The San Diego State Aztecs football team won its 21st conference championship on Saturday with a thrilling 27-24 win over the Wyoming Cowboys. That seems like a lot!
Now, I may be mistaken, but I believe about 17 of those 21 championships occurred when SDSU was in a league with Patrick Henry High School and the Camp Pendleton Marines, but who cares? Banners are banners so let’s bask in some glory.
Here are the 21 most awesome things about the Aztecs clinching their 21st title.
1. For decades, San Diego teams have fought the reputation of being soft and wilting in adverse weather conditions. It’s one of the curses of living in paradise, I suppose. Yet this championship game victory happened in the cold, on the road and at 7,000 feet. This is a tough team, y’all.
2. SDSU has won two consecutive Mountain West Championship games by identical 27-24 scores. I don’t know why, but I find this coincidence aesthetically pleasing. Back-to-back 11-3 records would be equally pleasing imo.
3. The Aztecs’ renaissance on defense has been spearheaded by two seniors – cornerback Damontae Kazee and linebacker Calvin Munson. Both had starring roles in the win, as Kazee contributed two picks and a huge touchdown-saving tackle and Munson was a menace in the Cowboys’ backfield all game. They will both be missed. They will surely never be forgotten.
4. This photo now exists.
BRB going to clip this out and tape it in my locker now.
5. After the Wyoming loss two weeks ago, D.J. Pumphrey was getting trolled by Pokes’ fans so relentlessly that he had to resort to calling people “fuckboys” on Twitter. Well how about them apples, fuckboys??
6. Pumphrey eclipsed 2,000 yards on the season. Rashaad Penny is now just 5 shy of 1,000. The fact that the Aztecs could be the first FBS team EVER with a 2,000-yard rusher and a 1,000-yard rusher is the coolest damn thing and I don’t understand why no one else is talking about this.
7. When the offense couldn’t put the game away late, it was up to the defense to step up and seal the deal with back to back four and outs against a dangerous quarterback. It had to be this way; this is tough-man Rocky Long Aztecs football. Such a fitting way to win.
8. Last time in Laramie it didn’t pay dividends, but Rocky brought his huge balls to the Front Range again anyway. Rock kept blitzing with the game on the line when others would have played prevent. He went for it on a key 4th down late up three points but with a chance to put the game away. It didn’t work, but it was aggressive as hell. It set the tone.
9. Speaking of Rocky, our ballcoach is now 20-4 since the local columnist first called for his head on a pike, and 1-0 since said columnist indirectly reiterated the point last week.
10. Remember when we were all freaking out about playing a Sun Belt team of 5-7 flotsam in a bowl game? We ended up with Houston in Vegas, a sneaky good matchup that no one saw coming.
Us too.
11. The game was on ESPN, enjoyed by a national audience (that wasn’t watching the bigger game on ABC). Also, after watching Steve Levy and Brian Griese, I will never complain about CBS Sports Network announcers ever again*.
12. We blasted a dude in the scrote (probably accidentally?) and totally got away with it.
13. Boise State, our social betters, had to sit at home and watch us win the title game again. Also, Rocky Long now has more MWC Championships than they do. LOL.
14. Between 1978 and 2014, SDSU had exactly zero 10-win seasons. This now makes two in a row.
15. Because of the events of the weekend, we no longer have to temper this win with “what ifs.” With Western Michigan running the table, it’s clear that our goose has been cooked for two months, ever since South Alabama. I can live with that.
16. We (I) can finally shut the fuck up about SDSU not beating a winning team.
17. SDSU was the only FBS team in California playing for a championship on Saturday and will be the only one hoisting a championship banner for 2016.
18. A horrible interception on a screen pass. A pick-six turned turnover. The game started in nightmare fashion and we were all ready to check out.
But the team stayed mentally tough and pulled it out of the fire with 24 straight points. Thanks to the Aztecs’ fortitude, the shit start only added to the drama.
19. The football team picked us up after a brutal hoops loss earlier in the afternoon. Now let’s never speak of the Loyola game ever again. Pls read my recap tho.
20. The United States of America met Tanner Blain.
21. BYU is someone else’s problem now.
I really hope Wyoming grinds the Cougs to powder. I shan’t be watching, though.
*This is a lie.
KABEER THIRTY 