Oregon State Beavers at Fresno State Bulldogs football sneak peek: Players to watch, stats, early betting odds
Oregon State, fresh off ending a six-game season opener losing streak, looks to go 2-0 for the first time since 2014 Saturday night when the Beavers play at Fresno State at 7:30 pm
Here is a first look at the Bulldogs:
Oregon State at Fresno State
When: 7:30pm Saturday
Where: Valley Children’s Stadium, Fresno
Records: Oregon State (1-0), Fresno State (1-0)
Series history
Fresno State leads the series 8-5. The last time the teams played was 2003, when the Bulldogs won 16-14 at Fresno. The Beavers are 0-6 at Fresno.
Fresno State star power
Jake Haener: The 6-foot-1, 200-pound senior is next up in what is a stretch of facing experienced, talented quarterbacks for the Beavers. Second team all-Mountain West a year ago, Haener threw for 4,096 yards and 33 touchdowns last season. In Fresno State’s season opening win over Cal Poly, Haener was 36 of 42 for 377 yards and two touchdowns.
Jalen Cropper/Josh Kelly: The Bulldogs top two receivers of a year ago are back. In 2021, Cropper led FSU with 85 catches for 899 yards and 11 touchdowns, while Kelly had 52 receptions for 778 yards and three touchdowns.
Evan Williams: A first-team all-conference safety, Williams is Fresno State’s top returning tackler with 91 last season. Williams, who started 22 games, had five takeaways last season.
David Perales: The 6-3, 255-pound defensive end had a team-high seven sacks last season. Perales is a two-time all-MWC second-team selection.
Of note
OSU coach Jonathan Smith has experience playing at Fresno. As a senior quarterback in 2001, the Beavers fell 44-24 at Fresno State. It was the first game following OSU’s legendary Fiesta Bowl win over Notre Dame. Sports Illustrated named the Beavers as the 2001 preseason favorite, status that didn’t last long when Fresno State routed OSU in the season opener.
Point spread
Bulldogs by 1
Chance of winning (1 walkover to 5 huge upset scale): 4
Not impossible for Oregon State to win, as a rating the game a 5 might suggest, but really, really hard. OSU’s toughest road games this year are Fresno State and Utah. It can be argued Fresno State is the most difficult because of the raucous crowd, the heat and what’s probably a Top 25 opponent. When Haener decided to return to Fresno State this season, this game became decidedly more difficult. Oregon State won’t be able to get away with one solid half and beat the Bulldogs. The good news is Oregon State has played well in the second game of the season under Smith. They’re 2-2 in this spot, and the losses easily could have been wins: at Hawaii in 2019 and at Washington in 2020. But this is the toughest second game of the season of Smith’s era. Oregon State can win, and it wouldn’t even come close to being a surprise. But the Bulldogs have been a handful vs. Pac-12 opponents in recent years. And that’s as a road team. Playing at Fresno State, even tougher.
Early prediction
Fresno State 31, Oregon State 28
–Nick Daschel | [email protected] | @nickdaschel