{"id":427277,"date":"2026-08-08T10:20:12","date_gmt":"2026-08-08T10:20:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/427277\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T10:20:12","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T10:20:12","slug":"defense-run-game-can-carry-fresno-state-to-pac-12-title-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/427277\/","title":{"rendered":"Defense, Run Game Can Carry Fresno State to Pac-12 Title Game"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After a very successful first season as Fresno State\u2019s head coach, Matt Entz looks to lead the Bulldogs to the first championship game of the rebooted Pac-12 conference. The main issue facing Entz is who will be QB1 when the season starts. Maryland transfer Khristian Martin and redshirt freshman Jayden Mandal are battling it out for that role. Mandal missed 2025 due to labrum surgery.<\/p>\n<p><a rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/FresnoStateFB\/status\/2080044060912623933?s=20\"><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On defense, the Bulldogs return six starters but lost most of their top tacklers. Fresno\u2019s defense finished No. 10 in the FBS in total defense, allowing only 285.7 yards per game. Returning are defensive leaders NB Simeon Harris and LB K\u2019vion Thunderbird. Thunderbird suffered a season-ending injury in the seventh game. Entz has depth on the defense, which should keep the yards per game total close to last year\u2019s number. Below are the predictions for the games for Fresno State in 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Week 1, at USC<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Lincoln Riley has a proven track record of producing high-powered offenses, including multiple Heisman Trophy winners and video game-like numbers. However, Riley\u2019s Trojans have yet to make the College Football Playoff. Riley brought in former TCU head coach Gary Patterson as defensive coordinator, which is a solid hire. On offense, USC QB Jayden Maiava was a Third-Team All-Big Ten selection after throwing for 3,711 yards with 24 TDs and 10 INTs. The offensive line and running backs are very good. Fresno State\u2019s front seven will have a tough time handling Riley\u2019s high-powered offense.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Prediction: Loss<\/p>\n<p>Week 2, Sacramento State<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Bulldogs have yet to lose a game to Sac State. However, the Hornets are making the jump to the FBS ranks this year as a member of the MAC. Alonzo Carter takes over as head coach and will have last year\u2019s Fresno State backup, Carson Conklin, as QB1. Sac State didn\u2019t make the jump to the FBS until after the transfer portal closed in January. Most of Carter\u2019s transfers came after the Spring and are made up mostly of JUCO players who have played against little to no FBS competition. Expect Fresno State\u2019s backups to get some serious reps.<\/p>\n<p class=\"is-style-heading has-lg-font-size wp-block-paragraph\">More Sports News<\/p>\n<p>\t .wp-block-group__inner-container:has(> .embla),<br \/>\n\t.wp-block-group:where(.alignfull) > .wp-block-group__inner-container:has(> .embla) {<br \/>\n\t\twidth: calc(100vw &#8211; (var(&#8211;side-spacing) * 2)) !important;<br \/>\n\t}<br \/>\n\t.embla {<br \/>\n\t\tposition: relative;<br \/>\n\t\toverflow: hidden;<br \/>\n\t}<br \/>\n\t.embla__container {<br \/>\n\t\tdisplay: flex;<br \/>\n\t\tflex-wrap: nowrap;<br \/>\n\t\tgap: 0 !important;<br \/>\n\t\twidth: 75%;<br \/>\n\t}<br \/>\n\t.embla__slide {<br \/>\n\t\tmargin-inline-end: var(&#8211;column-gap);<br \/>\n\t}<br \/>\n\t.embla__arrow,<br \/>\n\t.embla__arrow:active,<br \/>\n\t.embla__arrow:target,<br \/>\n\t.embla__arrow:hover,<br \/>\n\t.embla__arrow:focus-visible {<br \/>\n\t\tdisplay: none;<br \/>\n\t\tposition: absolute;<br \/>\n\t\ttop: 50%;<br \/>\n\t\ttransform: translateY(-50%);<br \/>\n\t\twidth: 40px;<br \/>\n\t\theight: 40px;<br \/>\n\t\tmargin: 0;<br \/>\n\t\tpadding: 0;<br \/>\n\t\tline-height: 0;<br \/>\n\t\tbackground: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.75);<br \/>\n\t\tcolor: var(&#8211;color-primary);<br \/>\n\t\tborder-radius: 100vw;<\/p>\n<p>\t\tsvg {<br \/>\n\t\t\twidth: 24px;<br \/>\n\t\t}<br \/>\n\t}<br \/>\n\t.embla__prev {<br \/>\n\t\tleft: 0;<br \/>\n\t}<br \/>\n\t.embla__next {<br \/>\n\t\tright: 0;<br \/>\n\t}<br \/>\n\t]]><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Prediction: Win<\/p>\n<p>Week 3, at San Jose State<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For the first time since 1968, these rivals are in different conferences. Head coach Ken Niumatalolo is in his third season with the Spartans and is looking to bounce back from a 3-9 2025 season. There is a three-man race to be QB1: Hawai\u2019i transfer Luke Weaver, redshirt freshman Robert McDaniel and true freshman Daniel Rolovich. With only three total starters back, the Spartans will have a difficult time defeating the Bulldogs.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Prediction: Win<\/p>\n<p>Week 4, Rice<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The final non-conference game has the Bulldogs hosting Rice from the American Conference. The Owls run a shotgun spread offense, and former Miami (FL) QB Jacurri Brown will lead that offense. Second-year head coach Scott Abell returns only five starters from last year\u2019s 5-8 squad. The defense was hit the hardest and Abell needs to rebuild that unit. The former WAC foes haven\u2019t faced each other in the regular season since 2004. Fresno\u2019s defense is more than capable of slowing down the Rice shotgun spread-option attack.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Prediction: Win<\/p>\n<p>Week 5, at Washington State<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Cougars are on their third different coach in as many years, as Kirby Moore was hired to replace Jimmy Rogers, who left for Iowa State. Former UC-Davis QB Caden Pinnick transfers in to lead the offense. This will be another rebuilding year for Washington State, whose defense will have trouble shutting down the Bulldogs run game. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Prediction: Win<\/p>\n<p>Week 6, Boise State<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Of course, the Bulldogs\u2019 first home game as members of the Pac-12 comes against former Mountain West rival Boise State. Widely viewed as the top Group of Six program, the Broncos return seven starters on an offense that produced 424 yards and 29.9 points per game. QB Maddux Madsen and RB Dylan Riley are back, but the top four receivers are gone. Fresno has won the last three meetings with the Broncos. The Bulldogs will take advantage of an unsettled WR room and make it four in a row.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Prediction: Win<\/p>\n<p>Week 7, at San Diego State<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While Fresno State has a winning streak against Boise State, it is riding a two-game losing streak against its other former Mountain West rival, the Aztecs. Head coach Sean Lewis is an offensive genius who gets back his top passer, top three rushers and top four receivers. Unfortunately, the defense lost a lot of production; only one of the top nine tacklers returns. If QB Jayden Denegal can stay healthy, SDSU will challenge for the Pac 12 Championship.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Prediction: Loss<\/p>\n<p>Week 8, BYE<\/p>\n<p><a rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SSN_FresnoState\/status\/1964442706660520078?s=20\"><\/p>\n<p>Week 9, Oregon State<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It can be argued that there is no program more affected by the collapse of the former Pac-12 than the Beavers. Oregon State is 7-17 in the two years since the collapse and is now on its second coach in as many seasons. Head coach Jamarcus Shepard has a three-man race for QB1 between last year\u2019s starter Maalik Murphy and transfers Braden Atkinson from Mercer and Brady Jones from Western Michigan. The Beavs return five starters on the defensive side of the ball, and the front seven is solid. Depth is an issue, so Oregon State\u2019s defense will need to stay as healthy as possible. Despite last season\u2019s lopsided yardage total (OSU 528, FSU 318), the Bulldogs have too many weapons on defense and will shut down Oregon State\u2019s offense.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Prediction: Win<\/p>\n<p>Week 10, at Utah State<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The 2025 Aggies were a tale of two teams: potent on offense and loose on defense. Bronco Mendenhall\u2019s offense averaged 409 yards and 31 points per game. However, the defense surrendered 440 yards and 29 points per game. Six of the top ten tacklers are back, including DE Carson Tujague, LB Bronson Olevao and S Brevin Hamblin. Offensively, the Aggies have lost a lot from last year. A drop in production on offense will need to be balanced out by better play on defense. The road team has won the last four games; make it five.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Prediction: Win<\/p>\n<p>Week 11, at Texas State<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After 13 years in the Sun Belt Conference, Texas State makes the jump to the new Pac-12. Head coach GJ Kinne is 23-16 in three seasons in San Marcos, TX. Kinne\u2019s forte is offense, particularly the passing game. Redshirt sophomore QB Brad Jackson completed an amazing 71.3% of his passes for 3,224 yards with 21 TDs and 7 INTs. Three of the top four receivers return and the offense should be better after a year under Jackson\u2019s belt. Kinne\u2019s Achilles\u2019 Heel has been the defense but he brought in Will Windham as defensive coordinator. The defense should be better but not good enough to slow down Fresno State.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Prediction: Win<\/p>\n<p>Week 12, Colorado State<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Jim Mora, Jr. surprised many by leaving the UConn program he built over the last four years to accept the job at Colorado State. The Rams are coming off a 2-10 season, while UConn is coming off back-to-back 9-4 seasons. Mora revamped the roster, but there are a lot of holes to fill. The longtime head coach has pulled off a few miracles in the past, and while Fresno State has lost three straight games on Senior Day, that streak will come to an end.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Prediction: Win<\/p>\n<p>Week 13, Pac-12 Flex Game<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Pac-12 only has 8 members, which means 7 conference games if played against each member. Instead of having its members play 5 non-conference games, the Pac-12 has added a flex game to be announced at least 6 days before the game date.<\/p>\n<p>Fresno State 2026 Outlook<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Due to the flex game on the schedule, it is impossible to fully predict the Bulldogs\u2019 wins and losses. Entz\u2019s team returns a lot of production, which is rare for a Group of Six team to do after as successful of a season as Fresno State had in 2025.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While most may choose Boise State as the top team in the Pac-12, Fresno State has a legitimate chance to play for the conference championship. The Bulldogs return enough talent on defense to remain one of the better units in the FBS, and the offense has enough weapons to overcome some uncertainty at quarterback. If Entz can get consistent play from Martin or Mandal, Fresno State should be in the mix for the Pac-12 Championship Game.<\/p>\n<p>Overall Record (minus the flex game): 9-2<\/p>\n<p>Conference Record (minus the flex game): 6-1<\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"After a very successful first season as Fresno State\u2019s head coach, Matt Entz looks to lead the Bulldogs&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":427278,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[50338,13621,170203,170204,170205,170206,9390,170207,170208,18897,170209,1323,170210,18966,112,114,113,3257,72208,170211,170212,170213,13733,11322,170214,170215,170216,24279,170217,170218,32698,112475,170219,170220,749,170221,13665,85912,13602,170222,5481,304,997,170223,18952,43934,13607,13670,9250,13667],"class_list":["post-427277","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fresno","tag-alonzo-carter","tag-boise-state-broncos","tag-brad-jackson","tag-braden-atkinson","tag-brady-jones","tag-brevin-hamblin","tag-bronco-mendenhall","tag-bronson-olevao","tag-caden-pinnick","tag-carson-conklin","tag-carson-tujague","tag-colorado-state-rams","tag-daniel-rolovich","tag-dylan-riley","tag-fresno","tag-fresno-headlines","tag-fresno-news","tag-fresno-state-bulldogs","tag-gary-patterson","tag-gj-kinne","tag-jacurri-brown","tag-jamarcus-russell","tag-jayden-denegal","tag-jayden-maiava","tag-jayden-mandal","tag-jim-mora","tag-kvion-thunderbird","tag-ken-niumatalolo","tag-khristian-martin","tag-kirby-moore","tag-lincoln-riley","tag-luke-weaver","tag-maalik-murphy","tag-maddux-madsen","tag-matt-entz","tag-mike-farrell","tag-oregon-state-beavers","tag-pac-12-conference","tag-rice-owls","tag-robert-mcdaniel","tag-sacramento-state","tag-san-diego-state-aztecs","tag-san-jose-state-spartans","tag-scott-abell","tag-sean-lewis","tag-simeon-harris","tag-texas-state-bobcats","tag-usc-trojans","tag-utah-state-aggies","tag-washington-state-cougars"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/427277","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=427277"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/427277\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/427278"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=427277"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=427277"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=427277"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}