As Fresno State clinched its sixth conference win in Las Vegas, the team also became eligible for a bowl game.
This win now puts the Bulldogs up with an overall record of 6-4 and 5-1 in the Mountain West (MW).
The beginning of the season didn’t look promising for Fresno State football, with losses to Oregon State, University of Southern California, University of Connecticut and Boise State.
Things turned around when the ‘Dogs sparked a five-game winning streak, beginning with their homecoming game victory against San José State.
The 37-30 win over the University of Nevada, Las Vegas on Friday night placed the Bulldogs on the path to the Mountain West (MW) West Division title. After San Jose State fell 43-37 against San Diego State, the Bulldogs only needed to beat Nevada or Wyoming to play in the MW Conference Championship Game.
Fresno State is sitting at the top of the West Division with a record of 5-1. With one more win the ‘Dogs will be guaranteed a division title because of their wins over the Spartans (4-2 MW) and the Aztecs (4-2 MW).
The Bulldogs will next take on the Nevada Wolf Pack, who have lost their last eight games. They are expected to play in below-freezing temperatures that are forecast for Reno on Saturday Nov. 19.
Fresno State is no stranger to last-minute comebacks, and the team pulled another one against UNLV with quarterback Jake Haener’s touchdown drives.
“That’s an excellent football team. So that was a big one for us,” said Head Coach Jeff Tedford.
The Rebels led the game with time of possession, but it wasn’t enough as they went head-to-head with the return of the dynamic duo, Haener and receiver Jalen Moreno-Cropper. Their game-saving play of Haener’s 67-yard touchdown pass to Moreno-Cropper was a main highlight of the game.
Haener and fellow senior captain Evan Williams have had quite a return from their injuries by riding the now five-game winning streak. Haener noted that if it wasn’t for the team’s fight throughout the season when the two were going through rehabilitation, they wouldn’t be where they are now.
“Shout out to the guys rolling down and getting us in a position to have this West Division lead and really play critical games in November,” Haener said.
Williams also attributed the team’s success to the work that was continuously done even through the team’s early losses. The Rebels started the game with high intensity, and the Bulldogs were able to feed off of it for their win.
“A win is a win. Win at all costs. That’s our motto. Some of them aren’t going to be pretty, and we kind of have to deal with that and grind games like these out,” Williams said. “It’s a little unreal to pull it out at the end like that. But it just feels great.”
If Fresno State lands a spot in the conference championship, it is still unknown who they will play. The potential opponent will be decided next week when Wyoming hosts Boise State. The winner between the Cowboys and the Broncos will hold first place in the Mountain Division.
Two possibilities can come from either team winning. If Boise State wins, it would win the Mountain Division and have home-field advantage for the conference championship game. If Wyoming wins, it would also have to beat Fresno State on Nov. 25 for a possible Mountain Division title.
Fresno State’s outcome in the Wyoming game will determine whether it travels to Boise for the championship game or travels for a back-to-back rematch with the Cowboys.
The last California Bowl game was on Dec.14, 1991, at then-named Bulldog Stadium.
For Fresno State to host another California Bowl, the Bulldogs would have to win their last two games and the Broncos would have to lose their last two.
