{"id":487340,"date":"2026-10-06T22:10:18","date_gmt":"2026-10-06T22:10:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/487340\/"},"modified":"2026-10-06T22:10:18","modified_gmt":"2026-10-06T22:10:18","slug":"why-boise-states-rivalry-matchup-with-fresno-state-could-be-its-biggest-test-yet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/487340\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Boise State\u2019s rivalry matchup with Fresno State could be its biggest test yet"},"content":{"rendered":"<p id=\"inline-text-0\" class=\"mt-[18px] md:mt-0 mb-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"64\">Two of the Pac-12\u2019s top defensive units will be on display during Saturday\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/college\/boise-state\/football\/boise-state-aims-to-end-fresno-state-three-game-winning-streak-in-rivalry-series\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">rivalry game<\/a> between No. 23\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/college\/boise-state\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Boise State<\/a> and Fresno State at Valley Children\u2019s Stadium.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-1\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"69\">The Bulldogs lead the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/college\/boise-state\/football\/boise-state-remains-atop-pac-12-power-rankings-entering-rivalry-showdown-with-fresno-state\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Pac-12<\/a> in scoring defense (16.4 points per game) and total defense (358.8) while the Broncos rank second (20.6) and third (372.6) in the respective categories.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-2\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6e\">Here is a complete look at Boise State (4-1, 1-0) and Fresno State (4-1, 1-0) by the numbers.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-3\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6j\">Scoring offense<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-4\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6o\">Boise State 34.4 (50th nationally, fourth Pac-12)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-5\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6t\">Fresno State 27.8 (76th, fifth)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-6\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6y\">Rushing offense<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-7\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"73\">Boise State 226.6 (20th, second)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-8\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"78\">Fresno State 153.8 (77th, fourth)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-9\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7d\">Passing offense<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-10\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7i\">Boise State 211.6 (86th, fifth)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-11\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7n\">Fresno State 213.4 (85th, fourth)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-12\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7s\">Total offense<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-13\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7x\">Boise State 438.2 (42nd, fourth)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-14\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"82\">Fresno State 367.2 (93rd, fifth)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-15\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"87\">Third down conversion percentage<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-16\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"8c\">Boise State 52.9 percent (ninth, second)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-17\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"8h\">Fresno State 35.9 percent (98th, sixth)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-18\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"8m\">Red zone offense scoring percentage\u00a0<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-19\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"8r\">Boise State 85.7 percent (71st, second)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-20\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"8w\">Fresno State 76.2 percent (118th, fifth)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-21\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"91\">Scoring defense<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-22\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"96\">Boise State 20.6 (50th, second)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-23\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"9b\">Fresno State 16.4 (27th, first)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-24\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"9g\">Rushing defense<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-25\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"9l\">Boise State 114.4 (40th, first)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-26\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"9q\">Fresno State 143.3 (74th, third)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-27\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"9v\">Passing defense\u00a0<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-28\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"a0\">Boise State 258.2 (119th, fifth)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-29\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"a5\">Fresno State 215.4 (80th, third)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-30\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"aa\">Total defense<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-31\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"af\">Boise State 372.6 (87th, third)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-32\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"ak\">Fresno State 358.8 (74th, first)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-33\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"ap\">Sacks per game<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-34\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"au\">Boise State 2.4 (45th, third)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-35\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"az\">Fresno State 2.8 (22nd, second)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-36\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"b4\">Tackles for loss per game<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-37\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"b9\">Boise State 6.6 (30th, first)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-38\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"be\">Fresno State 5.4 (61st, second)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-39\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"bj\">Third down conversion defense<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-40\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"bo\">Boise State 25 percent (sixth, first)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-41\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"bt\">Fresno State 33.3 percent (40th, second)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-42\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"by\">Red zone defense<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-43\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"c3\">Boise State 71.4 percent (18th, second)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-44\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"c8\">Fresno State 80 percent (48th, fifth)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-45\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"cd\">Net punting<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-46\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"ci\">Boise State 42.87 (29th, first)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-47\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"cn\">Fresno State 40.57 (53rd, second)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-48\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"cs\">Punt return average<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-49\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"cx\">Boise State 14.2 (33rd, third)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-50\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"d2\">Fresno State 9.78 (65th, fifth)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-51\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"d7\">Kickoff return average<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-52\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"dc\">Boise State 15 (122nd, sixth)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-53\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"dh\">Fresno State 14 (127th, eighth)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-54\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"dm\">Turnover margin<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-55\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"dr\">Boise State +0.6 (36th, third)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-56\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"dw\">Fresno State +1.6 (fourth, first)<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-57\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"e1\">Leading passers<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-58\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"e6\">Maddux Madsen, Boise State: 87 of 132 (66 percent), 1,058 yards, 11 touchdowns, zero interceptions<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-59\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"eb\">Jayden Mandal, Fresno State: 91 of 137 (66 percent), 1,034 yards, six touchdown, one interception<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-60\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"eg\">Leading rushers<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-61\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"el\">Dylan Riley, Boise State: 108 carries, 685 yards, five touchdowns<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-62\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"eq\">Sire Gaines, Boise State: 45 carries, 234 yards, two touchdowns<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-63\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"ev\">Rayshon Luke, Fresno State: 42 carries, 286 yards, one touchdown<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-64\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"f0\">Bryson Donelson, Fresno State: 48 carries, 206 yards, four touchdowns<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-65\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"f5\">Leading receivers<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-66\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"fa\">Rasean Jones, Boise State: 23 receptions, 359 yards, one touchdown<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-67\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"ff\">Matt Wagner, Boise State: 17 receptions, 196 yards, four touchdowns<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-68\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"fk\">Akeem Wright, Boise State: Nine receptions, 166 yards, one touchdown<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-69\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"fp\">Josiah Freeman, Fresno State: 25 receptions, 322 yards, two touchdowns<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-70\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"fu\">Ezekiel Avit, Fresno State: 13 receptions, 234 yards, two touchdowns<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-71\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"fz\">Jahlil McClain, Fresno State: 12 receptions, 135 yards, one touchdown<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-72\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"g4\">Leading defenders<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-73\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"g9\">Travis Anderson, Boise State: 24 total tackles, three interceptions, one pass breakup<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-74\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"ge\">Boen Phelps, Boise State: 29 total tackles, one sack, one pass breakup<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-75\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"gj\">Jayden Virgin-Morgan, Boise State: 11 total tackles, two sacks, one pass breakup<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-76\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"go\">K\u2019vion Thunderbird, Fresno State: 39 total tackles, one sack, one pass breakup<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-77\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"gt\">Simeon Harris, Fresno State: 25 total tackles, three interceptions, one pass breakup<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-78\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"gy\">Dylan Hampsten, Fresno State: 16 total tackles, three sacks, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.minutemediacdn.com\/platform\/google_discover_icon.svg\" class=\"shrink-0\"\/>Add us as a preferred source on Google<a aria-label=\"Follow si.com on Google News\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=si.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" preventdefault:click=\"\" class=\"flex h-[30px] w-[30px] shrink-0 items-center justify-center rounded-full bg-primary font-group-large text-sm font-medium text-white transition-colors hover:bg-secondary focus:bg-secondary md:w-auto md:gap-2.5 md:px-4 md:py-[5px]\" on:click=\"q-C4SAtnv2.js#s_lDqay9E5m5g[0]\" q:id=\"h4\">Follow<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Two of the Pac-12\u2019s top defensive units will be on display during Saturday\u2019s rivalry game between No. 23\u00a0Boise&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":487341,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[112,114,113],"class_list":["post-487340","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fresno","tag-fresno","tag-fresno-headlines","tag-fresno-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/487340","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=487340"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/487340\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/487341"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=487340"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=487340"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=487340"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}