The Bulldogs played their final game of the season Saturday afternoon against New Mexico State in the New Mexico Bowl game. Fresno State came into the game on a three game losing streak and without their head coach Jeff Tedford who is away from the team due to medical reasons. Linebackers coach Tim Skipper was the interim Head Coach for the bowl game.
On the flip side, New Mexico State is having one of their best season in recent history and came into the game winning their last eight out of nine with their only loss coming in the Conference USA championship game. Now the Aggies looked for their second straight bowl victory and looked to make it 5-0 in their bowl game history.
Love the title of “CHAMPIONS” 😌 pic.twitter.com/xzN39DSGlg
— Fresno State Football (@FresnoStateFB) December 17, 2023
Fresno State looking to give New Mexico State its first bowl loss in school history and they would in dominating fashion. The Bulldogs got off to a strong start and never looked back as they defeated the Aggies 37-10. This is the first time the Bulldogs scored more than 20 points since, November 4th when the Bulldogs beat Boise State at home which happens to be the last time the Dogs won a game.
Thanks for leading the way, @CoachTSkip 🫡 pic.twitter.com/WPWumOERkG
— Fresno State Football (@FresnoStateFB) December 17, 2023
Keys to The Victory:
Have yourself a game Mikey Keene!!! The sophomore QB threw for a career-high 380 yards, 3 total touchdowns, two in the air and one on the ground, and completed 79% of his passes which is a Fresno State bowl game record. Keene looked like reenergized and healthy quarterback. Made a lot of accurate throws and was much smarter with his decision-making. Giving Bulldogs fans a glimpse of what version of Mikey Keene they will be seeing in 2024. But to cap off the 2023 Keene finished with a career day and was named offensive MVP.
Mikey Keene Today:
31-39
380 passing yards (career high)
3 passing touchdowns
1 rushing touchdown
79% completion percentage (Fresno State bowl game record) pic.twitter.com/Gr8sCQ7tBO
— Sidelines – FresnoState (@SSN_FresnoState) December 17, 2023
Refocused Defense:
Where was this defense in the last three weeks of the season? This group seemed much more focused looking to prove a point and man they did. The Bulldogs defense recorded four sacks and one interception. Only gave up 58 yards through the air and didn’t let the Aggies convert a single fourth down. In his last game as a Bulldog Senior Linebacker, Levelle Bailey led the way with eight tackles, four solo tackles, and one sack. Bailey was also named the New Mexico Bowl defensive MVP.
…probably want to watch out for @LevelleBailey6
📺ESPN pic.twitter.com/pp7ExVIL5w
— Fresno State Football (@FresnoStateFB) December 17, 2023
What a game Sherrod had! Doing it both on the ground and in the receiving game. Sherrod finished with 90 rushing yards on 20 carries and 81 receiving yards a career high with eight receptions, Malik was doing it all for the Bulldogs and was really big factor on third down helping keep drives alive. Sherrod finished the season 34 yards short of a thousand rushing yards but put together some great performance down the late stretch of the season, Malik is expected to return as the Bulldogs starting running back next season.
Malik Sherrod is a DOG. @MalikSherrod | 📺ESPN pic.twitter.com/pxN5Gs3HG4
— Fresno State Football (@FresnoStateFB) December 17, 2023
A much needed win for the Bulldogs after losing its last three game, losing its shot to play in the Mountain West championship and having Head Coach Jeff Tedford away from the team. The team looked much more energized and played with a lot more swag to them. Interim Head Coach Tim Skipper gets his first career win as a coach and the Bulldogs head back to the valley with the New Mexico Bowl trophy.
For Tedford!! Fresno State acting head coach Tim Skipper snagged the game ball from the final snap: “This is going to him.” #FresnoState #GoDogs @BarkBoard pic.twitter.com/kOSx7vplvF
— Jackson Moore (@JacksonMoore247) December 17, 2023
