Fresno State gets boost in win over Nevada from Jordan Mims, and a line finally finding itself

It was the third series, and Fresno State had not done much with its first two against the Nevada Wolf Pack. It had gained 24 yards on eight plays, punted twice. Then, boom, Ronnie Rivers, with a deft cut, blasted past a block by guard Mose Vavao and was gone on a 64-yard touchdown run.

It was the Bulldogs’ longest run from scrimmage this season and Rivers’ 49th career touchdown, but at the end of it, the Bulldogs’ back injured his left ankle when tackled by Nevada corner Berdale Robins and did not return.

But a Fresno State run game that has struggled to find any degree of consistency kept right on motoring along in a crucial 34-32 Mountain West victory over Nevada behind Jordan Mims and an offensive line that played its best game of the season. That was, without question, one of the more encouraging things to come out of a victory that kept the Bulldogs (6-2, 3-1 in the MW) in the West Division race in the conference, made them bowl eligible for the first time since 2018 and sent everyone home happy on a night Lorenzo Neal had his No. 22 jersey retired.

“Jordan is a guy who is ready every single game,” Coach Kalen DeBoer said. “I can promise you, with the preparation that he puts in, he was ready four weeks ago, he was ready two weeks ago, and he showed he was ready today. I couldn’t be more proud of the guy. He popped off a couple big runs there after he kind of got put in that position tonight, and I went over and said, “This is why you do the work. This is why you prepare.’”

Mims rushed the football 23 times for a career-high 134 yards and one touchdown and caught four passes for 20 yards and another score, keeping the offense moving.

“I just took every play and tried to execute what I had to do,” he said.

“Jordan stepped up,” said quarterback Jake Haener, who hit 26 of 38 passes for 256 yards and two touchdowns without an interception. ”He’s a great player, great friend of mine, good kid – ran his tail off. He’s the reason we got this win, stepping up the way he did and just being a physical runner and a great ballplayer. Really proud of him.”

It’s easy to forget – 2017 was a long time ago. But when Rivers and Mims came in and played as true freshmen, it was Mims who led the Bulldogs in rushing attempts. It was Mims, Josh Hokit, and Rivers, with 151, 128, and 101 carries. Mims was sidelined by a lower leg injury late the following season, missed all of 2019, and was limited to just 28 carries last year with a high of just nine rushing plays in any one game.

Mims, healthy and heavier than a year ago, shows his power

But, healthy and with a few more pounds on his frame, Mims is more than capable if Rivers is to miss any time, and he watched the second half in street clothes with his left foot in a protective walking boot.

“I know Riv is special, but Jordan knows the offense inside and out,” DeBoer said. “The offense for both those guys has always been completely available because they’re diverse. They can run the ball. They can catch the ball out of the backfield. They’re great pass protectors.”

On both touchdowns, Mims’ power running the football was evident. On the second score, a 7-yard flip pass from Haener, Mims was hit and spun away from two Nevada defenders at the 5-yard line, was stopped at the 3-yard line and kept his legs churning until he was in the end zone with an assist and push from behind from tight end Tre Watson, center Bula Schmidt, left guard Braylen Nelson and left tackle Dontae Bull.

Fresno State and its offensive line face a much tougher task next week in another must-win game at San Diego State, which went into the weekend allowing just 2.1 yards per rush and 60.8 rushing yards per game.

The Aztecs on Saturday held the conference’s best rushing offense in Air Force to 194 yards on the ground at 4.0 yards per play, more than 140 yards less than it was averaging.

But for the second game in a row and after inserting the true freshman Nelson into the starting lineup at left guard and moving Vavao to right guard, there were signs of improvement and consistency.

Fresno State line changes showing promise

Fresno State allowed just one sack, and Nevada was leading the nation with 4.5 sacks per game. The Bulldogs allowed only one tackle for loss, and the Wolf Pack was averaging 6.5 per game.

They did not have much success rushing it on third downs, a minus-3 yards on four plays, and whiffed on a 3rd-and-3 and a 3rd-and-4. But they were much more consistent on first downs, keeping the Bulldogs on schedule against a defense that has had some trouble getting off the football field on third down plays.

Fresno State rushed for 152 yards on 14 first-down rushing plays, including Rivers’ TD run. But even taking that 64-yard burst out of the equation, the Bulldogs averaged 6.8 yards per play.

And in the two games, the offensive line unit has played together, picked, and paired to try to insert a nastier mindset into the group, the Bulldogs have averaged 5.1 yards per rush, up from 3.8, and they have averaged 184.0 yards per game, up from 106.1. They also have allowed just two sacks.

“I thought we were pretty consistent, probably the best consistent-wise that we’ve been all year running the football,” DeBoer said.

“I thought the line played their most complete game. A couple of things you always want better that we’ll work on. But I thought they continued to improve, and that’s the key as we go through the second half of the season.”