Fresno State GameDay vs. Mississippi: Keys to victory, Bulldog spotlight, notes

Fresno State’s three keys to victory

1 Quarterback play. Zack Greenlee and Chason Virgil completed only 22 of 45 passes (48.9 percent) in a victory over Abilene Christian, a performance that would fall short of threatening Mississippi. There were some drops, six of them, but the execution and accuracy in the passing game must be much better if they are to move the chains and have a chance at an upset. They struggled the most in the red zone, completing only 1 of 7 throws in coming away with one touchdown and one field goal in three trips.

2 Win outside. The Bulldogs’ young outside and inside receivers got their feet wet last week against the Wildcats, and they were able to beat coverage against the overmatched Football Championship Series school. But, figuring that Ole Miss will play to stop Marteze Waller, those receivers have to win again against much better athletes to help Greenlee and Virgil and create some space for the Bulldogs’ run game. The bubble screens and bullet passes will have to gain some yardage.

3 Compete. That’s pretty much what it comes down to. The Bulldogs need to bring more than they did last season in games against Power Five opponents USC, Utah and Nebraska.

Fresno State spotlight player: Linebacker Ejiro Ederaine

Year: Senior

Height/weight: 6-foot-3, 234 pounds

Hometown: Corona

High school: Santiago

Last week: Ederaine picked up a sack, an interception and six tackles in opening 34-13 victory over Abilene Christian.

Why this game is important for Ederaine: If Fresno State has any hopes of an upset, the defense has to limit the big plays that Ole Miss is fully capable of making. Rebels quarterbacks faced little pressure by Tennessee-Martin a week ago in a 76-3 victory.

He said it: “I feel like our best chance to win is to play fundamentally sound football and do what we do best at our highest level. On defense we’ve got to play fast, obviously, but like what we said the past couple of years – eliminate the deep ball and make every throw (be) in front of us, and during the run game we have to tackle. I feel like we have a good box, but they have a good offensive line and a speedy running back. We’ll just have to tackle them and try to get them in third-and-long situations; have a fundamentally sound game on offense and defense; disrupt the (quarterbacks’) timing and make them feel uneasy.”

Tailgating: Bulldogs notes heading into the game

Emotional return: Marcus Woodson, the Fresno State defensive-backs coach, is from Mississippi. He also played two seasons at Ole Miss before a knee injury ended his career.

Though he made one thing clear this week – he is all about Fresno State – Woodson plans to revisit his roots at some point before the game to honor Chucky Mullins, the Ole Miss defensive back who shattered four vertebrae in his neck and was left paralyzed after breaking up a pass in the 1989 homecoming game. Mullins, who received an outpouring of support after his injury, made it back to campus, but less than a year after returning to school suffered a pulmonary embolism. He died May 6, 1991, but is remembered through the Chucky Mullins Courage Award, with the recipient receiving the right to wear Mullins’ jersey No. 38.

There is a bronze bust of Mullins at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, which Rebels’ players tap before running onto the field before games. Woodson did when he played there, and will again.

“Chucky Mullins is a big influence. His story was a big influence and it impacted a lot of people,” Woodson said. “Even the guy that he hit when he suffered the injury, he comes back every year to be a part of the banquet when they announce the new recipient of the award. It’s a close-knit deal.”

Scott’s role expands: Coach Tim DeRuyter said that wideout Da’Mari Scott, who was pulled out of a redshirt season this week, will be in the two-deep roster at an outside receiver position, and return punts and perhaps kickoffs.

Ole Miss owning mid-majors: The Rebels have won their past 11 games against non-Power Five conference opponents by an average of 34.3 points, which includes a 35-13 victory last season over Boise State, the Bulldogs’ Mountain West Conference rival. Only two have been decided by fewer than 20 points, a 31-13 victory over Southeast Missouri State in 2013 and a 28-10 win over UTEP in 2012.

’Dogs defense seeks early statement: The Bulldogs’ revamped secondary played to its promise in the opening victory over Abilene Christian, driving receivers off routes and competing at the ball. The Wildcats completed 66.7 percent of their passes, but gained only 4.7 yards per play and had a passer efficiency rating of 104.87. By comparison, Fresno State opponents last season averaged 8.8 per pass play with a 156.17 rating – 125th and 120th of 128 teams nationally.

The challenge at Ole Miss is far more difficult. The Rebels last week had three quarterbacks combine for five touchdown passes, covering 56, 15, 31, 57 and 12 yards. But the game plan, to disrupt rhythm and attack the ball in the air, remains the same.

“This is an experienced group of receivers and obviously talented,” Woodson said. “They’re very explosive, very physical, so it will definitely be a challenge for us as a secondary.

“The key for us, and that’s what I’m telling my guys is, ‘Look, we have to go and hit them and hit them early.’ Bottom line, we have to let them know that we’ve come to play, and it starts on the first play of the game. So very early, the thing you’re going to see is our guys being aggressive and playing physical, and that’s going to last all game, but it’s definitely going to come early.”

Cash crunch: This is the third and final meeting of a 2-for-1 contract with Ole Miss, the Rebels winning 55-38 at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in 2010 and 38-28 at Bulldog Stadium in 2011. The game guarantee for the Bulldogs is only $400,000; after averaging more than $1 million in guarantees over the past four years, the athletic department is losing $10,000 there this season.

Also: After taking apart FCS Tennessee Martin 76-3 in its opener, Ole Miss ranks first in the nation in scoring offense and fifth in total offense. … Fresno State is traveling with 70 players, two more than they will be able to dress for conference games. “I looked at the travel list,” DeRuyter said. “Of the 70 guys we have going, there are 30-something where this is their first trip with us. There are 22 or 23 guys in our two-deep between offense, defense and special teams that are making their first trip.” … Kyrie Wilson, the Bulldogs’ senior Mike linebacker, surpassed the 200-career tackles mark in the opening week victory and has a chance to crack Fresno State’s top 10 list. He is at 201. Brad Bell (1990-93) is No. 10 with 272. … The Bulldogs were penalized twice in their opener, one personal foul and one false start. Their penalties per game have gone down in each of the first three seasons under DeRuyter, from 6.8 in 2012 to 5.2 in 2013 and to 4.2 in 2014. … Fresno State is 5-10 in its road openers since 2000, with victories at Hawaii (2013), Utah State (2010), Rutgers (2009), Washington (2004) and Colorado (2001).

This story was originally published September 11, 2015 at 6:49 PM with the headline "Fresno State GameDay vs. Mississippi: Keys to victory, Bulldog spotlight, notes."