Welcome back to class, students. School sucks. But to ease your mind, here’s something that finally doesn’t: San Diego State’s football team.

Everybody talks about his story. The man is 24 years old and is on the brink of a standout season. The football world is in love with his size, his leaping ability, his hands, his blocking and his leadership qualities. But talk to anybody on the San Diego State football team who knows DeMarco Sampson, and the conversation always turns back to his story.

If you watch freshman running back Ronnie Hillman’s highlight tape from his days back at La Habra High School, you’ll see the kind of speed, hands and versatility that would make any offensive coordinator drool.

Editor’s note: Each week, The Daily Aztec will pick the winners of every Mountain West Conference game.

With many of the same starters returning from last year’s squad, the San Diego State volleyball team doesn’t seem to be much different this season. But SDSU lost a number of key players including former starting setter Lauren Van Orden, who transferred to UCLA.

A year ago, the San Diego State men’s soccer team was in a very different place than it is now. It had a veteran-laden team, but it was also plagued with injuries. Yet through all the bumps, breaks, bruises and sprains, SDSU barely missed a spot in the NCAA Tournament last season.

The San Diego State women’s soccer team (1-3-0) could not beat the heat or the Florida Gators (4-0-0) on Sunday.

The San Diego State football team wrapped up training camp last weekend, and head coach Brady Hoke seemed pleased with his squad’s progress throughout the last month. There were some good battles, big plays and surprises. Take a look at the news and notes from SDSU’s training camp.

Head coach Mike Friesen was blunt after his team lost 2-0 to the University of Central Florida in Orlando on Friday night.

Sexton wins Invitational Most Valuable Player as SDSU goes 3-0 at home

After opening the 2010 Aztec Invitational with consecutive victories, the San Diego State volleyball team continued its success when it faced off against Cincinnati. Despite pulling off a 3-0 win against Cal State Northridge in the prior match, the Bearcats were unable to keep up their momentum as SDSU cruised to a 3-0 victory on Saturday night in Peterson Gym.

Brad Byrns had a quiet night on Friday. The redshirt senior goalkeeper only faced one shot on goal from Cal State Northridge in an exhibition match that went 110 minutes.

The San Diego State football team held its first scrimmage of training camp on Saturday, and it was the only chance for fans and media to see SDSU in anything related to real-game action before the season opener on Sept. 4 against Nicholls State.
While supporters might have expected Ryan Lindley and Co. to come out slinging the ball all over the field, the scrimmage started out in a completely different way.

It’s an hour before the big match, and you’re all ready to go. You’ve got your face painted, half red and half black, ready to cheer on the Aztecs to victory. But where are you going to go to catch the action?

SDSU picked to finish sixth
Like the rest of the Mountain West Conference, the San Diego State football team’s brass packed its bags and headed out to Las Vegas for MWC Media Day last week.