No, it wasn’t against a top ranked defense. And no, it wasn’t against a P4 conference opponent. Nonetheless, Jayden Mandal put some doubts to rest on Saturday night about him being capable enough to be Fresno State’s starting quarterback.
Mandal went 23-for-26 for 316 yards and two touchdowns, and a rushing touchdown, in the Bulldogs’ 49-3 victory over Sacramento State. A stark contrast from his opening week performance against USC, where Mandal was 7-for-15 for 77 yards and an interception.
The junior gunslinger was responsible for the first three touchdowns for the Bulldogs, all of which came in the second quarter.
Mandal first found Speedy Luke for an 18-yard touchdown. He then followed that up with a 73-yard connection to Ezekiel Avit for another score, before using his legs on a quarterback sneak from 1-yard out to make it 22-0 Fresno State.
“I’m really excited for the young man,” head coach Matt Entz said following the contest. “He had some people make plays for him. And he did a really good job of orchestrating the offense.”
After a rough first outing against the Trojans, many fans and “pundits” wanted to see Fresno State’s second-string quarterback getting some reps. Aside from Mandal’s numbers, he was also responsible for a few of USC’s points as he was sacked twice for safety in the loss.
However, Entz stayed the course with Mandal, stating that it was inexperience for Mandal and that a change now would cause him to lose the team. That vote of confidence for Mandal and his talent paid off for the Bulldogs on Saturday night. And now with the offense relying on both the pass and run games, the Dawgs have a shot to turn things around and perhaps become a contender for the College Football Playoff.
Mandal will now lead Fresno State into San Jose next Saturday night to clash with the rival Spartans for the Valley Trophy. That game is at 8 p.m. Pacific Time and will be on Fox Sports 1.