When it came down to holding the lead, Fresno State couldn’t get it done.

Last Saturday’s matchup against Tulsa was a close battle in which the Bulldogs dominated for a quarter of the game. However, in the remaining three quarters, the ’Dogs were outscored 20-6 as Fresno State lost 27-26 against the Golden Hurricane.

“We got off to a good start and got turnovers,” said strong safety Phillip Thomas. “But you know it’s not always how you start a game, but it’s how you finish a game and we finished horribly.”

Although both teams scored more than 60 points a week ago, Saturday’s matchup was mainly dominated by defense. Fresno State was again able to win the turnover margin 3-2, but the Bulldogs weren’t able to capitalize offensively. Linebackers Tristan Okpalaugo and Patrick Su’a each grabbed an interception. Defensive back Derron Smith also added one while collecting a total of six sacks.

“Our defense just communicated. No matter what tempo they (Tulsa) went through, we just stayed the system at our tempo and played ball,” Su’a said.

The Golden Hurricane was able to hold the Bulldogs to only 364 yards of total offense as Fresno State continuously stalled on second and third downs.

“It’s tough. It sucks. Every time we come off the field on third down,” quarterback Derek Carr said. “It’s awful, especially when we know what we’re capable of doing. That makes it worst.”

Early in the second quarter, Tulsa closed the scoring gap on a 31-yard pass from quarterback Cody Green to wide receiver Keyarris Garrett. Then toward the end of the first half, with Fresno State driving again, the ’Dogs were forced to kick a field goal. Redshirt freshman Quentin Bresheares attempted a 33-yard field goal in Tulsa territory and missed wide left.

“It’s nothing that they did, which hurts even more,” Carr said.

Running back Robbie Rouse was able to have another strong game rushing for 135 yards and one touchdown. However, his production came tough as he carried the ball for a total of 27 times. Another offensive standout in the game against Tulsa was sophomore receiver Josh Harper who had 115 yards on seven receptions. Harper also added a 32-yard touchdown on a pass from Carr late in the first quarter.

“We came out and started great and started fast. I loved how we practice (this week),” Carr said.

Fresno State was able to widen its lead to 26-17 early in the third quarter. Su’a intercepted a pass thrown by Green and returned it for a touchdown. However, on the extra point Bresheares’ kick was blocked by Tulsa.

“They’re a great team and they capitalize when you make mistakes. You got to give them credit because they did exactly what they needed to do,” Carr said.

Down the stretch, the Bulldogs were unable to get anything going offensively. Tulsa was able to slowly but surely kick itself back into the game.

“There are a lot of things that happened in that game. It wasn’t offense, defense or special teams, it was a combination of all three [that hurt us],” head coach Tim DeRutyer said.

After a couple of field goals from Tulsa to make the game 26-20, the Golden Hurricane began one final drive from the Bulldogs’ 34-yard line. Green was able to conduct a perfect drive for the winning touchdown that resulting in Tulsa going up for good 27-26.

“The most frustrating part is walking out with them having more points than us,” Rouse said.

“Tulsa came out big and played hard. They wanted it more than us,” Su’a added.

Fresno State begins conference play next week at home as they face San Diego State (2-2). The Bulldogs will look to bounce back in their first Mountain West matchup.

“There are some things that we feel we can do right and we’re going to fix them,” Rouse said.

“Now San Diego State gets to play a pretty upset Bulldog team coming up real soon,” Carr added.