Beaten and bruised: Fresno State loses first game in nearly a year, QB Keene gets injured

No. 24 Fresno State’s quest for an undefeated campaign came to an abrupt end Saturday night.

The Bulldogs’ 14-game winning streak that dated back to last year also was snapped.

And that flawless run through Mountain West play? That’s all gone, too.

All those grand goals vanished after Fresno State got upset 24-19 by Wyoming before an announced crowd of 20,788 at War Memorial Stadium in Laramie, Wyo.

Fresno State’s vaunted defense struggled to get on track during the first half, and was a big reason that the Bulldogs found themselves in a 17-point deficit at halftime.

The Bulldogs offense, meanwhile, never seemed to get in sync and barely had possession of the ball in the first half.

And just when Fresno State started to build some momentum to make a comeback, starting quarterback Mikey Keene had to leave the game after suffering an ankle injury with 8:47 remaining.

Fresno State’s ill fate was then sealed after backup quarterback Logan Fife got intercepted near midfield by defensive tackle Cole Godbout with about 50 seconds remaining during the Bulldogs’ final drive.

Fresno State (5-1, 1-1) suffered its first loss since a 40-20 defeat at Boise State on Oct. 8, 2022.

Wyoming (5-1, 2-0), whose only loss this season was a 31-10 defeat at No.3 Texas, has won three straight.

Keene finished the night having completed 23 of 35 passes for 218 yards and one touchdown.

Fife passed 7 of 11 for 68 yards and touchdown and one interception.

As a whole, Fresno State generated 324 total yards, with just a mere 1.9 yards per rushing attempt.

Wyoming was held scoreless throughout the second half and mustered just 80 total yards after the break.

But the Cowboys caused enough damage in the first half alone.

Wyoming averaged 4.5 yards per rushing attempt, completed 17 of 21 passes, converted 6 of 7 third downs and owned a time of possession advantage of 19:52 to Fresno State’s 10:08 before halftime.

This story was originally published October 7, 2023 at 8:43 PM.