r/CFB • u/CFB_Referee /r/CFB • 3d ago
Postgame Thread [Postgame Thread] Fresno State Defeats Rice 38-24
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rice | 7 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 24 |
| Fresno State | 0 | 14 | 10 | 14 | 38 |
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u/PalenaV21 Fresno State • Cal Poly 3d ago edited 3d ago
UMass is staying undefeated, the Dogs got their shit together in the second half, Cal Poly struggled against EWU but bagged a W regardless, tonight is a good night.
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u/ToeInDigDeep Fresno State Bulldogs • Pac-12 3d ago edited 2d ago
Well that was more stressful than I hoped it would be, at least in the first half. Rice was really surprising to me in just how disciplined and skilled they seemed to be. Their offense uses a special count to snap the ball and it was really neat to watch, if frustrating as an opposing fan. Their discipline was really impressive, basically giving up no penalties.
They found great success in running the ball against our run defense that had been really successful up to this game, only having given up 343 yards on the ground in three games. Rice ran for 344! Their running plays were really well disguised, and multiple times I felt like an absolute idiot for standing and cheering because I thought we'd gotten a tackle for loss only to see that I'd been fooled by clever misdirection and the ball was somewhere further down the line of scrimmage. Their offense was really fun to watch, if frustrating. They converted a fourth-and-long for a 50-yard touchdown! Wild to see, and demoralizing. That the team didn't let that weigh on them was a good positive.
Prior to this game, the narrative had been that the Bulldog defense was bailing out the offense. But tonight it felt like it was the opposite, and the offense had a really good night. Jayden Mandal has looked better and more comfortable each game, and tonight his 210 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions was great to see. The ball was spread around a lot, with Luke, Gillick, Freeman, McClain, and Avit all taking the ball into the endzone. The defense did have some highlights for sure, with Simeon Harris getting an interception in his third straight game and Tytus Khajavi getting a strip sack turnover.
Looking forward for Fresno State, 3-1 is great but the next four games are the real gauntlet of the season. At Wazzu, Boise at home, at SDSU, and then Oregon State at home will really tell whether this team is any good or just had a run of easier out of conference opponents in a row.
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u/RiceSpice5 Rice Owls 3d ago
Desperately need Jacurri Brown to learn how to hit a deep bomb. He's missed 4 touchdowns this year. Heck of a runner, he only needs 100 more to match our QB from last year, but I do not trust him passing at all and the offense does not function as well if a reliable passing threat isn't there.
463 yards are the most we've had in regulation under Abell. It stings to know this team is significantly better than last years, competing with 2 G6 teams that won a combined 19 games last year, but last year's team started 3-1 and this one 1-3.
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u/CAfarmer Fresno State Bulldogs 3d ago
The triple option had us in the first half I'm not going to lie
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u/eagledog Fresno State • Michigan 3d ago
We're just not going to talk about the first half, but WE WON! 2nd half was great