Ryan Mathews lost a wild game Friday night. He wasn't alone; it just felt that way at times.
Unfortunately, he doesn't cover kickoffs, or tackle Boise State running backs, or catch interceptions presented in shoe boxes.
He does produce magic, though. Nearly justifies that premier ticket price. Makes single-handed comebacks. Upsets stomachs all over the unsuspecting state of Idaho. Broncos fans had to feel like they were playing against a horror movie villain. Why in the world will this guy not just die already?
Arnold might be the governor of this state, but The Terminator plays for Fresno State. He just keeps coming. He's Ryan Mathews, International Man of Mystery and One-Man Marches.
He battered one of the best defenses in the country into cracker bits, ready to sprinkle over a casserole. It wasn't a day's work at Bulldog Stadium, it was a month's worth -- 234 yards, three touchdowns and a dozen tacklers left wondering what might have been. Another half-dozen stopped to ponder why a guy that strong can't be caught from behind.
This wasn't some meaningless Week 9 game in Ruston, La. This was Broadway, the only game on national television, against the No. 10 team in the country.
Most running backs go their whole college careers and don't have three runs of at least 60 yards. Mathews did it on a Friday evening under smog-covered stars. You'd call it romantic, if it weren't for the inconvenient fine print. Fresno State lost 51-34 and continues to be the valiant boxer who goes the distance, loses a decision, and walks away with black eyes.
You're either a contender or a card-filler, and the 'Dogs do put on quite a show.
Boise State is a top-10 team, by ranking, and probably by reality, and you don't upset it by jumping offsides on third down, or dropping fourth-quarter interceptions while trailing by one touchdown. You don't commit frustration face-mask penalties that end up costing your team 60 yards.
When A.J. Jefferson got that penalty on that crazy series of kickoffs and returns, meaning there were offsetting penalties and the Bulldogs would re-kick, was there any doubt the next one was going to be a long return? You just knew. Boise State should have started on its own 10. Instead, it got free points.
It simply would have been a blowout if not for Mathews, no other way to say it. If he can stay healthy, his nickname should be "Sunday," because you might see a Fresno State football player leave early for the NFL.
The Fresno State offensive line played hard, but it didn't open huge holes. Mathews brought his own. His jersey must be made of space-age material, resistant to human touch.
And he did it against a Boise State defense that held Oregon without a first down for the entire first half, a defense that smothered Miami (Ohio).
At halftime, the Fresno State band played "Danny Boy," a beautiful tribute to the late Fresno State defensive coordinator Dan Brown. When Mathews came to Fresno State, it was Brown who told a reporter to watch out, that he was probably looking at the most talented player the program had ever landed.
Mr. Brown was as correct as he was sincere.
Mathews is a running gift. He is as bold a runner as this stadium has seen, a combination of power and speed that comes along once a decade.
The only shame is that his effort -- all the Bulldogs' efforts -- went to a remarkable battle, but not a great victory.
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