By Aaron Johnson (@voz_aaron1) – Spear Reporter
SJSU’s defense swarms San Diego State’s ball carrier | photo by Christian Vieyra – The Spear
The rain began to pour down during the 4th quarter of SJSU football’s 24-13 victory against San Diego State. The Spartans’ sideline erupted as soon as the weather shifted and for one reason only.
“When the rain came down, we knew the more physical team was going to win this game,” senior quarterback Chevan Cordeiro said.
SJSU football is amid the biggest mid-season turnaround in school history improving to 6-5 from a 1-5 start.
During that time the Spartans have outscored their opponents 195-76. In the last three games, SJSU hasn’t let an opponent score more than 18 points.
The defense has been firing on all cylinders.
Safety graduate student Tre Jenkins attributes the strong defensive play to the defensive line taking their game to the next level.
“They’ve been stopping that run,” Jenkins said. “Their pass lanes have gotten a lot better too, that helps us in the backfield covering routes, especially on faster receivers.”
SJSU Head coach Brent Brennan also had nothing but praise for how well SJSU’s defensive line has played.
“None of the last five games are possible without that defensive front,” Brennan said. “These guys don’t get enough credit because that’s where football games are won and lost.”
Brennan credits junior linebacker Bryun Parham as an extremely vocal leader for the team. In SJSU’s win over SDSU, Parham got his first career interception.
“It’s really cool to see him make a play like that, normal he’s making the tough plays, ” Brennan said. “Taking on an ISO or all that tough stuff that happens in the trenches.”
Jenkins did not want the work defensive coordinator Derrick Odum put in to go unnoticed.
“When he’s coming up with these schemes, you gotta trust him,” Jenkins said. “Eventually you will see the vision.”
Jenkins also got to snag the game-sealing interception to put a stamp on this historic turnaround.
“When I saw their quarterback roll out and I looked into his eyes, I could see him worried and panicked,” Jenkins said. “I could tell he was gonna force something.”
During the first six games of the season, the Spartans defense on average allowed 33.6 points per game.
Now over the five-game winning streak, the Spartans defense on average allowed 15.2 points per game.
SJSU football’s defense has been paramount to turning a season that looked to be lost, into a season where they have earned bowl eligibility for the third time in four years.