Tulsa - Fresno State Game Preview
9/23/2016 6:39:00 PM | Football
| Game 4: Tulsa (2-1) vs. Fresno State (1-2) | |
|---|---|
| Date/Time: | Saturday, Sept. 24/ 1:30 p.m. (PT)/ 3:30 p.m. (CT) |
| Site: | Fresno, California |
| Stadium: | Bulldog Stadium (41,031) |
| Coaches: | Tulsa – Philip Montgomery (Tarleton State '95), 2nd year Fresno State – Tim DeRuyter (Air Force '85) 5th year |
| TV: | Mountain West Network |
| Talent: | Ari Wolfe (pxp), Darius Walker (analyst) |
| Radio: | Big Country 99.5 FM |
| Talent: | Bruce Howard (pxp), Rick Couri (analyst), Jeremie Poplin (sidelines) |
| Live Stats: | Live Stats |
| Series: | Seventh Meeting |
| First Meeting: | Oct. 30, 1999 (FSU won 28-14 @ Tulsa, Okla.) |
| Last Meeting: | Sept. 22, 2012 (Tulsa won 27-27 @ Tulsa, Okla.) |
| Game Notes: | Tulsa | Fresno State | American Conference |
Tulsa goes on the road to face a former conference rival this Saturday as the Golden Hurricane plays the Fresno State Bulldogs in a 1:30 p.m. pacific-time game.
The two teams were members of the Western Athletic Conference together from 1996-2004. The last two meetings, both Tulsa wins, were as non-conference opponents. The last meeting came in the 2012 season as Tulsa claimed a 27-26 victory at H.A. Chapman Stadium.
Tulsa has an overall 2-1 record, both wins at home, while Fresno State has a 1-2 mark with the losses coming on the road at Nebraska and Toledo, both now opponents 3-0 on the season. Fresno State is the second Mountain West Conference opponent that Tulsa will have faced this year, as the Hurricane opened the season with a 45-10 home win over San Jose State.
Fresno State has put up 334.0 yards of total offense, including 240 yards through the air while the Bulldogs running game has been limited to 94.0 yards. Third down has been the Achilles heel for the Bulldogs, as last week against Toledo, FS went 0-of-13 on third down situations. The Fresno State offense returns just two seniors and starts a red-shirt freshman quarterback in the likes of Texas native Chason Virgil, who has completed 53-percent of his passes with five TD passes.
"Offensively, Fresno State is very multiple in what they do. Chason Virgil is a kid I have known from Texas and I've seen in camp and been around. He's a dual-threat quarterback and a guy who can really throw it, but he can hurt you with his feet as well. We've got to do a good job of keeping him under wraps and not letting the receivers kind of get out and way from us, limiting those big plays and shutting down the run like we've done each and every week," said Tulsa Head Coach Philip Montgomery.
A trio of receivers –– KeeSean Johnson, Aaron Peck and Jamire Jordan –– have combined for 47 receptions, 631 yards and have been on the receiving end of all five of Virgil's touchdown throws.
Junior Dontel James leads the Bulldog running attack with 181 yards for a 3.5 average per carry, while the offensive front is made up of one senior, two juniors and two sophomores.
Through three games, the Tulsa defensive unit has held its opponents to 26.3 points and 357 yards per game, while forcing six turnovers that have resulted in 35 points. The Hurricane has returned two interceptions for touchdowns, while two blocked punts have also led to Tulsa touchdowns.
Senior linebackers Trent Martin and Matt Linscott lead the Tulsa defense with 23 and 20 tackles, respectively, while fellow linebacker Craig Suits has 17 tackles. The Tulsa defensive line has used 10 players so far this season. Tackles Jerry Uwaezuoke and Hayden Carman and ends Jeremy Smith and Jesse Brubaker will be the starters up front for the Hurricane.
The secondary is led by senior safety Jeremy Brady, who is third on the team with 18 stops, while Jordan Mitchell, as a starter, and McKinley Whitfield, who has two blocked punts and one interception, anchor the safety position. Starting cornerbacks Kerwin Thomas and Keanu Hill have combined fort 17 tackles and three pass breakups.
"Coach DeRuyter always does a great job schematically defensively. His teams give you a lot of different looks, a lot of different fronts, a lot of different coverages. You've got to be ready for the whole hat trick when you face a guy like DeRuyter and his defense. They've got some big guys up front, some guys that can really run in the back end of it, so we've got our hands full there," said Montgomery.
The Bulldog defense is led by safeties Stratton Brown and DeShawn Potts, as the duo have totaled 18 and 17 tackles, respectively, while combining for three pass breakups. Fresno State has a trio of linebackers –– Jeff Camilli, Brandon Hughes and James Bailey –– who have been active, totaling 46 tackles.
FSU's three-man defensive front averages 290 pounds, while nose guard Malik Forrester, at 6'1", 320-pounds, is a force in the middle. Tackle Kyle Hendrickson also returns from injury to the Bulldogs defensive line.
The Hurricane offense has been fairly balanced through the first three games with 230 yards through the air and 167 yards on the ground, while averaging 35 points. Tulsa is coming off of a 58-point performance last week that saw one defensive touchdown and two blocked punts that gave the offense great field position for scores.
Running back D'Angelo Brewer has led the Tulsa running attack with 94.0 yards per game and a 5.5 average per carry, while senior James Flanders has gained 157 yards on the ground and has two TDs on the year. Brewer picked up 164 yards and scored three touchdowns, both career highs, in the season opener.
The schools' fourth-leading passer of all-time, senior Dane Evans, averages 202 yards per game and has four touchdowns. Leading the receiving corps in senior Keevan Lucas, who has a team-leading 16 receptions for 284 yards and three touchdowns, as all of his TDs came last week on just four receptions. Fellow receivers Justin Hobbs and Josh Atkinson have totaled over 100 yards through three games. Hobbs has caught 13 passes for 177 yards, while Atkinson has 132 yards on 11 catches.
Guard Blake Belcher and tackle Evan Plagg, prep teammates at Guthrie (Okla.) High School, anchor the offensive front.
Follow the Golden Hurricane throughout the season at www.TulsaHurricane.com.
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