In the final home game of the regular season, the Fresno State football team was taken down by the Utah State Aggies, 28-17.
The loss puts an end to the Bulldogs’ hopes of a Mountain West title in their final year in the conference.
“Frustrating night, one that we wish we’d probably have back,” said Head Coach Matt Entz. “Just as we watch the film, too many errors, too many, just we got in our own way too much.”
It was a tale of two halves, as the Bulldogs put up all of their points in the first two quarters.
The Aggies came out of the break and scored 21 unanswered points.
“You know defensively, I felt like we got tired in the second half,” Entz said. “Two 16-play drives, ample opportunities on third down to get off the field. Just couldn’t get it done.”
Utah State converted 7-of-8 third-down opportunities in the second half, compared to just 1-of-8 in the first half.
Whether it was penalties on the Bulldogs or Aggies quarterback Bryson Barnes extending plays, Utah State was able to sustain drives in the second half.
E.J. Warner made his return as the starting quarterback tonight, throwing for 187 yards, one passing touchdown, but also added an interception. This was his first game as the starter since the loss to Colorado State.
Penalties cost the Bulldogs opportunities to end drives on defense and the ability to sustain drives on offense.
Despite a first half that saw the ‘Dogs commit just three penalties, one of them took points off the board.
Wide receiver Josiah Freeman took a handoff 55 yards and into the end zone in the second quarter. The play was called back because of a holding penalty, which resulted in a stalled drive and a punt on fourth down.
In the second half, penalties hurt the Bulldogs even more. The ‘Dogs committed seven penalties, resulting in 68 free yards to the Aggies.
“We need to be able to have ball control,” Entz said. “We need to play field position, so that way we’re not on the field as long as we are, you know, from a defensive standpoint.”
Saturday’s loss marks the final time the 27 seniors on the roster would play under the lights of Valley Children’s Stadium. Despite the loss, Entz credited them for their play.
“There was a lot of emotion tonight on the field,” Entz said. “All of them were super excited about the opportunity to get one more chance to play in the stadium tonight.”
Longtime Bulldog Camryn Bracha forced a fumble in his last game at home.
Senior defensive lineman Finn Claypool totalled four tackles, including a sack and two and a half tackles for loss.
While the loss ends any chance at a Mountain West Championship berth, the Bulldogs still have one final regular-season game and a guaranteed bowl game ahead of them.
“You know, we continue to keep battling, keep growing,” Entz said. “We got one game left [in the] regular season and can’t wait to get back to work.”
The Bulldogs (7-4, 4-3) will look to close out the regular season with a win when they head on the road to take on the San Jose State Spartans (3-8, 2-5) on Nov. 29. Kick off is set for 7:30 p.m.
