Fresno State
San Jose State
Football Defeats San Jose State; Clinches Silicon Valley Berth
11/23/2002 12:00:00 AM | Football
Nov. 23, 2002
FRESNO, Calif. - Fresno State knows the way to San Jose.
The Bulldogs earned their third consecutive trip to the Silicon Valley Classic, held at Spartan Stadium, with a 19-16 victory over San Jose State on Saturday.
``Getting a bowl invitation is a great reward,'' said Fresno State coach Pat Hill. ``These young men have battled pretty hard. It's a young team, and I think the foundation will be very strong for the future.''
This year it took four Asen Asparuhov field goals, including the game-winner, a 27-yarder, with just over six minutes left.
Fresno State (7-5, 5-2 WAC) will play on New Year's Eve against a Pac-10 team still to be determined. It appears the opponent could be one of four teams -- Oregon, Oregon State, Arizona State and UCLA. Both the Ducks and Beavers defeated the Bulldogs earlier this year.
Fresno State -- officially awarded the bid in a brief on-field ceremony following the contest -- beat the Spartans for the ninth straight season.
``In the end, our defense really stepped up," Pat Hill said. ``The pass rush was fierce and the coverage was good.''
Nick Gilliam kicked three field goals for San Jose State (6-7, 4-4), which was hoping for its first bowl bid since 1990.
"We're all hurting right now," San Jose State head coach Fitz Hill said. "We had an opportunity and let it slip away. We were three or four plays away. It came down to the last drive. You may say we had a good season, but my definition was different all along. Right now I'm kind of speechless and hurting."
Fresno State quarterback Paul Pinegar completed 16 of 33 passes for 175 yards and a touchdown, while San Jose State's Scott Rislov was 18-of-33 for 154 yards and a TD.
Fresno State's Rodney Davis rushed for 98 yards and has 1,212 on the season, third-best in school history.
The winning field goal was set up when senior cornerback Demorieux Reneau recorded his first career interception on San Jose State's 45-yard line.
San Jose State had a final chance when linebacker Paul Okumu recovered a fumble with 4:52 left, but a sack by Claude Sanders and a dropped fourth-down pass ended the threat.
``They have one of the better front fours,'' Rislov said. ``They did a good job with their schemes.''
Fresno State had nine sacks, a season high, four by senior defensive end Nick Burley.
``He's a special guy,'' Pat Hill said. ``We got him into some one-on-one situations which we don't get very often.''
Asparuhov's 32-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter tied the game at 16. Gilliam's 22-yard field goal with 5:37 remaining in the third quarter had given San Jose State a 16-13 edge.
Asparuhov also tied the game with a 35-yard field goal at 9:44 of the third quarter. He missed a 31-yard attempt seven minutes later, only the second miss in 13 attempts from inside the 40 this season.
Gilliam kicked field goals of 22 yards and 43 yards to give San Jose State -- playing just its fourth home game -- a 6-0 lead after the first quarter. Rislov's 11-yard pass to Marcus Helfman on a 4th-and-3 set up the first field goal, while a Fresno State penalty on another fourth down play helped set up the second one.
Asparuhov put the Bulldogs on the board with a 40-yard field goal midway through the second quarter. Pinegar completed a 53-yard pass to Marque Davis to give Fresno State good field possession.
The Spartans drove 65 yards in nine plays, with Rislov's tossing a 5-yard scoring pass to Helfman, to take a 13-3 lead.
A dropped punt snap gave Fresno State the ball on the Spartans 7-yard line late in the first half. Pinegar threw a 7-yard scoring pass to Marque Davis that brought the Bulldogs to 13-10 at halftime.
``That was huge,'' said Pat Hill. ``San Jose dominated the first half and I don't think there's any doubt about it.''
