DELAND, Fla. – San Diego football rounded out its excellent 2025 campaign with an 8-4 record with a 42-8 victory at Stetson Saturday, its fifth straight win to end the season.
 
The Toreros, however, were edged just narrowly for the Pioneer Football League championship title and a place in the FCS Playoffs by Drake, who mounted a fourth quarter comeback over Morehead State to claim the outright PFL title Saturday.
 
USD grad running back Matt Colombo highlighted the win in his last game of his career, becoming just the sixth Torero to rush for four touchdowns in a game, posting 129 yards on 23 attempts on the ground.
 
"I'm happy for [Colombo]," head coach Brandon Moore said. "He's one of the best backs in the league. He missed four games. If he's in those games, I think that's the difference in wins and losses. His influence and his fight and ability to come back from the injury so soon speaks to his character, who Matt Colombo is."
 
Two of the games Colombo missed were the crucial ones that proved the difference in USD's title hopes – San Diego's lone losses in conference play: on the road to Marist by one score and a walk-off 55-yard field goal by eventual champions Drake after an intentional grounding non-call. Those one or two plays were all that separated the Toreros from a 13^th FCS championship and a spot in the NCAA DI FCS Playoffs.
 
"It's very disappointing," said Moore. "I think we are the best team in the league. We're the most talented group by far. We proved that from time to time, but a loss is a loss. Those things came back to bite us in the end."
 
Also going down to injury in that Oct. 4 Marist contest all the way across the country in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. was senior back Adam Criter, who too has since bounced back, adding a San Diego rushing touchdown Saturday for his 12^th score of the season. The backfield duo of he and Colombo both scored touchdowns in a fifth straight game.
 
The Torero defense finished strong, scoring as many touchdowns as it allowed in the contest, as grad linebacker Mo Vanderwiel returned one of USD's three interceptions for a touchdown in his ultimate game of his career. Senior safety and defensive team captain Ruben Lopez made a one-handed pick for his FCS-leading fifth interception of the season.
 
"I think our defense has been the anchor the last two years," said Moore. "They play consistently. When they're on, we're a hard team to beat.
 
Moore was able to reflect on the win and the season as a whole that his group put together.
 
"It feels great. The only sour feeling is we didn't start the [PFL] season with a run. But these kids found a way. They battled injuries, all year, which is never an excuse. But they did a great job of fighting, being able to play for each other."