San Diego State will open its new stadium against Arizona

By The Associated Press

Arizona (0-0) at San Diego State (0-0), Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET (CBS)

Line: San Diego State by 5 1/2, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.

Series record: Arizona leads 10-6.

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

San Diego State opens its new 35,000-seat Snapdragon Stadium, which sits just east of where 70,000-seat SDCCU Stadium used to stand in Mission Valley. The $310 million stadium represents SDSU’s first true home-field advantage since the Aztecs played on campus decades ago. This will be SDSU’s first game in San Diego since 2019. It played the last two seasons at a suburban Los Angeles soccer stadium while the new stadium was being built. Arizona is looking to bounce back from a 1-11 first season under coach Jedd Fisch that included a 38-14 home loss to SDSU.

KEY MATCHUP

San Diego State defense vs. Arizona offense. The Aztecs bring back seven starters from a defense that was third nationally against the run. They allowed just 51 yards on the ground and recorded four sacks against the Wildcats last year. It will be important for Arizona to show some ability to run the ball. DJ Williams, who has played in 24 games over three seasons at Auburn and Florida State, joins the Wildcats.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Arizona: Leading the wave of new players is QB Jayden de Laura. He was the 2021 Pac-12 offensive freshman player of the year after throwing for 2,796 yards and 23 touchdowns for Washington State.

San Diego State: QB Braxton Burmeister will make his SDSU debut after transferring from Virginia Tech. Burmeister also played at Oregon in 2017-18. He has made 21 starts and 29 appearances at the Power Five level. He has thrown for 3,020 yards and 19 touchdowns, with 11 interceptions, in his career.

FACTS & FIGURES

San Diego State hasn’t played in Mission Valley since beating BYU 13-3 on Nov. 30, 2019. … The Aztecs are 7-2 against Pac-12 teams since 2016. … Jack Browning is expected to handle all place-kicking, kickoffs and puting. … The Wildcats have lost three season openers in a row and four straight road openers. … Wildcats transfer WR Jacob Cowing had 1,354 receiving yards last year at UTEP.

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