Fresno State Athletics
Dogs Ready for Juice and Illinois
12/3/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
Dec. 3, 2009
Fresno State (7-4, 6-2 WAC) vs Illinois (3-8, 2-6 Big Ten)
Date: Saturday, Dec. 5, 2009
Kickoff: 9:31 a.m. PT
Site: Memorial Stadium (62,786); Champaign, Ill.
Radio: KMJ (AM 580); Bulldog Live (7 a.m.) Countdown to Kickoff (8:30 a.m.)
Play-by-Play: Paul Loeffler; Analyst: Jordan Christensen; Sideline: Steve Gonzalez
ESPN Deportes (1600 AM) in Spanish
Play-by-Play: Erwin Higueros; Analysts: Raul Rios and Jesse Beltran
Television: Big Ten Network
Play-by-Play: Wayne Larrivee; Analysts: Chris Martin; Sideline: Charissa Thompson
For Comcast cable viewers in Fresno, Comcast provides the Big Ten Network as part of its premium sports programming package. For information how to get the game contact Comcast 1-800-266-2278.
Game Notes for Fresno State vs. Illinois 
The Game
The Bulldogs are playing in the state of Illinois for the first time since 1990, a 73-18 loss at Northern Illinois ... the Dogs are 2-1 in games played in the state, but have never played the Fighting Illini ... Fresno State is 1-6 all-time against Big Ten teams, 0-1 this season ... the only other season when the Dogs faced two Big Ten opponents in the same year was 2001 (a win at Wisconsin 32-20 and a loss to Michigan State 44-35 in the Silicon Valley Football Classic) ... Fresno State head coach Pat Hill is in search of his 100th career win. His record is 99-65 in 13 seasons as Fresno State's head coach ... this game is the first of a two-game series with Illinois. The next game is scheduled for Dec. 4, 2010 in Fresno ... the Dogs will get three important players back in the line-up, as running back Ryan Mathews and offensive guard Andrew Jackson will start and receiver Devon Wylie, who saw limited time last week after missing three games, is at full strength ... Mathews needs 101 yards to maintain his NCAA rushing average lead over Stanford's Toby Gerhart, who completed his season last weekend. Mathews enters the game with an average of 149.1 to Gerhart's 144.67 ... this the third morning start time for the Dogs for a game this season, with a 9:30 a.m. PT kickoff time. The Dogs also played morning games at Wisconsin and Cincinnati, both 9 a.m. PT ... this is Fresno State's 11th trip to a BCS-school's venue since the 2005 season. In addition to Wisconsin and Cincinnati earlier this year, the Dogs have played at: UCLA, Rutgers, Oregon (twice), Texas A&M, Washington, LSU and USC. In the same time, the Dogs have only hosted two BCS schools (Oregon and Wisconsin).
Mathews Dominates NCAA in Rushing, Record Books Assault On
Ten games into the 2009 season, Bulldog running back Ryan Mathews continues to prove he's the nation's most exciting and explosive running back. For the ninth straight week he leads the nation in rushing at 149.1 yards per game. He leads No. 2 Toby Gerhart of Stanford (144.67) by more than five yards per game and nearly 1.5 yards more per carry. He has two of the NCAA's top 15 rushing performances this season. He's powering a Fresno State ground game that ranks seventh in the NCAA in rushing yards. He moved into third place on the Bulldog career rushing yardage list (see page three for updated list). The most impressive part is that he's done it against good competition. His career-high 234 rushing yards against No. 5 Boise State was amazing considering he alone has accounted for 16% of the entire rushing yards the Broncos have allowed this season (1,507) through 12 games. He set a school-record streak of consecutive 100-yard games with nine. He's put up these numbers despite not many fourth quarter carries. In his last six games combined, he's only had 21 carries in the final quarter, and didn't play in the fourth in either the Hawaii, New Mexico State or Nevada games. He had two carries in the fourth against San Jose State. He's the only back in the nation with 100-yard rushing performances against No. 5 Cincinnati, No. 6 Boise State and No. 14 Wisconsin. He's combined for 484 yards against those three teams, and averaged 6.4 yards per carry.
Harris Up for Campbell Award
Senior safety Moses Harris is one of 16 finalists for the National Football Foundation's William V. Campbell Awards, also known as the "Academic Heisman". As a finalist, Harris has been awarded an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship which will allow him to finish his MBA. Harris will be honored at the NFF Hall of Fame and Awards Banquest in New York City on Dec. 8 at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. Other notable finalists include: Florida quarterback Tim Tebow and Texas quarterback Colt McCoy and Illinois guard Jon Asamoah.
"We are Your Team!" The Bulldogs are finishing off their 2009 season on Saturday, December 5, when they hit the road to take on the Fighting Illini of Illinois. The game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network at 9:30am (PST) and on local radio KMJ-580 AM. Stay updated with all the latest Bulldog news on GoBulldogs.com.
