San Diego State withdraws from bowl consideration
San Diego State coach Brady Hoke on Wednesday announced the Aztecs have withdrawn from consideration for a bowl game.
The Aztecs end their season at 4-4, 4-2 in Mountain West.
The announcement comes two days after Hoke expressed his displeasure with getting passed over for the New Mexico Bowl in favor of Hawaii, which San Diego State defeated during the season. Further, the Rainbow Warriors (4-4) had a worse conference record than the Aztecs.
“Our guys have really been through a lot, I think more than any of us could imagine,” Hoke said in a statement Wednesday night. “They get to play a game they love, but with the uncertainty of being able to play in a bowl game we have made the decision that we will not play another game this season.”
Hawaii earned the bowl bid in a complicated three-way tiebreaker over SDSU and Fresno State in the MWC, despite the Aztecs finishing alone in fourth. SDSU defeated the Warriors 34-10 on Nov. 14.
“Really disappointed. … The players played hard and I think they deserved an opportunity. We’re still working on opportunities,” Hoke said earlier in the week. “There was a concept, I thought, from a league perspective, that there were four bowl tie-ins and I believe we were fourth within the league. I was just shocked at Hawaii getting a bid before us.”
The Aztecs rank among the national leaders in several categories, including fourth in total defense (283.5), 14th in scoring defense (17.8), 33rd in rushing offense (199.4) and 40th in scoring margin (+6.9). This was the 11th consecutive season they were bowl-eligible.
–Field Level Media