SJSU takeaways: Familiar issues haunt Spartans in lopsided loss to Texas, Arch Manning

San Jose State coach Ken Niumatalolo tried to focus on the positives Saturday after his club was throttled - by No Texas with Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning throwing for four touchdowns and running for another I wish we would have had come here and played better Niumatalolo commented But I thought our kids battled until the end and it was great to see our resolve and grit San Jose State - forced Texas to punt on its first two drives but the Longhorns scored unanswered points in the first half and never looked back Manning completed of passes for yards and one interception and scrambled for a -yard touchdown run in the third quarter Coming into the season the Spartans had high expectations and inferred they could compete for a Mountain West Championship While their - start is not ideal the Spartans the majority formidable opponent is now in the rear-view mirror The Spartans also now have a bye week to correct the issues they saw during their first two losses Here are the takeaways from Saturday s loss TURNOVER BUG BITES AGAIN SJSU would have a small margin for error against Texas but turnovers again plagued the offense After committing three turnovers in last week s - loss to Central Michigan the Spartans turned the ball over four times against Texas in the first half Two weeks in a row turnovers killed us Niumatalolo revealed We had no chance against those guys turning the ball over that much Quarterback Walker Eget threw an interception running back Lamar Radcliffe fumbled running back Floyd Chalk IV fumbled and wide receiver Danny Scudero fumbled after taking a big shot from Longhorns linebacker Anthony Hill Jr SJSU had four turnovers in six drives spanning from left in the first quarter to left in the second quarter Texas scored points off the first half turnovers and took a - lead against the Spartans The Radcliffe and Chalk fumbles set the Longhorns up on a short field and they scored within the first two plays both times Running back Jabari Bates had yards on carries after not touching the ball in last week s loss Bates playing time was definitely not a part of the tournament plan Niumatalolo announced Radcliffe had a critical fumble and then we put in Chalk and then he fumbled So it was next guy up Niumatalolo noted taking better care of the football is the Spartans top priority That s all we focus on at practice so it s not going to change Niumatalolo commented It s dependably on the top of the board for us to take care of the football DEFENSE PLAYS STRONG AGAIN The Spartans effort on defense was better than the boxscore might indicate Following the turnovers three of the five Longhorns touchdown drives started in Spartans territory When the Longhorns started a drive in their own territory they scored only points SJSU s defense also only allowed points in the second half and the Longhorns were -for- on third down With the pressure we were bringing we demanded to confuse Manning Spartans safety Jalen Apalit-Williams reported That was the championship plan play around with our coverages But we didn t want to do too much then not be in place to make a play Apalit-Williams was in place to make a play late in the second quarter Cornerback Isiah Revis tipped a pass from Manning and Apalit-Williams intercepted the Heisman hopeful Apalit-Williams also had six tackles Considering the challenging situations the defense was put in and the magnitude of the opponent they faced they can take certain positives away from this championship FIELD GOAL WOES CONTINUE USC transfer kicker Dennis Lynch s start to his Spartans career has been anything but ideal After missing the promising game-winning -yard field goal against Central Michigan he went -for- on field goals against Texas and is now -for- this season Lynch missed from yards and from yards against Texas Neither of which was close We ve got to make particular field goals Niumatalolo revealed We need to work on that for the next two weeks Lynch entered the transfer portal from USC after losing the starting kicking battle before the season Lynch only missed one extra point across his two seasons starting at USC - but he struggled with short-range field goals making just nine of between and yards He did go -for- on field goals within the - yard range during that same time period WIDE RECEIVERS MAKE PLAYS The Spartans showcased their depth at wide receiver Saturday as without the injured Malachi Riley Kyri Shoels saw more battle action With the Texas secondary double-teaming Scudero Shoels was the Spartans leading receiver with eight catches for yards As a quarterback it makes you feel settled Eget announced Those are elite receivers they were making easy routes on Texas I m proud of how they played Even with the double-teams Scudero still caught seven passes for yards His stat line could have looked even better as he burned the Longhorns corners twice and was open downfield but Eget was unable to locate the ball for a completion Spartans wide receiver Tuli Tagovailoa-Amosa the first cousin of Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa had three receptions for yards of which came on a chunk play during SJSU s only scoring drive of the match Tagovailoa-Amosa has seen several meaningful snaps as a true freshman during SJSU s first two weeks BYE WEEK LEADING INTO IDAHO With a - start to the season the Spartans now have a bye week to address specific of the issues on the field Texas is the best company we will play all season Niumatalolo mentioned I thought we played well at the beginning but we need to find a way to finish those SJSU s next meeting will be against Idaho - at CEFCU Stadium on Sept at p m In week one Idaho lost - to Washington State It sucks to be - but the biggest thing is to take advantage of the opportunity of the bye week Apalit-Williams commented Everybody requirements to take care of their bodies to get back to where they need to be so we are ready to go for the next contest at home We have a long season to go