How did 4-1 Fresno State football spend its bye week?

Head coach Matt Entz held “Bulldog Week.”

“I didn’t want anyone to come into this room thinking that we were just off that week. And so we called it Bulldog Week. We were emphasizing us. We were the priority that week,” Entz said. “It’s an opportunity for us to clean some things up, continue to get better and focus on our football team, because that’s the one that’s going to beat us the quickest.”

Entz said the bye week allowed coaches to evaluate personnel, make corrections, and get players healthy. Backups also received more practice reps, and Entz cited several who had good weeks.

Scouting Nevada

Fresno State’s next opponent features a dual-threat quarterback. Nevada’s Chubba Purdy — his given name is Preston, achieving the childhood nickname because of his size as a baby. He is the  brother of San Francisco 49ers’ QB Brock Purdy, and he leads the Wolf Pack with 276 rushing yards and two touchdowns.

“He can hurt you both with his legs — with a designed quarterback run game — but also with his arm,” Entz said. “If you’re not real careful in the pocket, he can take off and scramble.”

Entz also called Nevada’s defensive line one of the best the Bulldogs have faced this season.

Dylan Labarbera leads Nevada with three sacks, and seven tackles for loss.

“Our skilled kids are going to have to be really locked into what it looks like pre-snap,” Entz said.

Jeff Choate is in his second season coaching at Nevada. He is familiar with Entz. Choate coached at Montana State from 2016 through 2020. Entz, coaching at North Dakota State, defeated Choate in the FCS playoffs in 2019.

This is the last scheduled game against Nevada. Fresno State joins the Pac-12 Conference next season, while the Wolf Pack remain in the Mountain West. They are not on each other’s non-conference schedule in the future.

The Bulldogs lead the all-time series 33-22-1, including last season’s 24-21 win in Reno.

Entz Coy on Walton Injury

Freshman left tackle Brayden Walton left the Hawai‘i game with an apparent leg injury, but Entz was vague about his status.

“He’s not necessarily practicing, but moving around a little bit. We’ll keep our fingers crossed,” Entz said.

Pressed for more details, Entz would only say, “He’s up on his feet right now, so we’re hoping to get him back.”

Walton was seen at practice Tuesday wearing a long brace on his right leg.

Mountain West teams are now required to report player availability two days before conference games — in this case, Thursday afternoon.