Derek Carr’s late game poise powered Fresno State to win
By Peter Smith
One of the two teams that have an eye on being a BCS buster this year is Fresno State. Two of the big reasons they are viable as a candidate are their quarterback Derek Carr and wide receiver Davante Adams, both of which are potential big time NFL Draft prospects. This past Saturday with an extra week to prepare, the San Diego State Aztecs were able to come up with a game plan that really managed to stifle both of them for a large amount of the game. The Bulldogs were able to win in overtime, which was their second overtime win of the season and their third game that came down to the wire this season. They won in overtime against Rutgers in a shootout and beat Boise State in a 41-40 game that came down to the wire.
The Aztecs were 3-3 coming into the game and were certainly not a bad team, but were not the team that was expected to really push Fresno State the way they have been playing. Their coaching staff came up with a fantastic game plan to get a ton of pressure on Carr and frustrate Adams early in the game. Their players did a great job executing it and were able to make the lives of those two players miserable for a little over a half of football. Normally an explosive offense, Fresno State had just 7 points through most of the third quarter. The Bulldogs simply could not get anything going.
The team covering the game kept noting how Carr just never seemed to be bothered by the struggles on offense. This proved to be important as Carr’s poise is what enabled the Bulldogs to break through and score points toward the end of the third quarter and then in the fourth quarter. He was able to keep working and keep trying to find plays to be made until they finally broke through and he and Adams were able to get going and make plays. The result was they were able to connect 12 times for 87 yards and two touchdowns.
Carr did not play well in the first half. He had a lot of problems getting anything going and some of that was due to the defense San Diego State was playing and some of it was just Carr struggling. He was able to get through it, find plays to be made and get the offense going enough to score 21 points from the late third quarter to the fourth quarter. The game went to overtime and the Bulldogs were able to score a touchdown and win the game. The 35/57 for 298 yards and two touchdowns does not great, but Carr did find a way to produce enough offense to win and he avoided turnovers. Fresno State’s undefeated dream continues but they have to turn around and prepare to take on Nevada at home.