Fresno State is 21-23 since losing to USC.
Another year means yet another loss to Boise State. Friday night’s 51-34 loss at Bulldog Stadium continues a trend for Fresno State – four straight losses to the Broncos and losses in eight of the last nine meetings.
But besides the one “rivalryâ€Â game every year, Boise State’s program has moved leaps and bounds beyond Fresno State in the past five seasons. Or has Fresno State fallen behind?
It really depends on perspective. Before Nov. 19, 2005, the night Fresno State nearly upset then-No. 1 ranked USC 50-42, Fresno State and Boise State were fairly even programs, matching each other in most statistical categories.
Each team has played 44 games since that night, with vastly different results. But before that night, both schools were pretty close.
Fresno State had a cumulative record of 499-335-27, giving the Bulldogs an all-time winning percentage of 58 percent. Boise State had gone 307-138-2, winning 61 percent of its games at the university level up to that point.
Both schools had won three WAC Titles before that fateful November night and the series between the programs was tied at four wins apiece.
The 44 games leading up to the USC game in the 2002, 2003, 2004 and early 2005 seasons were close as well. Fresno State was 32-12 and Boise State was 39-5 in the 44 games prior to Nov. 19, 2005.
But Bulldog Football hasn̢۪t been the same since the loss. And Boise State? Well, the program has been nothing but stellar, jumping at the opportunity to seize conference supremacy and leaving the Bulldogs behind to flutter in mediocrity.
Here is the statistical comparison of the two WAC football programs since the Bulldogs fell to the Trojans. (Stats beginning Nov. 26, 2005 through Friday, Sept. 18, 2009)
Record
Overall Record:
Fresno State (FS): 21-23
Boise State (BS): 39-5
Home record:
FS: 11-9
BS: 21-0
Road record:
FS: 9-12
BS: 17-2
Conference record:
FS: 14-13
BS: 25-1
Bowl record:
FS: 1-2
BS: 1-3
Record against Top 25 teams:
FS: 0-9 (Losses to Boise State(3), Oregon(2), LSU, Texas A&M, Hawaii, Wisconsin)
BS: 3-3 (Wins against Oregon (2) and Oklahoma. Losses to Boston College, Hawaii and TCU)
Record against Bowl Championship Series (BCS) teams:
FS: 4-7 (Wins against Kansas State, Georgia Tech, Rutgers and UCLA. Losses to Oregon(2), Wisconsin(2), Washington, LSU, Texas A&M.)
BS: 4-2 (Wins against Oregon(2), Oregon State and Oklahoma. Losses to Boston College and Washington.)
Record against “Mid-Majorâ€Â teams (conference and nonconference):
FS: 15-15
BS: 31-3
Record against Football Championship Series (FCS) teams:
FS: 2-0
BS: 3-0
Record against Hawaii Warriors:
FS: 0-3
BS: 2-1
Quarterback Statistics
Completion percentage:
FS: 59.4
BS: 66.5
Yardage:
FS: 8,927
BS: 11,253
Yards per attempt:
FS: 7.2
BS: 8.3
Touchdowns:
FS: 63 (One TD every 20 attempts)
BS: 100 (One TD every 13 attempts)
Interceptions:
FS: 44 (One INT every 28 attempts)
BS: 35 (One INT every 39 attempts)
Quarterback rating:
FS: 129.2
BS: 155.9
Rushing Statistics
Attempts:
FS: 1702
BS: 1719
Yardage:
FS: 8508
BS: 8061
Yards per attempt:
FS: 5.0
BS: 4.7
Rushing touchdowns:
FS: 83 (One TD every 21 carries)
BS: 100 (One TD every 17 carries)
Scoring
Average point total per game:
FS: 29.31
BS: 38.04
Average opponent point total per game:
FS: 29.27
BS: 16.79
Program accomplishments
WAC Titles:
FS: Zero
BS: Conference titles in 2005, 2006 and 2008
BCS Bowl births:
FS: Zero
BS: One – 2007 Fiesta Bowl
Undefeated regular seasons:
FS: Zero
BS: Two – 2006 and 2008 seasons.
Last sellout:
FS: Sept. 13, 2008 (No. 10 Wisconsin)
BS: Sept. 12, 2009 (Miami (Ohio))
Signature victory:
FS: The Bulldogs beat Georgia Tech, 40-28, in the 2007 Humanitarian Bowl. Think Clifton Smith … “Look into my eyes and tell me what you see. I see greatness,â€Â Smith said after the game while looking into an ESPN camera.
BS: The Broncos beat Oklahoma, 43-42, in overtime, in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl. Think “Hook & Ladderâ€Â and “Statue of Liberty.â€Â
Conclusion
Boise State has clearly been the dominant program since the USC game. The Broncos own nearly every statistical category and haven̢۪t looked back since Nov. 19, 2005. Every Fresno State player who participated in the USC game has graduated or moved on.
Are the Bulldogs still in a daze and will they ever recover from that USC heartbreaker? Have the Broncos been getting that much better than the Bulldogs? Or has Fresno State been getting worse since Nov. 19, 2005?
Dan Nelson • Sep 22, 2009 at 5:59 am
I have been reading some of the articles coming out of Fresno concerning the Boise State – Fresno game. Fresno played an awesome game, and I believe they will do well this season. Fresno has nothing to be ashamed of concerning this game.
However, I am very disappointed that Pat Hill is playing the dirty hit card. He claims that Boise State made two dirty hits on his players. That is nonsense. If you review the game videos you would see that on the 22 yard run, the Boise State player was blocked in the back into the quaterback. The Boise State player was hurt worse than the Fresno quarterback. The other play, the Fresno blocker made a chop block and the Boise State player jumped him. If you look at the play in slow motion, you can clearly see that the Boise State player hit the quaterback with his shoulder first.
It is really sad that Pat Hill would make such inflamitory statements without really looking at the film. I hope that the Fresno fan base lets Mr. Hill know that this is a cheap shot that Fresno doesn’t need. The Fresno team played hard and did an awesome job. They don’t need to lower themselves to this level to explain the loss. They should be celebrating the fact that they scored so well against a team that held Oregon to 8 points and no first half first downs.
Dan Nelson • Sep 22, 2009 at 12:59 pm
I have been reading some of the articles coming out of Fresno concerning the Boise State – Fresno game. Fresno played an awesome game, and I believe they will do well this season. Fresno has nothing to be ashamed of concerning this game.
However, I am very disappointed that Pat Hill is playing the dirty hit card. He claims that Boise State made two dirty hits on his players. That is nonsense. If you review the game videos you would see that on the 22 yard run, the Boise State player was blocked in the back into the quaterback. The Boise State player was hurt worse than the Fresno quarterback. The other play, the Fresno blocker made a chop block and the Boise State player jumped him. If you look at the play in slow motion, you can clearly see that the Boise State player hit the quaterback with his shoulder first.
It is really sad that Pat Hill would make such inflamitory statements without really looking at the film. I hope that the Fresno fan base lets Mr. Hill know that this is a cheap shot that Fresno doesn’t need. The Fresno team played hard and did an awesome job. They don’t need to lower themselves to this level to explain the loss. They should be celebrating the fact that they scored so well against a team that held Oregon to 8 points and no first half first downs.
BoiseStateRocks • Sep 21, 2009 at 9:55 am
I don’t think the Bulldogs have gotten worse, last Friday night being the prime example. It seems that they just lose some games that they really shouldn’t (Utah State in 2007) and lose some really hard fought games that are really close (Wisconsin). Boise State fans respect Pat Hill’s strategy, but consistency should be the goal. Once that’s nailed down, the Bulldogs should be *almost* unstoppable.
BoiseStateRocks • Sep 21, 2009 at 4:55 pm
I don’t think the Bulldogs have gotten worse, last Friday night being the prime example. It seems that they just lose some games that they really shouldn’t (Utah State in 2007) and lose some really hard fought games that are really close (Wisconsin). Boise State fans respect Pat Hill’s strategy, but consistency should be the goal. Once that’s nailed down, the Bulldogs should be *almost* unstoppable.
agree • Sep 21, 2009 at 7:31 am
We’ve gotten worse. We havent had a solid performance since then.
agree • Sep 21, 2009 at 2:31 pm
We’ve gotten worse. We havent had a solid performance since then.