Big First Half Launches Aztecs to 45-28 Victory

SAN DIEGO —  On a Saturday night when San Diego State and New Mexico would engage in an offensive feast, it fell to a defensive back to make the play of the game.

That the Aztecs defeated the Lobos, 45-28, in a Western Athletic Conference game in front of 13,776 at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium was tribute to their high-powered offense.

But that the 45 points turned out to be enough was the work of nickel back John Wesselman.

He finally put a stop to the New Mexico offense at a time when the Lobos were about to get back in the game in a big way. And he did so with a dramatic touch that made the play as memorable as any of the numerous spectacular offensive ones that came before it.

With New Mexico running back Derek Coffman within 10 yards of competing what should have been a 76-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter, Wesselman chased him down and stripped him of the ball. The fumble rolled into the end zone and was recovered by safety Morey Paul.

“I knew I wouldn’t catch him until inside the 10, so I figured I would take a shot at the ball,” Wesselman said. “(Coffman) was really chugging. His arms were really swinging. I hit the ball hard with my right hand and grabbed him with my left hand.”

The touchdown could have drawn the Lobos to within three points, but the Aztecs instead took possession and drove for their final and clinching score.

That came on a 15-yard touchdown run by Curtis Butts with 11:24 to play. The touchdown was Butts’ third of the night as he became the third Aztec running back to score three touchdowns in a game.

Butts finished with 156 yards on 17 carries. That was but the tip of the Aztecs’ offense.

Junior quarterback Dan McGwire completed 25 of 39 passes for 426 yards and two touchdowns against one interception.

Junior wide receiver Jimmy Raye had eight catches for 142 yards and one touchdown. Senior wide receiver Robert Claiborne added seven catches for 157 yards and one touchdown.

That helped account for much of the Aztecs’ 591 total yards.

The Lobos responded with some impressive performances of their own, led by wide receiver Terance Mathis.

Mathis returned a kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown and caught a 31-yard scoring pass. Those were the most exciting parts of his 358 all-purpose yards, breaking by 25 yards the record he set two years ago.

Most of these numbers were built in the first half when the Aztecs took a 38-28 lead. The pace slowed in the second half as the teams managed but a touchdown, but by then enough scoring damage had been done to assure that this game would never be remembered for its defensive moments, and that is a shame for Wesselman.

“Pulling that ball out was the biggest play of the game,” Coach Al Luginbill said. “John is a great football player, no doubt about it. He is our defensive leader and an impact player and he sure showed it tonight.”

Wesselman, the leading tackler and one reliable element on what can be an erratic defense, had a career game. Not only did he force the fumble, but he also intercepted a pass and recovered another fumble.

Those were the defensive bests on a night when a one-hour 45-minute first-half provided enough offensive highlights to last the night.

The last time Southern California had a track meet to rival it was the Olympics and gold medals went to the winner.

This time the prize was more modest--a game ball for a fourth consecutive victory by the Aztecs--but just as heartfelt. Not since their 1986 WAC championship season had the Aztecs (5-3-1, 3-2) won four in a row.

New Mexico lost its eighth in a row to fall to 1-9 and 0-6.

What made the combined first-half offensive performance even more amazing was that each team was without its leading rusher--the Aztecs because of an illness to running back Darrin Wagner and the Lobos because of the suspension of four players, including running back Dion Morrow.

Wagner, who leads the Aztecs in rushing, with 721 yards, and scoring, with 11 touchdowns, missed practice all week because of the flu. It was the second time in four games that Wagner did not play; he was suspended for the game against Cal State Long Beach for unauthorized absences from practices.

But Wagner hardly was missed. Butts and Ron Slack made sure of that from the start.

Butts, a sophomore walk-on from Moreno Valley High School who entered the game with nine career carries, rushed for 72 yards and two touchdowns on only five first-half carries. His scoring runs of six and 57 yards were the first touchdowns of his career.

Slack gained 38 yards on 10 first-half carries, including a one-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. He also turned a short pass from McGwire into a 43-yard gain that set up the Aztecs’ first touchdown, a six-yard run by Butts.

The Lobos had a little more trouble replacing Morrow, who leads them with 475 yards on 122 carries. He was one four players left behind by Coach Mike Sheppard for missing a meeting Friday before the team left Albuquerque.

The suspensions also cost the Lobos starting cornerback Donald Levingston, reserve free safety Lamon Everett and reserve quarterback Willie Gardner. That left them to rely even more heavily on the passing of Jeremy Leach and the receiving of Mathis.

The result was a first-half scoring binge that set the tone for one of the wilder games in an Aztec football history not known for its tameness.

The Aztecs led, 38-28, at the half.

Butts rushed for two touchdowns, Slack for another, and McGwire completed touchdown passes of 57 yards to Claiborne and 40 yards to Raye. Andy Trakas added a 25-yard field goal.

But the score was only part of the statistical story. The rest--for reasons of space, time and early-morning comprehension--can only be told in selected highlights.

The best place to start would be the passing numbers: The teams combined for 646 yards in the first half alone.

McGwire completed 19 of his 29 first-half passes for 349 yards and two touchdowns. Leach was 20 of 29 for 295 yards and two touchdowns.

New Mexico’s Kano Brown led all receivers with 10 catches in the first half for 118 yards, including a 14-yard touchdown.

Mathis had six receptions for 147 yards, including a 31-yard score. He also returned a kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown, his third scoring return of the season but the first against the Aztecs since 1974.

But his successes were somewhat tempered by a second-quarter fumble that set up Slack’s one-yard touchdown run and gave the Aztecs a 30-21 lead.

Claiborne led the Aztecs in the first half with six catches for 139 yards.

All of this was part of a combined 764 yards in total offense by halftime.

It was the beginning of a game that those few who bothered to attend would not soon forget, and one that still had a long way to go.

Charger Notes

Derrick Williams blocked a 42-yard New Mexico field-goal attempt in the third quarter. It was the Aztecs’ fifth block this season. . . . The 96-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Gerald Mathis was the first against the Aztecs since Tampa’s Mike Harris returned one 98 yards in 1974 and the third longest ever against the Aztecs. . . . San Diego State wide receiver Monty Gilbreath extended his school-record streak of consecutive games with at least one reception to 34 with an 11-yard catch on the Aztecs’ second drive. . . . SDSU sophomore Steve Matuszewicz, who missed the previous game against Texas El Paso with a groin strain, returned to his starting defensive end position. . . . The Aztecs are home Saturday night to play two-time defending Western Athletic Conference champion Wyoming (4-5, 4-2). The Cowboys have beaten the Aztecs the past two years by a combined 107-37. . . . SDSU reserve linebacker Thane Fisher missed his second game with a broken wrist.

FIRST-HALF NUMBERS GAME The first-half statistical highlights included:

* Aztec quarterback Dan McGwire completed 19 of 26 passes for 349 yards and two touchdowns (he finished the game with 426 yards).

* New Mexico quarterback Jeremy Leach threw for 295 yards and two touchdowns, completing 20 of 29 passes.

* The two teams combined for 644 yards passing.

* The Aztecs had 453 total yards.

* New Mexico had 311 total yards.

* Aztec receivers: Robert Claiborne had six catches for 139 yards, Jimmy Raye five for 90 yards.

* New Mexico receivers: Terrance Mathis had six catches for 147 yards, Kano Brown 10 for 118 yards.

* Mathis had 328 all-purpose yards.