The Fresno State Bulldogs opened up their season with a 31-7 loss on the road to the University of Kansas Jayhawks.
With so much excitement built up for the Bulldogs playing in a Week 0 game and against a solid Big 12 opponent, Fresno State surprisingly came up short in the season opener.
The ‘Dogs scored just once. To add insult to injury, it came on their opening drive of the game at the seven-minute mark of the first quarter.
Following their opening drive touchdown, the Bulldogs ended four drives with punts, three of which were on three-and-outs.
So, what exactly went wrong?
E.J. Warner and the offensive line
Starting quarterback E.J. Warner struggled to get anything going all night.
He threw for 179 passing yards, lost a fumble and threw two interceptions. One interception bounced off a Bulldog receiver’s chest plate, while the other was a definite head scratcher.
In the second quarter, on 3rd and 7 at Kansas’ own 47-yard line, Warner dropped back in the pocket, then rolled out left looking to find anyone downfield.
Instead of throwing the ball away because no one was open, Warner floated a ball down the sideline to a crowd of seven bodies, four of which were in blue jerseys.
A Kansas defensive back came down with the ball, giving the Jayhawks another shot at points before halftime, which they capitalized on.
Mistakes happen from quarterbacks all the time, especially with the pressure Warner endured all game long. But this one looked something straight out of a game of elementary school three flags up.
Considering that Warner is a veteran quarterback, his performance was a bit shocking.
Nonetheless, the offensive line didn’t do much to help out Warner and the backfield either. Warner spent most of his night getting chased around by Jayhawk defensive linemen, while the running backs couldn’t get anything going with minimal lanes to work with.
Kansas had three total sacks and 10 tackles for loss.
Jalon Daniels is tough
Kansas’ starting quarterback Jalon Daniels put on a show Saturday night.
Daniels completed 18 of his 20 passing attempts, throwing for 176 yards and three passing touchdowns. He also added 47 yards rushing on eight carries.
The Bulldog defensive line couldn’t get Daniels on the ground, despite getting in the backfield a handful of times. Daniels was able to improvise when needed and took care of the ball.
Only the Drake University transfer, Finn Claypool, was able to get Daniels down behind the line of scrimmage. Claypool’s first sack in a Bulldog uniform came in the second quarter when he bull-rushed through the Jayhawk offensive line, forcing Daniels to run around before finally taking him down for a seven-yard loss.
Mental errors
Untimely penalties kept the Bulldogs from having sustained drives and also getting the defense off the field.
Before Warner’s second-quarter interception, the Bulldogs had a 3rd and 2 at the Kansas 47-yard line. A false start penalty against freshman left tackle Brayden Walton forced the ‘Dogs from a manageable 3rd down into a must-pass situation.
The following play ended with Warner’s interception.
On 2nd and 15 in the first quarter, defensive back Jakari Embry was called for a defensive pass interference. An overthrow from Daniels turned into a free first down because of the penalty.
The Jayhawks capped off the drive with a rushing touchdown.
These penalties happened early in this game and weren’t the reason the Bulldogs lost. However, drive-killing penalties against the offense and free first downs from defensive holdings hurt any momentum this team had built up.
Where do they go from here?
At the end of the day, this was the first game of the season. The ‘Dogs faced a team with a shifty quarterback and a strong defensive front while on the road.
The panic meter shouldn’t be through the roof for any fan, especially considering this is a relatively new team with new coaches and schemes. There were always going to be some growing pains.
It’s easy to overreact these days. While this loss feels very similar to those of last year, expect Head Coach Matt Entz to turn this around.
Playcalling can be more aggressive, and not just when down multiple scores in the fourth quarter.
The secondary did not play well. They often got stuck on blocks and couldn’t find ways to stop the ball. Better secondary play is urgently needed if the ‘Dogs want to improve.
The running back usage was interesting, with five running backs getting carries in this game. This running back room is legit; they just need to get in the open field, even if it’s through a dump-off pass.
Bryson Donelson led with 11 carries for 34 yards but also added one catch for 39 yards. The other four backs combined for just 27 rushing yards on 13 total carries. Elijah Gilliam did have the lone score on a 3-yard rushing touchdown in the first quarter.
Although his work was limited, wide receiver Josiah Freeman reeled in three catches for 43 yards. Freeman has the speed and size to be a solid first option, but a second option needs to be found quickly.
The Bulldogs will look to bounce back next Saturday, Aug. 30, when they face off against Georgia Southern University at Valley Children’s Stadium with kickoff set for 6:30 p.m.