San José State’s 21-17 loss to Toledo was both disappointing and frustrating.
The Spartans held a 10-point lead midway through the third quarter, but choked away the lead because of stale offensive play and a fatigued defense that couldn’t stop the run in the fourth quarter.
The team now sits at 1-3 and open conference play against an undefeated Air Force team on a Friday. If the Spartans even have a chance of winning the Mountain West Conference, let alone making a Bowl Game, SJSU needs to winFriday night’s game to keep its season alive.
To be fair, the Spartans have had a tough schedule to start the season. Playing against two Top-20 teams and a reigning conference champion didn’t help getting off to a fast start, but SJSU has just looked bad in each loss.
Against No. 5 USC to open the season, there were encouraging signs on the offensive end but the defense just couldn’t keep up with Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams.
In its game against No. 14 Oregon State, SJSU was manhandled on both sides of the ball. The Spartans gave up over 200 rushing yards and the offense had no juice in what was senior quarterback Chevan Cordeiro’s worst statistical performance in an SJSU uniform.
In Saturday’s game against Toledo, the defense was much better, but the offense faltered. The Spartans had two chances in the fourth quarter to take back the lead, but couldn’t convert as the team lost a game they were in control of.
So what does this all mean?
It’s too early to say this is a bad team, but I think it's safe to say this is not a good one.
No one expected SJSU to beat USC or Oregon State, but to lose in the fashion it did is not good no matter how you slice it. The Spartans should have won against a Toledo team that was reeling in the second half, but they didn’t.
The frustrations of the fans and people who watch the team looks to have, in some way or another, affected the team.
“I think we have a good team here, but we can’t really prove it by our record,” said SJSU head coach Brent Brennan. “I think something different that this generation has to deal with that mine didn’t is that they’re gonna remind you on Twitter that you’re 1-3.”
The reality is that if the Spartans are who the fans thought they were in the beginning of the season, they would look much better than they are now.
If they won at Toledo, the conversation of whether or not the Spartans are good enough to make a Mountain West title run would still be valid. With only two losses to a couple of ranked teams, there would almost certainly be more optimism for this team.
But that didn’t happen. SJSU is now two games below .500 and the conversation has turned to if the next two games against Air Force and Boise State will decide the rest of the season.
SJSU’s chance to save its season will begin on Friday. A win gets them back on track to what the team originally set out to do before the season started, which is to win a Mountain West Championship. But a defeat will drive the Spartans further back in the loss column and further back in the minds of SJSU fans.
