IN THE BLOOD

Spartan standouts Deese Jr., Hall share Super Bowl pedigree

The story of San Jose State’s 4- 0 start cannot be told without mentioning the emergence of defensive lineman Cade Hall and tight end Derrick Deese Jr.

Hall leads the Mountain West Conference in sacks and Deese has racked up highlight catches all year. Together, the third-year Spartans are helping to usher in a new era of San Jose State football.

But there’s one other tie that connects the two: 26 years ago, their fathers were teammates with the Super Bowl XXIX champion San Francisco 49ers.

“It’s destiny that we’re here together, and we’re playing together in the Bay,” Deese said.

Rhett Hall and Derrick Deese Sr., fathers of Cade and Derrick Jr., played together for just one season, but it was a memorable one. The 1994 San Francisco 49ers won

10 of their last 11 regular- season games and rolled past the Bears, Cowboys and Chargers to win the Super Bowl.

Flash forward, and Cade and Derrick Jr. are crafting their own history, just 50 miles south of their fathers’ old stomping grounds.

“He’ll send me something when he sees something my son’s doing. I’ll send him something when I see something that his son is doing,” Deese Sr. said.

For Cade Hall, the Bay Area is part of his identity, having been raised in Morgan Hill and starring at Bellarmine Prep. Cade even had a tattoo depicting the numbers “408,” the area code of San Jose.

“I got it to represent where I come from,” Hall said.

A short car ride away from home,

KARL MONDON — STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER San Jose State tight end Derrick Deese Jr. (87) has been a “matchup nightmare” for opposing teams as the Spartans have gotten out to a 4-0start.

JOSE CARLOS FAJARDO — STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER San Jose State defensive lineman Cade Hall, right, leads the MWC with 5.5 sacks, including this one against UNLV’s Max Gilliam.