Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
San Jose State
No. 22 Football Defeats San Jose State 40-21
11/23/2001 12:00:00 AM | Football
Nov 23, 2001
Box Score?|? Quotes?|? Notes?|? Photo Gallery
By GREG BEACHAM
AP Sports Writer
FRESNO, Calif. (AP) - David Carr found out his postseason schedule will include a trip to San Jose. He hopes to make a stop in New York as well.
Carr threw for 328 yards and two touchdowns to become Fresno State's single-season passing leader as the No. 22 Bulldogs locked up a bowl bid with a 40-21 victory over San Jose State on Friday.
Carr also ran for two scores and a career-best 61 yards, while Bernard Berrian had eight catches for 109 yards as Fresno State (10-2, 6-2 WAC) overcame a slow start to post its eighth straight victory over San Jose State and the school's first 10-win season since 1991.
With another big game, Carr kept himself in the Heisman Trophy race while surpassing Trent Dilfer's totals from 1993, when Dilfer finished ninth in the Heisman voting. Though he's still an outside contender for the award, his teammates and coaches think he should be a finalist.
"I like being noticed, because that's when you do your best," Carr said. "This was a rivalry game, and we had to really work for it. I think it came down to who had the better players."
For the second straight year, Carr and Fresno State will spend the holidays practicing and playing on San Jose State's home field. With the win, Fresno State earned a second straight berth in the Silicon Valley Football Classic - a far cry from the BCS wealth and prestige the Bulldogs coveted, but a decent reward for another strong season under coach Pat Hill.
Fresno State accepted the invitation shortly after the game, with expectations that the Bulldogs will play a team from one of the six BCS conferences - another step in Hill's plan to raise Fresno State to national prominence.
"We're going to get a big-name opponent there, and our fans will be able to drive up there to see us play," Hill said. "That's the way we're going to build this thing. ... We're going to take this thing to the next level if we have to drag everybody with us."
After Fresno State's improbable two-month run at a Bowl Championship Series bid ended with consecutive losses to Boise State and Hawaii last month, the Bulldogs have posted four straight blowout victories to get back in the polls and the postseason picture.
Carr passed Dilfer when he hit Rodney Wright on a gorgeous 26-yard timing route for a score with 12:58 to play. Carr, who was 21-of-36, has 3,876 yards and 36 TDs this season.
Three receivers had more than 70 yards apiece for the Bulldogs, who pulled away after trailing through most of the first half.
"The last couple of weeks, we've been getting yelled at (during halftime), but whatever we've got to do to get that extra effort, our coaches will do it," Berrian said. "They showed us a whole lot of things we hadn't seen before, but we finally made the adjustments."
Six turnovers sent the Spartans (3-8, 3-5) into next week's finale against No. 13 Stanford with their third loss in four games.
"Turnovers beat us. We win the game without turnovers," San Jose State coach Fitz Hill said. "It's the same song, seventh verse."
Still, San Jose State showed an inventiveness and big-play capability that should give pause to the Cardinal. Marcus Arroyo, benched earlier this season, was 25-of-37 for 397 yards, while Edell Shepherd had eight catches for 264 yards and two TDs.
San Jose State shocked the Bulldogs on the first play from scrimmage. Arroyo found Shepherd for an 87-yard touchdown behind Fresno State's gambling secondary, and the Spartans led 7-0 just 20 seconds into the game.
Fresno State trailed 14-7 late in the first half before Carr capped a long drive with a 2-yard sneak for a score. The Bulldogs then went 88 yards on the opening drive of the second half, with Paris Gaines scoring from 2 yards out.
The Spartans pulled to 33-21 on Charles Pauley's 53-yard TD pass to Shepherd on a halfback option with 12:36 to play. It was the fourth time this season Fresno State has been burned on a halfback option pass.
Shepherd, the nation's sixth-leading receiver, fell 5 yards short of the school record he set earlier this season with 269 yards receiving against Nevada. In the Spartans' last six games, Shepherd has caught 46 passes for 989 yards and 10 TDs.
Gaines finished with 107 yards rushing, while Charles Smith had four catches for 83 yards. Fresno State finished with 610 total yards, its most since racking up 685 against SJSU in 1999.
