Bulldogs win? It's true.

Logo-less Bulldogs earn long awaited second win of the season

By Jeffrey Christian
The Collegian

For the first time in 10 seasons at Fresno State, there were no Bulldog decals on the players’ helmets and coach Pat Hill wasn’t wearing his red hat on the sideline.

The helmets and hat weren’t being cleaned and there wasn’t some sort of mix-up in the locker room.

Boasting a 1-7 record, the Bulldogs hadn’t earned the right to wear the emblems, which according to Hill are traditionally earned by underclassmen during Sunday night scrimmages, this season.

A hatless Hill and a group of players wearing plain red helmets responded to the challenge and got a jolt of confidence as they ended their seven-game losing streak by defeating WAC doormat New Mexico State 23-18.

“That was a big win in my mind because the wounds in that locker room were very deep. It was great to see smiles for the first time on their face in two months. I don’t know if you realize how hard it is to keep pounding and pounding when things aren’t going well. Staying the course is a term I use a lot and unless you’ve been in it, you don’t really know what it means,” Hill said.

The Bulldogs’ defense has struggled to make big plays and create turnovers all season. Prior to Saturday’s game, Fresno State’s defense had only five takeaways, four fumble recoveries and one interception in eight games.

The defense was reminiscent of former Bulldogs teams as they swarmed to the ball and forced New Mexico State to cough up the ball four times; equaling their fumble recovery total for the first eight games in only 60 minutes.

They not only forced turnovers, but the defense created those takeaways at critical points in the game. One fumble came when the Aggies offense was in the red zone and poised to score and two fumbles put the Bulldogs offense deep in New Mexico State territory.

The Bulldogs offense sputtered at times, but they were able to take advantage of the turnover battle as they turned the four New Mexico State turnovers into 16 points.

With young players getting more playing time, a mixture of new and old faces helped the defensive unit get its most consistent pass rush of the season. In addition to the young talent, the defensive pass rush was also aided by a change in defensive scheme.

After trying to defend scrambling quarterbacks nearly every week, the defense was finally relieved to face a traditional pocket passer.

“When he’s in the pocket we have so many more options on the defensive line. Mobile quarterbacks are tough because defensive backs can’t cover for eight or 10 seconds, it’s nearly impossible,” Fresno State defensive end Tyler Clutts said.

New Mexico State entered Bulldog Stadium with the second-ranked passing offense in the nation. Although quarterback Chase Holbrook once again put up big numbers, 39 of 51 passing for 367 yards and two touchdowns, the Bulldogs defense held the Aggies offense to only 18 points and racked up a season-high five sacks.

The Bulldogs’ special teams unit also made big plays. Sophomores Ikenna Ike and Bear Pascoe each blocked an extra point attempt.

Despite the offense’s inconsistency in the passing game, the Bulldogs were able to effectively run the ball. Running back Dwayne Wright continued his success on the ground as he rushed for 130 yards and two touchdowns.

The Bulldogs will try to carry the momentum and confidence of Saturday’s win into their final three games of the season. Three wins would give the Bulldogs a 5-7 record overall and a 5-3 record in the WAC.

“I can’t believe as a senior this is only my second win but I think that we went through a spell where losing was contagious and winning is contagious too,” Fernandez said.

Fresno State will host Idaho this Saturday in the final home game of the season. Although the game will be the last home appearance for the team’s seniors, don’t expect to see the emblems or the red hat back.

“When will we get our stickers back? I don’t know. When they decide we’re playing at the level we need to play at. It won’t be this week, there are still a lot of things we need to work on,” Hill said. “But those ‘Dogs will be back.”

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