RENO, Nevada - The Fresno State football team clinched the West Division with a 41-14 win at Nevada on Saturday night. The 2022 Mountain West Championship matchup is set, with one regular season game left to play. The Bulldogs will play at Boise State for the MW championship on Saturday, Dec. 3.
Offensively, Fresno State was led by the senior trio of quarterback Jake Haener, wide receiver Jalen Moreno-Cropper and running back Jordan Mims. Haener threw for 361 yards and two touchdowns, while adding two rushing touchdowns of his own. Moreno-Cropper had 136 yards on seven receptions, and Mims added 156 yards and one touchdown on 19 carries.
Senior defensive end David Perales shined for the defense with six tackles, 1.0 sack, 2.0 tackles for loss, one forced fumble, one interception, one broken up pass and three quarterback hurries.
How it happened
Fresno State held Nevada off the board in its first possession, and answered with a 10-play, 65-yard touchdown drive capped by a 1-yard punch in by Haener. A handful of penalties put Nevada behind the sticks, forcing them to punt on the next drive.
Haener and the offense made quick work moving down the field, as Bulldog quarterback connected with Jalen Moreno-Cropper for a 45-yard pass into Nevada territory. The 'Dogs would settle for a career-long 43-yard field goal by Dylan Lynch to increase the lead to 10-0 midway through the first.
The Bulldog defense had its first turnover of the game as David Perales hit Nevada quarterback Nate Cox for a strip sack. The ball was recovered by defensive tackle Matt Lawson, and the Bulldogs' offense took over at the Nevada 31-yard line.
Fresno State used just three plays to score again as Haener found Mac Dalena on a 22-yard completion up the middle for the score to extend Fresno State's lead to 17-0 at the end of the first quarter.
The Bulldogs had their first punt of the game early in the second quarter. The defense forced a quick three-and-out, and the Fresno State offense took over again and strung together an 11-play, 75-yard scoring drive that saw a 3-yard pass by Haener to Raymond Pauwels Jr. for the touchdown.
Fresno State had a 24-0 lead at the half.
The third quarter saw less scoring as Fresno State scored on a 35-yard field goal by Lynch. Nevada scored its first touchdown of the game with a 73-yard pass by Cox to Dalevon Campbell. Nevada would recover an onside kick to give itself another shot at an offensive drive, but Perales shut that down with his first-career interception.
Jordan Mims got in on the scoring action in the fourth quarter, breaking away for a 22-yard touchdown run. Nevada's next offensive drive was ended by an interception by LJ Early at the goal line. Mims wasted no time, getting the handoff from Haener and rushing 82 yards to set up a one yard punch-in by Haener to extend the Bulldogs' lead.
Nevada would score once again with 1:44 left in the game to make the final score 41-14 in favor of Fresno State.
Up Next
Fresno State hosts Wyoming next Friday for senior day at Valley Children's Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. and tickets are available here.