The San Diego State Aztecs are turning to a true freshman at starting quarterback for the first time in school history.
Danny O’Neil, who originally committed to the Colorado Buffaloes in the spring of 2023 before reopening his recruitment and signing with the Aztecs in the winter of that same year, will be under center for the Aztecs when they open the 2024 season against the Texas A&M-Commerce Lions on August 31.
ESPN’s Pete Thamel had the surprising news first.
Sources: San Diego State has named true freshman quarterback Danny O’Neil as the starting quarterback for the opener against Texas A&M Commerce. He arrived at SDSU as a three-star who’d previously committed to Colorado and had a number of power conference offers. pic.twitter.com/KBTRvljtB8
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) August 18, 2024
O’Neil had been competing with Florida State Seminoles transfer A.J. Duffy throughout camp. Duffy will open the season as the Aztecs’ backup.
New Aztecs head coach Sean Lewis, who replaced the retired Brady Hoke, was Colorado’s offensive coordinator for the 2023 season and was very involved in O’Neil’s recruiting and subsequent decommitment to follow the head coach to San Diego State.
After Lewis took the San Diego State job in November, O’Neil, an Indianapolis native, told the Indianapolis Star, “I don’t want to go into (a program) and lose a head coach or a coordinator.”
