Well, there’s a switch. Fresno State gets favorable football schedule to chase Mountain West title

Fresno State has stared down some challenging schedules in past football seasons, the Mountain West setting up the Bulldogs with three conference road games in four weeks, with road trips in consecutive weeks to Hawaii and to Wyoming. Just last season, they played four games out of five on the road, with a bye week in there.

But the Bulldogs don’t have much to roll their eyes about in 2023, coming off a conference championship season in which they became the first team in college football history to start 1-4 and finish 10-4.

If coach Jeff Tedford can once again reassemble a competitive team, the schedule sets up well for another run at a Mountain West championship.

The Bulldogs open the season with non-conference games at Purdue, against FCS Eastern Washington, at Arizona State and against Kent State and, according to schedules released on Thursday by the conference, open Mountain West play at home against Nevada.

Fresno State then plays back-to-back road games for the only time, but those matchups at Wyoming and at Utah State are in early October when frigid weather should not be a factor and the Bulldogs have an open date immediately afterward as they head down the stretch of the season.

Coming out of that bye week they will play UNLV at Valley Children’s Stadium before a Nov. 4 date against Boise State in the second of back-to-back home games.

There is another break — the past five times Fresno State has played the Broncos in the regular season the Bulldogs have been on the road the previous week and in 2022, 2018 and 2014 Boise State was not only the second of back-to-back road games for them but their third road game in four weeks.

Fresno State ends its regular season with a home game against New Mexico between games at San Jose State and at San Diego State, so the Bulldogs will not leave California the final six weeks of the season including the bye.

They do not play Hawaii, with the Mountain West going away from divisional play this season. The teams with the highest conference winning percentages will play for the conference championship.

Some dates are likely to be adjusted this summer to accommodate national television broadcasts, but there are no obvious traps in the schedule.

A matchup against New Mexico between rivalry games against the Spartans and Aztecs could be, but that also will be the Bulldogs’ Senior Day. Over the past five non-COVID seasons under Tedford or Kalen DeBoer, Fresno State is 4-1 in its final home game with the only loss in an injury-riddled 2019 season and the wins coming by an average of 21.5 points including a 28-17 victory over No. 22 Boise State in 2017.

The Bulldogs’ two Power Five conference opponents also have first-year and first-time head coaches and they will play six teams that are ranked 100th or lower in ESPN’s preseason SP+ projections, which are based on returning production and recent recruiting and history.

Fresno State, which opens spring practices on Monday, is only No. 67 in those rankings, but it is the highest-ranked Mountain West team.

Fresno State 2023 football schedule

Sept. 2 - at Purdue

Sept. 9 - Eastern Washington

Sept. 16 - at Arizona State

Sept. 23 - Kent State

Sept. 30 - Nevada

Oct. 7 - at Wyoming

Oct. 14 - at Utah State

Oct. 21 - Open

Oct. 28 - UNLV

Nov. 4 - Boise State

Nov. 11 - at San Jose State

Nov. 18 - New Mexico

Nov. 25 - at San Diego State

Dec. 2 - Mountain West championship game