Spartan Daily

Into the win column: SJSU football team defeats New Mexico State 34-24 for the Spartans' first win of 2011.

Ron Gleeson, Spartan Daily

Senior running back Brandon Rutley bursts through the New Mexico State defensive line on his way to a 66-yard touchdown run. Rutley ran for 209 yards and now ranks sixth nationally in all-purpose yards. Photo by Vernon McKnight / Spartan Daily

“They gave me the bath two seconds too early,” he said jokingly.  “They’ve been waiting to dump that thing a couple times and weren’t able to.”

The Spartans defeated the New Mexico State Aggies on Saturday afternoon 34-24 behind running back Brandon Rutley’s career-best rushing performance, in which he tallied 209 yards rushing.

“What I told them was it was time to break the dam down,” MacIntyre said referring to Saturday’s win. “And we broke that dam down today and the water is gushing, and we need to take it and run with it.”

Rutley was not the only one with a big day, although his 209 yards on 33 carries and two touchdowns stood out.

Quarterback Matt Faulkner, who had won the starting quarterback job over sophomore back-up Dasmen Stewart earlier in the week, threw for 236 yards, two touchdowns and committed no turnovers in Saturday’s win.

“We were clicking on all cylinders,” he said.  “We went out there every time planning on scoring, feeling like they can’t stop us.”

The scoring started early for both teams.
New Mexico State quarterback Matt Christian led a 10-play, 77-yard drive to start the game, running a mix of play-action and option plays all the way to the SJSU one-yard line.

Christian was named the Aggies’ starter after Western Athletic Conference leading passer Andrew Manley was sidelined for the season with a torn ACL he suffered last week against University of Texas El Paso.

The drive ended after the Spartans held the Aggies on third down, leaving New Mexico State with a short field goal attempt and the game’s first score.

The Spartans rebutted on their first possession when Rutley received an inside handoff, followed the blockers and found open space for a 66-yard touchdown run.

“I give all the credit to the line,” Rutley said. “The play was designed perfectly and they blocked it perfectly.”

The game was tied 10-10 heading into halftime with Rutley already gaining more than 100 yards rushing on the day, his first career 100-yard rushing game as a Spartan.

Both teams continued to move the ball into the third quarter, which consisted of all offense and little to no defense.

Faulkner found tight end Ryan Otten for a 64-yard touchdown in the first 48 seconds of the second half.

The SJSU touchdown was countered by a four-play, 53-yard touchdown drive by the Aggies, tying the game 17-17.

New Mexico State struck again on their next possession with a 78-yard touchdown run by Aggies running back KennyTurner, who found a lane and daylight towards the sideline after the SJSU defense blitzed on the wrong side of the defensive front line.

Then Faulkner, who completed 24 of 38 passes on the day, led the Spartans back with his arm, hitting Rutley for 23 yards and Otten for 12 yards on their way to a 14-play drive for 76 yards.

The drive concluded with a three-yard pass to Otten in the end zone for his second touchdown reception of the day, Faulkner’s second touchdown throw of the day and a 24-24 tie game heading into the fourth quarter.

Rutley continued his career day into the fourth quarter with a 22-yard run deep into New Mexico State territory, which he finished off himself with a two-yard touchdown run, giving SJSU the lead.

The senior running back struck again, sealing the SJSU win with a 47-yard run into Aggies’ territory, which led to a field goal and a 34-24 lead.

It would put Rutley over 200 yards rushing for the day, the first Spartan to do that since Tyson Thompson in 2004.

Rutley would finish with 209 yards rushing, the tenth best single-game total in SJSU history.

It was also the first time since 2007 that a running back has gone over 30 carries in a game for the Spartans.

“Today felt good,” Rutley said.  “We have a good offensive line.  They blocked well and the holes opened up.”

MacIntyre seemed to foresee this kind of production coming from Rutley.

“(Rutley) told me this week ‘Coach, just give me the ball,’” MacIntyre said.  “He said ‘I’ll go get it done.’”

“He’s a beast,” Faulkner said. “It’s not easy to carry the ball 33 times.”

Otten, who led the team in receiving with six catches for 98 yards and two touchdowns, said he was not surprised with Rutley’s performance on Saturday.

“He’s been our workhorse so far,” Otten said.  “He wants the ball in his hands in critical situations and we want the ball in his hands in critical situations.”

The Spartans won their second game in two seasons under MacIntyre, and he said he was proud of his players for hanging on through all the ups and downs.

“There should have been five or six times before that we should have had the ‘W,’” MacIntyre said.  “They just kept fighting, and kept believing … It’s a great win for us and our program.”