Fresno State head football coach Tim Skipper got right to the point Monday after the Bulldogs’ season-opening loss at defending national champion Michigan.

There are no moral victories. Winning is the name of the game.

“We played well, we had good moments, but we have a standard here, and the standard is to win the game, and we didn’t do that. We are a 0-1 football team right now, and we need the win this Saturday,” Skipper told GV Wire.

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So, for the Bulldogs the focus in on meeting that standard in the home opener against Sacramento State this Saturday at Valley Children’s Stadium at 7 p.m. They say they’re not overlooking the Hornets just because they’re an FCS opponent. Winning will require that the offense improve while the defense continues the momentum gained against the Wolverines.

“With the offense, it’s a totally different challenge and defensive scheme that we’ll play against. We’ll do some things to help us open up and get more balance to play more up tempo, and we’ll see what we can do,” said Skipper. “The defense is going to have their hands full as far as space goes on Saturday. Sacramento State is going to spread us out, they’ll try to get us in one-on-one matchups, and we have to win those, and we’ll be fine.”

The Hornets flashed some of their offensive capability in their season opener at San Jose State. They led 14-7 after the first quarter before falling, 42-24, to the Bulldogs’ Mountain West rival.

The Bulldogs  have a historical advantage over the Hornets. This is their fifth meeting with Sac State and they’ve won all four previous meetings outscoring them 113-33 in the series.

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Defense Looks to Build on Strong Performance

Bulldogs defensive coordinator Kevin Coyle’s unit put up an impressive performance against Michigan by limiting the Wolverines to just 269 yards (148 rushing, 121 passing) and two touchdowns. Senior safety Camryn Bracha led the team with 10 tackles.

Senior cornerback Cam Lockridge got an interception, his 10th career takeaway and seventh as a Bulldog. He made quite an impression in his long-awaited return to the field due to an injury back in September 2023.

The front seven showed up against a Wolverine offensive line that was inexperienced with most of them starting for the first time. Coyle liked the statement his group made in front of a national television audience but the tone they set will be something they’ll have to be consistent with throughout the season.

“I think it was a positive for us. Consistency is a sign of a really good team. What we do this week will be as important what we did against Michigan,” said Coyle. “We set a standard in one game, but you’re measured by the season not a game. Being as consistent as possible is the answer, and we’re going to challenge our players hard this week to play better than we did last week.”

Bracha said he thought the Bulldogs could have beaten Michigan and, in fact, they trailed by only six points midway through the fourth quarter.

“That’s the standard, we believe we can go into any game and win. We felt we should’ve won that game against Michigan. We played well and its good to build upon and we’re looking to put a number in the win category this week.”

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Offense Seeks Improvement After Tough Opener

The Hornets are no slouch. They led at halftime against the San Jose State Spartans in the season opener before surrendering 28 points, including three touchdowns in the final quarter.

“They’re going to put us in space. They’ll stretch us a lot. We have to fly to the ball, attack, and be relentless every play,” said Bracha. “They’re going to take their shots, and they got nothing to lose, and they’re going to play hard. We have to take them seriously and show who we are.”

Unfortunately, the offense didn’t click in Ann Arbor the way the defense did. Junior quarterback Mikey Keene was 22 for 36 pass attempts for 235 yards for just one touchdown and two interceptions with one of them being a pick six from pre-season All-American cornerback Will Johnson. It sealed the victory and final 30-10 score.

They had their chances, but Keene wasn’t at his best and the offense line was consistently challenged by the size of the defensive line when it came to pass protection. He wasn’t given much time to throw.

The only time they really opened up the playbook was on their only touchdown scoring drive with a fake option rollout, and Keene lining up as wide receiver while backup quarterback Joshua Wood executed a draw. That led to a pass to the junior transfer from Missouri State Raylen Sharpe that ended with him in the endzone.

Offensive coordinator Pat McCann said it was the playmakers, not really the play calling, that led them to score. That can be a little concerning going forward when the playbook can be perceived as basic while leaving it up to the players to make things happen and not the effectiveness of the play calling.

Standouts on the Offense

That’s not the identity Fresno State wanted to start the season, but a standout who is making a name for himself already is sophomore wide receiver Jalen Moss. He led the team in receptions with six catches for 97 yards. He was a bright spot in a not-so-stellar offensive performance. It’s just one game but how he caught those balls while getting open against the Michigan secondary, he’s speaking through his actions that he’s a main target for Keene.

“I wanted to show that I’m more experienced, more developed, stronger, faster, and explosive and that’s the dynamic I bring to this offense,” said Moss.

Another plus was junior tight end Kamron Beachem. He may have had only two catches on the stat sheet, but his hustle for when he was in, how many times he was in the game, and his production, he displayed his potential for getting more reps to possibly being the main tight end in the offense.

Beachem said that he just wants to be a contributor, being the go-to guy would be a dream, but the important thing is that no matter where he is on the depth chart “whenever my number is called, I make the play that I can.”

Watch: Highlights of Monday News Conference

The Red Wave Will Show Support While The Bulldogs Rebound

It’s the first home game and The Red Wave will be there in full force. There’ll be an appearance from the 1961 Mercy Bowl team. The game will be broadcast locally on CBS 47.

“We need to run off the ball. Be aggressive. Make the game easier on the quarterback. Have the defense react to us. As long as we dominate the field, we’ll put up some numbers and show how explosive we are,” said Moss.