Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
Louisiana Tech
Football Uses Defense to Pave Way to Victory
9/20/2003 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept 21, 2003
FRESNO, Calif. (AP) - Dwayne Wright ran for 177 yards on 25 carries and scored the only touchdown of the game as Fresno State beat Louisiana Tech 16-6 on Saturday night.
Brett Visintainer kicked three second-half field goals to help Fresno State (2-2) overcome a 6-0 halftime deficit in the Western Athletic Conference opener for both teams.
Louisiana Tech (2-2), which scored twice in the final 1:09 last week in a surprising victory at Michigan State, scored only on Josh Scobee's two field goals and finished with 256 yards of offense.
It was the first time Fresno State held a team without a TD since defeating California 17-3 in September 2000.
Wright, who took over for starter Rodney Davis early in the game, gave Fresno State a 10-6 lead when he scored on an 7-yard run with 6:35 remaining in the third quarter.
"He had a great game. They have a great running offense," said Louisiana Tech head coach Jack Bicknell. "I think we just left our defense out there a little too long. We just got kind of worn down. We were out there a lot because we couldn't seem to get anything going offensively."
Fresno State, which has had its problems getting untracked offensively this year, had just 143 yards in the first half, including only 62 on the ground. But in the second half, things changed almost immediately, with the Bulldogs getting a 34-yard Visintainer field goal on their opening possession.
The next time Fresno State had the ball, it resulted in the beginning of the Dwayne Wright Show. On the first play, the sophomore transfer from West Hills (Coalinga, Calif.) Junior College streaked 66 yards to the La Tech 7. Wright's number was called the very next play, and he responded by kicking a run outside and running into the end zone untouched to give the Bulldogs a lead they would never relinquish.
Visintainer added field goals of 31 and 30 yards to finish of the Fresno State scoring.
"Sometimes when you get into a game like this you have to pound and pound and pound to soften things up," said Fresno State head coach Pat Hill. "In the second half we took over the game. We just pushed the ball right at them. I thought we reduced the game to put in kids in a position to win the game."
Wright's big evening was nothing new for a Bulldog running back against Louisiana Tech. In 2001, Paris Gaines rushed for 203 yards in a 38-28 Fresno State win. Last year in Ruston, La., starting RB Rodney Davis had a career night, rumbling for 221 yards in leading the Bulldogs to an easy 45-13 victory.
Wright, second on the depth chart, saw most of the playing time in the last three quarters. Davis set the Fresno State single-season rushing record last year with 1,586 yards, but has struggled this season. He finished with just 49 yards Saturday.
Louisiana Tech's Luke McCown, averaging 316 passing yards, completed 21 of 33 passes for a season-low 165 yards. He threw one interception.
