2020 San Jose State Spartans football team

The 2020 San Jose State Spartans football team represented San Jose State University during the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Spartans were led by fourth year coach Brent Brennan and played their home games at CEFCU Stadium as members of the Mountain West Conference. They finished the regular season 6–0 in Mountain West play and defeated Boise State in the Mountain West Championship Game. This was the Spartans' first Mountain West Championship victory and 16th overall conference title. This was also the first time since joining the Mountain West Conference in 2013 that the Spartans went undefeated in conference play, along with the first time that they beat Boise State, having lost all 14 previous matchups.[2]

2020 San Jose State Spartans football
Mountain West champion
Arizona Bowl, L 13–34 vs. Ball State
ConferenceMountain West Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 24
APNo. 24
2020 record7–1 (7–0 MW)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorKevin McGiven (3rd season)
Defensive coordinatorDerrick Odum (4th season)
Home stadiumCEFCU Stadium
(Capacity: 21,520)
Uniform
2020 Mountain West Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
Team W L    W L 
No. 24 San Jose State y$  7 –0     7 –1  
Boise State y  5 –0     5 –2  
Nevada  6 –2     7 –2  
San Diego State  4 –2     4 –4  
Hawaii  4 –4     5 –4  
Fresno State  3 –3     3 –3  
Air Force  2 –2     3 –2  
Wyoming  2 –4     2 –4  
New Mexico  2 –5     2 –5  
Colorado State  1 –3     1 –3  
Utah State  1 –5     1 –5  
UNLV  0 –6     0 –6  
Championship: San Jose State 34, Boise State 20
  • $ – Conference champion
  • y – Championship game participant
  • Note: Due to COVID-19, the Mountain West suspended the season, but later decided to begin play on October 24.[1]
Rankings from AP Poll

Previous season
See also: 2019 San Jose State Spartans football team

The Spartans finished the 2019 season 5–7, 2–6 in Mountain West play to finish in a three-way tie for fourth place in the West Division.

Schedule

San Jose State had non-conference games scheduled against Central Michigan, UC Davis, Penn State and UConn, which were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[3][4][5] On August 10, 2020, the Mountain West Conference (MW) suspended all fall sports competitions due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[6] However, the MW decided on September 24 to play a shortened fall football schedule.[5]

The October 31 game originally scheduled at Dreamstyle Stadium in Albuquerque was relocated to San Jose due to COVID-19 cases related to contact tracing in Bernalillo County, New Mexico.[7]

On November 19, the game at Fresno State scheduled for November 21 was canceled because of a positive COVID-19 test and contact tracing within the Fresno State program.[8]

Nearly four and a half hours before kickoff, the November 28 game at Boise State was canceled because of "an upward trend of COVID-19 cases and contact tracing within the Boise State football program."[9]

The game scheduled for December 5 with San Jose State was moved to Aloha Stadium in Honolulu after new COVID-19 restrictions were released in Santa Clara County, where CEFCU Stadium is located.

The December 11 game against Nevada, originally scheduled to be played at CEFCU Stadium, was moved to Sam Boyd Stadium as a neutral game due to COVID-19 restrictions imposed by Santa Clara County.

The Mountain West conference championship game was to be hosted by San Jose at CEFCU Stadium but was moved to Sam Boyd Stadium due to COVID-19 restrictions imposed by Santa Clara County.

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendance
October 247:30 p.m.Air Force
FS1W 17–60
October 314:00 p.m.New Mexico
  • CEFCU Stadium
  • San Jose, CA
FS1W 38–210
November 66:00 p.m.at San Diego State
CBSSNW 28–170
November 147:30 p.m.UNLV
  • CEFCU Stadium
  • San Jose, CA
FS2W 34–170
November 214:00 p.m.at Fresno State
CBSSNNo Contest
November 281:00 p.m.at Boise State
FOXNo Contest
December 53:00 p.m.at Hawaii
SPEC HIW 35–240
December 117:00 p.m.vs. Nevada
CBSSNW 30–200
December 191:30 p.m.vs. Boise StateNo. 24
FOXW 34–200
December 3111:00 a.m.vs. Ball State*No. 22
CBSL 13–340

    Game summaries

    Air Force
    See also: 2020 Air Force Falcons football team
    Air Force Falcons at San Jose State Spartans
    1 2 34Total
    Falcons 0 0 066
    Spartans 0 0 14317

    at CEFCU Stadium, San Jose, CA

    New Mexico
    See also: 2020 New Mexico Lobos football team
    New Mexico Lobos at San Jose State Spartans
    1 2 34Total
    Lobos 0 14 7021
    Spartans 7 14 10738

    at CEFCU Stadium, San Jose, CA

    at San Diego State
    See also: 2020 San Diego State Aztecs football team
    San Jose State Spartans at San Diego State Aztecs
    1 2 34Total
    Spartans 0 7 71428
    Aztecs 3 7 0717

    at Dignity Health Sports Park, Carson, CA

    UNLV
    See also: 2020 UNLV Rebels football team
    UNLV Rebels at San Jose State Spartans
    1 2 34Total
    Rebels 3 7 7017
    Spartans 10 14 7334

    at CEFCU Stadium, San Jose, CA

    at Fresno State (No contest)
    See also: 2020 Fresno State Bulldogs football team and Fresno State–San Jose State football rivalry
    Battle for the Valley Trophy: San Jose State Spartans at Fresno State Bulldogs
    1 2 34Total
    Spartans 0 0 000
    Bulldogs 0 0 000

    at Bulldog Stadium, Fresno, CA

    at Boise State (No contest)
    See also: 2020 Boise State Broncos football team
    San Jose State Spartans at Boise State Broncos
    1 2 34Total
    Spartans 0 0 000
    Broncos 0 0 000

    at Albertsons Stadium, Boise, ID

    at Hawaii
    See also: 2020 Hawaii Rainbow Warriors football team
    San Jose State Spartans at Hawaii Rainbow Warriors
    1 2 34Total
    Spartans 21 0 7735
    Rainbow Warriors 0 10 7724

    at Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, HI


    vs. Nevada
    See also: 2020 Nevada Wolf Pack football team
    Nevada Wolf Pack vs. San Jose State Spartans
    1 2 34Total
    Wolf Pack 10 10 0020
    Spartans 7 0 20330

    at Sam Boyd Stadium, Whitney, NV

    vs. Boise State (MWC Championship Game)
    See also: 2020 Boise State Broncos football team and 2020 Mountain West Conference Football Championship Game
    No. 24 San Jose State Spartans vs. Boise State Broncos (2020 Mountain West Conference Football Championship Game)
    1 2 34Total
    Broncos 3 3 7720
    No. 24 Spartans 7 12 01534

    at Sam Boyd Stadium, Whitney, NV

    vs. Ball State (Arizona Bowl)
    See also: 2020 Ball State Cardinals football team and 2020 Arizona Bowl
    No. 22 San Jose State Spartans vs. Ball State Cardinals (2020 Offerpad Arizona Bowl)
    1 2 34Total
    Cardinals 27 0 7034
    No. 22 Spartans 0 0 13013

    at Arizona Stadium, Tucson, AZ

    Rankings
    Further information: 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings

    On November 8, San Jose State received votes in the Coaches Poll for the first time since Week 2 of 2013.[20][21] Then on November 15, San Jose State received votes in the AP Poll for the first time since being ranked no. 21 in the final 2012 poll.[22][23] This led to the Spartans cracking the College Football Playoff Top 25 for the first time, ranked no. 24 on December 15, 2020.

    Ranking movements
    Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
    NR = Not ranked. RV = Received votes. т = Tied with team above or below. ( ) = First place votes.
    Week
    Poll Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Final 
    AP NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR RV RV RV RV 25 19 24 
    Coaches NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR RV RV RV RV RV 25 20 24 
    CFP Not released NR NR NR 24 22 Not released

    Depth chart
    † As of November 28, 2020

    Awards and Honors

    Individual Honors
    • Mountain West Conference Coach of the Year
    Brent Brennan
    • Mountain West Conference Defensive Player of the Year
    Cade Hall, DL[25]
    • All-American Selections
    Cade Hall, DL (TSN,[26] USAT[27])

    All-Mountain West Conference Team Selections
    All-Conference Honors
    Player Position Honor
    Bailey Gaither WR 1st Team
    Jack Snyder OL 1st Team
    Cade Hall DL 1st Team
    Viliami Fehoko DL 1st Team
    Kyle Harmon LB 1st Team
    Nick Starkel QB 2nd Team
    Tre Walker WR 2nd Team
    Tre Jenkins DB 2nd Team
    Derrick Deese, Jr. TE Honorable Mention
    Matt Mercurio PK Honorable Mention
    Tre Webb DB Honorable Mention

    Ref:[28]

    References
    1. "WE'RE BACK". twitter.com/MountainWest. Retrieved 2020-09-24.
    2. https://abc7news.com/sports/sjsu-beats-boise-state-in-mwc-championship/8908798/
    3. Myerberg, Paul. "Big Ten football reduces season schedule to only conference games, maybe setting stage for others to follow". USA Today. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
    4. Thompson, Lee (August 6, 2020). "Central Michigan left with MAC-only schedule after San Jose postpones opener". MLive.com. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
    5. Pashelka, Curtis (September 24, 2020). "San Jose State will play fall football as Mountain West reverses course". The Mercury News. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
    6. "Mountain West Postpones 2020 Fall Sports". TheMW.com. August 10, 2020. Retrieved August 11, 2020.
    7. Crowley, Kerry (October 26, 2020). "Coronavirus: San Jose State game moved from New Mexico to Bay Area due to health order". The Mercury News. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
    8. Sabedra, Darren; Nowels, Michael (November 20, 2020). "San Jose State's game vs. Fresno State canceled over Bulldogs' contact tracing". The Mercury News. San Jose. Retrieved November 20, 2020.
    9. "San Jose State-Boise State Game Canceled". SJSUSpartans.com. San Jose State University. November 28, 2020. Retrieved November 28, 2020.
    10. "Air Force Falcons at San Jose State Spartans". ESPN. October 24, 2020. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
    11. "New Mexico Lobos at San Jose State Spartans". ESPN. October 31, 2020. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
    12. "San Jose State Spartans at San Diego State Aztecs". ESPN. November 6, 2020. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
    13. "UNLV Rebels at San Jose State Spartans". ESPN. November 6, 2020. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
    14. "San Jose State-Fresno State college football game canceled because of COVID-19 protocols". ESPN. November 19, 2020. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
    15. "San Jose Spartans vs. Boise Broncos Game Cancelled Due to COVID-19". NBC Bay Area. November 28, 2020. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
    16. "San Jose St. plays first game in 3 weeks, beats Hawaii 35-24". ESPN. December 5, 2020. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
    17. "San Jose St. beats Nevada, advances to MWC Championship game". ESPN. December 11, 2020. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
    18. "No. 25 San Jose State beats Boise State in MWC title game". ESPN. December 30, 2020. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
    19. "2020 Offerpad Arizona Bowl Ball State Cardinals vs. No. 22 San Jose State Spartans". ESPN. December 31, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
    20. "Amway Coaches Poll". USA Today. September 3, 2013. Archived from the original on June 18, 2014. Retrieved November 22, 2020.
    21. Fan, Lawrence (November 9, 2020). "Spartans Put Unbeaten Record On The Line Vs. UNLV". SJSUSpartans.com. Retrieved November 22, 2020.
    22. "The Associated Press Top 25 Poll". SI.com. January 8, 2013. Archived from the original on January 14, 2013. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
    23. "AP Top 25 Poll (Week 11)". Associated Press. November 15, 2020. Retrieved November 22, 2020.
    24. San Jose State vs. Hawaii Pregame Notes
    25. Kroner, Steve (December 18, 2020). "San Jose State's Cade Hall, son of ex-49er Rhett Hall, thriving in unbeaten season". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
    26. Bender, Bill (December 29, 2020). "Sporting News 2020 college football All-Americans". Sporting News. Retrieved January 8, 2021.
    27. Myerberg, Paul (December 23, 2020). "Alabama's Mac Jones, DeVonta Smith lead USA TODAY Sports' 2020 All-America teams". USA Today. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
    28. "Mountain West Announces 2020 Football All-Conference Teams and Individual Honors". The Mountain West. December 15, 2020. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
    This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.