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Things were looking up for the San Diego State Aztecs at the start of a sunny fall afternoon in Toledo.
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Senior running back Lucky Sutton jogged onto the field with the offense after the Aztecs got the opening kickoff, returning to action after a high ankle sprain kept him sidelined during last week’s 26-13 home loss to James Madison.
Sutton had two carries for a total of three yards as SDSU moved down the field for a 25-yard field goal by Cooper DiLeva. It was the first time in three games that the Aztecs scored in the first half.
And then it all went bad. Really bad. So bad that the Aztecs gave up 34 straight points en route to their third straight loss, 41-16.
Javion “Chop” Kinnard, fresh off a massive performance against JMU, when he had 251 yards of total offense, was injured in the first quarter and had to be helped off the field.
Sutton was reinjured early in the third quarter and had to be helped off.
Quarterback Jayden Denegal had another rough game, with the low point coming in the third quarter when Isaac Zay returned an interception 67 yards for a touchdown that gave the Rockets a 34-3 lead.
Here are three things we learned from SDSU’s loss to Toledo.
1. San Diego State suddenly has a major problem at running back
Sutton had gained 11 yards on eight carries before he was hurt early in the second half. The extent of the injury wasn’t immediately known. He had missed the JMU game with a high ankle sprain and was deemed to be questionable for the Toledo game, but he did start.
Kinnard was folded up by several Rockets defenders in taking a 1-yard loss on third-and-1 from the SDSU 34 with 5:51 left in the first quarter. He was tended to by trainers, who appeared to be testing his left knee. He had to be helped off the field.
The Aztecs are now down to Jordin Thomas and Josiah Lucas at running back. The San Diego Union-Tribune reported that senior running back Christian Washington left the team at the start of the week.
Thomas fumbled deep in SDSU territory midway through the third quarter, but Toledo missed a field goal attempt.
2. Jayden Denegal’s struggles reach a concerning point
The senior quarterback didn’t come close to making up for the loss of the Aztecs’ top two running backs.
It didn’t help that he was under immense pressure the whole game by Toledo’s tough defensive front.
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He was already being outplayed by Toledo’s John Alan Richter, who threw his third touchdown pass of the day on the first play of the second half, after the Rockets covered an onside kick by the Aztecs.
Richter was subbed out midway through the fourth quarter after completing 16 of 22 passes (73%) for 284 yards and three scores.
Denegal was benched in favor of redshirt freshman Draiden Trudeau with less than six minutes left.
Denegal was 19 of 31 (61%) for 206 yards. He did throw an 11-yard touchdown pass to tight end Ryan Wolfer, but has five interceptions and five touchdown passes after four games.
Trudeau threw a 14-yard scoring pass to Jaylon Hawkins with 2:38 left.
SDSU lost backup quarterback Stone Saunders to a broken collarbone in the opener against Portland State, and last year’s backup, Bert Emanuel Jr., was moved to wide receiver during spring drills.
3. San Diego State is reeling entering its Pac-12 opener
This is not how the Aztecs envisioned going into their historic Pac-12 opener next Saturday at home against Texas State. SDSU is 1-3 after three straight losses and was outplayed on both sides of the ball by the explosive Rockets.
Coming off a 9-4 final season in the Mountain West, the Aztecs will quickly have to figure out how to increase their offensive production after three anemic outings, and how to tighten up dramatically on defense.
SDSU was outgained 494 to 296 by the Rockets (3-1), who won their eighth straight home game.
Today’s best reads
- San Diego State has questions to answer after stunning home loss to James Madison
- What San Diego State’s latest loss means for the rest of the season
- How to watch San Diego State vs. Toledo: TV channel, game time, streaming
- Why didn’t Lucky Sutton play for San Diego State against James Madison?
- San Diego State gets Lucky Sutton back – then loses him to another injury
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/san-diego-state as San Diego State’s nightmare at Toledo gets worse with injuries to star running backs.
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This story was originally published September 26, 2026 at 12:28 PM.