Warszawski: Fresno State gets just what it needed with blowout victory

Fresno State would be hard-pressed to script a better opener than Thursday night’s 34-13 romp over Abilene Christian.

Yes, it came against an overmatched FCS opponent. But considering all the question marks about this team, coach Tim DeRuyter should be pretty pleased. The Bulldogs won, handily, and there’s plenty to correct on film.

Fresno State’s inexperienced quarterbacks made some stellar plays – and some shaky ones.

Zack Greenlee played the entire first quarter, the final drive before halftime and most of the third quarter. The redshirt sophomore threw three touchdown passes, two of which were pretty impressive. But he also was kind of inaccurate, missing 10 of 12 passes at one point.

Greenlee showed scrambling ability and level-headedness by avoiding a sack on Fresno State’s opening drive, rolling to his right and hitting a wide open Jamire Jordan for a 25-yard touchdown. Greenlee then threw a perfectly thrown ball to Josiah Blandin for a 32-yard score that put the Bulldogs in front 14-7.

True freshman Chason Virgil took over in the second quarter and immediately led a touchdown drive of his own. But Virgil’s second drive resulted in an interception on an overthrow down the middle.

(Greenlee also threw a pick at the goal line just before halftime on a goofy deflection. Not really his fault. Transfer Ford Childress did not play.)

Defensively, Fresno State allowed a touchdown drive of 49 yards and three others of decent length that ended with a missed field goal, an interception and on downs.

All in all it was a pretty solid effort by coach Nick Toth’s unit. There were no glaring missed tackles, no one got beat deep and three of the Bulldogs’ four sacks came from outside linebackers.

Will any of this translate to Mississippi next week? Probably not. But it was still a good start for a team that’s still in discovery mode.

Halftime

Fresno State led Abilene Christian 21-7 in a first half that showcased the talents of Zack Greenlee and Chason Virgil.

Is it a full-fledged quarterback controversy?

Easy, hoss. But both quarterbacks gave the coaches (and fans) something to think about.

Greenlee played the first three series at quarterback, followed by Virgil for two. Greenlee got things started with two impressive touchdown passes. The first came off a scramble and rollout, giving Greenlee time to find a wide open Jamire Jordan at the 2. The second was a straight dropback to a well-covered Josiah Blandin where Greenlee had to fit the ball into an extremely tight window. The sophomore returned for the final drive, resulting in a deflected interception near the goal line.

Virgil took the Bulldogs right down the field on his first drive, resulting in a 4-yard touchdown pass to Chad Olsen. But on the second, the true freshman telegraphed a pass down the middle that was intercepted.

Defensively, Fresno State limited the Wildcats to 136 yards and seven points. Tobenna Okeke’s third-down sack to stop a Wildcats drive was the most pivotal play.

Pregame

Despite all the question marks about Fresno State entering the season I’m expecting them to have a fairly easy time with Abilene Christian. Let’s go with a 38-17 final score.

Three things I’ll be paying close attention to:

▪ How will Zack Greenlee handle the big stage? Greenlee clearly wasn’t ready to assume the reins last season. In his lone start against Wyoming, he looked tentative and confused – as if the stage was too big for him. We’ll see Thursday night if it still is. If all goes to plan, the Bulldogs will be up by two or three touchdowns by the time Chason Virgil enters the game. I’d expect to see him sometime in the second quarter.

▪ Can the receivers block? Yes, a receiver’s primary job is making catches. But in Fresno State’s offense, blocking is a huge responsibility. Bubble screens and quick outs are a staple of the spread offense. Those plays have to gain yards or the offense will be constantly facing second- and third-and-long. Which is what happened last season more times than not.

▪ How aggressive will the Bulldogs play on defense? The strength of Abilene Christian lies in quarterback Parker McKenzie and his receivers. Fresno State cannot afford to let McKenzie just sit back there and pick it apart, so expect a large helping of blitzes and pressure. I’m predicting a big night for outside linebacker Ejiro Ederaine, who looked explosive in fall camp.

This story was originally published September 3, 2015 at 6:31 PM with the headline "Warszawski: Fresno State gets just what it needed with blowout victory."