Last season, when starting SDSU tight end Alston Umuolo was sidelined early in the season with an injury Brady Hoke had to scramble to find someone to replace his preseason All-Conference tight end. That someone turned out to be towering 6’6″ 245 pound freshman Gavin Escobar. Escobar not only filled in for Umuolo, he excelled. Playing in all 13 games, the Santa Margarita native had 29 receptions for 323 yards and four touchdowns. His combination of size, strength, speed and receiving ability created headaches all season for opposing defenses. For his outstanding performance Escobar was selected a second team freshman All-American by Rivals.com.

   The good news for San Diego State is that Escobar has three seasons of college eligibility left and he is raring to go as the Aztecs begin their 2011 campaign.

   “With Alston down with an injury last year one of us needed to step up, so I got to play a lot more than I was expecting to. It was a great opportunity for me to play as a red shirt freshman. Now I am excited to get rolling again,” Escobar said.

   With four quality tight ends on the roster, the Aztecs plan to often use multiple tight end formations and use their tight ends in a number of different roles including H-back, fullback and wide receiver.

   Last year, highly regarded quarterback, Ryan Lindley used his dynamic wide receiver duo of DeMarco Sampson and Vincent Brown to light up the scoreboard. This year, he will rely more on his electrifying running back Ronnie Hillman and his quartet of talent tight ends to carry the load until his young wide-outs can get up to speed.

   “It was a pretty big blow to lose V.J. (Vincent Brown) and De Marco (Sampson), but our young guys have looked pretty good in practice and I think they will step up,” Escobar predicted.

   On virtually any other team Escobar would expect to be on the field nearly all of the time whenever the offense has the ball. At SDSU, with so many good tight ends, he will have to share time with the other three guys. That prospect doesn’t bother him.

   “We will all get plenty of time and there will be a lot of competition. We are all pretty close, we hang out together and sometimes go to dinner, so we are willing to share.”

   While SDSU has a new head coach (Rocky Long) and a new coaching staff, the transition has not been a difficult one.

   “Coach Long was here before (as the defensive coordinator) so a lot of what they are stressing this year is the same. They expect us to be mentally and physically tough as well as competitive. The coaching personalities are different and they coach differently, but the mentality is pretty much the same.”

   For a sneak preview of the 2011 Aztecs check out the Aztecs Family Day on August 20 at 4:00 p.m. at the “Q” .  This free event will include an alumni flag football game, an intra-squad scrimmage, autograph signings and a merchandise sale. The regular season kickoff against Cal Poly is slated for September 3 at 7:00 p.m. at the “Q”.