Aztecs look to reset defense while preparing for new Boise State quarterback

San Diego State’s defense this week faces a situation similar to the second week of the year when the Aztecs suffered a lopsided loss at Washington State.

Last time, SDSU responded with a shutout victory over Cal that included a pair of defensive touchdowns.

It remains to be seen how the Aztecs (7-2, 4-1) respond to last week’s 38-6 loss at Hawaii in Saturday night’s Mountain West game against Boise State (6-3, 4-1),  which will be starting backup quarterback Max Cutforth for the first time.

“What’s big for us is to look at that tape and reset,” SDSU defensive coordinator Rob Aurich said, “humble ourselves and get back to some fundamentals that weren’t executed as well as they had in previous weeks.

“One thing that stood out to me was our pursuit angle and tackling was the worst game we’ve had in a month. And so we’ve been hard at work to re-establish some fundamentals that showed up in the game.”

SDSU started strong, getting a sack on Hawaii’s first offensive play, then an interception to end the drive. The Aztecs were on the verge of a three-and-out on the Rainbow Warriors’ next possession before a personal foul extended the drive.

Hawaii scored six plays later, then scored two more quick touchdowns on the way to a 24-6 first-half lead.

“You can get pressed by the speed of the game where, hey, all of a sudden they have a 10-yard play, a 20-yard play, and it’s like, ‘What’s going on?’ ” Aurich said. “And I think sometimes as a player you can press, and I think it’s important in those moments to keep your emotional composure, reset yourself into your assignment, your alignment and your technique and go execute.”

Hawaii finished with 300 yards of total offense in the first half. Aurich and the defense had some consolation that after halftime adjustments, the Rainbows were limited to 86 yards and no offensive scores over the final two quarters. Hawaii’s two second-half TDs came on a kickoff return and an interception return.

“The positives we’re going take from it,” Aurich said, “we’re going to look at the corrections we made, how they executed in the second half … and use that as a platform to get ready for Boise State.”

Boise State coach Spencer Danielson announced Monday that backup quarterback Max Cutforth will start for injured Maddux Madsen, who threw for 307 yards and four touchdowns in the Broncos’ 56-24 win over SDSU last season.

It marks the third time in six Mountain West games this season that the Aztecs face a quarterback change by their opponent. Nevada and Fresno State also had new starters the week they went against SDSU.

“We really saw replacements,” Aurich said. “This kid’s the first backup we’ve seen. Everybody else has been replaced because they felt like the other kid had a chance. This is the first time we’re seeing someone go down because of an injury. It’s a little bit different that way. Those are chosen situations by the staff.”

Boise State was off last week, so Broncos coaches had seven extra days to prepare Cutforth for SDSU.

“He’s going to be ready to play, and we’re going to have to be ready to play our best,” Aurich said. “The kid has pretty good arm talent at second- and third-level throws. That’s what I think they’ll do with him a little bit. They’ll get him on the move and run some layer concepts. And then I think they’ll probably start the game trying to get some easy completions to get him in the rhythm. He’s more than capable to execute that offense.

“We’ve had a good track record of establishing some things we’re going to do early (against) new starters, so they don’t always get what they see on tape.”

Cutforth, a redshirt sophomore who came to Boise State as a preferred walk-on, was thrust behind center two weeks after Madsen was helped off the field against the Bulldogs with a right foot injury. He completed 14 of 27 passes for 106 yards and one touchdown with two interceptions in a 30-7 loss. Before that, Cutforth was 6 of 10 for 67 yards across four games while mopping up for Madsen.

“I think we’ll see a much more polished plan for him this week,” Aurich said. “That staff will do a good job. I think they’ll see what he does well throughout this week and build a plan around the things he does well. But then again, Boise’s going to be Boise. They’re going to try to run the ball on you, get their tight ends involved and take some timely shots. And we’ve got to stop their run game before we really focus on the quarterback.”

Boise State’s running backs room includes sophomore Dylan Riley (104 carries, 745 yards, 7 TD), redshirt freshman Sire Gaines (99-473, 5 TD) and graduate senior Malik Sherrod (64-317, 2 TD). They lead a Broncos run game averaging 184.9 yards a game (37th in the nation).

Availability report

The availability report for the game was released Thursday night on the Mountain West website. SDSU listed defensive tackle Krishna Clay, tight end Jackson Ford and cornerback Chris Johnson as questionable. Johnson missed last week’s game at Hawaii. SDSU also was missing linebacker Tano Letuli, who suffered a season-ending knee injury. Quarterback Jayden Denegal, left guard Kalan Ellis and safety Eric Butler also were listed as questionable last week, but are not listed on this week’s report.

Boise State listed three starters as out, wide receier Chris Marshall, who leads the Broncos in receiving yards, left guard Jason Steele and Madsen.

Aurich was hopeful for Johnson’s return against the Broncos.

“Anytime you lose a kid who’s going to play on Sundays, I think it hurts,” Aurich said of Johnson, who is regarded among the top cornerbacks in the nation. “The thing we have to do a great job of defensively is overcoming (the losses). … Tano and Chris are big voices in our program. Extremely good leaders. Extremely well respected. When they’re not on the field, it puts the responsibility on other people to carry that workload.”

Boise State (6-3, 4-1) at San Diego State (7-2, 4-1)

When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday

Where: Snapdragon Stadium

TV: CBS Sports Network

Radio: 760-AM