Fresno State’s deep pass was non-existent last year. Which QB can change that?
Fresno State struggled with its passing game last season, ranking just eighth in the Mountain West Conference at 183.4 yards per game, and its deep passing game was almost non-existent with starting quarterbacks E.J. Warner and Carson Conklin.
The Bulldogs completed just six passes that traveled 20 or yards down field all season, the fewest in the Mountain West Conference and tied for the fewest in the nation.
Warner was 6 of 21 on his deep passes and Conkin 0 of 14, a combined completion percentage of 17.1%. They also threw six interceptions on those attempts. But that could change for the Bulldogs this season with five quarterbacks who proved in spring practices that they had the ability to push the football down field, led by Maryland transfer Khristian Martin and Buchanan High graduate Jayden Mandal.
That could open up an offense that scored just 25.8 points a game a year ago and 23.3 against FBS (football bowl subdivision) opponents.
To put the Bulldogs’ deep passing numbers from a year ago in some context, former Fresno State quarterback Derek Carr completed seven passes of 20 or more yards in one game, a victory over New Mexico in 2013 in which he threw for 522 yards and seven touchdowns. It doesn’t take an NFL quarterback to hit those numbers. Zack Greenlee, who played for the Bulldogs for two seasons before transferring to Texas-El Paso, finished his college career with a passing efficiency rating of just 106.35. But he managed to hit seven passes of 20 or more yards while throwing for 285 yards and six touchdowns in a victory at Hawaii in 2015.
Jake Haener also completed six deep passes in a 2021 victory over UCLA at the Rose Bowl, matching the Bulldogs’ total from last season in just one game. And one week after Carr obliterated the New Mexico secondary in 2013, he hit six more 20-yard passes at San Jose State.
Across the FBS last season, San Jose State quarterback Walker Eget hit seven passes of 20 or more yards in a game twice, in a loss at Stanford and a victory over Hawaii. Tennessee’s Joey Aguilar was 7 of 7 for 287 yards and three touchdowns on deep balls in a victory over Kentucky.
There also were seven quarterbacks that completed six passes of 20 or more yards in one game.
For Fresno State, forcing opponents to defend more of the football field can only help.
It’s a limited sample, but Maryland last season was not shy about letting Martin take some deep shots in his redshirt freshman season. He attempted 17 passes in five games, and four went 20 or more yards. Martin hit two of those passes for 60 yards and had one dropped.
The Bulldogs also have developed a deep group of wideouts that can make plays down the field under coach DelVon Hardaway, a former Bulldogs’ receiver who caught a 20-yard pass from Greenlee in that victory at Hawaii in 2015. All three of the wideouts who were on the receiving end of those six pass plays of 20 or more yards last season return — Josiah Freeman caught three, Jahlil McClain two and Harold Duvall one.
This story was originally published April 29, 2026 at 5:10 PM.