Bulldogs hope team bonding pays off

Chemistry seen as the winning quality Hill's team needs.

Published online on Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2009

Not a single Fresno State player majors in chemistry.

Nor did any Bulldogs coaches.

Head coach Pat Hill is always concerned about it.

But only recently has Fresno State figured out how to excel at it again, forming a team chemistry that has allowed the Bulldogs to perform at a high level in each of their games.

"It's interesting to watch teams grow and develop," Hill said this week as Fresno State (3-3 overall, 2-1 Western Athletic Conference) aims for its third straight win Saturday at New Mexico State (3-4, 1-2).

"Team chemistry and the way they bond together and the way they focus on the task at hand is very fragile -- for anybody."

Hill admits not all of his teams have had chemistry.

Just go back to the 2006 season when Fresno State finished 4-8 despite fielding a team that ended up producing eight NFL players.

"There were times it was a lack of communication," former safety Vincent Mays said after that season. "Other times, we didn't trust each other as much. ... Guys seemed to be doing their own thing."

The 2008 team lacked chemistry, too. Injuries ravaged the lineup almost weekly, taking away key players as a once-promising season ended with an underachieving 7-6 record.

"Obviously, we all had a lot higher hopes," then-quarterback Tom Brandstater said near the end of the season. "Just never clicked. There was always a different person making a different mistake on a different play that kept us from playing up to our ability."

Injuries, however, are what helped bond the 2007 team that won the Humanitarian Bowl and went 9-4.

"Each time there was adversity," former linebacker Marcus Riley said at the time, "this team stepped up to the challenge."

This year, the Bulldogs have stayed healthy. But the need to prove they could have a good season is perhaps what has helped this year's team grow closer.

Entering the year, much doubt surrounded the Bulldogs.

There was uncertainty at quarterback and in the defense's ability to stop the run. The receiving corps was talented but had underachieved in the past, the lead running back couldn't stay healthy, and their kicker had struggled in the clutch.

Most of all, there was doubt about Hill and his ability to take the Bulldogs any further.

"Research finds that stress tends to bond people together when they have shared a stressful event together," said Dr. Thomas E. Granata, a clinical psychologist in Fresno who works with athletes and coaches, and teaches at Fresno State. "As long as a team has common goals and stability, they've got a chance at developing chemistry.

"But any signs of instability or inconsistency in workouts or treatment of players and that chemistry can become ruined."

Chemistry is not something a coach can control, which Hill admits. But a coach can set up the atmosphere to foster it.

It starts with getting players to put the team ahead of the individual, which is difficult, coaches say.

For example, junior running back Ryan Mathews' success has come at the expense of playing time for seniors Lonyae Miller and Anthony Harding. Yet all three seem to accept their roles, especially given the fact that Mathews leads the nation in rushing yards.

"We don't fight," Mathews said. "We hang out. We support each other. We're a really tight group."

First-year starting quarterback Ryan Colburn immediately noticed the need to develop chemistry with his receivers, especially since he hardly got to play in games or even practice with the first team the past four years.

So when January came along, Colburn spent hours and hours coaxing teammates to join voluntary, unsupervised workouts.

The work has paid off. Colburn ranks 26th in the nation with a 145.33 passing efficiency rating. The Bulldogs are third in rushing yards (279.7 per game), ninth in total offense (461.2 yards) and 10th in scoring (36.5 points).

"We're on a real good page right now, how to make adjustments on the run," Colburn said.

"That's what good offensive football is."

Added Mathews: "I think we're just barely starting to figure out that we're really good. ... We're learning that together. It's fun."