Fresno State
Fresno State is 5-4 and No. 72 of 138 in the machine's ratings, 2.2 points below an average FBS team. Last game: lost 17-10 at Utah State in Week 10.
Week 11: at Texas State, Saturday, Nov 14: the matchup, unit by unit
Why Fresno State is No. 72
- Fresno State's rating is −2.2: the machine's estimate that Fresno State is 2.2 points worse than an average FBS team on a neutral field. That is No. 72 of 138. For scale, 0 is an average FBS team: right now the closest to it is No. 68 Arizona State (0.2).
- It started the season at −2.5, ESPN's preseason Football Power Index from July. Its results since have moved it up 0.3.
- The biggest weekly moves: +5.6 after Week 2 (W 49-3 vs Sacramento State) and −4.7 after Week 1 (L 0-39 at USC).
- Its record is 5-4. The 4 losses were to No. 19 USC, No. 34 Boise State, No. 86 Utah State, No. 100 San Diego State, by 14.0 points on average. The 5 wins came by 22.4 points on average; the best was over No. 70 Oregon State. The rating weighs how much a team won or lost by and against whom, not just the win-loss count.
- Its FBS opponents so far average No. 87 in the machine's ratings.
- Just above is No. 71 Boston College (−1.8); just below is No. 73 Maryland (−2.6).
The rating, week by week
Strengths and weak spots
Head coach
Matt Entz is in his 2nd season at Fresno State (since 2025). This season: 5-4. At Fresno State overall: 14-8, counting this season.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Team stats
Season totals and averages over 9 games, each with its national rank among 138 FBS teams (No. 1 = best). The game-by-game story is in the season, week by week.
Passing
| Completions-attempts | 160-257 |
|---|---|
| Passing yards | 1949 |
| Touchdowns-interceptions | 12-2 |
| Yards per attempt* | 7.6No. 62 of 138 |
| Explosive pass rate | 11.2%No. 51 of 138 |
| Sacks allowed (rate) | 5.2%No. 65 of 138 |
Rushing
| Carries-yards | 292-1189 |
|---|---|
| Yards per carry | 4.1No. 87 of 138 |
| 10-plus-yard runs (rate) | 12.9%No. 90 of 138 |
| Stuffed at or behind the line (rate) | 25.7%No. 137 of 138 |
Scoring
| Points per game | 26.8No. 79 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play | 5.80No. 75 of 138 |
| Third-down rate | 36.7%No. 98 of 138 |
| Red-zone TD rate | 54.5%No. 102 of 138 |
| Giveaways | 5No. 8 of 138 |
Defense
| Points allowed per game | 20.6No. 38 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play allowed | 5.69No. 85 of 138 |
| Yards per pass attempt allowed | 7.1No. 67 of 138 |
| Yards per carry allowed | 4.4No. 91 of 138 |
| Sack rate | 6.1%No. 59 of 138 |
| Takeaways | 14No. 28 of 138 |
| Third-down rate allowed | 35.8%No. 48 of 138 |
Totals are the official box score. * Yards per attempt and the rates come from the play-by-play, where passing yards count on completions only, so they can differ from the box score by a play or two.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Player leaders
The top 3 in each category over the same games. Passing yards count every completion (official box score).
Passing
- Jayden Mandal156-251, 1857 yds, 11 TD, 2 INT
Rushing
- Bryson Donelson87 carries, 422 yds, 6 TD
- Rayshon Luke68 carries, 374 yds, 1 TD
- Julius Gillick41 carries, 165 yds, 4 TD
Receiving
- Josiah Freeman45 catches, 626 yds, 4 TD
- Ezekiel Avit25 catches, 402 yds, 5 TD
- Jahlil McClain22 catches, 261 yds, 1 TD
Tackles
- K'Vion Thunderbird68
- Gerayas Grimes42
- Tytus Khajavi42
Sacks
- Dylan Hampsten5
- Deijon Laffitte2
- Martin Owusu2
Interceptions
- Simeon Harris3
- Ethan Tierney2
- Justin Johnson1
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Who's playing
Based on who has actually played this season, from the box scores, not the team's published depth chart. Each bar is that player's share of the team's attempts, carries (quarterbacks left out), catches or tackles. The box score lists no positions, so there is no offensive line here.
Throwing
- Jayden MandalMost passes in the last game9 games251 attempts98%
Carrying
- Bryson Donelson9 games87 carries41%
- Rayshon Luke8 games68 carries32%
- Julius Gillick9 games41 carries19%
Catching
- Josiah Freeman8 games45 catches28%
- Ezekiel Avit9 games25 catches16%
- Jahlil McClain8 games22 catches14%
- Rayshon Luke7 games17 catches11%
Tackling
- K'Vion Thunderbird9 games68 tackles11%
- Gerayas Grimes9 games42 tackles7%
- Tytus Khajavi9 games42 tackles7%
- Dylan Hampsten9 games40 tackles6%
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
The season, week by week
- Week 1 L 0–39 at USC. The pass defense gave ground: USC got 13.8 yards an attempt, 5.8 over what it usually gains. Its fewest yards an attempt of the season.
- Week 2 W 49–3 vs Sacramento State. The passing game was the strength: 11.7 yards an attempt, 4.4 more than Sacramento State usually allows.
- Week 3 W 26–10 at San José State. The pass defense was the strength: San José State got 6.4 yards an attempt, 1.2 under what it usually gains. Won the turnover battle by 4.
- Week 4 W 38–24 vs Rice. The run game was the strength: 7.3 yards a carry, 2.9 more than Rice usually allows. Won the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 5 W 26–6 at Washington State. The run defense was the strength: Washington State got 1.2 yards a carry, 2.0 under what it usually gains. The defense had 5 sacks.
- Week 6 L 31–38 vs Boise State. The pass defense was the strength: Boise State got 7.0 yards an attempt, 1.9 under what it usually gains.
- Week 7 L 23–26 at San Diego State. The passing game struggled: 5.8 yards an attempt, 3.2 less than San Diego State usually allows. The machine had Fresno State by 5.2 (62%), so this was a loss it did not see coming.
- Week 9 W 38–22 vs Oregon State. The passing game was the strength: 11.7 yards an attempt, 5.1 more than Oregon State usually allows. The machine had Oregon State by 3.0 (57%), so this was a win it did not see coming.
- Week 10 L 10–17 at Utah State. The run game struggled: 0.6 yards a carry, 3.4 less than Utah State usually allows. The machine had Fresno State by 1.3 (53%), so this was a loss it did not see coming.