Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State Prepares For Liberty Bowl Matchup With Tulsa
12/22/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
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Dec. 22, 2005
47th Annual AutoZone Liberty Bowl
Fresno State (8-4, 6-2) vs. Tulsa (8-4, 6-2)
Date: Saturday, Dec. 31
Kickoff: 10 a.m. PT
Site: Liberty Bowl Stadium (62,000); Memphis, Tennessee
Radio: KMJ (AM 580); Dog Talk at 8 a.m.; Countdown to Kickoff (9:30 a.m.)
Play-by-Play: Bill Woodward; Analyst: Mark Barsotti; Sideline: Ron Shapley
KOQO (Super Q FM) in Spanish
Play-by-Play: Jess Gonzales; Analyst: Guirllmo Prince
Television: ESPN
Play-by-Play: Gary Bender; Analysts: Bill Curry; Sideline: Dave Ryan
Dogs Going to AutoZone Liberty Bowl
Fresno State accepted an invitation to play in the 47th Annual AutoZone Liberty Bowl on Dec. 31 at 10 a.m. PT in Memphis. The Bulldogs will play Conference USA champion Tulsa, which defeated Central Florida 44-27 in the first ever C-USA Championship Game. The game will be shown live on ESPN. It's the middle of three bowl games that day. It's Fresno State's seventh consecutive bowl appearance and the first in school history in which the Dogs will play east of the Mississippi River.
About Tulsa
Tulsa is making its second bowl appearance in three years under head coach Steve Kragethorpe, who guided the Golden Hurricane to the C-USA title in their first year in the league. Tulsa's marquee player is All-America tight end Garrett Mills, who set an NCAA record with 1,183 receiving yards this season on 83 receptions, most by a tight end in a single season. After two losses to Minnesota and Oklahoma to open the season, the Golden Hurricane finished the season strong winning eight of their last 10 games, including a convincing 44-27 win over Central Florida in the C-USA title game.
Series History
Fresno State and Tulsa were members of the Western Athletic Conference from 1996 until this year when the Golden Hurricane joined Conference USA. In that time, the teams played just four times, all won by the Bulldogs. Tulsa and Fresno State met four consecutive years from 1999 until 2002. Due to scheduling changes, the Dogs and Golden Hurricane did not play each other from 2003 or 2004, Tulsa's final two seasons in the WAC. The last meeting was Nov. 9, 2002, a 31-12 Fresno State win in Bulldog Stadium.
C-USA First
When Fresno State plays Conference USA Champion Tulsa in the 47th Annual AutoZone Liberty Bowl, it will be the first game for the Dogs against a team from Conference USA.
McIntyre Leads All-WAC Selections
Fresno State had eight players selected to the All-WAC first-team, led by defensive end Garrett McIntyre, who was selected the WAC Defensive Player of the Year, while earning his second straight first-team All-WAC honor. Joining McIntyre on the defense was senior safety Tyrone Culver. Five Dogs earned first-team honors on offense (WR Paul Williams, QB Paul Pinegar, OT Dartangon Shack, C Kyle Young and RB Wendell Mathis). Senior Adam Jennings was selected as the first-team All-WAC return specialist.
Conference Champion Bowl Opponent
This marks the first time since 1991 the Bulldogs are playing a conference champion in a bowl game. Fresno State lost to MAC champion Bowling Green in the 1991 Cal Bowl 28-21. Tulsa, a former WAC member, won Conference USA in its first season in that league.
47th Annual AutoZone Liberty Bowl
This will be Fresno State's 19 bowl appearance, seventh in row and the schools' 13th since the 1982 season ... this is the first meeting between the Bulldogs and Golden Hurricane since the 2002 season ... Fresno State is 4-0 all-time vs. Tulsa and outscored the Golden Hurricane by a combined 130-56 ... the Dogs have never played a Conference USA opponent ... this is Fresno State's second game in the state of Tennessee, having played at the University of Tennessee in 2003 ... this is the first appearance in Memphis for any Bulldog team since the men's basketball competed in the 2001 NCAA tournament played in the Pyramid. Fresno State defeated Cal in the first round and lost to Michigan State, an eventual Final Four team, in the second round ... Fresno State is 3-3 in bowl games under Pat Hill with three straight wins over Georgia Tech, UCLA and Virginia ... sixteen Bulldog seniors will be playing their final game after guiding the Dogs to four straight bowl games ... Tulsa has won six of its last seven games, with the only loss coming Nov. 5 to UTEP 41-38.. .Tulsa's last bowl win was in the 1991 Freedom Bowl over San Diego State 28-17.
Gunning for 10,000
With one game remaining, quarterback Paul Pinegar can reach the 10,000 career passing yardage mark. Pinegar has 9,923 yards in his career and needs 77 yards in the Liberty Bowl to accomplish the feat. Should he make it, Fresno State would become one of four schools in NCAA history to produce two 10,000-yard passers. Kevin Sweeney was the other Bulldog. The other teams to do that are La Tech (Luke McCown and Tim Rattay), USC (Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart) and Marshall (Bryon Leftwich and Chad Pennington). Only four WAC quarterbacks have thrown for 10,000 yards in their careers: Timmy Chang, Hawaii (17,072); Ty Detmer, BYU (15,031): Todd Santos, SDSU (11,425); and McCown (10,122). Chang and Detmer rank 1-2 in NCAA history for career passing yards.
Fresno State's Bowl History
Fresno State is 10-8 all-time in bowl games, including victories in four in a row from 1982-89. The Bulldogs' win over UCLA marked the first time in school history the Bulldogs won bowl games in consecutive years.
USC Revisited
Despite five turnovers, the Bulldogs had a chance to on their final series to force overtime against the No. 1 ranked and two-time defending champion USC Trojans at the Coliseum. USC won 50-42, by the Bulldog offense had 427 totals yards, and built a halftime lead of 21-13 and held a 42-41 lead with nearly six minutes remaining in the game. It was the most points the Trojans allowed in the Coliseum since the first game of the 1976 season. Paul Pinegar threw for 317 yards and four touchdowns and Wendell Mathis had his fifth straight 100-yard rushing game for Dogs. Mathis surpassed the 1,000-yard mark for the season. Over 90,000 fans attended the game, with an estimated 20,000 traveling from the Valley to support the Bulldogs.
Dogs in December
December has been a great month for the Bulldogs, who have won four of their last five games in the month. Some of Fresno State's most historic wins in school history have happened in December, including bowl wins over No. 18 Virginia, UCLA, Georgia Tech and USC.
Defensive Dogs
For the second straight year, the Bulldog defense is the class of the WAC. Fresno State's defense ranks 26th in the NCAA in scoring average (20.1 ppg). Fresno State is 32nd nationally in total defense, allowing 340.0 yards per game. Fresno State is 18th in the NCAA with 35 quarterback sacks.
Who's Conservative?
For an offense that has been described by some as "conservative", the Bulldogs are averaging 38.9 points per game this season, good for fifth amongst NCAA teams. Last season, Fresno State averaged 40.2 points per game, and in 2001, the Bulldogs averaged 40.0 points per game, setting a single season school record with 560 points.
Anyone, Anytime, Anywhere...Literally
Under Pat Hill's tenure, Fresno State has taken this motto to new heights, especially "where" the Bulldog will play their games. Since Hill became head coach and beefed-up the Bulldog non-conference schedule, they haven't dodged anyone. In most cases, the Bulldogs have to hit the road to play BCS conference schools. Of the Bulldogs' 29 non-conference games under Hill, 19 have been on the road at places like UCLA, Ohio State, Tennessee, Wisconsin, Colorado, Oklahoma, Washington, Kansas State, Oregon and No. 1 USC. Fresno State has never had more than two non-conference home games under Hill, and has twice played three non-conference road games in a season. Next season, the Bulldog host Oregon and play at Washington. Oregon's visit to Bulldog Stadium on Sept. 16 will be the first by a BCS conference opponent since the 2003 season and just the second in the last five years.
Hill Climbs Career Victory List
Pat Hill's win total with the Bulldogs stands at 72, the second-most in program history. Only Jim Sweeney, for whom Hill was an assistant from 1984-89, has more wins. The legendary Sweeney, who served as Fresno State's head coach from 1976-77 and 1980-96, had 143.
Bowling...Again
What is becoming a staple of any Pat Hill team - a strong November finish - has earned Fresno State a bowl game for a program-record seventh consecutive year. The Bulldogs current six consecutive bowl appearances is the longest streak among western U.S. schools.
Location, Location, Location
While the Bulldogs have scored a lot of points this season, their total offensive numbers are not as eye-popping. Thanks to outstanding defense and excellent special teams, the Bulldogs average drive start has been their own 41 yard line. Of Fresno State's 164 drives this season, 44 have started in opponent territory.
Third Down Thunder
The Bulldogs remain among the nation's top offense in converting third down plays. Last season the Bulldogs ranked sixth with a 49% success rate.
Best in the West This Decade
In the last five years, Fresno State has established itself as one of the best college football programs on the West Coast. The top three teams on this list are on Fresno State's schedule this year.
Pinegar Shooting for Bowl Record
Paul Pinegar is one of just seven players in NCAA history to lead a team to victory as a starting quarterback in three consecutive bowl games. No quarterback has ever won four bowl games.
Pinegar Leads WAC and Among NCAA Leaders
It has been a season to remember for senior quarterback Paul Pinegar, who not only is having a great season on the field, but experience the birth of his first child, Paul, Jr., on Nov. 3. He leads the WAC and 14th in the NCAA in pass efficiency (149.7). He broke David Carr's career touchdown record (70). Pinegar set a University of Oregon Autzen Stadium record by completing 33 passes and established a career high of 418 passing yards in the Dogs 37-34 loss to the Ducks. He threw for four touchdowns in the Bulldogs 50-42 loss at No. 1, while leading the Dogs to the highest scoring total by a USC opponent in the Coliseum since 1976. He was selected the first-team All-WAC quarterback.
