San Diego Toreros (0-2, 0-0 PFL) • Harvard (0-0, 0-0 Ivy League)
Saturday, Sept. 21 • 1 p.m.
Torero Stadium (6,000) • San Diego, Calif.
Live Stream • WCC Network | Live Statistics • USDToreros.com
Social • Facebook.com/USDFootball • Twitter: @USDFootball • Instagram: @USDFootball
SAN DIEGO – Coming off a bye week following a tough-luck loss to top-five UC Davis, San Diego returns to action with its final nonconference game of the regular season, a 1 p.m. matchup against Harvard at Torero Stadium.
The Toreros, who had won 21 straight at home before the loss to the Aggies, are winless in their first two games of the season after defeats at the hands of a pair of Big Sky teams. In what is considered its toughest nonconference schedule in recent history, San Diego is 0-2 to start a season for the first time since 2010. For Harvard, Saturday represents its first game of the 2019 campaign.
Saturday's contest will be available on the WCC Network, with the Voice of the Toreros Jack Cronin on the call. Livestream links, as well as live stats, will be on USDToreros.com.
LAST TIME OUT: TOREROS LOSE IN HEARTBREAKING FASHION TO #5/4 UC DAVIS
- Within inches of beating its highest-ranked opponent in program history, San Diego fell to #5/4 UC Davis, 38-35, after it fumbled the ball at the goal line with two seconds left. Torero running back Emilio Martinez caught a pass from Reid Sinnett short of the end zone, and in an attempt to put the ball across the goal line for what would have been the game-winning touchdown, UC Davis knocked the ball loose for a fumble and touchback to essentially end the game. The Toreros were up by four with under four minutes remaining, and managed to march down the field after the Aggies scored the eventual game-winning touchdown with three-and-a-half minutes left. Sinnett and Martinez, similar to much of the game, led the charge in the final offensive drive before the fumble and the ending of San Diego's 21-game home winning streak - at the time the longest in the FCS.
ALL-TIME SERIES AGAINST HARVARD
- USD is 0-3 all-time against Harvard, with the last meeting being a 36-14 decision in favor of the Crimson on their home field in 2018. In last season's contest, Harvard jumped out to a 27-3 lead after the first quarter to create the insurmountable lead.
- The two sides last met in San Diego in 2013, when the Toreros lost, 42-20.
- The first meeting between the two schools took place in 2012, when San Diego fell, 28-13, in Cambridge.
LOOKING AHEAD
- After their second bye week, the Toreros will start the defense of their Pioneer Football League (PFL) championship when they open their conference season on October 5 vs. Marist at home. San Diego has won five straight PFL titles, including the last three outright.
QB1 AMONG THE NATION'S BEST
- Being the successor to one of USD's greatest quarterbacks statistically, redshirt senior Reid Sinnett has slid into the QB1 role nicely so far in 2019. Sinnett, a native of Iowa, is among the nation's top-15 in several categories, including 8th in passing yards per game (327.5), 9th in completion percentage (68.1%), 10th in passing yards per attempt (9.1), 11th in passing efficiency (158.1) and 13th in completions per game (24.5).
- In each of his two career starts, Sinnett has completed 20+ passes, 2+ touchdowns and 200+ yards.
- Sinnett already set the school record for most passing yards in a first career start when he threw for 416 at Cal Poly on August 31.
PASSING ATTACK
- Led by Sinnett under center, the Toreros enter this week 10th in the FCS in passing offense (327.5 yards per game) and 14th in team passing efficiency (158.08). Last year, USD was first in the nation in passing efficiency (170.87) and second in passing offense (349.2). In each of the last three seasons, the Toreros have finished the season in the nation's top-25 for both categories.
BANDY MOVING UP THE CAREER CHARTS
- Michael Bandy continues to climb the USD career lists, as he sits seventh in career receiving yards (2,332) and tied for 10th in career touchdowns (18). He needs five touchdowns to reach ninth (Justin Priest, 2014-17) and 42 yards to move into sole possession of sixth in career receiving yards.
- Bandy is 17 receptions away from cracking the Toreros' top-10 for career grabs. His 130 receptions trail Justin Priest (147, 2014-17) for 10th on the list.
- He is averaging 17.9 yards per reception in his career, which is currently sixth best in USD history.
- Among active FCS players, Bandy enters this week sixth in career receiving yards (2,322) and fourth in career average yards per game (70.4).
SCORING THREAT
- Dalton Kincaid has proven last year's results as a scoring threat were no fluke as the sophomore tight end has hauled in three touchdowns in two games so far this season. He is currently the team leader in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns.
- All three of Kincaid's touchdown grabs have come inside the red zone. Last year, nine of Kincaid's 11 touchdown catches were inside the red zone.
- Kincaid has a touchdown in four of his last five games dating back to last season. In those same five games, he has 2+ touchdowns in three of them.
PFL PLAYER OF THE WEEK … AGAIN
- For the second week in a row, senior
Michael Armstead was named the PFL Special Teams Player of the Week on September 8. He ran a kickoff back for a 93-yard touchdown in the game against UC Davis, finishing the day with 152 kick return yards (162 all-purpose). The kickoff return touchdown was the third of Armstead's career. Armstead, who was the 2018 PFL Special Teams Player of the Year, has won the conference's weekly honor three times in his two-year career.
SPECIALIZING IN THE RETURN
- Wide receiver and kick returner Michal Armstead has proven to be a big-time playmaker in special teams again this season as he is first in the FCS in combined kick return yards (373), fifth in average yards per kick return (33.5) and one of 11 players with a kick return touchdown..
- The product of Monterey, Calif. leads all active players in the NCAA (Divisions I, II and III) in career kickoff return average (32.6).
- Armstead is currently the only Torero to average more than 30 yards per kick return in a career. While he is averaging 32.6 yards per return over the last two years, he has a clip of 33.5 yards per kick return so far this season.
- Armstead currently sits seventh in USD history with 1,175 career kick return yards. He is 49 yards from sixth (Jeff Mansukhani, 1984-87, with 1,224 yards) and 169 yards from fifth (Sam Hoekstra, 2010-13, with 1,344 yards). He has more than 150 kick return yards in each of his two games this year.
- Of the nine best totals in USD history for kick return yards in a game, Armstead holds five of them. His 221 yards in week one of this season were the second-most in program history while his week two total of 152 yards is tied for eighth.
EYEING 2,000
- Emilio Martinez is coming off his first 100-yard game of the 2019 season as he rushed for 115 yards on 26 attempts (4.4 yards) against UC Davis. It was the junior's fifth career 100-yard game and first since October 20, 2018 at Butler (116 yards, 15 rushes).
- A Salinas, California product, Martinez is 64 rushing yards away from 2,000 in his career. He would become the first 2,000-yard rusher for USD since Jonah Hodges had 2,809 yards in his career from 2014 to 2016.
- Martinez also has 3,175 career all-purpose yards, which is approaching Nick Garton (3,239; 2002-05) for 10th on USD's all-time list.
CONVERSION RATE
- The Torero offense is the best in the FCS in third down conversion rate as it has achieved a first down 65.6% of the time on third downs (21-of-32).
- In the loss to UC Davis, the Toreros were 11-of-16 on third downs while they were 10-of-16 in the season opener at Cal Poly.
- The third down conversions have helped USD hold time of possession for 34:14 per game, the seventh-best time in FCS.
TOREROS IN THE PROS
- Currently, three Toreros - Jamal Agnew (Detroit Lions), Ross Dwelley (49ers) and Josh Johnson (Detroit Lions) - are on NFL rosters, the most for any FCS team in California entering the 2019 campaign.
- Also of note is that there are four Toreros playing professionally overseas in the X-League in Japan, a group that includes Al-Rilwan Adeyami, Jonah Hodges, Anthony Lawrence and Mason Mills.
