SAN DIEGO — Sean Lewis, Colorado's offensive coordinator for 2023 season, has been hired as the 19th head coach in history at San Diego State to lead the Aztecs football program into the future.
During a press conference Wednesday morning, Aztec director of athletics John David Wicker made the official announcement during a press conference that included the school band, cheerleaders and a room full of fans and media.
"I am thrilled to welcome Sean Lewis and his family to San Diego State University," Wicker said. "He is a coach with immense talent and I'm looking forward to the excitement that his teams are going to generate at Snapdragon Stadium. His approach emphasizing academic and life skills opportunities are equally important and will complement the student-athlete experience."
"San Diego State University, my family and I can't express how excited we are to be joining this incredible community," Lewis said. "We are looking forward to partnering with all of you in serving and leading our amazing football program. The time is now to support and make Snapdragon Stadium the place to be for Fast, Physical, Fun Aztec Football."
WATCH FULL PRESS CONFERENCE: Sean Lewis introduced as San Diego State Aztecs football head coach
Lewis was demoted into a co-offensive coordinator role when first-year coach Deion Sanders promoted former NFL coach Pat Shurmur earlier this month. After a promising 3-0 start, Colorado finished 4-8 overall and last in the Pac-12 at 1-8.
Lewis was head coach at Kent State from 2018-2022, going 24-31 and leading the Golden Flashes to two bowl games. He played collegiately at Wisconsin under legendary head coach Barry Alvarez, competing at quarterback and tight end. He twice received Big Ten all-academic recognition before earning his bachelor's degree in 2007 from the university in agricultural sciences.
The head coach opening came in mid-November when current coach Brady Hoke announced that he was retiring as head coach at the end of this season. Hoke coached the final 2 regular season games for the Aztecs, losing to San Jose St. and beating Fresno St. to finish the Aztecs disappointing season at 4-8, tied for last in the Moutan West. Hoke had three seasons left on his contract when the school announced his retirement.
Hoke spent 6 seasons as head coach of the team, with an overall 39-31 record. For his career, Hoke is 104-89 with stints at his alma mater Ball State from 2003-08, Michigan from 2011-14 and San Diego State both in 2009-10 and 2020-23.
Hoke was the 2011 Maxwell Football Club Collegiate Coach of the Year and four-time conference coach of the year. He is two years removed from coaching the 2021 Aztec team to a school-record 12 victories. That team, which played all 14 games away from their own market, including eight "home games" two hours from campus at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, finished the 2021 season ranked 25th in the final Associated Press Top 25 poll.
SDSU failed to gain traction in 2023, and the team finds itself dead last in the Mountain West Conference. The Aztecs have played tough, with four of the team's seven losses coming by 8 points or fewer. The other losses came from Pac-12 opponents No. 10 Oregon State, UCLA and one-time ranked conference foe Air Force.
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