The Spartans finally found their spark on offense after back-to-back subpar performances to start the football season.
The game plan was different going into this contest, it was to attack and after winning the coin toss, the Spartans elected to receive the ball first.
Ken Niumatalolo, San José State football team’s head coach, talked about the game plan heading into this matchup and wanting to receive the opening kickoff.
“I wanted to be able to attack, get the ball to Walker (Eget) early. We want to go into attack more, that was our mindset,” Niumatalolo said.
Early on, the offense took deep shots down the field with SJSU’s first play being a deep post route to wide receiver Leland Smith.
Although the pass was incomplete, the offense continued being aggressive with the next play being a similar post route to wide receiver Danny Scudero.
SJSU starting quarterback, Walker Eget discussed the gameplan to attack early on possessions.
“We have the weapons – just being able to take a shot and really test the defense is something we can really take advantage of – going forward we’re gonna see a lot more of this,” Eget said.
The receiving core as a whole totaled 222 yards receiving with yards showing how aggressive the Spartans were on offense through the air.
Scudero finished the game with 6 receptions for 130 receiving yards and continues to be a main target for Eget.
“I think the biggest thing is trust,” Eget said. “ Last game we didn’t really connect that much and I feel like most of that was on me, you look at what he does every single game, he’s always making guys miss.”
The Spartans not only did well through the air, but they also finally found their groove on the ground when they amassed 198 total rushing yards.
SJSU running back Jabari Bates led the group with 11 carries for 131 rushing yards with his longest run being an 87-yard rushing touchdown.
“It was the boxes they were giving us, they’re normally a four down front with two linebackers,” Niumatalolo said. “We’re finding out a lot of people are playing three down front and dropping more people into coverage to try and take away routes. We can’t let people play that way.”
The offensive struggles continued well into this game, but the touchdown run by Bates jumpstarted the Spartans offense in the second quarter.
“The biggest play besides the kick, was that run, it just gave us some life,” Niumatalolo said.
After the Bates touchdown run, the Spartans scored on every possession the remainder of the game besides the one-play possession before halftime.
Before that offensive spark the team was held to three scoreless possessions in the first quarter with the opening possession resulting in a fumble.
The Spartans have had at least one turnover in the first quarter in all three games this season. “Coach (Craig) Stutzmann had a great game plan going into this, all we did was just have to adjust one little thing and you got to see what this offense could do,” Eget said. “It’s really great to see the momentum switch after the Bates run, that was huge.”
A key to the offense catching fire is the offensive line that didn’t allow a sack, keeping Eget clean the entire game and providing time for the quarterback to throw.
“The big guys up front have been working really hard,” Eget said. “They have been switching in and out and it might be tough for them, but they’re doing their job to the best of their ability.”
