this is what i'm talkin about when i say it's gonna rain in here:0002 (check initial post if you don't get it)
POSTED BY IE JUST A FEW MOMENTS AGO
Turnovers could be key in paradise
Fresno State is tied for third nationally in turnovers gained this season.
Its opponent in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl today, SMU, is the team the Bulldogs are tied with in that category.
Fresno State's first-year coach, Tim DeRuyter, believes turnovers will be a key against the Mustangs, as they are in deciding most football games.
"They are similar to us in that they have forced 33 takeaways," DeRuyter said at last week's news conference. "They got nine defensive touchdowns. Whoever is going to take care of the ball the best or force the most takeaways is probably going to win this football game."
That means Bulldogs senior defensive back Cristin Wilson, a St. Mary's High graduate, could play a big role in the outcome of the game at 5 p.m. today atAloha Stadium in Honolulu.
"Defensively, I feel like the coaches incorporated a scheme that fits our personnel," said Wilson, who will turn 23 on Wednesday. "We're not the biggest group, but we can run really well. With different combinations of pressures and coverages, we were able to do some good disguises and make some plays."
The Bulldogs (9-3) also have other area products on the roster: sophomore running back Darryl Cash out of Lincoln, senior defensive back Beau Fryer of Manteca, sophomore wide receiver Josh Harper, redshirt freshman quarterback Marcus McDade and senior wide receiver Gerome Surrell of St. Mary's, and sophomore inside linebacker Malique Micenheimer out of McNair.
Fresno State won the Mountain West Conference under DeRuyter, who came to the Central Valley to replace longtime coach Pat Hill after spending the previous two seasons as the defensive coordinator at Texas A&M. For Wilson, losing Hill was bittersweet. Hill accepted Wilson as a walk-on and granted him a scholarship at the end of his junior season.
Wilson said he has nothing but good things to say about Hill, but he understands the business side of college football. Bringing in a new coaching staff could have been a disastrous situation for a senior, but Wilson said the team embraced DeRuyter from the start.
"His first speech was about truth and love and that's why we're so meshed together as a team," Wilson said. "We bought into what he was talking about."
Wilson has played in every game the past two seasons (25) and made one start this year against Oregon at nickel back. Wilson led the Bulldogs with 20 tackles on special teams and had 28 tackles, including 1.5 for a loss and one sack, this season. He started seven times as a junior and was sixth on the team with 46 tackles.
Cash and McDade have played in two games this season, Harper has played in five games and has made 24 receptions for 333 yards and four touchdowns. Fryer has played in all 12 games and has made five tackles, and Micenheimer has played in 10 games and has made three tackles, including one for a loss of 3 yards
.... mmm :SIB .... i really think it may go the other way around as it can become quite a messy :shrug: game with TO's, fumbles, interceptions and penalties on both teams:SIB to slow down the scoring :scared and maybe more FG's than TD's ....
