Aztecs notebook: Year 2 at Snapdragon Stadium begins with disappointing turnout

Jun 15, 2023

The east stands at Snapdragon Stadium cast a giant shadow on the concourse below as the sun headed for the horizon before San Diego State’s season opener Saturday afternoon against Ohio.

The shade explains why the concourse was filled with fans moments before kickoff.

Unexplained was where everyone was once the game began.

The east (visitor’s) side stands of the stadium went largely unoccupied. There were maybe 500 fans in the upper deck. Perhaps 2,000 or so were below them in the lower bowl.

SDSU announced a crowd of 23,867 (tickets distributed) for the game, although turnstile attendance was 16,831. Most of the fans were on the west (home) side and north side, where students turned out 5,000 strong.

John David Wicker, SDSU’s director of athletics, emailed Aztec Club members on Saturday morning. Wicker’s eight-paragraph message included this: “My ask of you is to help us fill up our home venues as we know with certainty that an enthusiastic Aztec crowd can inspire our student-athletes to be at their best.

“Please ask a fellow alumnus, a friend, a neighbor to join you at a game.”

SDSU sold 15,974 season tickets for Snapdragon’s debut a year ago. An SDSU official said 2023 season tickets totaled 10,718 coming into the opener.

Sales were no doubt impacted by recent events with conference realignment, when SDSU seemed so close to moving into a Power 5 conference only to see those hopes dashed with the demise of the Pac-12.

“I write to you today this reflection with a mix of emotions,” Wicker’s message to Aztec Club members began, “as I know many of you share my disappointment and frustration in the recent events surrounding conference realignment. It has been a challenging time for all of us, but I want to assure you that as we enter the 2023-24 academic and athletic year, we are committed to bringing more pride to Aztec Nation!

“I acknowledge that we all had high hopes for the outcome of the conference realignment process. With the support of many, President de la Torre and I have worked tirelessly to secure the best possible situation for Aztec Athletics. Despite our efforts and successes along the way, the final decisions have been out of our control. Please know that I understand how disheartening this may feel.”

Saturday’s turnout could not have been heartening.

Junior Jaylon Armstead was not listed on SDSU’s depth chart coming into the season, perhaps because he had some difficulty holding onto the football during preseason scrimmages.

That carried into the season, with Armstead fumbling with 3 minutes remaining in the first quarter. It was his first touch of the season.

Instead of an 8-yard gain for a first down, Ohio took possession when the Bobcats’ Bralen Henderson covered the loose ball at midfield.

Armstead got another chance in the third quarter, busting off a 48-yard run for the game’s longest play. He finished with eight carries for a game-high 78 yards.

SDSU started Christian Jones, Cade Bennett, Ross Ulugalu-Maseuli, Dean Abdullah and Myles Murao started from tackle to tackle on the offensive line. Missing was senior Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson, who has been suspended for two games because of a violation of team rules.

Missing from the wide receivers group was sophomore Phillippe Welsey II, who is recovering from an undisclosed injury. Junior transfer Ma’jon Wright also was not among the eight wide receivers who dressed for the game.

Marcus Ratcliffe (Cathedral Catholic High School) started at safety, become the fifth Aztec since 2009 to start on defense as a true freshman. Ratcliffe joins cornerback Leon McFadden (2009), safety Tariq Thompson (2017), cornerback Noah Avinger (2021) and safety CJ Baskerville (2021).

The temperature was 83 degrees at kickoff — 17 degrees less than the record 100 degrees against Arizona for Snapdragon’s debut 51 weeks ago.

The Aztecs return to Snapdragon Stadium on Saturday at 7:30 p.m to play Idaho State. The first 10,000 fans in attendance will receive a free beach towel, so they’ve got that going for them.

SDSU met Idaho State at home last year in the second week of the season, beating the Bengals 38-7.