SDSU Football: Brady Hoke looking to continue Rocky Long’s success
Aztecs look to continue dominance on defense in 2020
Defensive coordinator Zach Arnett and defensive line coach Brady Hoke had plenty of success on the defensive side of the ball in just one season. This past season, the Aztecs were ranked No. 2 in the nation in points allowed per game (12.7) and fifth in total yards allowed (287.8). Their defense was the main contributor to their successful season as opposed to the offense.
This was a flip from the previous seasons where their offense was the elite side of the ball. The Aztecs return seven starters on the defensive side of the ball.
With Hoke as the head coach and Arnett now the defensive coordinator at Mississippi State, the Aztecs needed to find their new guy quickly. Hoke hired former Eastern Kentucky defensive coordinator Kurt Mattix for the same position. He was the Colonels’ defensive coordinator for the past four seasons as one of the top defenses in the FCS. He previously served under Hoke for Michigan as the defensive quality control coach.
The Aztecs return two of their most productive defensive linemen from last season. This defensive line was highly-productive in stopping the rushing offense as they were ranked second in the nation in rushing yards allowed per game (75.4).
Defensive tackle Cameron Thomas was one of the most dominant linemen in the entire conference. He was a first-team All-Mountain West selection and the Mountain West defensive lineman of the year after recording 49 total tackles, nine tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks as a redshirt freshman last year.
Defensive end Keshawn Banks returns as a starter for his second full season after accounting for 41 total tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks in 2019. Both Thomas and Banks were selected by Athlon Sports for their preseason All-Mountain West first team.
Both outside linebackers in Andrew Aleki and Caden McDonald return as the starters. There shouldn’t be too much worry as they have the potential and the experience to account for more production in 2020.
There is some concern for the linebackers with main playmaker in middle linebacker Kyahva Tezino gone. They will have to find an efficient middle linebacker to take his place and keep the middle of the defense strong. Both Kaelin Himpill (five total snaps) and Michael Strawcroft (six total snaps) have very limited experience. Linebacker/safety Dwayne Johnson Jr. has 38 games of experience under his belt with all 13 starts this past season. He accumulated 92 total tackles (No. 2 on team), 54 solo tackles (team-high) and five pass deflections this past season.
The secondary is loaded with a ton of experience and potential to better in pass defense. This past season, SDSU was ranked 44th (third in the Sun Belt) in passing yards allowed per game (212.4). The Aztecs return three of five starters in the secondary (including Johnson Jr. in the safety packages).
Darren Hall has 24 games of total experience in his career. He had 16 pass deflections this past season. Safety Tariq Thompson is a former 2017 USA Today Freshman All-American and two-time second-team All-Mountain West selection in 2018 and 2019. Last season, he accounted for 55 total tackles, eight pass deflections, four interceptions, three forced recoveries and two forced fumbles.