Top 25 voters stayed up late to watch Fresno State. ‘Dogs ranked for first time since 2018

Fresno State received some due respect from Top 25 voters across the country on Sunday following its 40-37 comeback victory over No. 13 UCLA at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.

The Bulldogs, who two weeks earlier had a fourth-quarter lead at No. 11 Oregon before losing by one touchdown, hit the rankings at No. 22 in the Associated Press Top 25 and No. 25 in the Coaches Poll.

They are one of three Group of Five programs ranked in the Top 25, with Cincinnati No. 8 in the AP Top 25 and No. 9 in the Coaches Poll and Coastal Carolina No. 17 in both polls. BYU, an independent, is ranked No. 15 and No. 16.

Alabama remains No. 1 in both polls after a narrow win over Florida. Georgia, Oregon, Oklahoma and Iowa round out the Top 5 in the AP poll, while Alabama, Georgia, Oklahoma, Oregon and Texas A&M hold the top spots in the Coaches Poll.

UCLA fell to No. 24 in both polls with the loss, two spots behind the Bulldogs in the AP Top 25 but still one spot ahead of the Bulldogs in the Coaches Poll.

It is the first time Fresno State has been ranked in the polls since the end of the 2018 season when No. 18 in the AP Top 25 and the Coaches Poll, with a Mountain West Conference championship and a 31-20 victory over Arizona State in the Las Vegas Bowl.

The Bulldogs didn’t hit the rankings that season until they were 7-1, entering the Top 25 at No. 20 after a victory over Hawaii. They were 3-0 when first ranked in 2013, an 11-2 season, a 41-40 win over Boise State at Bulldog Stadium putting them in at No. 25.

Fresno State on Friday opens conference play at home against UNLV, which is 0-3 with losses to FCS Eastern Washington and two ranked Power 5 teams in No. 19 Arizona State and No. 14 Iowa State.

The Rebels have been outscored 40.0 to 15.3 in those games and are ranked last in the Mountain West in scoring offense and scoring defense.

This story was originally published September 19, 2021 at 11:23 AM.