Aztecs' search for kicker, long snapper will continue after losing top candidates
Spring practice was supposed to bring clarity to the San Diego State football team, or at least get the Aztecs closer to finding answers to position-by-position questions.
The most unsettled situation for SDSU is among the specialists, where there is more uncertainty now than before spring practice began six weeks ago.
SDSU took the field for Saturday afternoon's Spring Game without sophomore kicker Nick Clegg and senior long snapper Luke Williams, the two favorites to start at their respective positions. Clegg left the team two weeks ago after struggling with his kicks throughout the spring. Williams suffered a knee injury two weeks ago that will sideline him for the season.
The Aztecs knew there would be uncertainty in the kicking game with the departure of Gabe Plascencia, who graduated after two years in which he became the school's career leader in field-goal percentage (.878, 36-for-41).
Clegg was Plascencia's understudy and the favorite to win the job this season, but was inconsistent throughout the spring. He left the team after missing three of six field-goal attempts during a scrimmage at Snapdragon Stadium.
Of Clegg's departure, SDSU coach Sean Lewis said, "He made a personal choice."
Senior transfer Cooper DiLeva and junior transfer Lane Garner are the remaining kickers on the roster. Neither one has been tested in a game at the FBS level. They also haven't instilled confidence in coaches this spring.
"It's still wide open," Lewis said. "It's been wildly inconsistent. We're looking to solidify the situation in-house, but the solution might come outside the family as well."
Cal Poly transfer Noah Serna announced his commitment to SDSU this week. Serna will arrive over the summer and become the only kicker on the roster with four-year college experience. The senior from Riverside was 24-for-32 over the past three seasons for the Mustangs with a long of 51 yards.
DiLeva, an Arkansas transfer who did not play last season for the Razorbacks, kicked two years at El Camino College, where he made 19 of 27 field goals with a long of 41 yards. DiLeva said after practice this week he's comfortable from as far as 57 yards.
"I have to come out here every day and prove to them why I'm an elite-level kicker who can put it through the uprights," DiLeva said. "I have to go out there and have fun, trust my technique and just swing free."
Garner kicked the past two years at Northern California's Butte College, where he made 17 of 21 field goals with a long of 48 yards.
Lewis said both players have had good days and bad days. One day they're making the shorter kicks and missing the longer ones. Another day it's just the opposite.
Saturday’s scrimmage was a good day. DiLeva was 5-for-5 and Garner was 4-for-5, with both making a long of 50 yards. Garner’s miss was from 46 yards.
"No one's been consistent enough and no one has game experience to where you can hitch your wagon to that right now and feel good about it," Lewis said. "That was the thing that made Gabe so great. The past couple of years you knew exactly what you were going to get every single day, and it's so critically important. You trot those guys out there, you don't get a second down after those kicks."
The long snapper situation was solid before Williams suffered a torn right ACL two weeks ago during a non-contact drill before the Snapdragon scrimmage. The injury requires reconstructive surgery and an 8-12-month recovery.
Williams' injury leaves SDSU with sophomore Connor Poulson as the only able-bodied long snapper on the roster. The Aztecs are expected to bring in another player to compete at the position in August during fall camp.
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This story was originally published May 2, 2026 at 10:12 AM.