Grading the 'Dogs (4-2, 2-1) vs. New Mexico State (1-5, 0-2)

FRESNO STATE 33, New Mexico State 10

Quarterback: C-
After wowing fans through the first four games, Ryan Colburn looks to have regressed in the past two. Hopefully that trend ends next week, because 12 of 20 for 132 yards doesn't cut it -- certainly not when he's struggling with accuracy. Colburn missed a wide-open Rashad Evans behind the entire defense for a would-be TD, threw nowhere near a wide-open Vince Pascoe squatting in between coverage and was late in his progressions on numerous other throws. He's better than that. And coaches didn't help him by sitting on the ball much of the second half.

Running Backs: B+
Mighty Mouse Robbie Rouse returned to a form we hadn't seen since last year en route to 150 yards and 2 TDs on 16 carries. But the fact the team struggled to overpower New Mexico State in the second half was disappointing, as were Michael Harris' 1.3 yards per carry.

Receivers: B
The wideouts just didn't really get a chance to do much. The highlight was a double "reBurse" to Isaiah Burse for a 30-yard TD. Another true freshman, Jalen Saunders, led the team with 64 yards receiving on 3 catches. Tight end Tapa (I won't attempt spelling the last name) had the only TD catch.

Offensive Line: B
The first half was flatout impressive -- the second half was far from it. Granted, the Aggies knew the run was coming when the 'Dogs were being overly nice to not run up the score, but this unit should have been able to manhandle its counterpart. Overall, it was still a very strong performance with the backs averaging 6 yards per carry as a team. Also good to see Matt Hunt and Richard Helepiko get valuable time. Unfortunately, Helepiko's time came after an injury to C Joey Bernardi.

Defensive Line: A
On Chris Carter's performance alone, this group deserves an A. Carter earned national defensive lineman of the week honors with 9 tackles, 3 sacks, 4 tackles for loss and 2 forced fumbles. Beastly. Logan Harrell and Chris Lewis also teamed up on a sack, as the 'Dogs deployed constant pressure on the young, inexperienced Aggies QBs.

Linebackers: A-
The unit helped hold New Mexico State to 30-something yards rushing in the first three quarters before the reserves entered. Kyle Knox turned in a stud performance before an injury cut his night short. Still, he finished with 7 tackles and 1 for loss. The Aggies averaged 3.1 yards per carry as a team.

Defensive Backs: A-
Starting QB Andrew Manley had just 1 yard passing, while backup Matt Christian, the former Fresno State walk-on, had 155 (most in garbage time). In his first career start, in place of safety Phil Thomas, true freshman Derron Smith was tied for second on the team with 7 tackles and 1 for loss. His development will be a big plus as the season continues.

Special Teams: B-
Against a good team, Rashad Evans' first quarter botch of a punt, when he fumbled the ball away, could have been far more costly. Luckily, the Aggies couldn't capitalize. Andrew Shapiro was money on all but one punt, which took a favorable Aggies bounce. He's quietly having a heck of a season.

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Grading the 'Dogs (3-3, 2-1) vs. San Jose State (1-5, 0-2)

Quarterbacks: B-

Ryan Colburn didn't do anything spectacular but did throw for 2 TDs and more importantly had no picks for the second straight game. Colburn found the open receivers, and did what he needed to for a win, but also made some mistakes, such as a pass he floated toward the sideline near midfield that was nearly picked by a San Jose State safety. The 7 of 12 completion numbers need to be consistently higher. Ebahn Feathers entered in the third quarter and threw for his first-ever TD pass on an 4-yard scrambling, crossover to Marlon Moore. Feathers also had a 16-yard run. Derek Carr was 2 of 3 passing for 9 yards, and threw a beautiful pass on the run that was a smidgen out of reach for Darren Newborn.

Running Backs: A
As perfect as can be in the running game, but get docked a bit for lapses in pass blocking that led to Colburn being sacked. Averaged 7 yards per carry as a team. Ryan Mathews continues to look the part of the nation's most talented player, running for 233 yards (11.6 per carry) while dazzling with his speed and vision and delivering multiple stiff-arms (which are actually more like shoves to the ground in this case). Mathews added a 59-yard score, while Robbie Rouse scored another TD and Lonyae Miller ran for 49 yards on 7 carries.

Receivers: B

Welcome back Marlon Moore. An injury derailed Moore's hot start after a 90-yard TD catch in the season opener, but he bounced back with 2 TDs on Saturday, including a 23-yarder. Devon Wylie smoked a Spartans defensive back en route to a 27-yard TD before leaving the game with injury, and Seyi Ajirotutu had 4 catches for 61 yards. It was the first time all year Chastin West's presence wasn't felt.

Offensive Line: C+

Can't ask for anything more with this group's dominant run blocking, opening holes in the second level for Mathews, Rouse and Miller to burst free. But Colburn was sacked a season-high three times on plays where Spartans defenders were breaking through untouched.

Defensive Line: B-
Spartans did the best job of any opponent this season at stalling Chris Carter's havok, holding him to 3 tackles (1 for loss) and no sacks (which is an accomplishment). And lo and behold the 'Dogs finally got a sack from a defensive tackle in Logan Harrell. Still, the pass rush was missing in the first quarter and it led to the 'Dogs giving up a high percentage of completions to Spartans receivers underneath.

Linebackers: B

Linebackers share in the credit for holding a poor San Jose State running game to 4 yards per carry, and Ben Jacobs again made a play in pass coverage with a deflection. Still confused as to why the 'Dogs remain in three-linebacker sets so often in passing situations? Shawn Plummer saw a lot of playing time on third downs, and Travis Brown replaced injured Nico Herron before halftime. Plummer had 2 tackles, Brown had 1 in his most significant career action.

Defensive Backs: A-

The main negative was San Jose State starter Jordan La Secla's completion rate (17 of 27) -- which isn't horrible. But much kudos go out to Desia Dunn for his second straight lockdown performance. Dunn had 4 tackles and 2 deflections. Damion Owens had his most impressive game of the season with a heck of a pass breakup and tight coverage. Isaiah Green also wowed, breaking up a potentially big play near the Spartans' end zone. And can't forget Jermaine Thomas, with a fourth-quarter interception in his most extensive playing time. The Spartans stayed away from A.J. Jefferson most of the night, and credit the Bulldogs for not giving up a big play to Kevin Jurovich. Late 59-yard TD pass was against an all-reserve defense.

Special Teams: A
Gotta love the aggressiveness of Pat Hill when San Jose State punted just before halftime. Instead of having Moore return the punt, he called for Moore to come up and help go for the block. It worked as Ajirotutu knocked the punt down, leading to a Kevin Goessling field goal just before the half. Goessling was good from 40 and 46 yards on the night. Robert Malone booted a 69-yard punt, and Michael Harris and Owens each delivered crushing blows in kick coverage.

Coaching: A

Credit Hill and John Baxter with the special teams play, and credit Randy Stewart with adjusting the defense after a rough first quarter to boost pressure on the quarterback and get in more press and bump coverage with the defensive backs.

***Photo courtesy of Juan Villa.

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Grading the 'Dogs (2-3, 1-1) @ Hawaii (2-3, 0-2)

FRESNO STATE 42, Hawaii 17

Quarterbacks: B+
Ryan Colburn did everything he needed to for Fresno State to stick to its game plan and win big. And while I don't know what the heck his 204.86 passer efficiency rating means, I know it's a darn high rating. Colburn threw 2 TDs, no interceptions (a first this year) and completed 12 of 14 passes. Throwing for 120 yards isn't going to impress anyone, but there was no need for him to throw any more than he did. He methodically picked apart Hawaii's defense going from sideline to sideline to open the middle of the field for the run -- game management at its finest.

Running Backs: A-

Goodness gracious these guys are just unstoppable as WAC standards go. There's no one left on Fresno State's schedule to give any reason to believe Mathews won't top 100 yards every game this season. He went for 149 yards (6.2 per carry) on Saturday, edging his No. 2 in the nation season average of 148 per game. And true freshman Robbie Rouse has a chance to run wild on the rest of the WAC. Rouse had 2 TDs on 73 yards (12.2 per carry), including a career/season-best 34-yarder where he looked faster than every Hawaii defender. Lonyae Miller started and scored the team's first TD (though he later lost a fumble). And Reynard Camp's big-time blocking efforts at fullback did not go ignored.

Receivers: B+
Stats weren't flashy with Seyi Ajirotutu's 48 yards leading the way, but wideouts did a lot with the routes that were called. Highlight was Devon Wylie's 17-yard TD where he embarrassed Hawaii's defensive back with a nifty outside-in juke at near full-speed. And Chastin West's 17-yard TD grab in the front corner of the end zone just before half in double coverage ranked right up there (especially considering that a white truck appeared to back into West on the sideline as he ran through the end zone and out of bounds).

Offensive Line: A
Just can't applaud this unit enough right now. With Joey Bernardi battling injury, Richard Pacheco stepped in and played well enough for no one to notice Bernardi's absence (which is a compliment because Bernardi is a darn good player). Leslie Cooper also got early action and was the lead blocker on Miller's early TD run. Nice to see Matt Hunt get some reps as well. Overall, the unit helped the backfield earn 5.9 yards per carry as a team and gave up 1 sack. This group has the potential for greatness, considering none of the regular starters are seniors.

Defensive Line: C+
Credit the d-line for not giving up any big runs to the opposing QB, but for cryin' out loud would somebody please step up and help Chris Carter with some pressure? Carter literally abuses his opponent with speed and agility nearly every down, but pressure from the tackle spots is almost nonexistent (save for the occasional Logan Harrell spin move) and Kenny Borg hasn't produced as we expected after seeing him play so well in fall camp. Redshirt freshman Matt Akers saw his most extensive time (as Pat Hill loves putting speed rushers against Hawaii's overmatched offensive tackles) and showed some positives but also was pushed easily off the ball on one first down run. Carter got his WAC-high fourth sack (though we could have sworn he should have been credited with 2 Saturday night). P.S. Carter was held at least 10 times in the game without getting calls.

Linebackers: B-

The Bulldogs again stuck with mostly three-linebacker sets while defending a spread-type passing offense, but luckily it didn't hurt this time because of Hawaii's inaccurate passer (which is odd because coming into the game we all heard accuracy was his strength -- obviously not). Ben Jacobs picked off a pass, and Nico Herron nearly got one, while Kyle Knox forced a fumble. Those are the types of game-changing plays the Bulldogs need from this unit. But it also must take partial blame for Hawaii's early success in the running game (despite having one of the worst rushing attacks nationally).

Defensive Backs: B-

Desia Dunn really played up at corner, leading the team with 10 tackles and a forced fumble, and Moses Harris intercepted a pass in the end zone -- something Fresno State should expect from its safeties but rarely gets. It was Harri's second-career pick, but most impressive was the footwork he used to put himself in position and play for the turnover instead of fixating on the opposing receiver. Redshirt freshman Phillip Thomas saw his most extensive playing time, as did sophomore Isaiah Green. Thomas was second on the team with 8 tackles (1 for loss), but was caught out of position at times in the running game. Zak Hill gave up a touchdown on a missed tackle for the second straight game, and then missed another tackle the same way just minutes later. His play recently is a liability for the Bulldogs defense.

Special Teams: B

Just when the Bulldogs put the "special" back in special teams after blocking a field goal attempt on Hawaii's first possession (which Jacobs returned nearly 60 yards to set up a TD) and a fumble recovery by long snapper Bobby Shepard after he ran down in coverage in the Bulldogs' new shield punt formation, a mistake scarred the elation. Hawaii recovered an onside kick with more than 7 minutes to go when the Bulldogs weren't in onside formation and the ball bounced away from Vince Pascoe.

Coaching: A-

Coaching staff continues to impress with game plans put in place this season. Pass was designed to keep Hawaii's defense away from the middle of the field, opening big space for Mathews and Rouse to attack. Refreshing to see special teams coach John Baxter break the stubborness that has killed the Bulldogs in coverage and test new schemes. Still confused, though, why West is returning kicks/punts instead of Rouse, Wylie or Marlon Moore? Also refreshing to see Thomas and Green get more time. Great to see Derek Carr get some playing time, but coaches need to let him rip downfield instead of keeping his pass package conservative (there's no need to keep his arm under wraps like that, he's ready).

***Photo courtesy of Juan Villa

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Grading the 'Dogs (1-1) @ Wisconsin (2-0)

Quarterbacks: C+
4 TDs and big-play capability of Colburn has been sorely missed past three years. But three interceptions (although first was blatant pass interference on the hit to Wylie) ain't gonna cut it. Colburn needs to know when to put touch on passes, and when to zip 'em in there.

Running Backs: B
Mathews' 107 yards and Rouse's 46 yards lead 'Dogs, as the backs got stronger as the game wore on. Mathews flashed big-play ability again with 55-yarder, but Miller and Harding were ineffective in limited reps.

Receivers: A-
West (5 catches, 49 yards, TD) and Wylie (5 catches, 114 yards, TD) had their best career games. Ajirotutu added 6 catches, 83 yards, 2 TDs while making an acrobat grab to extend to double overtime. Tight ends, though, were non-factors in the passing game.

Offensive Line: B
Pass blocking was phenomenal and Bernardi scored a knockout. Run push came up in second half, but offense didn't capitalize. Without this group, the big plays wouldn't have been there.

Defensive Line: C
Got out to dominant start, but weakened as game went on. Carter, with 2 sacks, was only player consistenly applying pressure, with occasional help from Borg. Interior linemen need to contribute more.

Linebackers: C
Jacobs led all with 15 tackles, and Herron came up with a couple big stops late. But partial blame lies here for Clay's 72-yard run and tight end Graham's catches.

Defensive Backs: C
Allowed Badgers too much open ground after taking a 21-7 lead and were dominated for a couple drives. No turnovers hurt bad, especially when Dunn had position but didn't turn his head. Still, part of the blame lies with blitzes not being effective enough and Tolzien making great plays under pressure.

Special Teams: D+
Shanked punt by Malone, missed field goal by Goessling, two blocks in the back that negated solid returns, and allowed Wisconsin to hit 57-yard field goal.

Coaching: B-
Offensive playcalling was refreshing, defensive was aggressive, but seemed like the team let off the gas a bit when it had a big lead. Need the "killer instinct." Team was definitely focused and ready at kickoff.

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