Fresno State GameDay vs. Abilene Christian: Keys to victory, Bulldog spotlight, notes
Fresno State’s three keys to victory
1, Zack Greenlee: The lights will go on, and Greenlee will have to react much better than he did last season in a start against Wyoming and then some mop-up duty in the Hawaii Bowl loss to Rice. After the redshirt sophomore tossed in a clunker practice in fall camp, offensive coordinator Dave Schramm was asked if history is a factor in selecting a starter. He said, “No.” Players develop, players gain confidence, players gain consistency. Greenlee has, and it showed in camp, but he has to take that onto the field.
2, Communication on defense: Abilene Christian has an experience edge in its passing game and that experience can trump the Bulldogs’ talent and newfound nastiness in the secondary. Especially if they fail to communicate or make proper adjustments to get lined up correctly and end up busting a lot of coverages against a multiple offense that will test them by employing a number of personnel groupings. There are enough veterans on the field for Fresno State that it should not happen, but it will be a challenge.
3, The run game: The Bulldogs should be able to control the game on the ground, and take some pressure off of Greenlee, behind a veteran offensive line and running back Marteze Waller. Fresno State has the second most experienced offensive line in the Mountain West with 73 career starts between left tackle Alex Fifita, right guard Bo Bonnheim and right tackle Justin Northern, and against FCS competition the past three years the Bulldogs have averaged 256 rushing yards per game at 5.8 yards per play.
Fresno State spotlight player: Cornerback Charles Washington
Year: Senior
Height/weight: 5-11/197
Hometown: Inglewood
High school: Crespi
2014 rewind: Finished with 78 tackles – good for fourth on the team. Also had two interceptions and a fumble recovery.
Why this game is important for Washington: Safety Derron Smith is gone to the NFL and Washington takes over the role as a leader among the defensive backs. Coming off two offseason surgeries to repair a core muscle, he needs to show he’s no longer burdened by the injury. Washington had to miss some practice time during fall camp as he recovered but said he’s feeling much better, ready to go and “anxious” to get on the field. Washington enters tied with linebacker Kyrie Wilson for the active lead in career and consecutive starts with 27.
He said it: “Feels good to get back in the rhythm of things. Last go-round for me, and for a lot of us on defense. (Against Abilene Christian) it’s a good way to start the season. They’re not just coming in here into our stadium and let us win. But I know how we play at home. We’re ready for what ever comes our way.”
Tailgating: Bulldogs notes heading into the game
▪ First look at new nose: After starting the 2014 season playing mostly at defensive end against USC, Tyeler Davison moved back inside to nose guard where he defeated double-teams week after week, racking up 12 tackles for losses to rank second on the team and earning first-team all-conference honors.
Davison now is with the New Orleans Saints and redshirt sophomore Nathan Madsen is in the middle of the line after moving from end in the spring, just one of many question areas the Bulldogs will get a first real look at against the Wildcats.
But while the Bulldogs have made some adjustments without Davison up front, expectations are not necessarily one. The coaches have liked what they have seen throughout fall camp from Madsen, who played in all 14 games with four starts last season.
“I like where he is,” coach Tim DeRuyter said. “A year ago he had to play as a redshirt freshman. Physically, he had the tools. But, especially in the trenches, it’s difficult for a young guy to play with that swagger that you need to compete every day. Tyeler, before we got here, I’m sure kind of went through the same thing. By the time we got here, he was a man physically and each year he got better from a mental standpoint of expecting to dominate the guy across from him.
“I’ve seen (Madsen’s) mental approach really change. Moving to nose guard in the spring, he knew how important that position is for us, and I’ve seen a real growth from him as far as just the intensity with which he plays. It shows up by a guy who is not just happy playing a gap but is out there making plays. The first thing a guy does when he’s just trying to do his assignment is … fill his gap, The next evolution is a guy that refuses to stay blocked and is actively making plays. Tyeler did that, which is hard to do at the nose guard position, and we’re starting to see Nate come into his own in that regard.”
▪ Subdivision streak: The Bulldogs have not lost to a championship subdivision opponent since 1982, winning 23 in a row. Since 2000, they have won 10 games by an average of 25.5 points.
Last season, they rolled up a season high for points in a 56-16 victory over Southern Utah.
Teams from the Southland Conference have 22 victories over FBS teams since 2000, including a victory by Abilene Christian at Troy (Sun Belt Conference) last season.
▪ Eye on the quarterbacks: Greenlee is the starting quarterback, but freshman Chason Virgil will play and junior transfer Ford Childress also could see some time as the Bulldogs to try to build some depth into a position group that lacks game experience.
DeRuyter knows they could come out of the game with at least a perception of a brewing quarterback controversy, if two or more play well. But Greenlee obviously can take care of that, and he likely will have to do it the next two weeks in games at Mississippi and against Utah as well.
“For us, the No. 1 goal is winning the conference championship, so we will go through the first three games and obviously the competition steps up after this week,” DeRuyter said. “All of that will be taken into account and we’ll see; we’ll try to play multiple quarterbacks as we go.”
▪ Get out of the gate quickly: Fresno State can send a quick message to its fans coming off a 6-8 season that included losses to UNLV and to Wyoming, which finished last in the West and Mountain Divisions of the Mountain West.
All the Bulldogs have to do is … score.
Lst season they had a difficult time with that.
In 14 games, Fresno State was shut out in the first quarter six times, including that victory over FCS Southern Utah, and put up two points via a safety in another game.
The Bulldogs gained less than 10 yards on their opening drive 10 times, including, again, the game against Southern Utah when they gained only 6.
And they produced points on an opening possession only twice – a touchdown against Wyoming and one against San Jose State, and that score against the Cowboys came via a two-play, 8-yard drive after a long punt return.
▪ And don’t forget: If there Bulldogs don’t get off to a fast start, there is this: At the skill positions, the players on the top line of the depth chart have a combined 24 starts with 15 coming from Waller, five from tight end Chad Olsen, three from Y receiver Justin Johnson and just the one from Greenlee at quarterback.
▪ Lastly: Abilene Christian allowed 36 sacks in 12 games last season, ranking 10th of 11 in the Southland Conference. … Fresno State had sold 31,700 tickets for the game as of 3 p.m. Wednesday.
This story was originally published September 2, 2015 at 4:13 PM with the headline "Fresno State GameDay vs. Abilene Christian: Keys to victory, Bulldog spotlight, notes."