With the game nearly over, Fresno State quarterback Jayden Mandal leaned back on the sideline and took a deep breath.

It was not the Bulldogs quarterback’s night.

Another slow start.

Not a productive performance, either, from the entire Bulldogs team.

And when the pressure was on, with Fresno State needing to move about 50 yards in less than a minute to get into field-goal range, Mandal and the Bulldogs could not rise to the occasion.

Instead, Fresno State stumbled some more, and San Diego State held on for a 26-23 victory Saturday night before an announced crowd of 21,847 at Snapdragon Stadium.

“They deserve more,” Fresno State coach Matt Entz told reporters after the game. “We’re a better team than I’ve seen.”

First-Quarter Struggles

Fresno State (4-3, 1-2), coming off a 38-31 loss to Boise State last week, has now suffered two straight defeats, further diminishing its chances of competing for a Pac-12 title.

The Bulldogs once again failed to score in the first quarter.

A week after scoring a season-best 13 first-quarter points at home against Boise State, Fresno State reverted to its slow starts.

The Bulldogs generated just 33 yards, three first downs, and zero points in the opening quarter against San Diego State, falling behind 10-0.

Fresno State has now gone scoreless in the first quarter in five of seven games this season.

The Aztecs’ lead grew to 13-0 before Fresno State finally got on the scoreboard.

“I’m at a loss for words why it takes us till the second quarter to get going,” Entz said. “We have to come up with a way that we can start faster.

“We can’t get down 13-0 and anticipate it’s going to be easy to get back.”

Bulldogs Led Entering Final Quarter

Despite the slow start, Fresno State eventually took a 17-16 lead midway through the third quarter on a 7-yard touchdown run by Julius Gillick.

Fresno State held San Diego State scoreless throughout the third quarter.

And it helped the Bulldogs’ cause that Aztecs starting quarterback Jayden Denegal suffered a knee injury midway through the second quarter and never returned.

After the teams exchanged touchdowns in the fourth quarter, San Diego State’s Cooper DiLeva kicked a 53-yard field goal with 57 seconds remaining to put the Aztecs ahead 26-23.

Time for Fresno State to respond, right?

Four-and-Out on Final Drive

Instead, Mandal was sacked for a 6-yard loss on the first play of the Bulldogs’ attempted comeback drive.

He completed a 9-yard pass to Ezekiel Avit on the next play.

But Mandal threw back-to-back incompletions, ending the Bulldogs’ hopes of a late rally.

Mandal finished the night completing 13 of 25 passes for 141 yards. He threw no interceptions but also failed to record a touchdown pass. He had nine carries for minus-16 yards.

Bulldogs sophomore running back Gillick, meanwhile, finished with two rushing touchdowns and 25 yards on the ground. Fellow running back Bryson Donelson rushed for 62 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries.

As a team, Fresno State finished with 276 yards of total offense, about 80 yards below its season average.

Fresno State will have a bye week before returning to action Oct. 31, when Oregon State visits Valley Children’s Stadium.