It’s time to show up.

The San Diego State football program has earned that.

Not 2,500 season tickets more than last year showing up. Not an announced 43,040 for Stanford showing up.

Really showing up.


You say you want something to be proud of in San Diego sports. This is it.

This is our team, and they’re pretty bad-ass.

The Aztecs are 4-0, ranked 19th in the nation, beat both Pac-12 schools they played and now face a tougher test than many people know in Northern Illinois. The Huskies beat Nebraska in Lincoln two Saturdays ago and didn’t play this past week.

The game starts at 7:30 p.m. Saturday inside what we’re now calling SDCCU Stadium.


Clear the calendar. You can make it.

The beach is closed. (OK, it’s not. But you can go there anytime.) The kids’ games are over. In fact, pretty much every game is over. (Thank you, television.)

Anyway, get there. Or shut up.

Get there. Or you don’t really want a good football team.


Get there. Or what they say about us across this land – that we don’t care about our teams, don’t support our teams – is true.

I’ve defended the San Diego sports fan for years as I cross this land. In particular, I’ve defended the hardcore San Diego sports fan, saying they’re as hardcore as the hardcore anywhere.

You don’t show up Saturday, I won’t be able to do that anymore.

San Diego State boasts some 220,000 alumni who live in the area. Really, they boast about it. That’s great for San Diego. I don’t know what good it does the football team.


Where are these people on Saturday nights?

If 10 percent of these alums along with a family member or friend show up Saturday, that’s 40,000-plus without current students and any other interested observers.

There should have been 50,000 people at the Stanford game. The folks who were there created a heck of an atmosphere. Students rushed the field afterward. What a scene.

We can’t expect an unranked (at the time) SDSU team with a history of choking to sell out a venue with nearly 70,000 seats. But that there were tarps and empty seats was disappointing.


However, those who didn’t go got lucky. They can make it up to the Aztecs in a meaningful way this week.

Why wouldn’t you go?

This is the highest-ranked San Diego State football team to play a home game since 1975.

This is a team with Rashaad Penny, second in the nation in rushing and scoring. This kid runs through people and from people. You will regret not watching every single play he is on the field. Against Arizona State earlier this month, Penny scored a touchdown by rushing, receiving and returning. There is only one other player in the country who scored at least one of each of those – the entire season.


There really is no reason to not get on this bandwagon.

Certainly, there has been cause for skepticism before. Absolutely.

If coming close to huge upsets counted for anything, some past SDSU teams would have led SportsCenter many times. They’d be in the Close Top 25, for sure.

I’ve defended the apathy San Diego has historically had regarding this program. Truth be told, even in the 11-win 2015 and ’16 seasons, the Aztecs didn’t beat a ranked team, went 1-2 against Power Five programs and lost to South Alabama (home and away).


It has long been difficult to ask you to spend your time and money with the best bet being a letdown.

But Stanford, a perennial bowl team, came here ranked 19th in the nation and got outplayed and outcoached. The Cardinal rebounded by beating UCLA on Saturday. The Arizona State team that SDSU walloped, beat No. 24 Oregon on Saturday. The evidence keeps mounting that this SDSU team is really good.

Sure, the Aztecs fumbled their opportunity (and our raised hopes) just last year, losing both times they were ranked.

Again, that’s not this team. This crew, the youngest the Aztecs have been in a while, went to Air Force on Saturday perhaps overconfident and definitely into a storm. It righted itself and won in trying circumstances.


So even if we acknowledge all the reasons this town is a tough sell – that a team has to win and win and win again, and it has to do it against someone we’ve heard of – there is no excuse now.

Look, I’m the guy who is going to have egg on his face if Rocky Long’s team finishes this season in a New Year’s Six bowl – and wins. I said two years ago he had taken this program as far as it could go under him, that it was time for new leader.

He hasn’t proved me wrong yet (see the South Alabama and Wyoming losses last year). But this group is on its way to showing me I was mistaken. (I have been hoping and continue to hope it happens. That’s good for everyone. And I enjoy being wrong. I’m married. A guy gets used to it.)

But let’s confine the embarrassment.


Show up Saturday night. Because a crowd of less than 40,000 – even 45,000 – would be embarrassing.

There’s no Chargers game to get up for.

The Aztecs are what we’ve got. And they’re good.

kevin.acee@sduniontribune.com