Aztecs Scene & Heard: Rain falls on SDSU’s biggest home game in years

by Kirk Kenney

A fellow named Longfellow famously said nearly 200 years ago that “into each life some rain must fall.”

Which is fine. And true.

But did it have to fall here. And now?

The stage was set for San Diego State’s biggest football game in four years, a first-place Mountain West showdown with Boise State, on Saturday night at Snapdragon Stadium. The winner would have a direct path to the conference’s regular-season title as well as hosting its title game.

A sizeable crowd at the 32,500-seat stadium was expected after SDSU moved more than 5,000 tickets with a two-for-$40 promotion and had a donor purchase another 3,000 tickets that were given to members of the military.

Then the rains came. Showers began Friday, continued Saturday morning and into the afternoon. The rain was reasonable, though, subsiding several hours before kickoff. It allowed for pregame tailgating in relatively pleasant conditions. It was football weather is what it was.

The condition of the field was good when the tarp protecting it was removed three hours before kickoff. There was a slip here and there during warmups, but footing otherwise appeared solid.

Kickoff arrived as scheduled. The Snapdragon crowd did not. The stands were maybe 20% full.

This was the very definition of fair-weather fans. Forecast said rain, so thousands decided they weren’t budging from the Barcalounger. Even if the halftime drone show was going to be presented as scheduled.

That included a student section with room for 5,000 that was maybe a third full at kickoff.

It certainly looked worse than it was, with many fans choosing to stay inside suites or under the cover of areas along the east and south concourses.

One longtime former season-ticket holder said only four of the 10 people in his group “braved” the weather — 59 degrees and cloudy at kickoff. The rain returned as the first quarter was coming to a close.

There were those who saw this as a viewing opportunity. One SDSU alumnus reported getting tickets for $4 apiece on the secondary market a few hours before kickoff.

We are in the midst of four days and four nights of rain in the region.

Can’t imagine what 40 days/40 nights looks like, but convinced few here would venture outdoors to find out.

Don’t say it

Mention sun or rain in connection with Snapdragon Stadium and it quickly has fans using the C-word — canopies.

The former Mission Valley stadium had overhangs from the Loge, Press and Upper levels that created natural cover from the elements.

Such is not the case at Snapdragon. But the cost — estimated at $50 million — didn’t justify the expense at the new stadium because extreme heat or inclement weather is so rare in San Diego.

It became a discussion topic when Snapdragon’s debut came on a record 100-degree day. The fact is, only three of SDSU’s past 100 home games have been played in 90-plus-degree heat.

How rare is rain at an SDSU home game? This was only the fourth time in the past 100 home games for wet weather.

Rain games

A glance at the three previous rain games:

Nov. 19, 2010 — Utah blocked a fourth-quarter punt inside SDSU’s 5-yard line and turned it into a touchdown for a 38-34 victory. Aztecs quarterback Ryan Lindley completed 36 of 54 passes for 528 yards and four touchdowns in the game.

Nov. 26, 2016 — Colorado State ended SDSU’s 10-game home winning streak with a stunning 63-31. The Rams scored 21 points in both the first and second quarters and rushed for nearly 300 yards. SDSU’s defense allowed 56 of the points after allowing 69 points in the Aztecs’ previous seven MW games combined. SDSU beat Wyoming for the Mountain West championship a week later and defeated Houston two weeks after that in the 2016 Las Vegas Bowl, where running back DJ Pumphrey set the NCAA career rushing record.

Oct. 12, 2018 — SDSU quarterback Ryan Agnew’s 29-yard touchdown pass to tight end Parker Houston midway through the fourth quarter delivered a 21-17 victory over Air Force in a game that not only was wet but interrupted by a 98-minute lightning delay.

Say what?

As the first quarter ended and the second quarter began, you had to wonder how many fans turned to the person next to them and quoted noted groundskeeper Carl Spackler: “I’d keep playing. I don’t think the heavy stuff is gonna come down for quite awhile.”