In one of San José State’s best defensive performances of the season, it was the offense that led the Spartans down in a 21-17 loss to University of Toledo on Saturday night.
SJSU was in control of the game up until the middle of the third quarter, but a string of bad offensive plays prevented the Spartans from getting the win.
“The first half we were rolling and we had the momentum, but in the second half they started making adjustments,” said SJSU quarterback Chevan Cordeiro. “They started bringing more pressure, switching up coverages. We just couldn’t capitalize.”
SJSU’s offense played well through two and a half quarters as the Spartans held a 17-7 lead in the middle of the third quarter.
The play that ended up changing the direction of the game came after Toledo cut the SJSU lead to 17-14 with six minutes left in the third quarter.
With the Spartans backed up on their own 15-yard line, Cordeiro dropped back and threw the ball to junior wide receiver Nick Nash. Nash stopped three yards short of the right side line and Cordeiro threw the ball into the hands of Toledo cornerback Chris McDonald who returned the interception 25 yards for a touchdown.
It looked like there was a miscommunication between Cordeiro and Nash as Cordeiro threw the ball towards the sideline, expecting Nash to run an out route.
Head coach Brent Brennan said that Nash was partially fouled on the play that led to the interception.
“It's frustrating because we're winning the game and the deciding touchdown is an interception,” Brennan said. “I thought Nick Nash got like hugged the first eight yards (of the route) and then got thrown out of the way.”
After throwing the pick-six, SJSU’s offense sputtered as Cordeiro completed 7 of 14 passes for 52 yards and was sacked three times.
It didn’t help that the Spartans failed to run the ball consistently, mustering up just 40 yards throughout the game.
SJSU’s offense has struggled to find consistency this season partially because of an inconsistent lineup that has had to fill holes game by game.
Junior tight end Sam Olson went down in the second quarter with a knee injury and did not return to action during Saturday’s game. Brennan announced on Monday that All-Conference wide receiver Justin Lockhart will require surgery for an undisclosed injury and will miss the rest of the year.
SJSU’s schedule doesn’t get any easier and will need its offense to step up during conference play.
The Spartans open up Mountain West Conference play against Air Force who has one of the stingier defenses in the conference. The Falcons currently rank No. 1 in the Mountain West in total defense and have allowed just 4 touchdowns this season.
