By Jarra Gojolo – Staff Writer
For the second straight weekend, a Spartan will look to conquer Tulsa.
The Spartans of San Jose State (1-0) are coming off a decisive 35-18 win last week against the University of Northern Colorado. Quarterback Josh Love threw for 224 yards and scored three touchdowns, while the team combined to rush for 158 yards against the Bears.
Tulsa (0-1) are looking to bounce back from last week’s 28-7 loss to the Spartans of No. 19 ranked Michigan State. The Golden Hurricane were dominated in the trenches, rushing for -73 yards and losing two fumbles last week. Despite the drubbing in East Lansing, SJSU is not taking their new opponent lightly.
“I know everyone’s making a big deal about the numbers from that game last week,” said SJSU head coach Brent Brennan during his press conference Tuesday. “But a lot of those numbers had to do with the loss yardage plays they took in the second quarter. We look at the film from a year ago, the way the played in the second half, [Tulsa] can run.”
Tulsa’s running back tandem, Shamari Brooks and Corey Taylor II, ran for more than 1,800 yards and 18 touchdowns last season. The pair combined for -1 yard on the ground, but don’t expect them to repeat the effort this week.
The Spartans are looking to do something they haven’t done in over three decades: start their season 2-0. The last time they did that was in 1987, back when they played in the Pacific Coast Athletic Association. A win Saturday would also mark their first winning streak since 2014.
Brennan has high expectations for quarterback Josh Love, with the team coming off a game where 10 different Spartans caught a pass.
“We talked about his maturity and his comfort in the scheme,” Brennan said.“[I’m] really excited to see what kind of step he can take this week against a more athletic, longer defense, a little bit different schematically.”
The last game between the two teams was in 2016, with Tulsa beating SJSU 45-10. Former Spartan quarterback Kenny Potter threw for 234 yards, one touchdown and one interception. And in sharp contrast to their last game, Tulsa gained over 500 yards of offense, with over 300 of those being on the ground.
Only a handful of players from that team will be returning for this week’s game. Those players don’t include freshman quarterback Nick Nash however, who led the Spartans in rushing last game with 67 yards.
Brennan says Nash, who did all his damage while only playing a single drive in the second quarter, will continue to be integrated into the offense.
“Our plan all along was to play Nick,” Brennan said. “We wanted to see what he could do, because he had been electric and dynamic in spring practice up until now … I’m excited to see him throw the ball some, because he can do that too.”
Kickoff is slated for Saturday, Sept. 7 at 6 p.m. at CEFCU Stadium.
Follow Jarra on Twitter @JarraGojolo
