Is Iowa State after Coach Hill?

Well, the rumors have reared their ugly head again. According to internet reports, Iowa State was reportedy interested in Pat Hill for their vacant head coaching position, but Hill says those rumors are absolutely not true.

"I'm not involved in any other jobs or job searches. End of conversation, period. ... I'm just trying to keep my job in Fresno."

We've heard Coach Hill say this before, it was actually prior to him interviewing for the head coaching position at the University of Washington, a position he also said he was not interested in or had been asked about. Do you believe him this time around, or is he serious when he says he's just trying to keep his job at Fresno State.

That part of the quote actually brings up more of interesting question, doesn't it? "I'm just trying to keep my job in Fresno." Is Pat Hill in danger of losing his job as the head coach of the Bulldogs? It's just an interesting way to word what he said.

With all that being said, Hill does have a job to do. He has the job of getting his team ready for the New Mexico Bowl tomorrow afternoon against the MWC's Colorado State Rams. A game that, regardless of how little attention it might get, it still means a lot to the departing seniors on both sides, because neither wants to remember their last game as a loss. So, the Bulldogs will run practice today and then get a nice rest in before returning to the field tomorrow morning for pre-game warmups before the game officially kicks off at 11:30am PST tomorrow.

Can Fresno State come up with one more dominant performance, or will they have the letdown of playing a team that shouldn't even compare? Only time will tell...

Pat Hill being 'Dogged' by fans

Are you fans done with Pat Hill?

I could just ask that one question, post it, and let the Bulldog fans run rampant with speculation and opinions on whether they think Pat Hill should return to Fresno State or have his final 2 years of his contract bought out. Are you fans really over Pat Hill?

Let's start right here...if Bulldog fans are that done with coach Hill, who do you want instead? Who do you want as the next head coach of the Fresno State Bulldogs? Who is going to lead this team to a WAC title and beyond? That's one thing I haven't heard from anyone, you want Hill gone so badly, yet I haven't heard one name thrown out there to replace Hill. Do you want an internal candidate, one that already knows this team or do you want someone from outside the program?

I read so many articles and comments about how Pat Hill can't win a WAC title...is that all they should be striving for...seriously? So, as long as they win a WAC title, go to a lesser known bowl game or maybe an average bowl game (Holiday Bowl, Poinsettia Bowl) fans would be ok with that? I don't think you can sit there and tell me fans wouldn't tire of that as well...you can try all you want, but I'm not gonna buy it. Soon, they'll be wanting more, as all fans do. They'll be saying "a WAC title isn't good enough anymore."

Pat Hill is the head coach at Fresno State for the next two years and unless his contract is bought out, that's the way it's gonna be. Now, if you have a name you want to throw out there, I'd be more than happy to listen, but I'm tired of hearing "Pat Hill has to go" but noone knows who they want in his place.

My name...and this is one a lot of NFL fans will know, a guy who currently is not coaching but is teaching at San Diego State University and could be in line to replace Chuck Long as the head football coach of the Aztecs. It's long time NFL coach Dennis Green. Don't tell me his name alone wouldn't entice recruits, especially kids coming out of high school. Maybe his name wouldn't interest Fresno State, maybe he's too expensive, but he'd be worth talking to even just to gauge his interest.

Bulldogs headed for New Mexico Bowl

In an announcement made yesterday, the Fresno State Bulldogs will be headed to Albuquerque, on the campus of the University of New Mexico, to play in the New Mexico Bowl on December 20th which will be the first bowl game of the bowl season.

It will be Fresno State's ninth bowl invitation in the last ten years. They are scheduled to play a team from the Mountain West Conference, a team that is scheduled to be announced on Sunday.

Ok, so it's not the bowl game that a lot of us Bulldog fans expected at the beginning of the season and no it's not a bowl game that anyone takes seriously if you win, but it's still one more game.

With Pat Hill hitting the recruiting trail, fresh off his announcement that he had pulled his name from consideration for the head coaching vacancy at the University of Washington, he's already gotten a verbal committment from David Carr's younger brother, Derek, who's a standout at Bakersfield Christian High. The one area he desperately needs to focus on is their defensive line, who really struggled in the middle of the season. If he can address that and keep the offense as strong as it has been most of the year, it should be an exciting 2009 season.

As for right now, we've got one more game to watch and one more game to root on our Bulldogs. So it's only the widely unknown New Mexico Bowl, but getting a win in that game is just as important to Pat Hill and his team as any other game during the season.

Hill tells prized recruit "I'm staying"

It looks like Pat Hill is returning as Fresno State's head coach in 2009. Hill went to visit his prized recruit, Derek Carr, yesterday evening and told him that he is returning to Fresno State and will not be the head coach at the University of Washington.

If the last name rings a bell, it should, Derek is the younger brother of former Bulldog quarterback and current NY Giants backup QB David Carr, who also played under Pat Hill. The younger Carr, a high school standout at Bakersfield Christian High, was also recruited by Washington but will stay with Hill and Fresno State.

Earlier yesterday, it was reported by the Seattle Times that Hill had told Washington to either offer him the job before the end of the day or he would would pull his name from consideration. Asked whether Hill had pulled his name as of last night, Derek Carr's father Roger said "I don't really know how. He just said he was here. He said, 'I'm here.' He said he's staying in Fresno." There was also a poll conducted by ABC 30 in Fresno and it had some interesting results.

Also asked if Derek would honor his verbal committment to Fresno State had Hill left for Washington, Roger Carr responded, "That would have been a tough decision. There were literally 72 schools that contacted us. But Derek wanted to go to Fresno State, and Pat Hill was a big part of that."

Bulldogs close out the season on the "Smurf Turf"

As Fresno State winds down the 2008 season, they have one more game yet to play, and it's a fitting way to end the season if you ask me.

Friday night, Fresno State will be on the "Smurf Turf" in Boise, ID to take on 9th ranked Boise State. The Broncos of Boise State come into this game with a perfect record and have everything, including a BCS game, to lose by losing this game, which is why Fresno State should be the looser of the two teams going into the game. They know they having nothing to lose, they should be a lock for a bowl game, whatever and wherever that game happens to be so win or lose, they will have a post season.

Call Fresno State's season a disappointment if you wish, but let's look at it this way. The Bulldogs had Wisconsin and Hawaii beaten in the final seconds, but missed field goals would eventually lead to a Bulldog loss. If Goessling makes just two of the six combined field goals he missed, we're talking about Fresno State sitting at 9-2 overall and 5-2 in WAC play. So, I don't think blaming a 7-4 record on Pat Hill is exactly fair, do you?

With all the talk about San Diego State firing Chuck Long after 3 seasons and now Charlie Weis being on the hot seat at Notre Dame after four seasons, I'm sure rumors have started about Pat Hill also being on the hot seat, but isn't that the case every year?

With the players Pat Hill has recruited and brought in to learn the Bulldog system, I think they are the verge of a breakout season, a season like a lot of us Bulldog fans saw back in 2001 when David Carr led Fresno State to a Top 10 ranking and a win against a high powered Wisconsin team, on the road no less.

So now that I got sidetracked with what I was writing about, let's finish talking about this big game coming up. Do I think the Bulldogs can win a game of this magnitude against a team like Boise State? My biased answer would be yes, but the realistic side of me says absolutely not. This is a very good Boise State football team and one that could have a date with another high bowl game come January. If Fresno State can just stay with the Broncons, I'll call it a success, but somehow, I don't see that happening either.

Either way, it's been a fun season to watch and I look very much forward to seeing where Fresno State ends up playing and in which bowl game. After that, we'll hang up the cleats and we'll focus on Fresno State basketball and look forward to the 2008 College World Series Champion baseball team starting up spring drills. Let's get past winter before we start talking about spring shall we?

Bulldogs in danger of missing the postseason

Fresno State is in danger of missing the postseason for the 2nd time in three years, not playing in a bowl game in 2006 after going through a rough 4-8 season, then turning it around in 2007 with an 8-4 finish and a 40-28 victory over Georgia Tech in the Humanitarian Bowl.

The Bulldogs will need at least one win in their next three games starting this Saturday against New Mexico State, Fresno State's home finale. They'll finish up the 2008 season at San Jose State then at 9th ranked, and undefeated, Boise State, neither of which I expect Fresno to win so it's win or go home against the Aggies this weekend.

The biggest problem for Fresno State this season has not only been the horrible defense, but injuries, turnovers and missed opportunities have been this team's downfall all season long. Against Wisconsin, a 13-10 loss, kicker Kevin Goessling missed 3 FG's that would be been the difference between a 3 point loss and a Bulldog victory. A few weeks later, again at home, against Hawaii, Goessling would again miss three FG's that eventually would cost them the game, one of which came at the end of regulation that would have given Fresno State the victory. Notch a victory in both those games, and instead of currently being at 5-4 they would be sitting pretty at 7-2 going into Saturday's game against New Mexico State.

Will missing the postseason mean that Pat Hill's job is on the line? I doubt it, but the rumors will begin to swirl I can almost guarantee that. I don't believe Hill is responsible for missed FG's in crucial situations, the injuries they sustained that have really cost this team or the lack of ball control this offense has been plagued with, but Hill will always tell you that he's responsible for getting the team ready. The two injuries that have hurt this team the most were Sr. lineman Cole Popovich and Sr. defensive tackle Jon Monga, both players were lost early on in the season and it's shown how much of an affect it has had on this team.

We'll see what this team has the final three weeks of the 2008 season. Are the out of gas? Only time will tell.

Atrocious defense leads to second straight loss

Well, how do you talk about a game like this without wanting to get extremely angry? How do you rationalize being on national television and have another team almost collect 500 rushing yards against you, at your own place?

That's exactly what happened tonight as Nevada ran up 472 yards of rushing offense, handing Fresno State their 2nd straight loss 41-28 on Friday night. It marks the sixth time in the last seven games that Fresno State has allowed 30 or more points and the second time this season they've given up 40 or more (Sept. 20th @ Toledo).

The Bulldogs would again be haunted by turnovers and it would eventually cost them the game. With the Bulldogs trailing 17-14 and looking poised and ready to take the lead back from Nevada, quarterback Tom Brandstater (14-of-23, 260 yds, 2 TD's) would find tight end Bear Pascoe over the middle, but as Pascoe tried to stretch for more yards, he would fumble the ball and Nevada would recover. The Wolf Pack would drive quickly down the field for a touchdown and stretch the lead to 24-14. Fresno State had two more drives in the final minutes, both ended with turnovers, an interception from Brandstater and a fumble, by receiver Seyi Ajirotutu at the Nevada 10 yard line with 1:57 left to play in the game, that was the nail in the coffin.

Nevada was led by running back Vai Taua who ran for a career best 263 yards and a touchdown as well as quarterback Colin Kaepernick who added 118 yards and 2 TD's on the ground. They barely needed Kaepernick's arm tonight, the same arm that baseball scouts were drooling over before he decided to give up the sport for football, going 7-for-17 for just 128 yards.

Bulldogs' head coach Pat Hill, "First off, I have to give credit to Nevada. We got beat by a good football team tonight. The time of possession was critical tonight. They had the ball nearly 38 minutes tonight and we had it 22."
"We're not the same team we were in September. We need to find a way to make this team win in November."

I know Bulldog fans are going to be all over Pat Hill after this loss, though how is that different from any other loss. I can't imagine the outcry if this team can't win at least one of their final three games (New Mexico State, San Jose State, Boise State).

Next up for the Wolf Pack of University of Nevada-Reno (5-4, 3-2), they'll return home for a very big showdown with San Jose State (6-3, 4-1) next Saturday, then play their home finale on Nov. 22nd against 9th ranked Boise State before finishing their 2008 schedule, Nov. 29th, against the Bulldogs of Louisiana Tech.

As for Fresno State (5-4, 2-3), they need at least one win in their next three games in order be bowl eligible. That starts next Saturday, at Bulldog Stadium, as they'll welcome in the Aggies of New Mexico State (3-5, 1-3) for Fresno State's home finale. Their final two games, of the 2008 football season, will be at San Jose State and at 9th ranked Boise State, two games that I can't see this team winning, especially not after how they played tonight against Nevada, but stranger things have happened.

If you don't want Pat Hill, do you want Phillip Fulmer?

Now I know this is really far fetched and maybe I shouldn't be talking about it, but since I've heard so many people call into the post game shows after a Fresno State loss, I thought I'd throw out a well known name that will be jobless after the completion of the 2008 college football season.

That name? Soon to be former Tennessee head coach Phillip Fulmer. He has a National Championship under his belt, could be the coach Fresno State needs to get them over the hump? Is he a name Fresno State would even be interested in or do they even have the money for him to listen to offers?

Ok, yes this is WAY far fetched, but for those of you who want Pat Hill out, let's hear who you think Fresno State should consider? Lane Kiffin, formerly of USC it out as the Oakland Raiders coach, how about another name that will come out of left field, former NFL coach Jim Fassel. Whether or not an NFL coach would come to a relative unknown, more unlikely than likely, is a matter of money..something Fresno State just doesn't have a lot of, especially to woo coaches like Fassel and Fulmer.

If Pat Hill does lose his job in the next few years, here are a few names to keep in mind, and one of these is a former Bulldog and former NFL quarterback and Super Bowl Champion. Watch for Trent Dilfer's name to possibly come up, maybe not seriously, but his name will come up.

Bottom line is, however, that it would take consecutive losing seasons for Hill to lose his job and I don't see that happening any time soon.

Bulldogs hope for strong showing against Aggies

With the Bulldogs giving up 30+ points in each of their last four games, Pat Hill and his coaching staff hope the bye week gave the team time to heal and get ready for their game tonight against Utah State up in Logan, UT. where it's expected to be mostly sunny and 65 degrees. One thing to keep in mind about these two teams is the Bulldogs haven't had much success up in Logan, having not won there since 1989 and are 2-8 all time, a streak the Bulldogs hope to break this afternoon.

Yes, Utah State is 1-6 currently on the year, but three of those losses have come to 18th ranked Oregon, 22nd ranked Utah and 8th ranked BYU, so they haven't played the easiest schedule this season. However, their last two losses have been of the lopsided nature, losing 30-7 to San Jose State two weeks ago and dropping a 44-17 decision to Nevada last week.

The one thing the Bulldogs need to exploit is the Aggies' run defense, which is currently giving uip 192.3 yards per game. With Ryan Mathews, Lonyae Miller and Anthony Harding making up the Bulldogs' 3-headed monster, they could easily run up 250+ yards today. Tom Brandstater also needs to be efficient today as well, he threw for just 125 (14/23) against Idaho two weeks ago, he needs to be more of a factor if they're going to put Utah away early. The Bulldogs have always been a 2nd half team, but they can't keep letting teams hang around, it's what cost them the Hawaii game three weeks ago and possibly the Wisconsin game towards the beginning of the season.

The one 'X Factor' with this Bulldog team is their defense currently giving up over 400 yards of total offense per game. Hopefully with the bye week, it's allowed some of their injured players to be able to heal enough to make the start today against Utah State. The defensive line needs to be solid as does their secondary, if they can improve in those two facets of the game, I don't see Utah State hanging around at all.

Prediction Time: Ok, like I've said the past few weeks, I'm done predicting blowouts....well, I WAS. Fresno State coming in with three of the top rushers in the WAC going against a team giving up almost 200 yards per game in rushing defense, look for the Bulldogs to use that to their advantage. Fresno State 41 Utah State 17

Do Bulldog fans expect too much?

Ok, so usually I write about something majority of fans already know, so I thought I would take a different angle and throw out something that may rile some of you up and some may agree with me.

I used to live in Fresno, so you can't say that I don't know what I'm talking about, because I've heard the same talk when I was living there. I hear the same things with San Diego Padre fans as well. What am I hearing you ask? Fans constantly complaining, about Pat Hill, about the football program trying to do too much, playing teams they have no business playing (USC, Ohio State, Wisconsin, etc).

So with all that said, let's start on the obvious topic which is how much longer is Pat Hill going to be at the helm? Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't he just sign a ten year contract extension prior to this season starting? So, if in fact, that is correct it means Pat Hill is the head coach of the Fresno State Football team for another 9 years and unless the team has consecutive losing seasons at any point over those next 9 years, don't count on him being fired any time soon. Now, I heard post-game 'Dog Talk on KMJ-580 AM after the loss to Hawaii, I understand fans' frustrations because I felt them as well, but people pointing the blame at Hill? Anyone forget that kicker Kevin Goessling missed 3 FG's, one of which should have been the game winner? Anyone miss the fact that Tom Branstater had a horrendous game, responsible for half (3) of the teams six turnovers, not throwing for a single touchdown? I have a hard time believing that Pat Hill should take the blame for that, but again, this is just my opinion.

As far as the teams Fresno State plays in their non-conference schedule. I've heard a lot of people ask why they even bother, why not focus on a WAC title first and not a BCS Bowl bid? Here's what I have to say to that. For the past several seasons, Boise State has just been that much better than Fresno State and they play the same kind of non-conference schedule that Fresno State does, not shying away from anyone, so it would have been hard to challenge them. With that being said, should Fresno State go out and schedule UC Davis, Cal Poly, Harvard, just to pad their record before you start conference play? If you say yes, I hope you have a good reason for saying yes, because I have no interest in going to Bulldog Stadium just to watch a blowout. I would much rather see how they stack up against the top teams in the country. Anyone hear about San Diego State playing Cal Poly this year? No? Didn't think so.

Are there some die hard, be there through winning and losing seasons, Bulldog fans absolutely there are but there are also a fair share of bandwagon jumpers. Let's get one thing straight, as long as the BCS is around, Fresno State will NEVER play for a National Championship. That is, unless, they play Florida, USC and Ohio State, win all 3 games, go undefeated in conference and win each of those games by 20 or more points, then they might get a consideration, but it's still a long shot. I know there's a lot of excitement about the Bulldogs winning the College World Series and rightly so, I loved watching the celebrations spill out onto Shaw Ave but still able to keep it peaceful (other college towns pay attention, notice no cars turned over, no riots, no looting?), but Pat Hill and his coaching staff are going about this the right way.

Fresno State's one problem right now is their defense, they've had a lot of injuries and their defensive line needs to figure out how to stop teams from running down their throats. Let me put it this way, if Goessling makes FG's against Wisconsin and against Hawaii, we're not talking about losses in either of those games and noone is calling for Pat Hill's head.

Let's put blame where it belongs, and where the players know it should go, squarely on their shoulders and theirs alone.

Bulldogs lose Ramos for the year

The Fresno State defense could ill afford to lose another player to an already decimated defensive line, but they'll have to do without defensive tackle Wilson Ramos, possibly for the remainder of the 2008 season, joining offensive lineman Cole Popovich.

Ramos, a 6'4" 270 lbs Jr from Woodlands, CA who replaced defensive tackle Jon Monga (knee), suffered a high-ankle sprain and a slight stress fracture of his left leg Saturday in the Bulldogs' 45-32 win over Idaho at Bulldog Stadium.

With the injury to Ramos, it will force head coach Pat Hill to rely on younger players like true freshmen Chase McEntee and Logan Harrell, sophomore defensive tackle Mark Robert and sophomore defensive end Chris Lewis. Not to mention that the Bulldogs hope to have Jon Monga, who suffered a knee injury 3 weeks ago, back for the Utah State game a week from Saturday, which should definitely give this team a boost.

Other key injuries to this Bulldog squad that should be returning for the Utah State game are receivers Marlon Moore (ankle) and Jason Crawley (hamstring) as well as tight end Bear Pascoe (ankle). Starting safety Marvin Haynes should also be ready to go next weekend after sitting out the 2nd half of the Idaho game with back spasms.

'Dogs ride 3-headed monster in win over Idaho

If there was any question of how good the Fresno State running backs were, that question was answered on Saturday night.

Lonyae Miller, Anthony Harding and Ryan Mathews combined for 318 total yards on the ground, tying a season high, as the Bulldogs hung on for a 45-32 victory over the Idaho Vandals at Bulldog Stadium. Lonyae Miller would finish the night with 15 carries for an impressive 181 yards and a touchdown, which came on a 90 yard sprint down the sideline in the 3rd quarter. Anthony Harding would add 8 carries for 94 yards while Ryan Mathews, just back from missing last week's loss to Hawaii, was limited but still managed 8 carries for 57 yards and a touchdown.

Tom Brandstater had another sub par performance, though he did throw for 2 touchdowns and ran for another, he ended the night just 14/27 for 125 yards passing while Idaho quarterback Nathan Enderle was 22/39 for 237 yards and 3 touchdowns. Surprisingly, Bulldogs kicker Kevin Goessling was still the starter after missing crucial field goals against Hawaii in their overtime loss last week, but he didn't miss an attempt including a 46-yarder in the 4th quarter that barely cleared the crossbar. When asked about it, head coach Pat Hill responded, "Clint Stitser was our kicker here for three and a half years and only had two game-deciding kicks. Kevin Goessling has been our kicker for six games and has had six game deciding kicks."

Fresno State struggled again defensively against the Vandals, not only giving up more than 30 points for the fourth straight game, but allowed 452 total yards including 237 through the air and another 215 on the ground, not to mention allowing Idaho to hold possession of the football for a grand total 35:05 to Fresno State's 25:55. The Bulldog defense needs to get a whole lot better if they even hope to get into a bowl game this year, especially with games against Boise State and Nevada still upcoming on their schedule.

Next up for Idaho (1-6, 0-3), they will travel to Rustin, LA to take on Louisiana Tech (2-3, 0-2) as both teams look to gain their first conference win.

As for Fresno State (4-2, 1-1), they will have a bye weekend before they head for Logan, UT as they take on the Utah State Aggies (1-5, 1-1) on October 25th. Game time is slated for 12pm PST.