2020 San Jose State Spartans football
MW champion
Arizona Bowl, L 13–34 vs. Ball State
ConferenceMountain West Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 24
APNo. 24
Record7–1 (7–0 MW)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorKevin McGiven (3rd season)
Offensive schemeSpread option
Defensive coordinatorDerrick Odum (4th season)
Base defense3–4
Home stadiumCEFCU Stadium
Uniform
Seasons
← 2019
2021 →
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 – 3  
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

The 2020 San Jose State Spartans football team represented San José State University during the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Spartans were led by fourth-year head coach Brent Brennan and played their home games at CEFCU Stadium and Sam Boyd 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 win and 17th overall conference title. The championship victory also marked San Jose State's first win over Boise State in program history.[2]

Schedule

San Jose State had non-conference games scheduled against Central Michigan, UC Davis, Penn State and UConn, but all of these games were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[3][4][5] On August 10, 2020, the Mountain West Conference suspended all fall sports competitions due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[6] However, MWC officials announced on Sept. 24 the conference would host a shortened fall football schedule.[5]

The Oct. 31 game originally scheduled at University 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 Nov. 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 Nov. 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 home game against Hawaii scheduled for Dec. 5 was moved to Aloha Stadium in Honolulu after new COVID-19 restrictions were released in Santa Clara County, where CEFCU Stadium is located.

The Dec. 11 home game against Nevada, originally scheduled to be played at CEFCU Stadium, was moved to Sam Boyd Stadium 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
Period 1 2 34Total
Falcons 0 0 066
Spartans 0 0 14317

at CEFCU Stadium, San Jose, CA

Game information

New Mexico

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

at CEFCU Stadium, San Jose, CA

Game information

At San Diego State

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

at Dignity Health Sports Park, Carson, CA

Game information

UNLV

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

at CEFCU Stadium, San Jose, CA

Game information

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
Period 1 2 34Total
Spartans 0 0 000
Bulldogs 0 0 000

at Bulldog Stadium, Fresno, CA

Game information

At Boise State (No contest)

See also: 2020 Boise State Broncos football team
San Jose State Spartans at Boise State Broncos
Period 1 2 34Total
Spartans 0 0 000
Broncos 0 0 000

at Albertsons Stadium, Boise, ID

Game information

At Hawaii

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

at Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, HI

Game information

Vs. Nevada

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

at Sam Boyd Stadium, Whitney, NV

Game information

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)
Period 1 2 34Total
Broncos 3 3 7720
No. 24 Spartans 7 12 01534

at Sam Boyd Stadium, Whitney, NV

Game information

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)
Period 1 2 34Total
Cardinals 27 0 7034
No. 22 Spartans 0 0 13013

at Arizona Stadium, Tucson, AZ

Game information

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 season poll.[22][23] This led to the Spartans cracking the College Football Playoff Top 25 for the first time, ranking no. 24 on Dec. 15, 2020.

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
Week
PollPre12345678910111213141516Final
AP———————————RVRVRVRV251924
Coaches——————————RVRVRVRVRV252024
CFPNot released———2422Not released

Depth chart

† As of November 28, 2020

Awards and honors

Individual Honors

Brent Brennan
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 September 24, 2020.
  2. ^ "San Jose State University's Spartans beat Boise State in Mountain West Football championship - ABC7 San Francisco". abc7news.com. Archived from the original on December 20, 2020.
  3. ^ Myerberg, Paul. "Big Ten football reduces season schedule to only conference games, maybe setting stage for others to follow". USA Today. Retrieved July 10, 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. ^ a b 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.
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