It is week 7 and the Spartans find themselves staring at a must-win game, needed to win five of its final six games for a shot at making the postseason.
Last week, the Spartans were searching for someone on the team to step up and be the difference maker.
Through all the criticism, the questions surrounding the head coach and the ridicule of an unsatisfactory season, Saturday night at CEFCU Stadium, the same team opened some eyes.
The Spartans’ defense held the Wolfpack to 113 yards on the ground, the lowest it has allowed this season. The team also held James Butler, the eighth-ranked running back in terms of yards-per-game (121 ypg), to under 100 yards.
It was a level of defense that fans had yet to see this season.
SJSU looked sharper on the pursuit of the ball and made fewer careless mistakes on coverages. The Wolfpack only managed one big play and it was the touchdown score for 46 yards.
Head coach Ron Caragher said one of the Spartans keys to victory is winning the turnover battle and limiting the big plays. SJSU did both Saturday and it resulted in a win.
“We won the turnover battle two to zero because we did a good job not turning the ball over,” Caragher said. “And with that it is always in your favor.”
Quarterback Kenny Potter had a bounce-back game of his own. The second year Spartan signal caller finished the night with 11 completions for 142 yards and ran in two game-changing touchdowns, the second of which came with under a minute left in the fourth quarter.
“Coach Borges wanted me to get into a situation where I would have two options,” Potter said. “I saw the corner and I just took it and went for the cone and I scored.”
Potter put his body on the line to score the Spartans go-ahead touchdown. He made helmet to helmet contact with a Wolfpack defender as he dove to the pylon with the ball.
“We had helmet to helmet contact and I was a bit shaken up,” Potter said. “But it went away, no symptoms from here, I checked with the trainers and everything is good.”
What took place after the touchdown became more important than the score itself.
Potter laid on the ground for a few minutes as teammates looked on before he was helped out by the training staff. He was able to walk to the sidelines under his own power, where he proceeded to celebrate with his teammates.
After last Saturday’s disastrous performance, Potter vowed that he and his team would come back with a strong performance and it certainly lived up to the quarterback’s statement.
“Good to finally get a win,” Potter said. “Like I said last week we need to man up or run away from the situation and all of us guys ran towards it and tackled it.”
It was also a big day on the ground for running back Malik Roberson.
A player who seemed to be lost in the Spartans’ shuffle before Saturday, Roberson carried the ball more than he has ever had in his career (35 times).
“I have never carried the ball that many times in a game,” Roberson said. “But it is definitely something that as a developing player it is something that I can do.”
Caragher had high praise for the freshman running back, who showed a lot of maturity taking the load off of the pass game in the soggy weather.
The biggest key to the win was the turnover battle. SJSU committed zero turnovers, an area that both Caragher and Potter said they needed to work on after last week.
Turnovers have plagued the Spartans this season, making them give up 71 points on 14 turnovers.
Linebacker Christian Tago and cornerback Andre Chachere led the way defensively for SJSU, disrupting Nevada quarterback Tyler Stewart and the Wolfpack receivers throughout the entirety of the game.
“Those two guys bring a lot of fire in their bellies,” Caragher said. “They get ignited and they made some big plays tonight and they are our anchors on the defense.”
While the defense showed signs on vast improvement containing the run, it will be quite the test on Friday when they face one of the top running backs in the country, San Diego State’s Donnel Pumphrey.
The Spartans will look to try and win consecutive games for the first time this season when they take on their in-state rival this Friday on the road.
The Aztecs boast one of the best running attacks in the Mountain West, led by the small and shifty Pumphrey, and will look to continue their ground-game dominance when they face the Spartans.
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