SAN DIEGO — Five years, five months, and 24 days. Players' entire careers, students' entire college experiences. Renovations to Torero Stadium. A pause due to a global pandemic, then a resilient return to the gridiron in an unconventional spring season. As the winds of change swept across Alcala Park over the last half decade, perhaps only one thing held constant on the sun-soaked plateau that University of San Diego Athletics calls home: USD football's Pioneer Football League win streak. The team rattled off 39 PFL victories in a row, to be exact, holding strong week in and week out as the rest of the conference tried to topple the Toreros and their historic run. Not bad for a school that at one point lost its football program due to a lack of interest.

The Streak began on October 17, 2015, back when most of the current roster's players were in high school. A look at the record book years from now will see it displayed simply: 39 PFL W's in a row, bookended by heartbreaking losses on each side. On one end, a tough, 13-12 loss to Dayton. On the other, 39 victories and five years later, a crushing 31-25 defeat to Davidson.

In between those two losses, however, there's a lifetime's worth of highlights and memories. All those beautiful Saturday afternoons, all those no-doubt wins, all those remarkable comebacks, all those times the Toreros snatched victory out from between the jaws of defeat to keep the run alive for another week. All the players who went on to the professional ranks after their contributions to The Streak, all the players who went on to succeed professionally after their time on the gridiron ended. Ninety-five or so student-athletes every season, playing for nothing other than a shared love of the game, doing nothing but winning for five years straight.

San Diego will go down in the record books with the longest league win streak in the FCS and third-longest in the NCAA (FBS and FCS), after tying Duquesne (1999-06 – MAAC) earlier this season. Only Oklahoma (44 games, 1952-59) and Nebraska (40 games, 1992-98) have more consecutive conference wins in NCAA Division I Football.

In short, an unprecedented run of dominance in the PFL that has become an expectation and tradition at Torero Stadium. Before we fully turn the page and look ahead to San Diego football's next win, here's a look back at one of the most significant athletic accomplishments in USD history — The Streak.
 
Win #1 - October 17, 2015 - San Diego, CA - USD 27, Drake 0:
 
Back in October of 2015, the Toreros likely weren't concerned with setting an all-time FCS record. Simply looking to bounce back after a tough loss to the Flyers, San Diego needed to get back on track.

The following week, they did so in emphatic fashion at Torero Stadium, taking down Drake by a 27-point margin and recording the team's first shutout in more than two years. Midway through the first season of his USD career, a young Anthony Lawrence passed for more than 300 yards, assisted by a three-touchdown effort from running back Jereke Armstrong, as well as seven tackles and a sack on defense by Jonathan Petersen.
 
Win #2 - October 31, 2015 - Deland, FL - USD 47, Stetson 16:
 
Win number two of The Streak introduced Torero fans to something they would become accustomed to over the next three years: Anthony Lawrence putting up big-time numbers at quarterback. Recording a then-career-high 453 passing yards, Lawrence's performance was at the time the second-best single game passing performance in a USD uniform. And it was more than enough for a 47-16 victory over the Hatters.
 
Win #3 - November 7, 2015 - San Diego, CA - USD 31, Campbell 27:
 
November saw a return to more hard-fought action for San Diego. One thousand, five hundred and fifty-six fans filled Torero Stadium to see San Diego take on the Camels, and they weren't disappointed with what they saw, as USD was able to hang on for a five-point win and move their record to 7-2 overall and 5-1 in the PFL.

The victory was bookended by big plays by a pair of Toreros who have since moved on to the NFL. Tight end Ross Dwelley, who is now with the San Francisco 49ers, recorded a seven-yard TD early on and Jamal Agnew, now with the Detroit Lions, sealed the win with a key interception in the game's final minutes. The final score: USD 31, Campbell 27.
 
Win #4 - November 1, 2015 - Davidson, NC - USD 35, Davidson 10:
 
A big day by the Torero running backs headlined win number three of The Streak, as Dallas Kessman led the way with 124 yards and a touchdown. Jonah Hodges and Armstrong added rushing TD's of their own, Lawrence tossed a 37-yard touchdown pass to WR Trevor Barney, and USD had themselves a 35-10 win over the Wildcats, their third straight in the PFL.
 
Win #5 - November 21, 2015 - San Diego, CA - USD 28, Butler 27:
 
The Toreros' final game of the 2015 season was perhaps their most exciting. It all came down to the contest's final minutes, as San Diego had to battle for a chance at victory down the stretch. Down by seven points, the Bulldogs scored a touchdown with 16 seconds left after recovering their quarterback's fumble in the end zone. Butler elected to go for the two point conversion, but Matt Shiltz's pass was intercepted by Yogi Hale in the end zone. After Justin Priest recovered the ensuing onside kick, the game was sealed and a co-championship was secured.

Though the win earned USD a share of the PFL Championship, Dayton won the head-to-head tiebreaker, and thus advanced to the FCS playoffs, ending San Diego's season. At least it concluded on a high note.
 
Win #6 - September 24, 2016 - San Diego, CA - USD 34, Dayton 22:
 
Dayton might've taken the PFL Championship tiebreaker and the spot in the FCS Playoffs from the Toreros in the preceding season, but they couldn't take this game from San Diego as they began their 2016 conference schedule.

Tevin Hayward had two rushing touchdowns, Lawrence overcame a pair of interceptions to throw two touchdown passes of his own, and USD notched a 34-22 win over the Flyers, avenging their one-point loss to them the season before.
 
Win #7 - October 1, 2016 - Indianapolis, IND - USD 44, Butler 10
 
In their previous meeting with the Bulldogs, the Toreros labored to escape with a one-point victory. This time around, San Diego took care of business early, scoring on each of their first two drives of the game and never looking back. The final: USD 44, Butler 10. The streak: seven PFL wins.
 
Win #8 - October 8, 2016 - San Diego, CA - USD 52, Davidson 3:
 
2016's Homecoming and Family Weekend at USD saw the Toreros put on a show for their hometown crowd of more than 2,800 fans. Led by an electric first half by running back Jonah Hodges, San Diego was already up 28-0 by the time the first quarter concluded. By halftime Hodges had 176 yards and a school-record four rushing touchdowns, putting the Toreros up 42-0 at the intermission. Victory already imminent, he would sit out the rest of the contest, USD cruising to a 52-3 win in a picture-perfect Homecoming game at Torero Stadium.
 
Win #9 - October 15, 2016 - Des Moines, IA - USD 38, Drake 7:
 
More of the same here, as USD again jumped out to a sizable first-half lead, this time by a 24-point margin. Brian Riley got things started with a 17-yard touchdown reception on the Toreros' opening drive, the first of his 67 total yards on the afternoon. Hodges continued his success with 81 yards on 17 carries, while Lawrence added 180 yards and two scores on 14-20 passing. The final: USD 38, Drake 7.

Win #10 - October 22, 2016 - San Diego, CA - USD 49, Valparaiso 10:
           
Starting to notice a pattern? Anthony Lawrence threw a then-career-high five touchdown passes, and the Torero defense held the visiting Crusaders to just 258 total yards of offense. USD 49, Valparaiso 10 was the final score, and The Streak moved to double digits.
 
Win #11 - October 29, 2016 - Poughkeepsie, NY - USD 27, Marist 3:
 
The six-hour flight to New York didn't seem to faze the Toreros one bit, as they earned a 27-3 win at Marist. Jonah Hodges stole the show on offense, finishing with 175 rushing yards on 33 carries and two touchdowns, while Jonathan Petersen notched four stops, three sacks, three tackles for a loss, and one quarterback hurry on defense. Kicker Patrick Murray also chipped in, converting field goals of 46 and 26 yards.
 
Win #12 - November 12, 2016 - San Diego, CA - USD 42, Stetson 7:
 
After a week off from PFL play to take on the Universidad de Las Americas Pueblas, which they dispatched with ease, San Diego resumed conference action with a matchup against Stetson. They also promptly resumed their dominance over their PFL counterparts, steamrolling the Hatters by five scores on Senior Day.

They did so behind four first-half touchdowns from Anthony Lawrence, putting the Toreros up 28-7 at the break. Ross Dwelley was a big target for Lawrence, hauling in nine receptions for 125 yards and a TD. Brian Riley (75 yards), Justin Priest (52 yards, two TD's) and Jonah Hodges (14 yards, one TD) each tallied three catches.

The 42-7 victory earned the Toreros a share of their eighth PFL Championship and guaranteed them the league's automatic qualification into the 2016 FCS Playoffs.
 
Win #13 - November 19, 2016 - Buies Creek, NC - USD 57, Campbell 21:
 
The Toreros' final conference matchup of the 2016 season saw them make things official and take sole possession of the PFL title with a win on the road at Campbell. Though things were as close as 23-21 USD at the beginning of the second half, San Diego would pull away down the stretch, earning a 57-21 victory that pushed its PFL win streak to 13 games.
 
Win #14 - September 23, 2017 - San Diego, CA - USD 38, Butler 17:
 
Following an exciting run in the FCS playoffs to conclude their 2016 season, the Toreros began their 2017 PFL campaign in late September, and picked up right where they left off.  Anthony Lawrence threw for 367 yards and five touchdowns, primarily targeting wide receiver Justin Priest and tight end Ross Dwelley, who combined for 249 receiving yards and four touchdowns.

And that's all you really need to know. Just another sunny Saturday at Torero Stadium that ended in USD win, this time by a score of 38-17 over Butler.
 
Win #15 - September 30, 2017 - Dayton, OH - USD 23, Dayton 7:
 
The Flyers' home venue, Welcome Stadium, appeared to be aptly named for the Toreros in this matchup as they set out on the road for the first time in 2017 PFL play.

The San Diego defense turned in an excellent group effort in limiting the Flyers to just 294 yards of offense. Offensively, quarterback Anthony Lawrence completed 19-of-30 for 273 yards and two scores and freshman running back Emilio Martinez rushed for 114 yards on 29 carries.

All culminating in a 23-7 win over Dayton, moving The Streak to 15 consecutive victories against PFL opponents.
 
Win #16 - October 14, 2017 - San Diego, CA - USD 56, Morehead State 27:
 
Returning to the friendly confines of Torero Stadium, San Diego had no trouble taking care of the Eagles this time around. Emilio Martinez put together a masterful performance running the ball, rushing for 139 yards and three touchdowns on nine carries, complemented by three more TDs from Anthony Lawrence. Then-backup QB Reid Sinnett even saw some playing time, passing for a touchdown in a preview of things to come for the USD offense.

The final: USD 56, Morehead State 27.

Win #17 - October 21, 2017 - Jacksonville, FL - USD 63, Jacksonville 10:
 
There's two things that you really need to know about this game. Anthony Lawrence threw a career-high six touchdown passes, tossing two apiece to Ross Dwelley, Justin Priest, and Nate Loya. And the Toreros demolished the Dolphins by a score of 63-10. That's it.
 
Win #18 - October 28, 2017 - Deland, FL - USD 48, Stetson 7:
 
The Toreros' Florida trip continued as planned the following week, this time dealing Stetson a 41-point loss.

Once again the Torero defense turned in a dominating performance, limiting Stetson to 30 yards rushing and 262 total yards. USD's offense racked up 494 yards of total offense on the day.

The final score: USD 48, Stetson 7.
 
Win #19 - November 4, 2017 - San Diego, CA - USD 45, Drake 15:
 
Another 40-point conference win. Anthony Lawerence went for 326 yards on 27/36 passing, notching four touchdowns and zero interceptions. USD 45, Drake 15 was the final, and The Streak stretched to 19 PFL wins.
 
Win #20 - November 11, 2017 - Davidson, NC - USD 63, Davidson 7:
 
For the second time in the 2017 season, the Toreros put up 63 points on offense. Only this time, they allowed just seven on defense. One-upping their 63-10 effort against Jacksonville the previous month, San Diego blew past Davidson by a score of 63-7, winning them the outright 2017 PFL Championship and the league's automatic bid to the FCS playoffs.

Anthony Lawrence was nearly perfect in the first 30 minutes as he completed 18-of-22 passes for 299 yards and two touchdowns. Justin Priest, Michael Bandy, and Ross Dwelley were his main targets. The ground game was impressive too, with Joseph Binda Jr., Blake Martin, and Emilio Martinez all getting into the end zone. Defensively the Toreros were paced by Arrion Archie, Marcus Vaivao and Max Michaels, each with 7 tackles. For the game the Toreros totaled 706 yards of offense, shattering the previous record of 663 versus Marist in 2003.

And when the final seconds ticked off the clock, The Streak had reached 20.
           
 Win #21 - November 18, 2017 - San Diego, CA  - USD 35, Marist 7:
 
Win or lose, a post-game trophy presentation awaited the Toreros. And coming off a dominant, 56-point win the previous week, it would've been easy for San Diego to take their collective foot off the gas in their last regular-season game of 2017.

If you've made it this far in this article, however, you can probably guess how the game went. Anthony Lawrence completed 13-26 passes for 119 yards and two scores. Senior receiver Justin Priest hauled in six balls for 51 yards and two second half touchdowns.

Despite a season-low 271 total yards of offense, USD rolled to a 35-7 win over the Red Foxes to conclude their second straight undefeated season in the PFL.
 
Win #22 - September 29, 2018 - San Diego, CA - USD 49, Stetson 10:
 
New year, same result for the Toreros. Kicking off their 2018 PFL slate against the Hatters, San Diego rolled to a 39-point victory on the backs of big days from Anthony Lawrence and wide receiver Michael Bandy. Lawrence threw for 425 yards and tied his career-high of four touchdown passes, finding Bandy eight times for 135 of those yards and two touchdowns.

Final: USD 49, Stetson 10. The Streak: 22.
 
Win #23 - October 6, 2018 - Morehead, KY - USD 51, Morehead State 34:
 
As San Diego's PFL win streak grew early on, Anthony Lawrence began to amass a staggering amount of passing yards and other offensive statistics. And in the Toreros' second PFL offering of 2018, the then-redshirt senior hit an important milestone: 10,000 career passing yards. He finished the day 19 of 30 for 354 yards and five scores, spreading the wealth between five different receivers as Michael Bandy, Christian Brooks, Cooper Hagmaier, Emilio Martinez and Dalton Kincaid each had a touchdown grab.

All of this would be plenty to continue The Streak, moving it to 23 PFL victories as USD took down Morehead State by a score of 51 to 34.
 
Win #24 - October 13, 2018 - San Diego, CA - USD 36, Dayton 34:
 
The last team to deal USD a loss within PFL play is Dayton. The Flyers are responsible for the one-point defeat in late 2015 that in a sense, set The Streak as it stands now into motion. And almost exactly three years later, the Flyers seemed poised to do it again, this time potentially spoiling Homecoming Weekend at Torero Stadium. Dayton went up by a touchdown early, leading USD to trail in a PFL game for the first time in recent memory. But as the first half went on, San Diego began to right the ship behind a strong performance from Anthony Lawrence, who put up 434 yards on 29-of-44 passing with three touchdowns with no interceptions.

Momentum seemed to shift USD's direction after a muffed punt by Dayton was recovered by Kim Mahoney on the 2-yard line, a play that minutes later would lead to a USD score.

Still, it would be a back-and-forth affair until the game's final moments. The teams traded possessions for the majority of the third quarter before Dayton made it a one-score game with a 28-yard touchdown pass with 4:19 remaining in the period.

The Toreros scored on back-to-back drives to start the fourth quarter. Not to be outdone, Dayton would score back-to-back touchdowns of their own to make it 36-34, but their two-point conversion was broken up by Kama Kamaka with 2:44 remaining in the contest. With two minutes to go, Lawrence rushed for 19 yards on 2nd-and-8 to ice the victory and preserve The Streak, which now stood at 24 games. The final score: USD 36, Dayton 34, by far the most hard-fought victory San Diego had within their streak up to that point.
 
Win #25 - October 20, 2018 - Indianapolis, IN - USD 42, Butler 13:
 
USD took their streak on the road in late October of 2018, traveling to Indiana to take on Butler. But aside from the change of scenery, not much else was different.

Michael Bandy, Emilio Martinez and Michael Armstead generated over 100 yards of offense apiece for the Toreros and quarterback Anthony Lawrence finished the day 22-of-28 for 390 yards and four touchdowns.

Back to the regularly scheduled programming for the Toreros, returning to form with a 42-13 win over the Bulldogs, pushing The Streak to 25 consecutive PFL games.
 
Win #26 - October 27, 2018 - San Diego, CA - USD 59, Jacksonville 35:
 
As talented as Anthony Lawrence is, at times it felt like every game he appeared in was a big one, as he put up eye-popping numbers week after week. But the Toreros' home matchup against Jacksonville in 2018 proved to be just a bit more significant for him.

A 16-yard completion to Michael Bandy with 10:37 to play in the third quarter gave Lawrence 11,106 career passing yards, making him San Diego's all-time passing yards leader. He would finish the game 22-of-28 for 284 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions to lead USD to a season-high 59 points.

His big day was complemented by a strong performance from running back Emilio Martinez, who rushed 12 times for 88 yards and three touchdowns, also making four catches for 50 yards and a touchdown.

Michael Armstead provided more excitement on special teams, returning the opening kickoff of the second half 100 yards for a touchdown. The touchdown-return outdid a 67-yard kickoff return he produced at the end of the second quarter. He led the Toreros with 217 all-purpose yards on the day.

In the end, the Toreros blew out the Dolphins, winning by a score of 59 to 35.
 
Win #27 - November 3, 2018 - Des Moines, IA - USD 27, Drake 10:
 
 Many of the 26 previous games of The Streak were characterized by high-flying offensive efforts for San Diego. Their early November 2018 offering on the road versus Drake, however, proved to be a departure from that. Sure, the Torero offense showed up and did their job, but the star of this rain-soaked, hard-fought PFL game was the USD defense. 

They came up big, forcing several key turnovers and keeping the Bulldog offense out of the end zone all afternoon. Nick Friedel led the defense with eight tackles (5.0 solo), two sacks, one forced fumble and a pass break-up. He was joined in the backfield by Jacob Bergstrom (2.0 sacks), Jake Wittwer (1.5 sacks) and Myles Wilson (0.5 sacks).

In a game that saw two fumbles and three interceptions between the two teams, Arrion Archie and David Tolbert each recorded an interception for USD in the first half.

San Diego's defense limited Drake to 254 total yards and the Bulldogs were just 4-of-16 third down conversions.

And the Toreros escaped a miserable Des Moines day with a 27-10 win, moving The Streak to 27 straight PFL games.
 
Win #28 - November 10, 2018 - San Diego, CA, USD 56, Davidson 52:
 
Through the 27 previous games that have comprised The Streak up to this point, no game was more wild than the Toreros' matchup against Davidson in 2018. And no game has put The Streak in jeopardy more than this one against the Wildcats. Here's how it went:

Anthony Lawrence fired a touchdown pass to Michael Bandy with 14:05 to play in the first quarter. That much went according to plan. Almost nothing else did for San Diego.

After USD struck first, Davidson would go up by a score of 24-7 after three breakout running plays, leaving USD stunned as they faltered early on. Remember, this was a team that USD beat by more than 50 points in the previous season. By the beginning of the second quarter, the Wildcats led by a shocking 31-7 margin. It would take a furious comeback for the Toreros to climb their way back into the game. And that's exactly what they did. It's hard to do the comeback justice without going into a level of detail that wouldn't exactly fit here, but here's an excerpt from The USD Vista's feature on the game:

"What began at the top of the second quarter was an offensive tour de force for Lawrence, jumpstarting his team's comeback effort with a masterful 30-yard pass to Bandy. A Davidson touchdown later, Lawrence and the Toreros wasted no time in responding, this time hitting sophomore running back Emilio Martinez for a 71-yard touchdown strike. Slowly but surely, the Toreros were clawing their way back into the game on the back of an outstanding performance from the most prolific passer in USD history.  Lawrence, however, was far from finished. The La Mesa, Calif. native continued to light up the scoreboard, twice targeting first-year tight end Dalton Kincaid for touchdown passes, the final of which brought the Toreros within three points of the Wildcats with just seconds remaining in the first half. When time expired on a sensational first half of play, the Toreros trailed by just a 38-35 margin, nearly completing an improbable comeback in one quarter alone. Equally as striking as the scoreboard was the stat sheet on both sides. Davidson's offense put up a ridiculous 551 rushing yards in the first half alone, while USD mustered 320 first-half passing yards in their near-complete comeback effort."

The second half was too wild to fully summarize here, but the highlights were as follows:

• Davidson's William Wicks registers a 6-yard touchdown run at the 12:01 mark of the third.
• Michael Armstead responds on the ensuing kick off with a 98-yard return
• The Toreros force a Davidson fumble and the ball ends up in the end zone and is recovered by a different Wildcats player. While Davidson initially thought it had extended its lead, the play was ruled to have been a forward fumble, resulting in a turnover on downs.
• The Toreros take over on their 1-yard-line. On the second play of the drive, Bandy gives USD its first lead of the game since the Toreros' opening possession. He catches a pass near the right sideline, beats his defender and runs 99 yards to put USD up with 9:29 to play, 49-45.
• Davidson retakes the lead, 52-49 on a 12-yard run with 2:38 to play.
• Lawrence makes sure the Toreros are not behind for long, connecting with Martinez on a 5-yard pass before airing out a 46-yard completion down the center of the field to Bandy who beat double-coverage.
• Lawrence goes back to Bandy on the next play for a 20-yard touchdown pass to put the Toreros up for good with 1:43 to play

And after a whirlwind of a game that saw a myriad of San Diego football records get broken (more on that later), USD emerged triumphant, their streak alive after an absurd 56-52 win.

The victory over Davidson was notable for USD for several different reasons. First, it earned San Diego the 2018 PFL Championship, their 10th overall and fifth in a row, plus a berth to the FCS Playoffs.

Second, it saw Anthony Lawrence officially become the most prolific passing QB in San Diego history, recording the following accomplishments:

• Became just the 13th FCS quarterback to reach at least 12,000 career passing yards.
• Tied Josh Johnson (2004-07) for most career touchdown passes with 113.
• Tied program record with seven touchdowns in a single game.
• Moved into FCS top-10 all-time in career touchdown passes.
• Set USD record for most passing yards in a single season (3,496), passing Mason Mills' mark in 2013 (3,463).
• Became USD's all-time leader in career total offense with 12,061 yards and became first to reach 12,000 plateau.
• Now has a career-high 3,496 passing yards in single season, eclipsing his previous season high of 3,131 during 2017.

Whew. That was a lot. Did we already mention it was also Senior Day? Here's a summary: USD falls behind early and storms back just in time for a dramatic finish that earned them their fifth straight PFL title while Anthony Lawrence essentially rewrites the USD Football record book.

Final score: USD 56, Davidson 52. The Streak: 28 consecutive PFL victories.
 
Win #29 - November 17, 2018 - Poughkeepsie, NY - USD 31, Marist 14:

With the PFL Championship and a bid to the FCS Playoffs already locked up, the Toreros' last contest of the 2018 regular season wasn't exactly the most important one they played that year. But they still won, and a bunch of San Diego players enjoyed productive games. Here's the cliff notes:

• Lawrence finished the day 20-of-26 with a 208.4 passer rating, sitting out most of the second half
• Michael Bandy continued to deliver big plays, making five catches for 127 yards. It was the eighth time that season Bandy registered over 100 yards receiving.
• Bandy became USD's all-time leader in single-season receiving yards on a 53-yard reception in the first quarter.
• Emilio Martinez did do a little bit of everything, leading USD with seven receptions and a receiving touchdown, along with a team-high 42 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown.
• David Tolbert, Manoah Tuiasosopo and Kim Mahoney led the way for the USD defense with five tackles apiece.

Resulting in a 31-14 road win for USD over the Red Foxes that completed their third straight undefeated season in the PFL, moving The Streak to 29 straight conference games.
 
Win #30 - October 5, 2019 - San Diego, CA - USD 31, Marist 7:
 
The Toreros picked up right where they left off in 2019, both literally and figuratively. When they began PFL play in October, they once again took on Marist, and they once again defeated them, this time by a score of 31-7 on Homecoming and Family Weekend. Headlining the win was a big day for the USD defense, specifically the secondary, which recorded a remarkable four straight interceptions.

Cassius Johnson had two of the four USD interceptions, the most by a Torero since Daniel Tolbert had two in November 2017 also against Marist. Daniel added one of his own on Saturday while his twin brother David Tolbert also grabbed one, a pick-six in the fourth that capped the Toreros' scoring. San Diego held Marist to 245 yards – the fewest surrendered in a game since 2017.

USD's 2019 PFL opener also introduced new starting quarterback Reid Sinnett to The Streak, as the redshirt senior passed for 341 yards (19-29) and three touchdowns in his PFL debut.

Needless to say, it continued, hitting the 30-win mark.

Win #31 - October 12, 2019 - Davidson, NC - USD 37, Davidson 17:
 
The first 2019 meeting between the Wildcats and the Toreros proved to be much more routine than the 56-52 thriller of 2018.

Redshirt senior Reid Sinnett threw for five touchdowns spread among four different receivers while the San Diego defense shut out its opponent in the second half for the second straight game.

Sinnett, who threw for 300+ yards in a game for the fourth time in five contests so far that year, was extraordinarily accurate, completing 84.4% of his passes (27-of-32).

His precision led San Diego to a 37-17 win over Davidson on the road.
 
Win #32 - October 19, 2019 - USD 42, Valparaiso 17:
 
In his first (and only) year as USD's starting quarterback, Reid Sinnett was able to carry on the tradition of excellence that his predecessor, Anthony Lawrence, set before him. And he perhaps even raised the bar.

Against Valparaiso on October 19, Sinnett's prowess was on full display, as he was responsible for six touchdowns, leading the Toreros to a 42-17 win over the Crusaders at Torero Stadium.

The San Diego defense forced four turnovers and held Valparaiso to less than 250 yards, extending the streak to 32 PFL wins.
 
Win #33 - October 26, 2019 - Dayton, OH - USD 50, Dayton 38:
 
Win number 33 of The Streak saw the Toreros succeed with a balanced approach on offense, recording more than 300 passing and rushing yards.

They did so with the help of big days on the ground by juniors Emilio Martinez and Terrence Smith, who both turned in 100-yard efforts against the Flyers. Martinez led the way with a season-high 161 yards on 20 rushes and one touchdown while Smith scored three times on the ground and totaled a career-high 139 yards on 11 carries.

On the passing side of things, USD made due with a 314-yard day in the air from Reid Sinnett to go with his three touchdowns. The redshirt senior connected with fellow senior Michael Bandy for a season-high 194 yards as Bandy had nine catches, two of which were touchdowns.

Another week, another 50-point effort for San Diego as they took down the Flyers by a 50-38 margin. 
 
Win #34 - November 2, 2019 - San Diego, CA - USD 49, Drake 7:

Things just kept on rolling for the Toreros in November of last season, as they crushed Drake by a score of 49-7 in their first game of the month. USD scored six rushing touchdowns, including a career-high three by JoJo Binda Jr., and San Diego's defense held Drake to the one touchdown, matching its season-best for points allowed in a game. The Toreros forced three interceptions, five punts and three turnover-on-downs to limit Drake to 260 total yards of offense. The lone Bulldog touchdown was surrendered after a USD fumble gave Drake the ball six yards from the end zone midway through the third quarter.

The Streak moved to 34 consecutive PFL wins.
 
Win #35 - November 9, 2019 - Deland, FL - USD 51, Stetson 7.

For the second straight week the Torero defense held their opponent to just one touchdown, and for the second straight week the USD offense provided more than enough firepower. San Diego rushed for 353 yards, including nearly 300 in a second half in which it scored five touchdowns, to help beat Stetson 51-7.

USD finished the game with 610 yards of offense, which was the second time in the last three weeks it had totaled 600+ yards. In that three-week stretch, the Toreros turned in 568 yards per contest. The 51 points scored also gave the Toreros three straight games of 49 or more points, a first since 2006.

On the other side of the ball, the Torero defense also lived up to its recent standard as it shut out Stetson in the first half and limited them to a lone touchdown when the game was out of reach in the fourth quarter.

Another week, another blowout, and The Streak rolled on in Florida.
 
Win #36 - November 16, 2019 - San Diego, CA - USD 52, Morehead State, 20:
 
2019's Senior Day proved to be a good one for the Toreros. With an overwhelming 52-20 win against Morehead State, San Diego captured its sixth straight Pioneer Football League championship and secured its fourth consecutive trip to the FCS Playoffs.

The Toreros, who clinched their 11th conference title in program history, dominated both sides of the ball until the waning minutes of the fourth quarter when the game was out of reach. Much like the entire conference season, USD had a balanced offensive attack – 266 rushing yards, 231 passing – to match a defense that shut out Morehead State for the first 43 minutes of the game.

Quarterback Reid Sinnett had a big day, frequently targeting receivers Dalton Kincaid and Michael Bandy.

On defense, USD forced four turnovers, including two interceptions and a pair of fumbles, while not turning over the ball once. David Tolbert and Hunter Nichols each had an interception.

With one regular-season conference game to go in 2019, The Streak stood at 36 consecutive PFL wins.
 
Win #37 - November 23, 2019 - Jacksonville, FL - USD 47, Jacksonville 28:
 
Closing out their 2019 regular-season schedule on the road, USD successfully completed their conference-first and conference-record fourth straight undefeated season in the Pioneer Football League, adding on to an unprecedented run of dominance within the PFL.

They did so behind a monster day from JoJo Binda Jr and a clutch performance from San Diego's defense. Binda Jr. scored a school record-tying four touchdowns, while the defense forced three key turnovers in the fourth quarter.

The Toreros led for the entire game, but the Dolphins scored on back-to-back drives in the third and fourth quarters to pull within three on two occasions.

After a Brandon Eickert field goal made it 33-28 with 10:38 remaining in the game and Jacksonville driving on the ensuing drive, the Toreros came through with a fumble forced by Myles Wilson and recovered by Jacob Bergstrom.
 
San Diego went down and converted the turnover into points after Binda, Jr. rushed for 29 yards in a five-play, 37-yard drive that was capped by a Reid Sinnett rushing touchdown that made it 40-28 with 4:28 left.

The rest was history, and when the clock hit zero, USD had itself a 47-28 victory that earned them their 37th consecutive win in PFL play.
 
Win #38 - March 13, 2021 - Des Moines, IA - USD 13, Drake 10

After 469 days off, San Diego finally returned to the gridiron in its first game of the COVID-19-delayed 2020/2021 season, and picked up exactly where it left off, beating the Bulldogs by a three-point margin in a gritty road win.

USD's defense was dominant from start to finish, allowing just 25 total yards of offense for the Bulldogs. Drake was held to just three first downs in the contest, 23 rushing yards, two passing yards and two completions.

In his first career start for USD, quarterback Mason Randall finished 19-of-25 for 234 yards with two interceptions. Emilio Martinez led the way on the ground with 16 rushes for a total of 62 yards (3.9 avg) and a long of 15 yards. Wide receiver Michael Carner finished the day with seven receptions for a total of 98 yards and tight end Derek Kline hauled in five passes for a total of 90 yards. Kicker Brandon Eickert also added two field goals.

Thirty-eight wins down, one to go.
 
Win #39 - March 20, 2021 - San Diego, CA - USD 27, Butler 13

It was only fitting for San Diego to etch its name into the record books in a home game at Torero Stadium, taking down Butler by a score of 27-13 to tie the FCS record for consecutive conference wins with its 39th-straight victory over a Pioneer Football League opponent.

USD's offense finished the day with 475 total yards (302 passing, 173 rushing) and dominated time of possession for 41:43. Mason Randall finished the day 32-of-41 for 302 yards and two touchdowns. Derek Kline hauled in eight catches for 77 yards and a touchdown and Michael Gadinis caught five passes for 85 yards including a long of 30 yards.

The USD defense turned in another impressive performance, limiting the Bulldogs (0-2, 0-2 PFL) to just 35 rushing yards and 12 first downs. BU did most of its damage in the air, with 212 passing yards and its only touchdown of the afternoon.

The Streak had now reached its peak. Thirty-nine straight wins over conference opponents; the Toreros forever enshrined in the FCS record books for their five-year reign over the PFL.
 
How it ended:
San Diego fought to the bitter end in its next PFL matchup with Davidson on April 3, 2021, but for the first time in over 2,000 days, it wouldn't be enough. A last-second comeback fell short, and like all good things, The Streak came to an end at 39 straight conference games, ultimately spanning five years, five months, and 24 days.
 
Looking ahead:
When USD dropped a one-point decision to Dayton on October 10, 2015, nobody could have known the loss would be the springboard for a record-setting streak. Yet here we are, recapping one of the most dominant runs in San Diego sports history.

So next time the Toreros win a PFL game, don't be surprised if they go and start another one.