Ted Leitner, longtime voice of Aztecs football, leaving the radio booth

The radio voice of San Diego State football is changing for the first time in two decades.

Local sports radio host Jon Schaeffer is replacing longtime broadcaster Ted Leitner as the play-by-play announcer for Aztecs football.

Leitner has called SDSU football for nearly three decades, including the past 19 consecutive seasons. He will do play-by-play for SDSU men’s basketball games for one more year, his 30th, during the 2024-25 season.

“It gets to the point where you still love the work, but the road gets very wearying. I’m tired of the road," Leitner said Thursday.

“Also, and I’ve discussed this with Jon Schaeffer, I don’t think guys should do this into their 80s and keep young guys who are talented stuck behind them."

Leitner said he told Schaeffer two years ago during the SDSU basketball team's run to the NCAA title game that “you paid your dues, and I don’t want to block you by doing it forever because I’m greedy."

Leitner began broadcasting SDSU sports in 1979, a year after he arrived in San Diego as lead sports anchor at KFMB-TV.

He was a Padres broadcaster from 1980-2020 and also did radio broadcasts for the San Diego Clippers and Chargers over the years.

“I’m as lucky as I ever knew or ever thought I could be that I would love my work so much," Leitner said. “I just love the play-by-play. The preparation, the anticipation.

“I will miss everything about it."

Schaeffer will be joined in the SDSU radio booth by Rich Ohrnberger, who has served the past seven seasons as color analyst for Aztecs football games.

“It’s truly an honor to serve as the next voice of San Diego State football and work along my friend and colleague, Rich Ohrnberger,” Schaeffer said. “I hope I can provide Aztec fans with the soundtrack to many memorable moments ahead.

“I also want to congratulate Ted Leitner on his SDSU football tenure. I hope to be able to continue to provide passionate Aztec fans with the exceptional play-by-play they expect and deserve.”

SDSU games are broadcast on San Diego Sports 760. Schaeffer serves as co-host of an afternoon sports show. Ohrnberger, whose six-year NFL career included two seasons with the Chargers, co-hosts a morning show on the station.

Schaeffer came to San Diego in 2017. He has been involved in SDSU football pregame shows as well pregame, halftime and postgame shows for SDSU men’s basketball.

On those occasions when Leitner had a football/basketball conflict, Schaeffer subbed in on basketball broadcasts.

Schaeffer also has play-by-play experience with the Mountain West Network, FOX College Sports, ESPN3, Big East Digital Network and the Phillies Radio Network.

Schaeffer’s debut will come Aug. 31, when the Aztecs open the 2024 season against Texas A&M-Commerce at Snapdragon Stadium.

AztecFAST Showcase

SDSU’s spring practice culminates Saturday with the AztecFAST Showcase, which will provide fans with their first glimpse of the team under new coach Sean Lewis .

Kickoff is 1 p.m. at Snapdragon Stadium.

The event is free, although fans must secure tickets online at goaztecs.com/sdsu/AztecFastShowcase.

Parking is $10 and also can be purchased online.

Lewis said this week that the event will be an open practice more than a game.

He plans to divide it into various sections, including 1-on-1 situations and 7-on-7 drills. There also will be work in the middle of the field and the red zone that resembles more game-like situations.

Lewis estimated that 80 percent of his highly-anticipated “AztecFAST” offense has been installed during five weeks of workouts.

SDSU fans shouldn’t expect Lewis to open the play book much, however. Not with opponents eager to learn what he has in mind for the Aztecs.

“It’s going to be toned down,” Lewis said. “There’s still very much a paranoid ball coach in me. It will be a vanilla script, but it will still be a fun and exciting day.”

Fast talker

It seems nearly every time Lewis gets in front of an audience he is asked to describe what exactly this “AztecsFAST” offense involves.

The subject was broached again Tuesday during a press conference heading into the showcase.

Lewis mentioned that it includes run-and-shoot principles and veer-and-shoot-principles as well elements borrowed from Wisconsin’s two-back offense and concepts introduced by run game coordinator Mike Schmidt .

Then Lewis provided his most colorful explanation yet of AztecFAST:

“Our offense is probably a mutt that you find at the pound that you end up bringing into your home that you love forever and ever and ever.

“It’s got a little bit of everything to it. It’s not a pure blood of any one thing. But, man, it’s ours and we absolutely love it.”

Portal open again

As if SDSU coaches weren't busy enough with the final week of spring football, the NCAA transfer portal opened Monday, providing a two-week window for players to enter their names.

The Aztecs join other coaches across the nation to once again scour the ever-expanding list, which included more than 600 players on the first day.

Lewis said the Aztecs will do their due diligence “just seeing if anyone fits or can help us as we move forward.”

“You’ve got to make some high-speed decisions here that aren’t going to disrupt all the hard work that we’ve done, within our culture and within our locker room,” Lewis said, “but yet still find some pieces that can add value in positions of need. ... to build out this roster to get it to a championship level.”

SDSU is expected to spend most of its time searching for players along both the offensive and defensive lines, the program's biggest areas of need.

“I’ve got a few (scholarships) in my back pocket still,” Lewis said.

Asked how many, he said, “To be determined.”

SDSU had three scholarship players — linebackers New Zealand Williams and Darrell Masaniai and offensive lineman Kyle Stanback — leave the team during the spring. Williams announced in midweek that he was entering the portal.

The Aztecs can expect to see additional players leave for the portal next week after assessing their situations with the program.

This story originally appeared in San Diego Union-Tribune .