BULLDOGS
Quarterbacks
In the upsetting loss against Oregon, Paul Pinegar had a career
game. He completed 33-of 43 passes for a career-high 418 yards and
three touchdowns. But also in the game, he threw the first interception
of the season. Tom Brandstater did not register any minutes in the
last game, but there’s a good chance he might get some playing
time against Toledo if the Bulldogs take care of business like they
did with Weber State.
Running Backs
It is obvious Wendell Mathis is the go-to guy in the backfield.
In two games, he rushed for four touchdowns, and caught a 20-yard
touchdown pass from Pingear in the second quarter of the Oregon
game. Look for Mathis to contribute to the Bulldogs’ offense
early in the game. If Mathis isn’t in the game, Bryson Sumlin
is a strong second option. In the first game of the season against
Weber State, Sumlin came in for Mathis in the second half and recorded
69 yards on 12 carries.
Receivers
Paul Williams is Pinegar’s favorite target and it showed against
Oregon, especially when Williams made a reception over an Oregon
defender. He also had 122 yards. Pinegar will also look to Matt
Rivera, who caught a touchdown pass late in the Oregon game to help
the Bulldogs get within three points.
Offensive Line
The Bulldogs have been doing an impressive job giving Pinegar the
room to throw. But this time around, the young Bulldogs’ offensive
line will go up against a defensive line that is more experienced;
most are returning starters.
Defensive Line
The Bulldogs can’t hide the fact that they dearly miss All-American
Garrett McIntyre. Against Oregon, Fresno State couldn’t stop
Terrence Whitehead’s two-yard run when the Ducks faced fourth-and-1,
but the line kept the Ducks under control for most of the game.
And Ahijah Lane had an impressive game with two sacks for a total
loss of nine yards.
Linebackers
Dwayne Andrews had a notable game against Oregon. He had eight tackles,
and was part of the defense that kept the Ducks scoreless early
in the first quarter. In the past two games, Andrews has racked
up five solo tackles for a total of 11.
Defensive Backs
The defensive backs had trouble holding down Oregon’s Demetrius
Williams. He scored two touchdowns of 23 and 12 yards. But Richard
Marshall and Marcus McCauley combined for 15 tackles against Oregon.
Special Teams
Now that kick return specialist Clifton Smith is out for the season,
the job of returning kicks lies in the hands of Adam Jennings, who
had 154 yards in six kickoff returns against Oregon. Clint Stitser
made two field goals of 27 yards.
Coaching
Head coach Pat Hill had a tough game against Oregon because his
Bulldogs had 16 penalties for 155 yards. But Tuesday’s game
will be at Bulldog Stadium, where Fresno State is 39-7 since Hill
took over nine seasons ago.
Intangibles
The Bulldogs are definitely looking to get back to their winning
ways with Toledo coming to town. The game will be featured on ESPN2
and sets up an opportunity for Fresno State to redeem itself on
national television. Bulldog Stadium will be buzzing with 30,000-plus
fans and is always a tough place for opponents to try to get a victory.
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ROCKETS
Quarterbacks
Senior Bruce Gradowski comes to Fresno State as one of the most
accomplished players in Toledo history. Despite coming off hand
surgery in the off-season. Gradowski is still making noise on the
national scene, being named to numerous Heisman watch lists, Like
Pinegar, Gradowski is on pace to breaking some school records. During
his career, he has already had the most touchdown passes, passing
yards per attempt and touchdown pass percentage.
Edge: Even
Running Backs
Seniors Trinity Dawson and Quinton Broussard lead this group in
experience but the running back who made the most impact last season
was Scooter McDougle, who led the team in rushing with 620 yards
and seven touchdown. McDougle ‘scooted’ his way to consecutive
100-plus yards in wins over Northern Illinois, Bowling Green and
Miami last year but has not made much of a splash this year after
returning from off-season knee surgery. McDougle may make his season
debut against the Bulldogs.
Edge: Bulldogs
Receivers
Toledo’s receivers are lacking experience, with the departure
of two-time All-MAC standout Lance Moore, who finished his career
as the school’s all-time leading receiver with 222 receptions
and 25 touchdown catches. Steve Odom is Toledo’s best bet
at receiver. Last year as a sophomore, Odom had 53 receptions, racked
up 675 receiving yards and had five touchdown interceptions.
Edge: Bulldogs
Offensive Line
Four-time All-MAC tackle Nick Kaczur and two-year starter center
David Odenthal are gone but the Rockets’ offensive line returns
three starters in senior guard Chris Wakeman, sophomore guards David
Perkins and John Greco. Greco was named Toledo’s ‘Freshman
of the Year’ last year.
Edge: Even
Defensive Line
The line returns most of its players with mostly freshmen and sophomores
playing last year. New defensive coordinator Tim Rose has switched
Toledo from a 4-4 alignment to a 3-4. Sophomore defensive tackle
Tyree Pollard and Patrick Clark are battling for playing time. Pollard
had 19 tackles and Clark had three in five games.
Edge: Rockets
Linebackers
This unit has the most depth for Toledo, with seniors Anthony Jordan
and David Thomas leading the way. Both will anchor the inside linebacker
positions. Jordan has accumulated 107 tackles in 2004 and a total
of 245 tackles the last two seasons. Thomas had a break-out season
last year, racking up 91 tackles for the season. Head coach Amstutz
deems these two the ‘heart and soul of our defense.’
Edge: Rockets
Defensive Backs
Senior Antonio Malone and sophomore Migel Morris return as starters
from last year. Malone has 129 tackles so far and five interceptions.
Morris has 76 tackles and three interceptions
Edge: Bulldogs
Special Teams
Senior placekicker Jason Robbins returns along with two other kickers
this season. Returning for his fourth season, Robbins was 9 of 10
on field goals and 55 of 56 on extra points last year. Sophomore
Mike Krispinsky will handle kickoffs and Brett Kern is coming off
a solid freshman season.
Edge: Rockets
Coaching
The last four years, head coach Tom Amstutz has coached the Rockets
to three bowl games, two MAC championships and three MAC West Division
titles and are 3-0 coming into Bulldog Stadium. But, their victories
have come over lightweights Western Illinois, Western Michigan and
Temple.
Edge: Bulldogs
Intangibles
Looks like Fresno State will be the Rockets’ real test this
season. Toledo is the defending MAC champions but beating the Bulldogs
at Bulldog Stadium is a tall order. Add the pressure of being televised
nationally on ESPN2 and playing in front of 30,000-plus fans might
be too much for the Rockets.
Edge: Bulldogs |
