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Oregon Daily Emerald
Justin Kase Conder | Courtesy
Fresno State's Bryson Sumlin is coming off a season-ending knee injury he sustained one year ago. Sumlin, who rushed for more than
1,000 yards in 2003, gained 68 yards on 12 carries against Weber State last week.
Ducks focused
on containing
Bulldog backs
Fresno State is seeking its
11 th victory in five years
over a BCS-caliber school
BY SHAWN MILLER
SPORTS EDITOR
Their resume is long and distin
guished. They command more re
spect than any other non-BCS school.
And they have 29 wins since 2001,
sixth-best in the nation. But don’t tell
them that.
The Fresno State Bulldogs, the odds
on favorite to win the Western Athletic
Conference, have a chip on their col
lective shoulder and if Oregon isn’t
prepared, the Ducks will become the
next in a long list of Bulldog victories
over major conference opponents.
Oregon head coach Mike Bellotti,
who has guided the Ducks to three
consecutive wins over the Bulldogs,
knows the challenge that a Fresno
State team brings.
“The type of young men they bring
in there are tough, physical and feel
as if they have something to prove,”
Bellotti said.
That attitude has enabled the Bull
dogs to 10 wins over BCS schools since
2001, the most of any non-BCS school.
“This is a physical football team that
plays well, that knows how to win,
that prides itself on going into other
people’s houses and winning games,”
Bellotti said. “We have to make sure
that we are not a very good host.”
The Ducks, who are in the middle
of a three-game home stand, are fo
cused on shutting down the run.
While Fresno State works through a
“traditional” offense, the Bulldogs
aren’t afraid to run the ball. Running
backs Bryson Sumlin and Dwayne
Wright have each rushed for more
than 1,000 yards in a season each,
while Wendell Mathis was only five
Oregon's
Haloti Ngata
(96) and
Darius
Sanders force
Montana
quarterback
Jason
Washington
to throw the
ball away in
the end zone.
Ngata was
credited with
the sack and
the Ducks
scored two
points after
intentional
grounding
was called in
the endzone.
Jonah Schrogin | Designer
yards short of 1,000 on the ground.
“They are content to run the ball
eight or 10 or 11 times in a row,” Bel
lotti said. “It has been very efficient,
very effective and they are putting up
a lot of points.”
Sumlin rushed for 1,104 yards and
13 touchdowns last season, while
Wright racked up 1,038 in 2003 before
a season-ending knee injury sidelined
him last year. Mathis, a transfer from
UCLA, scored 12 touchdowns and led
the WAC with a 6.9 yards per rush av
erage last season.
“I think we have one of the best
groups of running backs in Fresno
State history,” head coach Pat Hill
said. “As a group, we have a lot of
speed and power and I think we have
some toughness. Running the foot
ball will be important for our success
and we have some guys who can
really carry the load. ”
Thrown into the backfield at times
is Clifton Smith, who returned two
punts for touchdowns during a 55-17
victory over Weber State last week.
Mathis rushed for three touch
downs, while quarterback Paul Pine
gar was 14 of 18 for 189 yards and
two touchdowns.
PREVIEW, page 11
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