The question on nearly every Panther football fan’s mind this week is can Eastern compete with San Diego State. Or better yet, can they win? I’ll spare you the hours of contemplating and looking through statistics. The answers are yes, and yes.

Yes, the No. 6 ranked Panthers (3-0, 2-0) are good enough to hang with the Division I-A Aztecs. And yes, they may even be good enough to beat them.

However, if the Panthers play anything like they did last weekend against Tennessee Tech, they won’t be good enough to beat San Diego State. They won’t be good enough to play with the Aztecs. In fact, they probably wouldn’t be good enough to belong on the same Qualcomm Stadium field.

If Eastern makes the kind of mistakes it did against Tech, the Aztecs will probably kick their tail from there to Tijuana.

This week is when we find out how focused the Panthers can become – on both sides of the ball. Playing a Division I-A team requires smaller programs, like Eastern, to play at an elite level. It requires them to play with more focus, determination and desire. It forces them to play their absolute best game.

If the Panthers are able to do that, they will have a legitimate chance to win. In order to have that chance Eastern will have to eliminate the unnecessary penalties, careless turnovers and missed opportunities. They’ll have to take every break San Diego State gives them and minimize how many they give the Aztecs.

If they do those things, they’ll give themselves a shot. After all, San Diego State isn’t exactly one of the top I-A teams in the country. In fact, they’re mediocre at best.

The Aztecs enter the game with a 1-3 record, including losses to Arizona, Arizona State and Air Force. Their lone win game against Colorado State. The Aztecs rank just 104th out of 113 Division I school in scoring, as they’re averaging just 13 points per game.

But the Aztecs offense has been playing well of late and the man to stop will be running back Larry Ned. Ned rushed for 177 yards against Colorado State and had 178 yards on 24 carries last week.

With the Panthers’ talented secondary, the Aztecs will likely keep the ball on the ground the majority of the time. Eastern’s defense against the run will likely be one of the biggest keys to the game. They’ll also have to keep their eye on receiver J.R.Tolver who has been hot as late. And quarterback Lon Sheriff has completed 60 percent of his passes in the last two games for 307 yards.

Eastern will have to be at the top of their game defensively to slow the Aztecs who have gained momentum on offense as of late. And if San Diego State doesn’t have enough motivation already, Saturday’s game against the Panthers marks their Homecoming.

The Panthers can’t expect to stop San Diego State defensively, but they do have the ability to contain them. That’s where Panther quarterback Tony Romo and the offense will come in. Romo and company will have to be successful enough to keep pace with the Aztecs’ scoring streaks.

Don’t expect this one to be a defensive struggle. But if Romo can keep pace with his passing game and backs Andre Raymond and J.R. Taylor continue to pick up hard fought yards while hanging on to the football, Eastern will give itself a shot to win.

But perhaps more important than the Panthers making big plays on both sides of the ball, will be keeping from making some of the bone-headed plays they made last week.

If they’re able to execute while playing smart, clean football, Eastern will give itself a chance to win – a chance to rain on the Aztecs’ Homecoming parade and propel themselves toward a chance at the Division I-AA national championship. They’ll have the chance to be kings of southern California for a day.

But if they don’t do those things, they’ll find themselves sitting on a sore ass somewhere in Tijuana wondering how to get back over the border.