carolinablue
College Football Guru
Fresno vs Toledo Notes
Back in August, many circled Fresno State's Sept. 20 football game at Toledo.
Not because the Rockets are a power. They were 5-7 last season, 3-5 in the Mid-American Conference -- the kind of team that has hurt Fresno State in the past.
This game settles into the schedule after Big Ten Conference power Wisconsin and before Pac-10 foe UCLA. <TABLE cellSpacing='\"0\"' cellPadding='\"3\"' align=left border='\"0\"'><TBODY></TBODY></TABLE>
Besides their reputation of knuckling up to play any team in any stadium at any time in the schedule, the Bulldogs (1-1) are also known for having unexplainable losses to teams they should have beaten.
Highs like hanging with USC in 2005 would be followed by a head-scratching, four-game losing streak.
The 2006 team with so much promise lost to Utah State amid a seven-game losing streak. The 2004 team beat Kansas State and Washington in its first three games and then lost to Texas-El Paso during a three-game losing streak.
On Monday, coach Pat Hill once again made sure to describe this weekend's contest as a "big game" and put the onus on his 12 seniors to make sure Fresno State is ready to bounce back from Saturday's woulda-coulda-shoulda loss to Wisconsin.
"It's up to this team to understand that they need to play at the highest level every week," Hill said. "It wasn't about Wisconsin beating Fresno. It was our inability to finish it. And it's not going to be about Toledo in this game, it's going to be about us.
"That's the secret to being consistent. Taking care of your house."
Quarterback Tom Brandstater, a fifth-year senior, said it was time for the senior leaders to step up.
"There are too many young guys on this team that can go either way," Brandstater said Saturday after the game, "and it's up to the leaders to make sure that we go in the right direction."
The preparation for Saturday's game on ESPNU began with Sunday's practice and continues today as the Bulldogs practice without a "win flag" flapping in the breeze.
That preparation will include improving on areas in which they were successful and unsuccessful. First a few of the successes:
Sophomore punter Robert Malone was named the Western Athletic Conference special teams player of the week after punting four times for an average of 47.8 yards.
Fresno State's defense was mostly stellar, especially in the second half as it held Wisconsin to 102 yards. The Badgers' offense, was held to 179 yards below its total offense average and 31.5 points below its scoring average.
Sophomore receiver Devon Wylie had the game of his young career before injuring his foot in the fourth quarter, making two catches for 62 yards and a touchdown.
His status for this week's practice and game is uncertain, Hill said, as the results of the MRI were not yet available Monday morning.
The highs were great, "But once again," Hill said, "13-10's the bottom line and there are no moral victories in that at all."
Several plays that helped lead to the loss can be fixed in time for the Toledo game.
For instance, after making a game-saving catch on a long third down against Rutgers, a leaping Seyi Ajirotutu let a pass bounce off his chest on the Bulldogs' last offensive drive of the game. The catch could have led to another Fresno State score, which could have tied the score. Or, better yet, won it. There were at least four dropped balls against Rutgers.
The Bulldogs missed three of four field goals. In his second start, redshirt freshman Kevin Goessling missed from 47 yards, 51 yards and 35 yards. He made his kick from 33 yards.
The Bulldogs fumbled on a punt return, leading to the winning field goal. They committed two turnovers that led to 10 points.
One thing Hill won't be worried about as his team prepares for Toledo is the call he made to punt on fourth-and-16 and give Wisconsin the ball with 1:55 to play and a three-point lead.
"If we don't make it, we're stuck out there at midfield," Hill said. "All we needed was a field goal. If we needed a touchdown, I go for it. My thinking was the defense was playing great."
Back in August, many circled Fresno State's Sept. 20 football game at Toledo.
Not because the Rockets are a power. They were 5-7 last season, 3-5 in the Mid-American Conference -- the kind of team that has hurt Fresno State in the past.
This game settles into the schedule after Big Ten Conference power Wisconsin and before Pac-10 foe UCLA. <TABLE cellSpacing='\"0\"' cellPadding='\"3\"' align=left border='\"0\"'><TBODY></TBODY></TABLE>
Besides their reputation of knuckling up to play any team in any stadium at any time in the schedule, the Bulldogs (1-1) are also known for having unexplainable losses to teams they should have beaten.
Highs like hanging with USC in 2005 would be followed by a head-scratching, four-game losing streak.
The 2006 team with so much promise lost to Utah State amid a seven-game losing streak. The 2004 team beat Kansas State and Washington in its first three games and then lost to Texas-El Paso during a three-game losing streak.
On Monday, coach Pat Hill once again made sure to describe this weekend's contest as a "big game" and put the onus on his 12 seniors to make sure Fresno State is ready to bounce back from Saturday's woulda-coulda-shoulda loss to Wisconsin.
"It's up to this team to understand that they need to play at the highest level every week," Hill said. "It wasn't about Wisconsin beating Fresno. It was our inability to finish it. And it's not going to be about Toledo in this game, it's going to be about us.
"That's the secret to being consistent. Taking care of your house."
Quarterback Tom Brandstater, a fifth-year senior, said it was time for the senior leaders to step up.
"There are too many young guys on this team that can go either way," Brandstater said Saturday after the game, "and it's up to the leaders to make sure that we go in the right direction."
The preparation for Saturday's game on ESPNU began with Sunday's practice and continues today as the Bulldogs practice without a "win flag" flapping in the breeze.
That preparation will include improving on areas in which they were successful and unsuccessful. First a few of the successes:
Sophomore punter Robert Malone was named the Western Athletic Conference special teams player of the week after punting four times for an average of 47.8 yards.
Fresno State's defense was mostly stellar, especially in the second half as it held Wisconsin to 102 yards. The Badgers' offense, was held to 179 yards below its total offense average and 31.5 points below its scoring average.
Sophomore receiver Devon Wylie had the game of his young career before injuring his foot in the fourth quarter, making two catches for 62 yards and a touchdown.
His status for this week's practice and game is uncertain, Hill said, as the results of the MRI were not yet available Monday morning.
The highs were great, "But once again," Hill said, "13-10's the bottom line and there are no moral victories in that at all."
Several plays that helped lead to the loss can be fixed in time for the Toledo game.
For instance, after making a game-saving catch on a long third down against Rutgers, a leaping Seyi Ajirotutu let a pass bounce off his chest on the Bulldogs' last offensive drive of the game. The catch could have led to another Fresno State score, which could have tied the score. Or, better yet, won it. There were at least four dropped balls against Rutgers.
The Bulldogs missed three of four field goals. In his second start, redshirt freshman Kevin Goessling missed from 47 yards, 51 yards and 35 yards. He made his kick from 33 yards.
The Bulldogs fumbled on a punt return, leading to the winning field goal. They committed two turnovers that led to 10 points.
One thing Hill won't be worried about as his team prepares for Toledo is the call he made to punt on fourth-and-16 and give Wisconsin the ball with 1:55 to play and a three-point lead.
"If we don't make it, we're stuck out there at midfield," Hill said. "All we needed was a field goal. If we needed a touchdown, I go for it. My thinking was the defense was playing great."
