SDSU’s Penny gains 203 yards, cracks 2,000-yard mark in win

SAN DIEGO — Snubbed earlier in the week by the Doak Walker Award selection committee, Rashaad Penny ran 22 times for 203 yards and two touchdowns in his final regular-season game to crack the 2,000yard mark and lead San Diego State to a 35-10 victory against New Mexico on Saturday.

Penny, the NCAA’s leading rusher, reached the milestone when he broke a 51-yard scoring run up the middle early in the third quarter for a 21-0 lead. The senior also scored on a 20-yard run just before halftime. It was his fourth straight 200-yard game and fifth of the season. He has 2,027 yards.

San Diego State (10-2, 6-2 Mountain West) became the first FBS team to have consecutive 2,000yard seasons by different backs. D.J. Pumphrey set the school record with 2,133 yards last year, which helped him become the NCAA’s all-time rushing leader with 6,405.

Penny needs 107 yards in SDSU’s bowl game to break Pumphrey’s single-season record.

On Monday, Penny was left off the list of three finalists for the Doak Walker Award, which goes to the nation’s top running back. Offensive coordinator Jeff Horton called that “a joke and a disgrace,” and coach Rocky Long said Penny would probably be equally snubbed in the voting for the Heisman Trophy.

Penny was coming off a monster game in which he amassed 429 all-purpose yards to break Marshall Faulk’s school record, and scored four touchdowns in a 42-23 victory against Nevada. Penny rushed for 222 yards and two touchdowns, and had 201 yards and two touchdowns on three returns. He also caught one pass for 6 yards.

Christian Chapman threw touchdown passes of 9 yards to Kahale Warring and 47 yards to Fred Trevillion. Penny’s backup, Juwan Washington, scored on a 60-yard run in the fourth quarter.

New Mexico (3-9, 1-7) lost its sixth straight game to SDSU.

New Mexico’s first score, a 46-yard field goal by Jason Sanders, was set up when San Diego State fumbled a punt. Later in the quarter, Jay Griffin IV later had a nice 62-yard catch-and-run after hauling in a pass from Tevaka Tuioti.

The Lobos closed the season on a seven-game losing streak. Coach Bob Davie’s record in six seasons dropped to 30-45. Aztecs honored 19 The seniors who have contributed to the most successful run in school history. In the last four-plus seasons (some of those players arrived in 2013), the Aztecs have won two Mountain West championships, won or shared three division titles, played in four bowl games, winning three, and posted a 47-17 record.

New Mexico’s season is over.

San Diego State awaits its eighth straight bowl game.