San Diego State starting quarterback Jayden Denegal had surgery Wednesday on his left (non-throwing) shoulder and will miss the Aztecs’ Dec. 27 New Mexico Bowl game against No. 23 North Texas.
SDSU coach Sean Lewis said Bert Emanuel Jr. will start for the Aztecs (9-3), who are bidding for double-digit victories for the 10th time in the program’s Division I history.
Denegal injured his left shoulder in SDSU’s season opener against Stony Brook and played with a protective harness the remainder of the season. He played through the pain and discomfort, starting all 12 games during the regular season while putting off surgery. Denegal had participated in bowl practices before the decision was made within the past week not to postpone surgery any longer.
“We had a conversation,” Lewis said. “It was a very hard decision. And, ultimately, we settled on collectively together that the time was right now, so that he could have the necessary timeframe to recover.”
Lewis also noted that starting wide receiver Jordan Napier had surgery Thursday to repair a season-ending knee injury suffered last month against Boise State.
“Both done with the belief that they’ll be as good and strong as ever for 2026 as we go forward and attack the Pac-12,” Lewis said.
He expects Denegal, a junior transfer from Michigan, to be full-go when spring practice starts in March. Napier’s timeframe for recovery is to be determined.
SDSU is without two of its starting wide receivers. Jacob Bostick also suffered a season-ending knee injury midway through the season. The non-contact injury occurred in practice and is expected to sideline him until the summer.
Though the Aztecs will be without their starting quarterback in the game, Lewis said he still expects Denegal to accompany the team to the bowl game.
“The team’s done a great job responding,” Lewis said. “Again, we’ve been open and transparent. Like, the guys know how hard the decision was, and are very understanding of, ultimately, where we all got to with it. So, yeah, next man up.”
Emanuel competed in the spring and into the summer at quarterback before Denegal was named the starter.
Emanuel has played sparingly this season, completing 5 of 9 passes for 37 yards. There were some special packages to take advantage of Emanuel’s running ability (he rushed 22 times for 102 yards), but his appearances primarily came when Denegal missed various series because of injury and to close out games when the outcome was decided.
Emanuel made four starts among 13 games played over three seasons at Central Michigan, completing 27 of 51 passes for 439 yards and five touchdowns while rushing 145 times for 844 yards and 12 TDs. His last start was Sept. 23, 2023, against South Alabama. The junior from Houston transferred to SDSU in January after an injury-plagued 2024 season with the Chippewas.
“It’s a great opportunity here for him to do what he came here to do,” Lewis said. “So we’ll build a plan that suits his skillset and, again, not just him, but everyone offensively needs to continue to step up.
“So it’s a great opportunity for guys to do that, and for us to adapt our scheme to the personnel that we have, the way that we’ve done all year.”
Emanuel was spotted behind center with the first team offense earlier in the week during the portion of practice open to the media, and Lewis said he has seen a positive response from the players.
“I go off the way that they’ve shown up prepared, ready for the meetings, the way that they’ve attacked all the work days, and the practices, and the preparation that we’ve had,” Lewis said. “The energy’s been high, the enthusiasm to go play and compete has been really good. So, again, like, there hasn’t been a huge change in the overall demeanor of the program or the team.”
Lewis said overcoming challenges has been one of the team’s trademarks.
“It’s something we’ve been navigating as we’ve gone through the whole year,” Lewis said. “Especially in Jayden’s case, since Week 4 it’s something that the program has been working through collectively together.
“You get really good at something by doing it. From Week 4 on, Jayden probably practiced two full weeks leading up to the games, because of his resiliency, his toughness and how we had to manage the injury so that he could be as close to 100 percent and as game-ready as possible.
“It was a tremendous response by him and great maturity shown by the team and a great job by the staff adapting to, not only Jayden’s injury and Bostick’s injury and Napier’s injury but the multitude of other things that happened.”
If the Aztecs’ postseason game was at the start of bowl season, then the timing for Denegal’s surgery may have been different.
“It’s the scales that everyone’s weighing right now,” Lewis said. “Like, the length of the recovery, and I don’t think there’s a right or wrong answer.
“You just present the facts in terms of, okay, like, the significance in the value of winning the bowl game, and the risk associated with, then, are you going to be ready for spring ball, and new pieces that are going to be around you, and getting the reps that are needed to build a relationship with them, and, again, like, what’s one game or the 2026 season?”
Bert Emanuel Jr. #5 of the San Diego State Aztecs jumps over DaMario Crawford #9 of the Stony Brook Seawolves during the second half at Snapdragon Stadium on Thursday, Aug. 28, 2025 in San Diego, CA. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
While Denegal’s surgery brings clarity to SDSU’s quarterback situation, some cloudiness surrounds North Texas (11-2).
There have been reports that Mean Green quarterback Drew Mestemaker, who leads the nation with 4,129 passing yards, will enter the transfer portal when it opens Jan. 2. North Texas coach Eric Morris was recently hired away by Oklahoma State. It is among the potential destinations for Mestemaker.
He would be the third straight North Texas starting quarterback to transfer, lured by the prospect of making seven figures next season — some suggest as much as $3 million — at a Power Four school.
A North Texas spokesman said Wednesday that Mestemaker is still expected to play in the New Mexico Bowl.
But is that just to keep SDSU guessing?
Mestemaker is not being made available for interview requests leading up to the game.
“Welcome to college football in 2025 in December of the portal season of the decisions that are being made,” Lewis said. “Again, I kind of lean back on the training that we’ve had this year. … It’s seems like there’s a quarterback (situation) where they’re starting a new guy. We’ve gotten three or four reps of that defensively.
“You know, whoever they trot out there, it’s our job to defend against them.”