“Be quick but don’t hurry.” San Diego State football coach Sean Lewis is fond of the quote from the legendary John Wooden. Lewis repeated the line recently while looking to replace SDSU defensive coordinator Eric Schmidt, who was hired Dec. 8 as head coach at the University of North Dakota. Schmidt left a day before the NCAA transfer portal opened. Lewis needed to find a new DC quickly in order to provide clarity for potential defensive recruits. But Lewis didn’t want to make a hurried decision only for it to be the wrong one. The search was brief. Five days after Schmidt left, Lewis promoted SDSU edge rushers coach Rob Aurich to defensive coordinator. Aurich also assumes Schmidt’s duties as linebackers coach, so the Aztecs still are looking for someone to coach the edge rushers. “Rob has coordinated and led elite defenses, and he will do the same here for us,” Lewis said when Aurich’s promotion was announced. The reference was most notably to Aurich’s 2022-23 seasons as defensive coordinator at Idaho, where the Vandals ranked in the top 25 nationally among FCS schools in total defense. Talent acquisition is among Aurich’s first tasks in his new assignment. SDSU added two defensive players from the portal last week, signing Grand Valley State (Mich.) edge Niles King and Utah State linebacker Tanner Williams. Aztecs reserve linebacker Brady Anderson also announced he was returning for his last year after entering the portal a week earlier. More transfer commitments are expected this weekend, with five defensive players taking official visits. Among those coming to campus is Nevada defensive lineman Mackavelli Malotumau, an El Camino High School graduate. Two other defensive linemen visiting are Hawaii’s Malachi Finau and Mathias Malaki-Donaldson. Incarnate Word linebacker Mister Williams and Cal Poly cornerback Kai Rapolla are the other defensive players in town. The Aztecs are looking for complementary pieces after retaining core returners from this year’s defense in edge Trey White, defensive tackle Krishna Clay, linebacker Tano Letuli and defensive backs Chris Johnson, Eric Butler and Dalesean Staley. “When you’re able to return your core,” Aurich said, “you have the ability to really find some improvement and elevate play because it’s not your first year with them. “They inspire me every day. I want to do this job really well because they put their trust in us. I’ve got a lot of love in my heart for the guys who decided to stay.” Returning so many starters means the Aztecs won’t be starting from scratch next season. That’s especially crucial given SDSU’s defense ranked 99th in the nation this year in points allowed per game (29.6) and 115th in total yards allowed per game (421.3). San Diego State edge Ryan Henderson (96) celebrates on the field during their game against the Texas A&M-Commerce at Snapdragon Stadium on Saturday, Aug. 31, 2024 in San Diego, CA. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune) “I didn’t think we were deep enough to consistently play at the level we needed to,” Aurich said. “But we could tell that the roots of a really good defense are in there. … “We feel that we underachieved. I think there’s some things we can do to put us ourselves in situations where the defense can perform at an elite level, and I think we can be good really quickly.” SDSU will run the 4-2-5 defense, with some Cover 2 and Cover 3. Aurich said some things will be simplified in an effort to play the defensive equivalent of “AztecFAST.” “When you watch our defense, there are going to be three things that stick out,” Aurich said. “They know what to do. They know how to get there. And they finish with violence. “We’ve got work to do.”