Fresno State Athletics
DeRuyter, Bailiff Expect Highly Competitive Game
12/22/2014 12:00:00 AM | Football
Dec. 22, 2014
By Jason Clay
jaclay@csufresno.edu
GoBulldogs.com
HONOLULU - Fresno State and Rice went through its final full practices as well as the press conference on Monday out in Honolulu two days in advance of Wednesday's 2014 Hawai`i Bowl.
At the morning press conference both Fresno State head coach Tim DeRuyter and Rice head coach David Bailiff said the two teams are very similar and that they expect a highly competitive game.
Following the press conference, both teams went through its last full practices before the game. All that is left is the kickoff banquet Monday night and a walk-thru on Tuesday at Aloha Stadium.
"I like how our guys have been focused," DeRuyter said after Monday's practice. "We had a week back in Fresno where we had a normal game-week, Monday through Friday preparations, and then we came out here and were in game mode... Our guys have come out focused and gotten after it."
At the morning press conference, there was talk of the similarities between the two teams.
Bulldogs senior safety Derron Smith said "Rice reminds me of our offense last year. They're always trying to get the ball to the perimeter and into their playmakers hands," he said.
"There are a lot of similarities between what they do and what we do," DeRuyter added. "Its going to come down to execution and preparation."
Both Rice and Fresno State started its seasons off losing three-straight games, but rebounded to get bowl eligible. Of 496 teams since 1980 that have started a year out 0-3, only 21 of them have reached a bowl game making this matchup a great pairing of two teams that have overcome adversity this season.
"They are a resilient team bouncing back from a 0-3 start," DeRuyter said of Rice. "They're a bunch of smart guys that play hard and smart and don't beat themselves."
Bailiff, who has led Rice to four bowl games including one in each of the past three years, said he has been really impressed with Fresno State's defensive improvement towards the end of the year.
"As good as they've been offensively, I think the strides they have made the most have been on the defensive side of the football," Bailiff said. "They have a tremendous defensive front and they have very active guys at linebacker and in the secondary. I think that's really turned into the strength of the team by the end of the year."
After a little over two weeks to get ready for this game, the `Dogs are eager to get on the field.
"We've had some great physical practices out here, we've been preparing better than before," Smith said.
Fresno State and Rice meet in the 2014 Hawai`i Bowl on Christmas Eve in a 5 p.m. PT game televised nationally on ESPN.
"Be Bold" - The official home of the Fresno State Bulldogs is 940 AM ESPN Radio and ESPN Deportes 1600 AM.
