San José, Calif. - A strong first half and a late comeback attempt against one of the nation's top defenses ultimately wasn't enough on Saturday as San Diego State battled past San José State at CEFCU Stadium.
Quarterback Josh Love threw for 218 yards and a pair of touchdowns but the Aztecs (6-1, 3-1 Mountain West) dueled their way to a 27-17 victory.
"We just made a few too many mistakes to beat a team as good as them," said head coach Brent Brennan after the game. "It was a little frustrating because I felt like there were moments where we had a chance to make it fun."
The Spartans (3-4, 1-3 Mountain West) found themselves in an early deficit after the contest's opening kickoff was returned for a touchdown. The team would promptly answer right back, however, going on a four play, 66-yard scoring drive to even the score at 7-7 less than two minutes into the game.
The quick-hitting scoring possession was capped by a 15-yard touchdown pass from Love to freshman running back Kairee Robinson. The play marked the first career reception and touchdown for the Antioch, Calif. product.
Ranked #4 nationally in rushing defense heading into the afternoon, the visitors from San Diego were able to limit the SJSU ground attack for the majority of the night. The team finished with 54 total yards on the ground and was led by a 59-yard performance for Robinson.
"I thought Kairee did a really nice job tonight," Brennan said when asked about the running back. "It was exciting to see him get in there. He's a freshman and it's always fun to see a freshman go in there and run the football against a good group like he did."
Senior wideout Bailey Gaither also impressed and found the end zone on a late eight-yard touchdown reception. He would end the day leading all players with four receptions for 75 yards.
After pulling even at 7-7, San Diego State tallied 20 of the contest's next 23 points to take a commanding 27-10 lead. The only interruption to the run came on a third quarter field goal off the foot of Matt Mercurio, a 25-yarder that was the freshman's ninth make of the season.
The scoring drive went an impressive 68 yards, spanning 14 plays that featured four Love completions and four Robinson carries.
The Aztecs tallied a pair of touchdown runs - one short (one yard), one long (50 yards) - on their next two possessions but the hosts refused to go quietly into the night.
Starting from its own one-yard line with just over nine minutes remaining, San José State marched 99 yards down the field to keep itself in the ballgame. Highlighted by a huge 52-yard reception for Gaither, the senior would then snag a touchdown pass from Love three plays later to cut the deficit to 27-17.
The 99-yard touchdown drive marked the team's longest of the season.
A spirited Spartan defense got the ball back for its offense on the ensuing possession, pushing San Diego State back for negative three yards on five plays. The comeback attempt would soon be extinguished, however, as the Aztecs forced their first turnover of the night following yet another punt that pinned SJSU on its own one-yard line.
San José State ended the night with a 218-88 advantage in passing yards and were only flagged once to San Diego State's 12 penalties. The Aztecs entered Saturday ranked eighth nationally in scoring defense (13.2 points per game) and SJSU converted on all three of its trips inside the red zone before the night was over.
The Spartans now look ahead to their non-conference finale, where they will travel across the country to face Army on Saturday, Oct. 26. Kickoff is set for 9:00 a.m. (PT) at Michie Stadium in West Point, N.Y.
Gallery: (10/19/2019) Football vs. San Diego State
