start a game at home, against Corpus Christi.  Picked up his first Double-A hit, a single (of course) over the shortstop’s head.

Then, a week without action.  A dusty bus trip all the way from Little Rock to San Antonio and back.  One game, in Corpus Christi, an 0-for-4.

Back in Little Rock, the weather’s skipped bad and went straight to worse.  91 degrees with humidity draped over your shoulders like a wet coat.  Mitch is 1-for-11 in Double-A, but he’s still here.

“I was talking to my dad on the phone the other night,” said Mitch,”Sure, I’d like to play more.  But if I get sent back down, if I never make it…I’ve played in a Double-A game.  I kind of wish I knew what was going on more, but I’m here, and I’m happy to be here.”

There are thousands of roads to The Show.  Most of them are dead ends.  This could be another one.

Leave it to Mitch.  He’ll keep walking that road all the way to where it takes him.

TOMORROW, PART TWO: Life in the independent leagues with Vance Albitz

San Diego State’s final major scrimmage of the fall saw the defense take control, shutting out the Aztecs offense on the first 11 series. The ugliness on offense must have looked like ballet to SDSU defensive coordinator Rocky Long, who is hoping his 3-3-5 defense will take a major step forward in his second season on campus. Earlier in the week, Craig Elsten and videographer Dave Evenson met with Long at the Aztecs athletic facilities to discuss his thoughts on the upcoming season:

619 Sports’ photographer David Olender was at Saturday’s scrimmage and brought back these pictures of the Aztecs in action:

[View with PicLens]

The Aztecs are back on the field for practice all week, with the season opener against Nicholls State set for a 5pm kickoff at Qualcomm Stadium on September 4th.

Going 1-on-1 with Vincent Brown is a bad idea on the football field, unless you like to see the Aztecs score. We figure a 1-on-1 interview is a better way to try and catch up with the SDSU speedster. After catching touchdowns in his first five games last year, Brown was shelved with a thumb injury seven weeks into the season.  Now he’s back, the thumb feels better and the Mountain West better take notice:

It’s getting on into late August now, but like last year, San Diego State’s football practices are closed to the media and the public. So to be honest, real insight into Year Two of the Brady Hoke era is tough to come by.

We hear what the Aztecs are saying, but as the old saying goes…seeing is believing. And, frankly, we haven’t seen a thing.

Reports from inside the closed fences of training camp are as one might expect: upbeat and encouraging. It’s a bunch of the usual patter.

Hoke says the team, thanks to hard work in the weight room during the off-season is far stronger and more athletic than it was a year ago. (I believe him, but when was the last time a coach said his team looked weaker and less athletic?).

Players say that with a year under their belts, the game plans of Offensive Coordinator Al Borges and Defensive Coordinator Rocky Long are easier to understand and more comfortable to execute. (Again, I’ve never heard a player say he was confused heading into a season).

Everyone in Red And Black says without hesitation that this season will turn out better than the 4-8 campaign of a year ago, a campaign that raised hopes momentarily at 4-4 before it crashed and burned quicker than a John Edwards run at the White House.

Hoke has even suggested that his Aztecs could become Mountain West Conference champions — or at least he has established that lofty aspiration as the team’s stated goal.

But can any of it really happen?

Hoke, since taking over just more than a year ago, has made it a point to remind folks hereabouts that the SDSU football program is one that is filled with tradition, correctly noting the 18 conference championships of days gone by. He and many of his players glimpsed some of the gloried past when they attended the funeral service of the great Aztec leader and Coach Don Coryell after he passed away last month.

Tradition, however, cuts both ways. And though the memories of Coryell’s golden age still bring smiles to the faces of the SDSU faithful, recent history has left fans feeling like they’ve taken nothing more than repeated punches to the gut.

Hoke and company, of course, are not responsible for all of the misery doled out over the past decade or so, but at the same time, the new Aztec staff didn’t exactly help erase those memories during their first season, either.

For evidence of first-year improvement under Hoke, know this: the 2-10 Aztecs of Chuck Long’s final season in 2008 were outscored by a whopping 215 points for the season and lost seven games by 25 or more points. The 4-8 Hoke Aztecs of ‘09 were out-scored by only 86 points and lost just two games by 25 or more.

For understanding why die-hard SDSU fans are still concerned that recent curses have yet to be exorcised, know this: the Aztecs would have reached a bowl game for the first time in 12 years had they not blown a 27-6 fourth-quarter lead at home to Wyoming and a 24-14 fourth-quarter lead at UNLV during the final three weeks of the season.

This season, Hoke’s grandiose dreams aside, the hope is that SDSU can finish at least 6-6 and get back to postseason play for the first time since 1998. With gun-slinging quarterback Ryan Lindley leading an offense that includes a pair of 1,000-yard wide receivers in Vincent Brown and DeMarco Sampson, along with a preseason all-conference tight end in Alston Umuolo, that goal seems realistically reachable.

In order for it to happen, however, the Aztecs are going to need to somehow reverse their more-than-just recent run of misfortune. SDSU never beats a team it isn’t supposed to beat as evidenced by the fact that it has lost 22 consecutive games to BCS conference teams (last winning in ‘99 over Kansas) and 24 in a row to teams ranked in the Top 25 (last ranked team beaten: Wyoming in ‘96). At the same time, the Aztecs always seem to lose at least one game each season — and often more than one — to teams they are supposed to beat. (See: Cal Poly in ‘08 and Wyoming last year for recent examples).

This year’s schedule includes four games that — on paper, at least — SDSU will be hard-pressed to win: at Missouri, at BYU, at TCU and home against Utah. In two other games – home to Air Force and at Wyoming — the Aztecs figure to be decided underdogs as well.

Unless SDSU comes through with a surprise win in any of those contests, that’s six losses right there. That means the Aztecs would have to win each of their remaining six games to reach the magical .500 mark. (The lineup: Nicholls St., at New Mexico St., Utah St., at New Mexico, Colorado St., UNLV). 

In other words, either Hoke’s team will have to win a game it isn’t supposed to or it will have to win every game that it is supposed to in order to go bowling. Could it happen? Of course it could.

But it hasn’t happened in a very long time.

– Ello

619 Sports was on Montezuma Mesa to follow the Aztecs football team as they prepare for the season opener September 4th against Nicholls State.  Freshly singed by the sun after a long day on the practice field, head coach Brady Hoke joined us to talk about the progress of the team, camp battles and more:

Seven thoughts on the seventh day…

1) Count August 15th as the day I decided the 2010 Padres were going to win the NL West for sure.  At the All-Star break, the division was a four-team race.  After last week, it became a two team race.  After today, it’s a one-team race.

Sure, the Giants could still make the playoffs, but for San Francisco to win the NL West, the Padres will have to collapse.  All of their changes seemed to make the Giants a better team…and they are improved.  But are they better than the Padres?  Clearly not.

San Diego is 9-2 against the Giants.  Why should San Francisco be pleased about the fact they play San Diego seven more times?  They’ll lose five or six of those games based on the track record.  That means trying to make up seven or eight games in the standings based on the Padres playing poorly against others.

Not.  Gonna.  Happen.

San Diego is a good enough TEAM to win the NL West.  They’ve proven it over and over, and this weekend, in the biggest road test of the season, they looked like the more composed, better team in all three games.  Sure, they stranded a ton of runners on Saturday, but that happens.

The only way the Padres lose the NL West now is if they give it away themselves with a complete collapse, a three-week funk when they can’t win a game.  Now, go ask any member of the Giants, Dodgers or Rockies if they really, truly think that streak is coming.  It’s not.

2) Why aren’t the Giants a better team than the Padres?  Because Tim Lincecum is a shadow of himself.

San Francisco’s “ace factor” is where they had an edge on San Diego.  Lincecum was the hammer the Giants could count on to pound the Padres.  But he’s not the same.

Still competes.  Still has a great changeup, good secondary pitches.  But the fastball is 90-92 and his location is so-so at best.

Lincecum reminds me exactly of Johan Santana.  Like Santana, Lincecum was dominant beyond his body type.  Like Santana, Lincecum had a nearly unhittable combo of a 95+ fastball with a Hoffman-esque changeup.  Like Santana, Lincecum threw a ton of pitches in a short time racking up dominant starts.

Like Santana, Lincecum’s fastball is gone.  And so are his days as a dominant pitcher.  He can be effective, even great still (just like Johan Santana), but it won’t be on pure dominant stuff anymore.  It will be on the days he locates perfectly and pitches like a savvy veteran.

It was great while it lasted.  And he’s got a long career ahead of him still.  But Lincecum “the freak” is done.

More Padres, plus a review of last night’s Chargers game, USD and SDSU after the jump:

3) Jose Guillen was a brilliant acquisition…for San Diego. Yes, he’s on the Giants roster, but only to serve as a double agent.  His sole purpose is to deliver the NL West to the Padres.

Call him: The Mole.  Where’s Anderson Cooper when you need him?

Guillen, who had the audacity to talk down to the young Royals, calling them “babies” and “fundamentally the worst team in baseball”, goes out and shows his new team how not to play the game on Sunday.

In the first inning, with two on and the count in his favor, Guillen swings for the fences, twice, against a soft-tossing lefty (Wade LeBlanc).  Predictably he strikes out.  Not exactly what you’d call situational hitting.

In the 4th, trailing 6-2, Guillen ropes a double into Triples Alley in right-center field.  Yes, it’s called Triples Alley, but only if you can run faster than Frank Langella.  Guillen, dust blowing in the wind behind him from the piano he’s dragging around the bases, is gunned down at third base trying to stretch his hit into a leadoff triple.

Because, you see, a double would have been dangerous and forced Wade LeBlanc into the stretch.  But an out, now that’s gravy on the Padres’ mashed potatoes.

Jed Hoyer, it’s your most brilliant move yet.  I’m looking forward to September, when Guillen’s anti-Bochy tirade and bat throwing exhibition knocks the final wheel of the Giants’ playoff wagon.

Maybe before he leaves town, Bud Black can show Boch some of those jujitsu moves he used on Milton Bradley back in the day.

4) What I liked from the Chargers game:

• Ryan Mathews reminds me of…LT.  Low to the ground, great center of gravity, explosive speed, and the ability to bounce out of tackles.
• On fourth and one, they gave it to Mathews and he actually got the yards, and then some!  This is something we haven’t seen in a while.  Young running backs still have that Madden “turbo button” they can hit when times are tough.  Mathews has full turbo.
• Antwan Applewhite will help the pass rush.
• The Chargers sent Donald Strickland on a slot corner blitz four times in the first quarter alone.  I wonder if they’ll use that play four times all season.

5) Things I didn’t like from the Chargers game:

• 

  All these penalties aren't on the chart...

  Too many penalties.  Way too many penalties.  It’s the first preseason game, so let’s hope the Chargers were getting the jumps out of their system.  Jeromey Clary looked like someone had put fire ants in his uniform pants.

• I know, I know…it’s entertainment for the fans, it’s a celebration to pay tribute to a loved one, it’s part of the schtick, I get it…but do we really need sack dances and defensive celebrations in the first preseason game?  It’s bad enough to do a sack dance on first or second down (and then give up the conversion on third down), but when you’re celebrating a truly meaningless event, it means the celebration itself is what matters.
• I’d like to think the Chargers defense will be a year more mature and (with the subtraction of Cromartie) a few years smarter…but when I see that stuff, I think there’s still a long way to go.  And this is before Shawne Merriman takes the field.
• Is anyone else worried about special teams coverage with Kassim Osgood out of town?  I didn’t see anything last night to tell me the coverage units are going to be special.

6)

Scudellari showed me a lot playing through a painful injury last year

Head coach Ron Caragher says the competition is wide open, but here’s a vote for Sam Scudellari to be the starting quarterback for USD this year. Scudellari and Bo Stompro were both forced into the fire last year when incumbent Toreros quarterback Sebastian Trujillo quit on his team—errr—-transferred for personal reasons.

Scudellari was raw and had his struggles, but showed me a lot when he tried valiantly to lead his team against Jacksonville despite a serious ankle injury.  Hopping around on a broken ankle, Scudellari stayed in the game and did whatever he could despite being hopelessly injured.

That type of toughness and selflessness cannot be taught.  Scudellari’s a leader and he should get the first chance to lead the Toreros on the gridiron this year.

7) How do you sell Aztecs football to the Aztecs community?  Hire some Aztecs to get the job done.

San Diego State is using telemarketing to try and boost attendance for the upcoming football season.  This is not unusual.  But before you hang up on that call, know that it’s probably a Red and Black student (or alum) on the other end of the line.

John Freeman’s Trilogy PR Group in La Mesa got the latest chance to try and peddle Aztecs football to the masses.  His idea was to turn the job over to those who could speak with personal passion about the subject.

Nicole Stone, a successful sprinter on the SDSU track and field team, is now picking up phones and trying to sell fans on the Hoke Era of Aztec football.

“We’re proud of our school, and this is a great way to stay in touch with the sports program and make some money at the same time.”

Many of the students involved come from the SDSU Business Management MBA program.  Then, there’s Bruce Adams, who’s talking about the game he loves, and the game that was taken from him.

A former star QB from Montana, Adams got a full ride to Washington State in 1980, but was tackled from behind in his first game with the Cougars.  He suffered a spinal cord injury which led to permanent paralysis.

Adams, 48, is now on the phones talking Aztecs football every day.  It’s his way to stay connected to the game.

“I’m a football fan all year round,” said Adams, a lawyer who’s a frequent volunteer in the Aztecs’ athletic department, “We’re all Aztecs fans here and can’t wait for the season to start.”

Neither can I.  Now, please just avoid calling in the dinner hour, m’kay?