WSU to meet Fresno State in rematch of ’22 LA Bowl

Jake Dickert’s first year as Washington State’s full-time coach ended with a 29-6 defeat to the Mountain West’s Fresno State Bulldogs in the Jimmy Kimmel L.A. Bowl in December 2022.

Nearly 22 months later, he gets a rematch, in the first regular-season meeting between Fresno State and WSU in 30 years.

There is also some regional spice to this matchup.

Fresno State (3-2) is one of six new Pac-12 schools joining WSU (4-1) in 2026.

A couple current Cougs were also recruited by FSU. Left tackle Esa Pole and wide receiver Kyle Williams had offers from the school. But these days, they’re not the biggest fans of the Bulldogs.

“Fresno State, they did offer me,” Pole said. “I think they’re a good program (but) honestly I don’t really like them.”

Williams shared his sentiments.

“No, I don’t like them,” he said. “I don’t like them boys.”

Winning after the bye week

Because of the nature of college football, both programs have changed their last meeting. Fresno State’s former coach Jeff Tedford stepped down due to health concerns leaving former Fresno State linebacker and assistant coach Tim Skipper to take the reigns as interim head coach.

Skipper has guided the Bulldogs to a 3-2 start during a stretch that included a season-opening contest against reigning national champions — a 30-10 loss to then-No. 9 Michigan.

Dickert, in Year 3 as the Cougars’ head coach, has the chance to redefine his reputation as a coach that can finish games and seasons, rather than collapsing. Last year, WSU suffered a six-game losing streak after a 4-0 start.

Dickert said this year’s team is built a little different than last year’s team, which lost seven of its last eight games.

“I just think this team has maybe a touch more urgency and focus to what they want to do,” Dickert said.

Defending the passing attack

The Bulldogs are led by junior quarterback Mikey Keene, a Central Flordia transfer who has completed 111-of-167 passes (66.5%) for 1,356 yards. His passing yards rank No. 31 in the Football Bowl Subdivision.

Keene is a pocket passer, having minus-71 rushing yards, mostly on the nine sacks that he has taken all season.

Mac Dalena has the 20th-most receiving yards in the country at 501 yards. The senior hometown kid from Fresno, Calif., has lit up his backyard with just 22 catches, averaging 22.8 yards per catch — the 15th best in the FBS.

The Bulldogs boast the 26th-best passing offense in the nation at 362.2 yards per game.

“It’s not easy to go to the valley and get a win,” Dickert said. “It’s gonna be warm. Their fans are gonna be rowdy. Offensively, very exciting brand of football. They throw it around.”

Dickert said the Fresno State offense has elements of their former coach Kalen Deboer, who led the program for two seasons before accepting the same position at Washington and then taking the reigns at Alabama.

WSU has allowed teams to gain 292.4 yards per game — the sixth worst in the FBS.

Senior cornerback Steve Hall has dominated for the Cougs and he will be joined by fellow cornerback Jamori Colson, making his 2024 debut after sitting out the first five games with an injury.

Wide receiver Carlos Hernandez will also be back for the Cougs, setting up as another high-flying target for WSU quarterback John Mateer.

Scouting Fresno State

Fresno State opened its season by testing now-No. 24 Michigan in a game the Wolverines ran away with in the final minutes.

They rattled off three straight wins, beating Sacramento State, New Mexico State and New Mexico before losing to UNLV, fresh off the Rebels’ quarterback leaving the team because of name, image and likeness disagreements.

“You gotta make sure you take out their last performance,” Dickert said. “For whatever reason, they ran into a buzzsaw with UNLV. I think UNLV was fired up about all the press. They came out there, and I guarantee you, Fresno is gonna be just like we are — coming into that game with a bad taste in your mouth, ready to perform.”

The Bulldogs played three of their five games on the road, while WSU has taken just two road trips, one to a neutral field Lumen Field in Seattle, which functioned like a road environment with over half the stadium decked in Husky purple, while their last game — a 45-24 loss to now-No. 17 Boise State — was their first true road game and the largest crowd in Albertsons Stadium history. The previous high in Boise was a 2022 game versus Fresno State.

The Bulldogs defense is led by senior linebacker Tuasivi Nomura, who has 45 tackles, and Korey Foreman, who has two sacks and two forced fumbles.

The Bulldogs have allowed 28 points per game, while WSU has allowed 32.4 points per game.

The Cougs’ lone loss was to Boise State and Heisman front-runner Ashton Jeanty, who totaled over 250 yards and four touchdowns versus the Cougs.

Wazzu has missed the most tackles in the nation through five games — and was second in the nation in missed tackles before facing Jeanty.

Both the Cougs and the Bulldogs have failed to sack the quarterback consistently with Wazzu having five sacks on the season and Fresno State having six.

The Bulldogs and Cougs will be well-positioned to air it out, while the team that protects its quarterback the most may emerge victorious.

WSU is a 3.5-point favorite in most sportsbooks, but as a top dog in the new Pac-12, Wazzu is a prime target for the Bulldogs.

Extra points

WSU’s all-time record versus Fresno State is 3-2 with their last meeting a 29-6 Fresno State win in the 2022 LA Bowl at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif.

WSU will cement a starting five along the offensive line on Saturday. Last year’s 12-game starter at right tackle Fa’alili Fa’amoe is back, leaving the Cougs to sort out the left guard position between their three-year starter Christian Hilborn or Rod Tialavea. Both started the first five games of the year, with Hilborn at RT and Tialavea at LG.

The basics

What: WSU (4-1) at Fresno State (3-2)

Where: Valley Children’s Stadium in Fresno, Calif.

When: 4 p.m. Saturday

TV: FS1

Radio: Radio: KHTR-FM (104.3/103.9), KCLX-AM (1450)

Taylor can be reached at 208-848-2268, staylor@lmtribune.com or on X (formerly Twitter) @Sam_C_Taylor.