Fresno State opened the season with a win — a grinder that came down to the last play in overtime against a Rutgers team that featured speedy receivers and went toe-to-toe with the Bulldogs’ up-tempo spread offense.
The Bulldogs face a different test on Saturday at Bulldog Stadium when they host Cal Poly in their Ag Night Game. The Mustangs, ranked 10th in the nation among Football Championship Subdivision schools, run a triple-option offense and a 4-3 base formation on defense.
Stephan Teodosescu, sports editor of The Mustang Daily, Cal Poly’s student newspaper, says the emergence of one of the Mustangs’ running backs and a swarming defense are among the main strengths the Mustangs will bring on Saturday.
Fresno State won 38-17 in its last meeting with Cal Poly in 2010.
Here’s more of what Teodosescu had to share about the Mustangs in a Q&A with The Collegian.
THE COLLEGIAN: What were some observations to take away from the Mustangs’ 38-13 season-opening win against San Diego?
MUSTANG DAILY: The main takeaway from last weekend’s season-opening win is that junior slotback Kristaan Ivory may be better than advertised. He scored three touchdowns on a career-high 185 yards against San Diego. For a run-heavy triple-option team like Cal Poly, having a touchdown threat like Ivory is paramount.
The Mustangs also threw the ball a bit more in that game than I expect we’ll see in the next few games, but based on the numbers first-year starting quarterback Vince Moraga showed he can move the chains in Cal Poly’s system.
Ivory had a big game, he scored a touchdown on his first carryon Saturday. How did he develop this offseason, and what other weapons will the Cal Poly offense feature this season?
It was well understood going into the season that Ivory would be getting most of the carries out of the backfield this year. He was the Mustangs’ second-leading rusher last year scoring eight touchdowns on 728 total yards. He’s waited a while to become the featured back, and he made the most of his opportunity on that first carry Saturday.
As for the rest of the offense, I expect senior slotback Cole Stanford and junior wider receiver Willie Tucker to step up this year. Stanford won’t get as many carries as Ivory out of the other slotback position, but expect him to catch some passes to complement his run game.
Tucker is Cal Poly’s most elite receiver in this run-based offense, and while they won’t throw to him too often, he’ll get the bulk of the passes this season. He’s shown that he’s capable of making an explosive play downfield like his 74-yard catch against the Toreros.
What is quarterback Vince Moraga’s role in the triple-option offense? We saw some versatility from Cal Poly last week (Moraga threw for 226 yards and Cal Poly rushed for 307 yards)…
Moraga is a fifth-year junior who’s been the Mustangs’ primary backup quarterback for the past two seasons. He won a four-way QB battle for the starting spot that raged on through fall camp primarily because of his experience in the triple-option.
The game against San Diego was his first career start and while his passing stats looked impressive, I think we’ll see less of the air game than the ground game against Fresno State. Overall, his arm hasn’t been tested much, so I think Cal Poly will stick with the run, especially against a big defense like Fresno State’s.
Defensively, what should Fresno State expect to see from Cal Polyon Saturday? Who are some playmakers in that unit?
Defensively, Fresno State better be ready to see 11 white jerseys going after the ball all at once. An FCS program like Cal Poly probably doesn’t have the speed of its FBS counterparts, so what it lacks in one-on-one playmakers, it will make up with in swarming defense to try to force turnovers.
The main guys to watch will be defensive tackle and Fresno native Sullivan Grosz, senior corner Vante Smith-Johnson and senior safety Alex Hubbard. Grosz had two sacks last weekend, and you know he’ll be playing tough in front of family and friends inside Bulldog Stadium.
Head coach Tim Walsh also mentioned this week that Cal Poly will use five or six defensive backs to counter Fresno State’s high octane offense. I figure Smith-Johnson and Hubbard will get plenty of that workload on Saturday considering the Bulldogs’ pass attack, so look for them to make some plays in the defensive backfield.
Playing FBS schools is not something new for Cal Poly. Is there a certain way the team is approaching its upcoming road game against Fresno State?
Yes: Run the football. I think this game will come down to time of possession for Cal Poly. The Mustangs are going to want to shorten the game to keep the ball out of the Fresno State offense’s hands, and that means they’re going to put the ball on the ground often.
They might pull out some play action passes as well to keep Fresno State guessing. But, Cal Poly will mainly play to its strengths in the triple-option, and that means running the ball. They’ll have to execute perfectly to win this one.
Cal Poly had a good season last year, finishing 9-3. In which direction is the program trending this season?
At this point in the season, it’s tough to say. The Mustangs lost their two best offensive weapons in their leading rusher and a two-year starter at quarterback from a year ago, so in a sense the offense is in a rebuilding phase.
They boasted the FCS’s No. 3 rushing offense last season meaning that replicating that success will be difficult.
The defense remains largely intact, and overall should have a better year than it did last season. It’s interesting to note that this season’s schedule is much tougher than in years past, too.
Head coach Tim Walsh even dubbed it the most challenging schedule he’s faced in his five years at the helm. With two FBS schools (Fresno State and Colorado State) on the slate, a tough game at Montana and a home matchup with an Eastern Washington team that just knocked off No. 25 Oregon State, another 9-3 season will render it a very successful year for Cal Poly football.